Take the cash or the free dinner?

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Grt2bOutdoors
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

livesoft wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:40 pm
camden wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:32 pm If this is legit, would imagine you should steel yourself for a very painful listening experience. Hope you have skin thick as a rhinoceros.
Actually, I'm pretty good at "interviewing" the salesreps myself in order to make things interesting.
I would pay you just to make you go away! :twisted:




(well, not really) but it is funny.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

livesoft wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:57 pm
UpperNwGuy wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:55 pm What are they trying to sell you?
Banking and investment services.

In return I can tell them why their products suck.
Years ago, Fidelity offered me $250 to listen to their pitch. The catch was, you could not work in the financial industry. As soon as I said I did, the offer was retracted. Have fun.....let us know how it goes.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by barnaclebob »

psteinx wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 4:20 pm OP, I'm curious if you know or can guess how they qualified you for this offer. It strikes me as unusually high/generous, and that somehow they knew/guessed, at a minimum, that you were pretty wealthy, and perhaps that you're open to paying for pricey financial services.

Pricey house/expensive zip code?
Doctor?
Bought a fancy car new, for cash, and they maybe bought the mailing list?

$200 just to get someone to come LISTEN to a pitch... They probably turn only a modest fraction of pitch-ees into customers, and the profitability of a $100K account to an Ed Jones type broker is likely not THAT high...
But if he is too wealthy then $200 would be insultingly low for his time.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by psteinx »

barnaclebob wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 4:51 pm But if he is too wealthy then $200 would be insultingly low for his time.
I'm wealthy, and a $200 no-strings attached meet and greet with an adviser would be at least moderately appealing to me, although the chances of me directly signing up with such an adviser in the next ~20 years would be near nil. I would have at least a bit of interest on behalf of relatives who might benefit.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by 3funder »

alter wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 7:49 pm Take the cash. You don't know if the dinner is worse than a $10 steak you can grill at home. I routinely collect such bonuses. The skill of being completely immune to all high-pressure sales tactics is worth it's weight in gold. If you have this skill, you should exploit it as much as possible.
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FIREchief
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by FIREchief »

psteinx wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 4:20 pm $200 just to get someone to come LISTEN to a pitch... They probably turn only a modest fraction of pitch-ees into customers, and the profitability of a $100K account to an Ed Jones type broker is likely not THAT high...
If I pay people with $100K accounts $200 each to listen to my sales pitch, I only need a 20% success rate to break even within a year or less (assuming my overhead is fixed). That's not a bad business model. :beer
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by nisiprius »

I dont think there's a catch. I think $200 offers of "free money" are what they think it is worth to them to buttonhole you. I've scored amounts in that ballpark twice. Once was a "black Friday" deal with ING Direct when they were still ING Direct, it was some odd amount like $144 for opening up an Electric Orange account. The other was a theme park which interrupted my reservation process with a credit card offer, a $50 annual fee and first fee assessed immediately, and a "statement credit" of $50 immediately on making your purchase... and a credit card with theme park artwork on it. Thus, +$150 net if you cancelled the card in less than year. In both cases, the deal worked as I expected, no catches.

The problem is making a habit of stealing bait from mousetraps. It seems easy but I know someone who went to timeshare presentations just for the free dinners, and eventually went to one that really sounded so good that she bought.

She thought she had immovable sales resistance, but she encountered an irresistable salesperson.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by livesoft »

psteinx wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 4:20 pmOP, I'm curious if you know or can guess how they qualified you for this offer.
I have an existing DIY relationship with them. I am probably costing them some money every year already because I only use their free services.

In other news, I got new offering in the mail today: Go listen to a pitch for windows during a free meal at a local restaurant. I suppose this is better than the folks who come around door-to-door.
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alter
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by alter »

mikeyzito22 wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 9:55 pm
alter wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 7:49 pm Take the cash. You don't know if the dinner is worse than a $10 steak you can grill at home. I routinely collect such bonuses. The skill of being completely immune to all high-pressure sales tactics is worth it's weight in gold. If you have this skill, you should exploit it as much as possible.
Wait, you "routinely" collect such bonuses by going to these things? How does one get invited so often if one is never buying anything. Maybe I'm in the wrong business, but how does one seek out one of these meetings? Maybe my net worth is too little or I hang out with the right folks, and not the swindlers?
I've done four or five time share solicitations, a few car dealer gifts for test driving cars, most of them come via mail or email. Some actually solicit you while you are on vacation. I did one unexpectedly while on vacation in aruba, declined the time share, got $150 casino credit, played the dollar slots until i was up to $200, then cashed out. That was a fun vaca. Just become immune to all of their sales strategies, and trust me they employ a lot of strategies.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by mikeyzito22 »

