Proselyting - an inside look

[Tom/Mutate]

I found this paper at my parents house.  As we were talking about Proselyting before I thought it may be of interest.  It's a guide for people going door to door to get people to go to church.

[El]

Sounds like they're using time-tested psychological principles for getting people to do things.  It's basically the same procedure if you want someone to go to chuch, a charity event, or a mall opening.

[Nomaken]

I used some of those tactics to get people to buy crackers jacks.

[duncvis]

Classic sales pitch. I always say 'whether you're selling Jesus or double glazing, I'm not buying' 

[McGiver]

so now we just need to come up with a list of offensive one liners that will keep the door to door religious salesmen away forever.

like, "you look a little young, but i guess if the agency thought you were what i was looking for , then fine,. get in here and drop your shorts, i am horny as hell."

[El]

so now we just need to come up with a list of offensive one liners that will keep the door to door religious salesmen away forever.

like, "you look a little young, but i guess if the agency thought you were what i was looking for , then fine,. get in here and drop your shorts, i am horny as hell."

Although I officially disapprove of what you just said, +1 for making me laugh in sheer horror.

[McGiver]

do you have a one liner that will officially red flag your address to those pushers?

[purposefulinsanity]

It takes a little time but for those that come a calling every sunday what seems to work is taking the time to ask them questions about how the concept of evolution ties in with their religious beliefs.  Dunc spent 25 minutes one Sunday doing this and since then they've missed out our house everytime they've been down our street. 

[El]

do you have a one liner that will officially red flag your address to those pushers?

I live in an apartment building so nobody tends to come a-knocking.  I do answer the phone with such lines as "I chop solicitors into tiny little pieces, how may I help you?"  and the like.  Often I hear nothing but silence on the end of the phone after that, but sometimes they try anyway.  I'd just slam the door in their face, and if they persisted, say I'd call the police.

[Nomaken]

People used to come to my door.  When they did, I basically made them a deal that they could say whatever they wanted to as long as i could take twice as much time and rant to them about shit.  They don't come round here no more.

[hiroshima]

I recently went to an evangelical church with my son... he wanted to go to sunday school and this church had a really organized, well-run one.  Well we walked into the lobby and immediately we were approached, ushered into a room, and asked to wait.  About 2 minutes later a very polished woman appeared, took us on a deluxe tour of the facility, gave us a "welcome package" which included a Jesus movie... the process for enrolling my son in the sunday school took about 5 minutes.  The whole time everyone acted so ooey-gooey sweet it was unreal.  Trust me, these people have studied this and made it into as streamlined and effective a process as they can.  They've turned it into a science.

[duncvis]

It takes a little time but for those that come a calling every sunday what seems to work is taking the time to ask them questions about how the concept of evolution ties in with their religious beliefs.  Dunc spent 25 minutes one Sunday doing this and since then they've missed out our house everytime they've been down our street. 

Heh... questioning the veracity of the Bible as a source of divine truth and offering to make up a tract of some of the things I believe to give them next time went down like a lead balloon as well...

[Callaway]

It takes a little time but for those that come a calling every sunday what seems to work is taking the time to ask them questions about how the concept of evolution ties in with their religious beliefs.  Dunc spent 25 minutes one Sunday doing this and since then they've missed out our house everytime they've been down our street. 

My husband used Duncvis' approach and it worked well for him too!  We had some LDSers who actually assigned us some reading.  My husband took the opportunity to ask them to define some words in their assigned reading passage, such as dross and hewn, and when they could not tell him what these words meant, he sent them on their way to find a dictionary and told them not come back until they could define all words in the passage that they did not know the meanings of.  He says this strategy is called, "talk to them until they want to leave".

I used to tell them that I would not allow strangers to come into my home unless my husband was home as well, but since he has been home a lot more lately and I can't lie even to them, it does not work as well for me anymore.  The other day in our local mall, some aggressive vendor tried to approach me try to to make me touch something he was holding.  I was with my daughter, who hates to be approached by strangers at all, for goodness' sake!  I threw out my hand and told him bluntly to stay away from us.  

[McGiver]

It takes a little time but for those that come a calling every sunday what seems to work is taking the time to ask them questions about how the concept of evolution ties in with their religious beliefs.  Dunc spent 25 minutes one Sunday doing this and since then they've missed out our house everytime they've been down our street. 

Heh... questioning the veracity of the Bible as a source of divine truth and offering to make up a tract of some of the things I believe to give them next time went down like a lead balloon as well...

yes, making your own tracts.

then when they come to the dorr you take theirs, hand them yours and say g'day.