What's Wrong With Foreigners In Thailand?

[percy2]

As far as I am concerned "Time Wasters" are part and parcel of the business you are in. You are in Sales.

You know the average amount of viewings that it takes to sell a property?

When one door closes another one always opens..

When I used to sell avertising space if I could not make a sale, I would just make another call. Eventually I would get the sale.. Its just a numbers game and when you are selling something "The More You Tell- The more you sell".

I can remember going to inordanante lengths when soembody said they were interested in buying something from me.. Artwork prepared, stats , charts the whole thing... send it all out ..only to be told they have put all their budget with a rival publication.... Yeah sure, its a kick in the teeth, never more so than when I had an Advertising Company in Bangkok... it was very hard to sell anybody ANYTHING, but you just have to move on to the next potential customer.

Thats life..if you are in Sales then this is what you have to deal with day in-day out.

There are easier jobs ...but there is nothing like the "thrill of closing" there is the buzz and that's what makes it all worthwhile ..and thats probably why you are still doing it !!

The politically correct thing to say would be "Good post , well said"

But I'm tired and grumpy so , how come it took twenty posts..........

[egeefay]

Always keep your door open for customers

You will not sell to everyone that inquires. Not everyone qualifies.

You need to talk to the ones that are not qualified in order to find the one who is.

If you try to prequalify everyone before you spend a lot of time talking to them you might miss the opportunity to find the one person who will buy

I can't count the number of times I've walked into a store with cash in pocket ready to spend only to walk out emptyhanded because the shopkeeper didn't want to spend the time to answer all my questions. He probably thought I was wasting his time

[jdinasia]

strangely I just can't see a good salesman OR a good businessman writing the original post here

[tourleadersi]

I know what the OP is talking about.

At this time I cannot afford that house. The day will come when I can, and then I will make that call and go and view it with the mind to possibly rent. The way I see it, if do go and view it now and yet never reach the financial position to rent the place, I will spend the rest of my life bitter because I have touched something I wanted but could never grab a hold of it. Having dreams is essential to success, but taking steps to make them tangible before they can be realised is dangerous.

So to all you time wasters and dreamers out there, please bear in mind it is not only the salesmans life who may be affected by your call.

A sad admission, but at least a realistic and honest one by the sound of it.

There is little point in test-driving a Ferrari when one only has a chance of possibly realising a Honda Dream...

Noel, what is sad about the admission? That I don't want to clutter my mind with things I can't yet have for fear of distracting myself and ending up with nothing? I'm not being defensive, just 100% curious as to what you thought was sad.

Perhaps you miss the irony of your own words.

You refer to dreamers in an almost derogatory way that suggests they have no hope of realising their fantasies. That is fair enough in itself as dreams are little to do with reality as they reside in one's imagination.

You then refer to dreams being essential for success and confirm that you may well not achieve yours (quite understandably of course, in the case of dreams).

That is what I found sad.

Perhaps the words 'target', 'objective' or 'goal' might have been more in line with your thoughts...?

Fair point Noel.

I didn't mean to sound derogatory when I refered to dreamers, perhaps it just came out that way. I am presently struggling to set up a new business and I guess am a little concerened that I lose my focus and get distracted by my dreams (my wife has already spent the money we haven't made 10 times over!)

I have goals and they help me get closer to my dreams. This house is a dream yet I can afford it now. The problem is, if I move in I will be stretched and will then have a new dream which may be frustratingly unnobtainable.

This is all totally off topic I guess, thanks for setting me straight.

" If your dreams turn to dust....vacuum."

[alexth]

A business man who can't accept that not every contact lead to a sale perhaps need to find something else to do.

The "no time wasters" line in ads are just pure rude. If I am interested in buying something I want to see it. I will decide after I see it if I want it. If not, I'll be a time waster - so generally I'll just ignore ads like that.

Couldn't agree with you more

[kozi]

I have run businesses in several different countries and sorry to have to say, time wasters are all part of the everyday stresses of trying to make a living in business.

The way I dealt with it is to treat all clients as probables but not consider them as absolutes until they pay and sign on the dotted line.

If you get even one definite sale out of 20 time wasters, than you have succeeded. To do this takes having faith in your product and confidence in yourself to convince the punter that you have something they want and worth buying.

For example, you may class a customer as a time waster, but if you can convince him/her to make a purchase, than the whole perspective changes.