alter wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 6:01 pm
mikeyzito22 wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 9:55 pm
alter wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 7:49 pm Take the cash. You don't know if the dinner is worse than a $10 steak you can grill at home. I routinely collect such bonuses. The skill of being completely immune to all high-pressure sales tactics is worth it's weight in gold. If you have this skill, you should exploit it as much as possible.
Wait, you "routinely" collect such bonuses by going to these things? How does one get invited so often if one is never buying anything. Maybe I'm in the wrong business, but how does one seek out one of these meetings? Maybe my net worth is too little or I hang out with the right folks, and not the swindlers?
I've done four or five time share solicitations, a few car dealer gifts for test driving cars, most of them come via mail or email. Some actually solicit you while you are on vacation. I did one unexpectedly while on vacation in aruba, declined the time share, got $150 casino credit, played the dollar slots until i was up to $200, then cashed out. That was a fun vaca. Just become immune to all of their sales strategies, and trust me they employ a lot of strategies.
Very interesting. Thanks.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by Vanguard Fan 1367 »

I am a dentist and hate to go on the exhibitor's floor at the conventions. I have fallen prey to many of those sales pitches over the years!
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by sabhen »

Free dinner = lower cash value usually eat more unhealthy stuff and extra calories to burn ==> prefer cash.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by dm200 »

Vanguard Fan 1367 wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 9:14 pm I am a dentist and hate to go on the exhibitor's floor at the conventions. I have fallen prey to many of those sales pitches over the years!
In completely different fields (one was computers and the other is financial services), I never was sucked in to a sales pitch, and I believe my risks of that were very low). Lots of times, these exhibits have nice and useful giveaways.

I remember the first one of those - many decades ago. It was a computer related show/exhibit and, back then, most of the potential customers were men and many exhibits had charming and beautiful young women working the exhibits. As a young male, I liked the exhibit hall. You usually do not see that today.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by Vanguard Fan 1367 »

dm200 wrote: Fri Jul 19, 2019 10:18 am I remember the first one of those - many decades ago. It was a computer related show/exhibit and, back then, most of the potential customers were men and many exhibits had charming and beautiful young women working the exhibits. As a young male, I liked the exhibit hall. You usually do not see that today.
There still are charming and beautiful women working the dental exhibits. I am glad you could resist the salespeople. The beautiful women especially are difficult for me to say no to when they want me to buy. :oops:
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by David Jay »

nisiprius wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 5:23 pm She thought she had immovable sales resistance, but she encountered an irresistable salesperson.
Apparently, with an Archimedes length lever...

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/207927 ... fulcrum-on
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by FBN2014 »

Even doctors are getting in on the free dinner giveaway. We recently went to one pitching stem cell therapy and another for chronic pain treatment. The food was great and the pitch was done while we ate so it was a good use of my time. :happy :D
Last edited by FBN2014 on Sun Jul 21, 2019 7:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by SpideyIndexer »

I've been to an annuity pitch dinner, not painful at all and was recently invited to another from the same firm. It was a nice dinner (no drinks included) but I'm sure cost them much less than the $200 per person or even per couple.

The chosen starting/ending dates of the time frame were one big logical flaw in the presentation.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by ChrisC »

I've been a subject to all sorts of pitches and studies -- timeshares, annuities, estate planning, financial planning, research studies, various focus groups, online surveys, and Nielsen monitoring -- over the years. In many cases, we learn something new and enjoy the free stuff, though over the years we've become more selective, especially since we've retired and we've just about covered the waterfront of presentations.

I actually enjoy doing the research/focus group and online surveys for cash, rewards or frequent flyer miles. Surprisingly, some of our research/focus group surveys have been local oriented: last year, we did a focus group survey with 45 other subjects for a mega-church in our area that was thinking of developing a major housing project a few miles from us -- we got $150 for spending 2 hours at this focus group presentation, with good refreshments in an upscale hotel conference room. A few months ago, I did a focus/research survey over the phone for a CCRC that had recently developed a project in our area -- 45 minutes on the phone with a researcher was fairly enlightening to me about what the CCRC sought and I got a $60 Amazon Gift Card.

