Whither QVC?

[candycane]

I use Q for info on products & then go & source them on the web to compare prices.I hate paying the P&P on QVC but at times it is (still an expensive) option but you can return for a refund as I did recently.It is so easy to be dragged in & ordering on a whim.I ask myself if I had to go into a shop would I decide on (?) item and hand over actual cash? No guessing what the answer is!!

You're right! I often get sucked in on the easy pays and even more so on advanced orders. Then all of a sudden £80 goes out my account and I think WTF?? I like the idea that you can use and send back but I'm reeling myself in on buying as just recently I was shocked at just how much I had spent. I would never walk into a L'Occitane shop for instance and spend £30 on hand cream or soap - possibly might buy on QVC on 3 easy pays.

CC

 

[loveallthingsitalian]

At least then those of us with no interest wouldn't have to suffer the gnome and his constant manure

But they have a beauty channel and we have to endure that for 80% of airtime on the main one so in actual fact it just doubles the awfulness not reduces it!

 

[loveallthingsitalian]

The only good thing about Q is this forum as without it we would have nothing to say on here and I for one would really miss the gossip and humour.

 

[countrymaid]

I was recently telephoned by a market research company to take part in a survey (normally I put the phone down), for Q !! I did it with relish ! Of course the questions are loaded, but there were a lot of "no's" from me, ending with the likes of.... would I like to make further comments...... I did, and made plain my feelings on P & P, American fashion, the Groundhog day of TSV's on a loop etc etc and I continued in this vein for a full 5 minutes; the poor researcher then asked if I would be happy for a follow-up call because of my disgruntles, and I said "yes, bring 'em on" - I'm still waiting.

Oh how I wish they would phone me! The last market research call I had (I too normally hang up) was about local transport. As we are having a battle about this where I live I was delighted at the chance to have my say, however, the first question was "Do you live with a man?" I hung up immediately. Whether or not I do, could hardly be relevant to the survey. ****** cheek!

 

[maymorganlondon]

Oh how I wish they would phone me! The last market research call I had (I too normally hang up) was about local transport. As we are having a battle about this where I live I was delighted at the chance to have my say, however, the first question was "Do you live with a man?" I hung up immediately. Whether or not I do, could hardly be relevant to the survey. ****** cheek!

I would be asking questions about that : who were they researching for - the customer usually has to sign-off the questions asked.

 

[Pick-a-Lily]

I was once interviewed by MORI prior to a general election. I got all the way through the questions, which was quite a feat, then the woman demanded to know my husband's occupation! I told her my own occupation, and she said 'I don't need to know yours, it's the head of the household that's relevant!'. At which point I stomped off muttering loudly. Sheesh!

 

[thatu]

One of the best things we've bought from QVC was the callblocker. Very satisfying to just press one little button while someone's in the middle of a sales spiel or trying to find out who I am.

 

[maymorganlondon]

I was once interviewed by MORI prior to a general election. I got all the way through the questions, which was quite a feat, then the woman demanded to know my husband's occupation! I told her my own occupation, and she said 'I don't need to know yours, it's the head of the household that's relevant!'. At which point I stomped off muttering loudly. Sheesh!

Everyday sexism. You'd like to think it would go away, but it never seems to.

 

[Pick-a-Lily]

One of the best things we've bought from QVC was the callblocker. Very satisfying to just press one little button while someone's in the middle of a sales spiel or trying to find out who I am.

Agreed, the best £40 I ever spent was on a call blocker! (Although I bought mine from Amazon)

 

[candycane]

I need to get a call blocker. I never put my phone number on anything either paper or online but just recently I've been getting loads of calls about buying my old front door off me if I buy a brand new one off them. I ask where they got my number - it's on a database. Sooooo, what database? No proper response. Are they going to sell my number to another company? No proper response. I don't like the fact that probably everything about me is out there.

CC

 

[stratobuddy]

The best call blocker IMO was the one Q ORIGINALLY sold, as seen on Dragons Den, not their current one.

Many of the cheaper ones just block a preset list of known callers.

None of them work unless you use caller display, nor for withheld numbers, unless you block them all; then you may miss calls you actually want.

I had a withheld call today, but I did actually want to hear it, as it was from a company I contacted myself earlier and asked them to call back.

 

[Pick-a-Lily]

The call blocker I bought (from Amazon) is a 'white list' call blocker. You programme in any numbers you DO want to receive calls from, and it blocks everything else. It's ****** marvellous!

 

[stratobuddy]

The call blocker I bought (from Amazon) is a 'white list' call blocker. You programme in any numbers you DO want to receive calls from, and it blocks everything else. It's ****** marvellous!

I haven't heard of that type.

But it could be rather too restrictive. For example, OH had a call from electricity company yesterday warning that her electricity would be cut off for a couple of hours, the call blocker would have blocked it.

 

[maymorganlondon]

Call blocker sounds like it has some downsides whether going for positive or negative filtering (exclude numbers you want calling you or include numbers you want calling you).

I decided a fair while ago to screen all my phone calls (ie: let the answer machine take the call), so I get messages which are basically hang-ups (because of the way autodialler software works). Occasionally I get an automated phone message, but using the delete button works for me... :mysmilie_59: I also tend to get a lot of daytime calls which are when I'm not around to take the call anyway. Unfortunately my number seems to be very similar to a couple of other numbers because people make a mistake with composing London numbers, which could rapidly fill a database on any gadget if I counted them as nuisance callers.

I think they are a great way to get peace of mind though, if you're constantly being bugged by these sorts of calls (my old solution when I did have a problem was to unplug my phone when I went to bed).

It's also a great idea to register for free with the Telephone Preference Service. You can register landlines and mobile numbers. It won't get rid of the unscrupulous or overseas ones, but it's a definite help. I get far fewer problem calls than I used to since registering with them.

 

[Pick-a-Lily]

In our experience, registering with the TPS was a waste of time. I'm glad some people find it's helpful, but for us it certainly wasn't.
The call blockers come in many different types. We specifically wanted the white list one because we have a very vulnerable elderly relative and we wanted to be certain that she couldn't be contacted (and distressed or confused) by anyone whose number we hadn't pre programmed in as a trusted number. I know they wouldn't be ideal for everyone, but for us it's proved to be the perfect solution to what was beginning to be a huge problem.
However, there are call blockers which come pre-programmed with lists of known nuisance callers, which you can also add to, and there are ones with a lovely big red button which you can use to block calls as you receive them - how very satisfying that must feel!
If anyone is interested in such a device, there are loads of different brands and types, it's worth a shufty on Amazon to look at the reviews and suss out the pros and cons.

Also forgot to mention that our white list device also records and displays the numbers of all attempted callers, so you can look through them and decide whether it was a genuine caller or not, and contact them if you wish - so far, Scottish Power feature very frequently, although we have no account with them :mysmilie_10: It also blocks all international and witheld numbers. (There is a workaround for places like the doctor's surgery, where their switchboard automatically witholds the number).