Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The business or practice of marketing goods or services by telephone.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun the use of the telephone as an interactive medium for promotion; calling potential customers by telephone for the purpose of selling something; -- applied especially to calls made to persons who have not previously contacted the seller.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The business of selling products or services by making unsolicited telephone calls to potential customers.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the use of the telephone as an interactive medium for promotion and sales

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Blend of telephone and marketing

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Examples

  • Asked how he spent the money he made in telemarketing, one subject replied, 'houses, girls, just going out to nightclubs and lots of blow

    MITCH GOLD 2010

  • Obama and his telemarketing is just one more sales call on the nation during dinnertime.

    Obama: More bang for the buck 2009

  • Of course, as is common in telemarketing, I forced him to perform oral sex upon his shift supervisor.

    Telemarketing, Darwin, and the Food Crisis 2008

  • One of my earliest, fondest memories of being in telemarketing management was that happy day when a staff member came to me and begged for his job.

    Telemarketing, Darwin, and the Food Crisis 2008

  • Since then, things have greatly improved in telemarketing, much as the gap between the rich and poor is constantly widening but never enough to actually be noticeable to any except those that derive a living from talking about it.

    Telemarketing, Darwin, and the Food Crisis 2008

  • Using sexual rewards is a powerful incentive in telemarketing, both positive and negative.

    Telemarketing, Darwin, and the Food Crisis 2008

  • I want an answer, yesterday. technician's note: Why don't they teach anything useful in telemarketing school, like making tables in html?

    Archive 2007-04-01 2007

  • (D) submits a formal written request relevant to a law enforcement investigation concerning telemarketing fraud for the name, address, and place of business of a subscriber or customer of such provider, which subscriber or customer is engaged in telemarketing (as such term is defined in section 2325 of this title); or

    Balkinization 2006

  • Consumers experience telemarketing from a completely different point of view: more than 92% perceive commercial telephone calls as a violation of privacy.

    Hello Whatever I Will Call It 2002

  • (link) The first rule of telemarketing is to maintain control of the conversation, so when one calls I love taking that power away from them.

    ccfinlay: Subscriber, Beware ccfinlay 2007

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