I think I get these focus group surveys as a result of doing lots of online surveys, where I'm occasionally asked whether I'm interested in doing a focus group or reseach survey.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by willthrill81 »

livesoft wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:24 pm There have been several threads about listening to a pitch at a free dinner, but I've been offered $200 in cash to listen to a pitch which is a first for me. I just don't recall sales pitches offering cash, but plenty offer a free vacation (time shares!) or free dinner (annuities). There have been plenty of cash bonuses if you switched money to a new financial institution, too. In this case, it is a no obligation, get $200 for listening. What is this world coming to?

Have you been offered cash even if you walked away?
So did you listen for $200?
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by LiveSimple »

bloom2708 wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 8:10 am I would go to the bank and take out 2 $100 bills from your checking/savings.

Skip the meeting. Walk around with $200 extra in your wallet.

No good could come out of it and $200 won't make any difference.
This is what I think as well :D
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by livesoft »

willthrill81 wrote: Wed Jul 31, 2019 9:45 amSo did you listen for $200?
I have not decided whether to or not.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by willthrill81 »

livesoft wrote: Wed Jul 31, 2019 9:54 am
willthrill81 wrote: Wed Jul 31, 2019 9:45 amSo did you listen for $200?
I have not decided whether to or not.
I think you just enjoy keeping us in suspense. :wink:
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by FireProof »

My 75+ year old Dad was physically thrown out by bouncers of some group presentation (for an investment scheme) for asking too many questions.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by MisterBill »

So obviously these have stopped due to the pandemic, but I got a mailing today for an event from Prudential which says I will get a "complimentary Grubhub delivery" after the event. Not sure if they will give me a GH gift card, or order e dinner from somewhere. Not a big deal for me to attend from home, so I signed up.

The code is not specific to me, so I could probably post it if there is interest. Or send me a PM here and I will send it to you. It's 11/11 at 6pm EST.
Last edited by MisterBill on Tue Nov 03, 2020 8:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by qwertyjazz »

So sales reps used to give free food and vacations to doctors just with a pitch of listening to something. Doctors regularly stated that it did not impact prescribing habits. But consistently studies showed it did.
But I know I am different and cannot be motivated by free stuff. It is just a problem with every single other person in the world. I do not respond to marketing and those idiots are just wasting their billions of dollars in marketing. :oops:
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by inbox788 »

FIREchief wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 9:48 pmThis ain't work. It's being entertained. Most of us pay to be entertained. If somebody wants to pay me to entertain me, then be my guest! :sharebeer
Caveat emptor.

If it sounds too good to be true...

Whatever floats your boat, but I wouldn't waste my time on this type of "entertainment", and twice the time if spouse is required to attend like those timeshare presentations.

OP, if you do attend, appreciate your entertaining and informing us as to the specifics of this sales scheme, both the "offer" as well as the racket. In any case, even if you don't bite, you help add to the atmosphere that helps them to play up to the mark customer.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by MisterBill »

inbox788 wrote: Tue Nov 03, 2020 5:26 pm Whatever floats your boat, but I wouldn't waste my time on this type of "entertainment", and twice the time if spouse is required to attend like those timeshare presentations.

OP, if you do attend, appreciate your entertaining and informing us as to the specifics of this sales scheme, both the "offer" as well as the racket. In any case, even if you don't bite, you help add to the atmosphere that helps them to play up to the mark customer.
You clearly have the wrong idea about these. They are NOTHING like timeshare presentations, at least the ones I've been to. Timeshare presentations make you sit down with a high-pressure salesperson after the presentation and put up with them trying to close the sale. I actually had one of them (in Hawaii) tell me that I must be an idiot for not being interested since anyone with a third grade education would realize that it was a great deal. In contrast, these free dinners require you to sit through the presentation (since it's during the meal) but then you can get up and leave without even talking to the person. They don't try to close anything that night, just determine interest in contacting you later on. They may call you afterwards, but I find that a Google Voice number that goes to voicemail works well for that.

And why wouldn't my spouse want to attend when she also gets a free dinner and doesn't have to cook?
Last edited by MisterBill on Tue Nov 03, 2020 8:09 pm, edited 6 times in total.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by ROIGuy »

Stinky wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 7:25 pm
whodidntante wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 7:00 pm The real question is, how much to watch livesoft perform?
Livesoft, if you will tell us when and where, you could probably get 20 Bogleheads to pay $20 apiece to watch you perform.

