Questionable door-to-door salesman pushing educational materials

[Anonymous]

Yes! Keep opening those doors for strangers ladies!

http://m.deseretnews.com/article/700255784/Salesman-faces-attempted-murder-charge-in-Utah-County-case.html?pg=all

http://lakewood.advocatemag.com/2013/03/11/police-seeking-info-about-door-to-door-salesmen/

http://www.houstonpress.com/2008-07-17/news/what-mainstream-publishers-don-t-want-you-to-know-about-door-to-door-magazine-sales/

I can't believe any of you are seriously saying that it is a good idea to open your door to strange salesmen.

[Anonymous]

This is the company:
http://www.southwesternadvantage.com/

I know some people who worked for them. It's partially a pyramid scheme, in that in the first year you barely make enough money to cover costs, then in year 2 you recruit your friends to do it and you "manage" them and so on.

It's legit (and they do get solicitor's licenses), but I don't like the smell of it at all. From talking to one friend who did it, most sales are made just because people feel sorry for them being out there 12 hours a day. Note the company itself doesn't require this. You get paid only on what you sell, so there's a culture of working 6 days/week, 12+ hours/day.

I'm surprised this place is still around. THe books aren't cheap. The average sale is around $100 as I recall. Why wouldn't Amazon have driven them out of business?

[Anonymous]

This is a scam. They like to hire young attractive people to push this crap. I had a visit a few years back from a young russian girl. She made it sound like she was working for the school system. I was outside working in the front yard, and she pretty much pushed her way up to the porch and wanted me to let her inside. I had to be a bitch to her and tell her to get lost. A few neighbors fell for her crap and ended up purchasing a few books.

[Anonymous]

I actually opened the door to some of these salesman before and bought a hard cover set of subject area books for the kids. THE BEST PURCHASE I EVER MADE. Can you believe it. I go to them all the time. I still can't believe I fell for it and bought them, but I've never seen anything before or after like them.

[Anonymous]

I had a young woman who came by and told me (through the door) that she was selling educational material. She said she was from UCLA. I live in NW DC. I told her I wasn't interested and she went away. I am suspicious of the door-to-door during the summer, especially at night when lights are out that they are potential burglars seeing if people are home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My husband did this as a college job about 20 years ago. It sounds exactly the same. The students get assigned to a neighborhood (often hundreds of miles from home) and work 12 hour days knocking on doors trying to get people to buy educational books. He actually made money doing it but it's very tough to do so. It's commission based and unless you are pushy it's hard to get a sale.

I bought the books about 5 years ago. They came 5 weeks later. Overpriced, for sure, but legit. Last year, I didn't buy the books but paid for a year of online activities. That was fun.

People watch too much news and way over think things. Just don't answer the door if you're going to sit and stew over being potentially scammed.

Door to door sales may be going the way of dinosaurs, but they were very resl at one time and still exist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is the company:
http://www.southwesternadvantage.com/

I know some people who worked for them. It's partially a pyramid scheme, in that in the first year you barely make enough money to cover costs, then in year 2 you recruit your friends to do it and you "manage" them and so on.

It's legit (and they do get solicitor's licenses), but I don't like the smell of it at all. From talking to one friend who did it, most sales are made just because people feel sorry for them being out there 12 hours a day. Note the company itself doesn't require this. You get paid only on what you sell, so there's a culture of working 6 days/week, 12+ hours/day.

I'm surprised this place is still around. THe books aren't cheap. The average sale is around $100 as I recall. Why wouldn't Amazon have driven them out of business?

You don't like the smell of it...why? Because these kids work hard? Because sales are beneath you? The books are actually pretty high quality, if a little pricy. There is a lot of skill to be learned through cold calls--can really help in future jobs and confidence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Not afraid...just too smart and have better things to do with my time than to listen to some swindler feed me a line of bullshit. But, if that's how you like to spend your time, then you have at it.

You are obviously too important and too busy to have time for DCUM.

[Anonymous]

Unrelated to OP's question, but we had a solicitor knock on our door at 8:50pm last night. This happens often enough that I told my sitter before I left that we weren't expecting anyone and not to go to the door if anyone knocked while I was gone. It's usually a college-aged kid asking for money for some enviro group. Any idea on how to stop this?? It's almost always an attractive, Eastern European or Russian woman and always after 8pm. Freaks me out that someone is coming up to our door that late at night, not to mention that it wakes up the kids. I never ever open the door for anyone unless I'm expecting them. Too dangerous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
You don't like the smell of it...why? Because these kids work hard? Because sales are beneath you? The books are actually pretty high quality, if a little pricy. There is a lot of skill to be learned through cold calls--can really help in future jobs and confidence.

Ok, I'll bite:
- All-commission job
- Boiler room
- If the product is so good, why can't they just sell via the usual channels? Why are all other books sold via other methods, and those seem to work fine?
- Young people can be assigned territories that are not very safe
- Pyramid-scheme -- your "manager" gets a cut of your earnings.

[Anonymous]

My policy also is to never open the door, or even acknowledge someone I don't know knocking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Im in N. Arlington and had a college age guy bang on our door at 8:45pm a week or so ago. He said he was collecting for some enviro cause.

Our porch lights were off and the front door was closed and the banging woke up our baby. I don't care if it is legit, that is NOT the way to do business.

These are the kids who answer the "JOBS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT!" jobs in the back of the city paper, or however they're advertised these days.

The dirty little secret is they basically keep 55 cents on the dollar that you give them as their pay, even the legit ones. And your donation is not tax deductible because it's a 501c4 organization.

[Anonymous]

I think it should be illegal to knock on someone's door uninvited. It's not free speech when you are on my property.

[Anonymous]

This happened to us in Mt. Vernon, VA. It was on a weekend, we were all home and hanging out in the side yard. A guy cam up to the door and then saw us and come over and starting syaing how he was just talking to David (actual neighbor next door) about these great books. We told him we had plenty of books, he tried again, we told him we were not interested and to leave and he did. He was college-aged.

[Anonymous]

OP here with an update: two neighbors got a visit from this same person and called the police. His soliciting permit checked out and he was dismissed.
Not sure yet about Southwestern Advantage, but even if he is with a legit business, this certainly is a sketchy way of trying to make a buck.

Thanks for the feedback about door-to-door salesmen from the PPs.