Making that final sale is rarely easy as people, especially these days are chary when parting with their hard earned dosh.

Try being tougher, confident and enjoy all the challenges of owning a business, otherwise maybe you should reconsider your career.

I wish you most good luck and success.

Edited June 21, 2006 by kozi

[terdsak_12]

Learn to qualify people, that's what I do and rarely deal with timewasters.

I'd hate to be in the property business, must be needle in a haystack trying to find that one buyer.

[ThaiPauly]

Learn to qualify people, that's what I do and rarely deal with timewasters.

I'd hate to be in the property business, must be needle in a haystack trying to find that one buyer.

I'm sure it is..but I suppose that when they DO MAKE a Sale the commission is bigger than in any other industry.

Just guessing here though

[terdsak_12]

True, but you've got to have a lot of determination to make that sale and deal with all the timewasters.

[taxexile]

must be needle in a haystack trying to find that one buyer.

sellers should also realise that for the buyer its also like finding a needle in haystack locating the right house/condo/piece of land/car/truck etc.

these are big purchases , and buyers also dont like having their time wasted traipsing around to look at stuff only to realise that the advert that attracted them to the thing in the first place was a total load of horseshit written by just as much a dreamer as these buyers you complain about.

sellers should write more realistic and truthful advertising copy , then you wont have so many people walk away when they see that what is actually on offer bears little resemblance to the glowing description in the advert.

stop wasting our time and we will stop wasting yours.

although i have quoted terdsaks post , my reply is not directed at any poster in particular.

Edited June 22, 2006 by taxexile

[chuchok]

not really relevent but...

A BMW dealership in Auckland had a scruffy bugger walk on the yard..gumboots and all.A salesman asked him if he needed any help and he told him in a gruff manner that he prefered to look at the cars by himself.(Almost like..piss off!)

Boss of the Dealership saw the guy and told one of his salespeople to "get that piece of shit off my yard"

One of the sales guys that previously worked for a Benz dealership recognised the "scruffy bugger" as he bought a Benz off him a couple of years before

Scruffy and gruff bugger was a NZ dairy farmer.95% of NZ Dairy farmers are very, very rich.

The bloke purchased a new Seven series for cash......

[ThaiPauly]

..and another one. this is a TRUE story as well... scruffy looking guy walks into a freind of mine's Antique shop just outside CM.

He has a quick look around and asks if he can make an overseas call on his phone... My freind thought "ah what the heck..I am having a very slow day" Anyway 500 Baht's worth of call later the guy says "Not in the mood today-but thanks for letting me use your phone."

A week later the guy returns with 2 or three guys in tow and proceeds to buy over 2m bahts worth of goods, and asking different items to be shipped to four world wide locations where he has homes.

Turned out the guy was a very famous international banker and multi, multi millionaire.

So you just never know do you????

[Sing_Sling]

My wife and I went to a mall yesterday to get some more baby-stuff . . . on our way to the baby section stopped and looked at some pots and pans. The salesperson asked us if he could be of assistance and we said we were just looking, thank you.

I now feel quite bad about having wasted his time and not 'giving' him a sale for talking to us. I have determined that I want to be a salesperson in my next life.

[djc45]

I have met all of the above mentioned time wasters….if any of you time wasters read this please let us all know why you act like this!? Thanks in advance! I don’t expect any responses!

But one thing I want to tell all of you time wasters! “Keep away from me! I have better things to do!”

I think the op posted this because he must be desperate to sell and thinks that the first person should have bought it to save his time

Anyone with any commonsense knows that you need as many viewers as you can get when you are the seller

If what you are selling is a viable proposition you will get a buyer, so his he saying that the rest were just time wasters?

If its not a viable proposition and over priced then the likelihood is that you don’t get a buyer so then they all become time wasters that piss you off.

How on earth can you sell something without prospective buyers try to gather as much information as they can before they make a purchase

It’s been my experience in the past that it has been the seller who pisses me of with the bombardment of sms, phone calls and e-mails ect to the point I wont buy off them

You have to accept that not everyone will want to buy something of you once they have seen what you have to sell but most people will not tell you this at the time and still make out that they are interested

You should look at these ‘time wasters’ as prospective buyers and nothing less

It might be you that is pissing them off with your sales pitch

[listenup]

If your selling any product or service, it’s a good investment to have a web site with as much information as possible. Pictures, FAQ (Like the other post suggested) and contact details. This may stop the nosy people wasting your time as they can see and learn about what you are selling from the comfort of there own home.