You could turn $200 into $600!
:D
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by inbox788 »

MisterBill wrote: Tue Nov 03, 2020 6:36 pmAnd why wouldn't my spouse want to attend when she also gets a free dinner and doesn't have to cook?
You know what they say about looking around the poker table for the chump. You're not the chump, but can you spot them? You don't have to, just leave, but you know some sucker is going to be stuck with the bill.
psteinx wrote: Wed Jul 17, 2019 4:20 pm$200 just to get someone to come LISTEN to a pitch... They probably turn only a modest fraction of pitch-ees into customers, and the profitability of a $100K account to an Ed Jones type broker is likely not THAT high...
You'd be surprised, and they're the low end. Potential profits can be very high. What's a modest fraction? 10%? (1/10) or 2% (1/50) or 20% (1/5)

Let's say it's 10% or 1/10, that means that if there are 10 "potential customers" at the restaurant and one signs up, the profits have to cover the $200x10 or $2000 plus the salespersons costs. How quickly do they have to cover or pay back those costs? Maybe 6 months or a year? And once that's done, the profits are very lucrative. And I don't think people switch brokerages often, so it can be a gravy train for a while.

Anyway, even if the investment was great, I don't want to start off buying dinner for a dozen people.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by MisterBill »

inbox788 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 11:11 am
MisterBill wrote: Tue Nov 03, 2020 6:36 pmAnd why wouldn't my spouse want to attend when she also gets a free dinner and doesn't have to cook?
You know what they say about looking around the poker table for the chump. You're not the chump, but can you spot them? You don't have to, just leave, but you know some sucker is going to be stuck with the bill.
Look, you clearly have no idea how these work. They are nothing like timeshare presentations where they are very aggressive and want you to buy right then and there. The absolute worst case with these dinners is that you agree to let them to call you, and you can ignore the call. No business is done at these dinners and I've never even had one of them sit down with me at the table. If someone is interested, they can go speak with the presenter to get more info. And I'm not sure what this has to do with taking my spouse, since when I leave, she also leaves.

Also, these things typically have around 30-40 people, at least the ones I've attended. I'm not sure how it's profitable for them, and to be honest, i don't care so long as they pay for my dinner.
Last edited by MisterBill on Wed Nov 04, 2020 4:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by chipperd »

livesoft wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:57 pm
UpperNwGuy wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:55 pm What are they trying to sell you?
Banking and investment services.

In return I can tell them why their products suck.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by Dottie57 »

F150HD wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:47 pm prob $200 off their services, read the size 0.0001 font at the bottom of their brochure :P
+1
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by wfrobinette »

Shallowpockets wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 7:15 pm I would not even go for only $200. Maybe at $500 I'd be tempted. What is your time worth?
No way, I go for 200. Probably not even 500.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by djpeteski »

livesoft wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 6:40 pm Actually, I'm pretty good at "interviewing" the salesreps myself in order to make things interesting.
I think you have to be a certain "type" to take advantage of these offers. For me, I recognize the amount of money the sales people are trying to take away from people I love, so can easily say "no". For the more collaborative types, this maybe difficult. I also see it as valuable in a way to make myself immune to various sales techniques and seeing through the baloney to discover the heart of the issue. I still tend to get sucked into the "take away close", so that is a work in progress for me.

So for some, it is not stressful, and it is valuable beyond the dollars offered.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by BedHead2020 »

I had a colleague who used to go to these things all the time to get free golf clubs, dinner vouchers, appliances, whatever. (He was single at the time.) Every question they asked him he would respond, "I'm just here for the free ___." That's it. That all he would say. Over and over. No matter what they asked him. After a while they would get disgusted with him and focus on other detainees.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by FIREchief »

inbox788 wrote: Tue Nov 03, 2020 5:26 pm
FIREchief wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 9:48 pmThis ain't work. It's being entertained. Most of us pay to be entertained. If somebody wants to pay me to entertain me, then be my guest! :sharebeer
Caveat emptor.

If it sounds too good to be true...
It sounded like a delicious juicy steak at a high end steak house for free. That is exactly what I got (plus some added entertainment for me and some education for DW). I'm not following you with the "Caveat emptor." What did I need to "beware?" :confused

They're getting a bit smarter. My wife received an invitation recently, and I wasn't sure if it was one we had attended before; so we signed up! They called a few days later and told DW that we had attended back in 2018 and were not interested at that time. "Did something change?"

I told them I had lost track of which one's we had attended and they could just cancel our steaks reservations. :annoyed

We just did a timeshare presentation in Vegas a few weeks ago. That one paid $150 in real cash (VISA debit cards) plus some other crap which, of course, was easily determined to be worthless ($200 fake match play slots plus 3 days/2 nights hotel - which the fine print strongly suggested would just be another timeshare pitch). As always, I found the whole thing both educational and amusing. The "boss" eventually asked me point blank why I was attending since I had attended one several years ago and didn't buy anything. I told him (honestly) that I found their whole process very interesting, and that they did a real good job at what they do. He then asked if there was any chance that I would commit to anything that day and I told him (again, honestly) there was no way I would ever commit to something like that based upon an hour long presentation. He signed off on the release form for his sales guy and we all parted ways without any drama.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by inbox788 »

FIREchief wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 2:16 pmIt sounded like a delicious juicy steak at a high end steak house for free. That is exactly what I got (plus some added entertainment for me and some education for DW). I'm not following you with the "Caveat emptor." What did I need to "beware?" :confused

They're getting a bit smarter. My wife received an invitation recently, and I wasn't sure if it was one we had attended before; so we signed up! They called a few days later and told DW that we had attended back in 2018 and were not interested at that time. "Did something change?"
If you're shrewd enough to enjoy a free steak, more power to you.

What are they selling? Whoever the buyer it is also the one buying you the dinner. Someone has to pay for it eventually or they wouldn't keep doing this out of the goodness of their heart.

These operations seem small-time, but they're tracking you now. If they ever get big enough, they'll be selling your data. They probably bought it from someone in the first place, but now they have additional that might be of value. Gambling casinos exchange card counter information, so it would be interesting if these folks are coordinated enough to identify the free lunch crowd.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by flyingaway »

It is likely they will have a reception with drinks, maybe a dinner after the talk. A good deal, much better than you camp in an isolated area with mosquitos, bears, wolfs, etc.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by MisterBill »

inbox788 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 7:29 pm If you're shrewd enough to enjoy a free steak, more power to you.

What are they selling? Whoever the buyer it is also the one buying you the dinner. Someone has to pay for it eventually or they wouldn't keep doing this out of the goodness of their heart.

These operations seem small-time, but they're tracking you now. If they ever get big enough, they'll be selling your data. They probably bought it from someone in the first place, but now they have additional that might be of value. Gambling casinos exchange card counter information, so it would be interesting if these folks are coordinated enough to identify the free lunch crowd.
Enough already with your unfounded theories. I've done these for Prudential and Gary Goldberg Financial Services, also Ettinger Law Firm (they do elder law stuff). Definitely NOT small-time operations. Prudential was pushing annuities last time and probably is this time as well. Gary Goldberg wanted to get you to let them manage your money. What sort of tracking and selling of info are they going to be doing? What I ordered for dinner?

Yes, I'm sure that some people do sign up to become customers, and it's likely that many people who sign up actually have some interest in using them. Personally, I have plenty of free time and if I don't have to travel too far, I am happy to have their free meal.
MisterBill
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

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flyingaway wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 7:34 pm It is likely they will have a reception with drinks, maybe a dinner after the talk. A good deal, much better than you camp in an isolated area with mosquitos, bears, wolfs, etc.
Sadly, the ones I have gone to have not included alcoholic beverages. As I recall, the Prudential one I attended even had a cash bar for non-alcoholic drinks!
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by radiowave »

Interesting that I haven't had any free dinner offers from local brokers since March, but got two this last week, both at different nice steak houses.

A couple years ago DW and I went to one (more steak) and there were 3 men dressed in nice suits, one presented, the other two handed out preprinted cards asking for basic information, then on the back they asked your 3 top priorities for your investments. I watched the other 2 go to different tables after the dinner to "talk" to the invitees. Never came to talk to us. I put as my top 3 choices, low cost. :P
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FIREchief
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

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inbox788 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 7:29 pm
FIREchief wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 2:16 pmIt sounded like a delicious juicy steak at a high end steak house for free. That is exactly what I got (plus some added entertainment for me and some education for DW). I'm not following you with the "Caveat emptor." What did I need to "beware?" :confused

They're getting a bit smarter. My wife received an invitation recently, and I wasn't sure if it was one we had attended before; so we signed up! They called a few days later and told DW that we had attended back in 2018 and were not interested at that time. "Did something change?"
If you're shrewd enough to enjoy a free steak, more power to you.

What are they selling? Whoever the buyer it is also the one buying you the dinner. Someone has to pay for it eventually or they wouldn't keep doing this out of the goodness of their heart.