An extra advantage is that with the right SEO, you will get leads via the web. These leads will come from people searching for what you have to offer, which is far better than someone coming across your advert in the press and thinking “Well, I’ve got a few hours to spare”

The company I worked for in London spent £100k/month in press advertising, this budget has now been moved to the web as the conversion rates are higher. I have a lot of friends in the publications industry, and they all say the same thing… figures are down due to the internet.

I have a web design company based in Bangkok, so will be happy to give you a quote on building a site and driving TARGETED traffic to it. (If this is against Forum rules, please remove this part of my post!)

[Ulysses G.]

If your selling any product or service, it’s a good investment to have a web site with as much information as possible. Pictures, FAQ (Like the other post suggested) and contact details. This may stop the nosy people wasting your time as they can see and learn about what you are selling from the comfort of there own home.

Excellent thinking!

[thaigene2]

Attitude, attitude..No wonder you want to sell..I think you're in the wrong business. Sorry no more time for you..

[radar]

20 years ago i new this guy that went to look at every hotel that was for sale,he didnt have the money to buy one,but he educated himself by looking and learning,compareing prices,location etc,the hotel brokers got to know him,and would ring him everytime a new hotel would come on the market,this went on for 7 or 8 years,the same guy owns 4 hotels now and is doing very well,and i dont think the hotel brokers would be complaining about wasting their time on this guy.

wake up you fool.

[wilko]

..and another one. this is a TRUE story as well... scruffy looking guy walks into a freind of mine's Antique shop just outside CM.

He has a quick look around and asks if he can make an overseas call on his phone... My freind thought "ah what the heck..I am having a very slow day" Anyway 500 Baht's worth of call later the guy says "Not in the mood today-but thanks for letting me use your phone."

A week later the guy returns with 2 or three guys in tow and proceeds to buy over 2m bahts worth of goods, and asking different items to be shipped to four world wide locations where he has homes.

Turned out the guy was a very famous international banker and multi, multi millionaire.

So you just never know do you????

funny...I heard that true story about 20 years ago in a London Antiques shop.

[PeaceBlondie]

200-300 Baht a day peons

thats what i would call peeing on your peon.

Of course, as usual, Heng knows how to do business. The boss-man does boss-man things, and the junior workers do junior worker things.

Besides, if you as a client show that you're really serious, then the junior worker gives you the privilege of meeting the boss-man.

[Heng]

200-300 Baht a day peons

thats what i would call peeing on your peon.

Lots of benefits though. Free mints on the coffee table along with unlimited RO water from the office cooler.

[Heng]

200-300 Baht a day peons

thats what i would call peeing on your peon.

Of course, as usual, Heng knows how to do business. The boss-man does boss-man things, and the junior workers do junior worker things.

Besides, if you as a client show that you're really serious, then the junior worker gives you the privilege of meeting the boss-man.

I'd like to add that I don't really look at them as peons. More like really low wage family members/poor cousins.

[taxexile]

good to see that philanthropy is still part of the mission statement of "heng megahuge international ltd"

what's the pension plan like ?

I'd like to add that I don't really look at them as peons. More like really low wage family members/poor cousins.

is there a difference?

Edited June 22, 2006 by taxexile

[bluetooth.th]

Many falaungs would probably find it hard to come up with the cash to buy an apartment or business outright but many would be in a position to make a 10 or 20% deposit. Have you thought about adjusting your business plan to include financing packages? Maybe talk to a bank or a private financer and find out about home loans for falaungs. EG. 10% deposit, work permit for 1 year, salary over 500 K per year would qualify for a loan for an apartment

Also maybe reduce the amount of cell calls, phone calls, faxes, SMSs and e-mails that you send to clients. A person receiving stacks of these on a regular basis may be put off by that

Ah this is the right thread

[beammeup]

I am not a seller but I am a buyer. If I am looking to buy something I dont always buy the first one I look at ( but sometimes I do). Its all part of doing your research. If I am waisting the salespersons time, well tough Sh#t. There maybe a lot of poor farangs that act like they have money, but there also may be a few farangs that have money but act like they dont! A friendly salesperson who doesnt pass a judgement is someone I would rather trust and do business with!!!