These operations seem small-time, but they're tracking you now. If they ever get big enough, they'll be selling your data. They probably bought it from someone in the first place, but now they have additional that might be of value. Gambling casinos exchange card counter information, so it would be interesting if these folks are coordinated enough to identify the free lunch crowd.
Who is “tracking” me? This was a local firm that just checked their previous attendee list for my name and DW’s name. The only additional data that I gave them was that I prefer filet mignon cooked medium. :P
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

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FIREchief wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:36 pm Who is “tracking” me? This was a local firm that just checked their previous attendee list for my name and DW’s name. The only additional data that I gave them was that I prefer filet mignon cooked medium. :P
You should have just told them that your situation had changed and you were now interested in hearing about their stuff again
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by 123 »

I would be concerned about my identity being added to a list for similar subsequent marketing efforts. I have our junk mail under such great control that I wouldn't want to risk it. I'd be suspicious that they were inspecting vehicle license plates in the parking lot to ID participants or capturing cell phone identification data for future advertising efforts. (After all you could likely sign up for some of them with a fake name, address, phone number etc). I doubt I would accept such a deal even if they offered $1,000. Our quiet peaceful life is worth more than that.
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by FIREchief »

MisterBill wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:47 pm
FIREchief wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:36 pm Who is “tracking” me? This was a local firm that just checked their previous attendee list for my name and DW’s name. The only additional data that I gave them was that I prefer filet mignon cooked medium. :P
You should have just told them that your situation had changed and you were now interested in hearing about their stuff again
That would have been dishonest, so I wouldn’t do that. While I will gladly take their free steak for some of my time, I won’t lie as part of the deal. Yeah, some may say that it’s unethical to attend with zero intention of buying anything, but that’s just part of the game. :D
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by MisterBill »

radiowave wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 8:33 pm Interesting that I haven't had any free dinner offers from local brokers since March, but got two this last week, both at different nice steak houses.
What state are you in? Is Covid-19 still under control there? Even my local Fidelity branch is doing their pitch on managed charitable giving remotely this time. That one was always good for a free meal. And I'm sure there won't be a holiday party for private clients this year.
Last edited by MisterBill on Sat Nov 07, 2020 9:35 am, edited 1 time in total.
inbox788
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by inbox788 »

FIREchief wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:36 pmWho is “tracking” me? This was a local firm that just checked their previous attendee list for my name and DW’s name. The only additional data that I gave them was that I prefer filet mignon cooked medium. :P
Crosschecking a a previous attendee list is the least they can do to improve their "buyer list" to weed out the "freebie seekers".

Anway, OP, enjoy your free dinner or bonus, but beware and remember of the old adage about a "free lunch".

Beware The Free Lunch (Or Dinner) Investment Seminar
https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolynros ... t-seminar/
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by FIREchief »

inbox788 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 10:49 pm
FIREchief wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:36 pmWho is “tracking” me? This was a local firm that just checked their previous attendee list for my name and DW’s name. The only additional data that I gave them was that I prefer filet mignon cooked medium. :P
Crosschecking a a previous attendee list is the least they can do to improve their "buyer list" to weed out the "freebie seekers".
The correct term, as I've learned here on the forum, is "plate lickers." :P Apparently, that's how people in the business refer to folks like me. 8-)
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FIREchief
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

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inbox788 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 10:49 pm Beware The Free Lunch (Or Dinner) Investment Seminar
https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolynros ... t-seminar/
FINRA, the SEC and state regulators conducted more than 100 examinations involving free-meal seminars. They found that in half of the cases, the sales materials contained claims that appeared to be exaggerated, misleading or otherwise unwarranted. And fully 13 percent of the seminars appeared to involve fraud.
Well...duh!! My take away from this is that idiots should avoid getting free steaks. That's cool, but it doesn't mean anything to me and many of my friends here on the forum. 8-)
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Re: Take the cash or the free dinner?

Post by neilpilot »

123 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:51 pm I'd be suspicious that they were inspecting vehicle license plates in the parking lot to ID participants or capturing cell phone identification data for future advertising efforts. (After all you could likely sign up for some of them with a fake name, address, phone number etc).
Aren't you also suspicious that they have a fleet of drones to follow attendees home and confirm residence locations.
123 wrote: Wed Nov 04, 2020 9:51 pm I doubt I would accept such a deal even if they offered $1,000. Our quiet peaceful life is worth more than that.
But how about a great steak dinner and $1000?? :dollar
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