Edited June 22, 2006 by beammeup

[Sing_Sling]

I have a web design company based in Bangkok, so will be happy to give you a quote on building a site and driving TARGETED traffic to it. (If this is against Forum rules, please remove this part of my post!)

You would have a definite sale, though, as the OP doesn't believe in wasting time.

[ThaiPauly]

..and another one. this is a TRUE story as well... scruffy looking guy walks into a freind of mine's Antique shop just outside CM.

He has a quick look around and asks if he can make an overseas call on his phone... My freind thought "ah what the heck..I am having a very slow day" Anyway 500 Baht's worth of call later the guy says "Not in the mood today-but thanks for letting me use your phone."

A week later the guy returns with 2 or three guys in tow and proceeds to buy over 2m bahts worth of goods, and asking different items to be shipped to four world wide locations where he has homes.

Turned out the guy was a very famous international banker and multi, multi millionaire.

So you just never know do you????

funny...I heard that true story about 20 years ago in a London Antiques shop.

Well I suppose stories like this can happen more than once ca't they they?

I know it is true regarding CM as I saw the guy when he was virtually buying my freind's shop out

He never came to eat anything at our Restaurant though..tight wad

[ThaiPauly]

If your selling any product or service, it’s a good investment to have a web site with as much information as possible. Pictures, FAQ (Like the other post suggested) and contact details. This may stop the nosy people wasting your time as they can see and learn about what you are selling from the comfort of there own home.

Excellent thinking!

Some of the bigger Realtor's in the UK use "Virtual Tours" on their websites which they must feel gives a potential client a lot more information..If they respond after going on one of those it will be pretty doubtful that they would be "Timewasters"

[wilko]

Yes this is quite common for people to underestimate others....but so are Urban Myths...

[djc45]

I’ve been in business more than 7 years now in Pattaya and Phuket….and I’ve been pissed off so many times that I can’t even count’em!

Maybe the term “pissed off” is a bit too harsh….but let me explain what I mean:

You have a property or a business for sale.

You advertise this in different spaces, either online or in print media.

You get tons of responses….and here the “problems” start:

Many responses are from curious “farangs” with dreams in their eyes but no money in their pockets to actually purchase your offer. “Time wasters” to use a well-known term.

I bet we all know them…and I bet we all hate them! Am I wrong?

These time wasters all pretend they’re interested, and maybe they really are, but how on earth will they ever pay for your property/business!! They very well know they don’t have the money, so why the h… waste the time of serious foreign business men who just try to make an honest living? Why the h… make the business man think that he “has a sale” and then just “disappear”….in other words….they often make the foreign business man think they has a sale and then they just stop replying to your phone calls, emails and SMS messages…like they’ve vanished from the surface of the earth!

As a professional business man you know very well the importance of follow up emails, SMS messages or phone calls…

You do some follow up…. But in most cases you get no response at all…

When you get response you can’t help thinking that you now “have a sale”.

At least you hope so! Even the toughest business man with many years of experience can’t help feeling kind of excited each time he gets a positive response even though he very well ###### know that this is possible just another dammed time waster…..!

Back to my question: What is wrong with foreigners in Thailand?

Why do they keep pissing you off?

Yes….why??

I have often wondered why!!

There might be a simple explanation, but so far I’m still waiting for the answer!

Some answers could be:

- The guy is lonely? He just needs someone to talk to!

- The guy is just dreaming? “If I had the money I could buy this property/business!”

- The guy is envious? “Why does everyone except me have a property/business?” So it’s maybe only a kind of “revenge”…? “Make the life of those lucky bastards with properties/businesses a h_e_l_l…..” ????

- The guy is simply lying to himself? “I take a look at this property/business because I know I’ll get the money to buy it soon…”….

- The guy is just a simple looser? The only way he can get some “content” in his life is to make other people feel like losers!? A saying goes: “Do to others as you want them to do to you!” . But those losers change the context: “If you’re a looser, make others feel like losers, too!”

Bet there are many of you who’ve been in contact with time wasters…what is your best bet? Why do people act like this?

I have met all of the above mentioned time wasters….if any of you time wasters read this please let us all know why you act like this!? Thanks in advance! I don’t expect any responses!

But one thing I want to tell all of you time wasters! “Keep away from me! I have better things to do!”

Maybe this advert might help you next time you advertise something for sale

I have for sale ………… at ………bht could only those who will defiantly buy this contact me and also bring proof that you have the full amount in cash

This way I doubt if you will get your so called time wasters