Phone Survey

[bluefargo]

I tell them I never do surveys. It has saved me hours and hours of time.
I'm always polite but I never do them.

[WiltonRanch]

I don't grow any legumes so most surveys are short cause between that and canola they could care less about cereals or forages. Or they ask about rental rates. No one needs to know that. I tell them a floating crop share. They ask what percent. I say it floats. Ha ha.

Our information is valuable. Even age verifying your calves is giving away how many cows you have. We were fed a line about premiums we'd get for doing so but I never seen that materialize. They get that info they can figure how many are kept for breeding etc. it's not mandatory so I quit unless a feedlot requests it but no one has yet. Sometimes the less they know the better.

[GDR]

First off let me say I don't do those surveys either from a time shortage standpoint. I also avoid stats can as long as I can.

Having said that you guys gotta remember the poor guy on the phone is just trying to feed his family, they don't deserve the response they get from most. I am very polite and decline the first time, have had a couple that got pushy then its time to push back.

Other thought and I'm sure it will be shot down here but if industry doesn't have proper info to work with they can't provide proper service to us either. When there is a Chem shortage or lack of grain movement or inaccurate crop reports you all want to jump all over them and criticize the job they are doing. How are they gonna get it right if you fudge or withhold your operational info.

But yes there is a value to it.

[blackpowder]

So you can pull levers on a rig for 3 years and be worth a grand a day but 30 years experience is worth 20 bucks?
Pattison sign will charge monthly for a billboard but 1/2mile highway frontage is worth a bag of seed or maybe a hat?
They already know the answers. No need to be mean to the poor sap calling.
Funny, since I stopped doing surveys, entering draws, getting the calendar, answering statscan, having no home phone (its dads and hes gone 16 years). I just dont get any calls any more!! Call display,, and just dont answer!

[JDGreen]

I don't buy the "they are just trying to feed their family". Total bullshit.. Get a real job. Something you actually work for. Oh ya right i said "work" for it. Probably just hurt someone's feeling for saying such a thing. I simply don't do surveys. Haven't even done a census Canada survey in I don't know how long. Been threatened by them and swore at by others but I simply don't care. Sometimes for entertainment i string them along and tell them 4000 acres potatoes sprayed with Thumper, and 5000 acres hemp sprayed with whatever kills that shit (I honestly have no idea). Have never given any of them a straight answer and never will. They can take their $5 and stuff it.

[Greenlane]

Ditto JDGreen

[foragefarmer]

GDR

"Having said that you guys gotta remember the poor guy on the phone is just trying to feed his family, they don't deserve the response they get from most. I am very polite and decline the first time, have had a couple that got pushy then its time to push back."


I handle them the same way as you do, I also agree that these people are just doing their jobs which can't be easy. As someone else mentioned find a real job, that's not always the easiest thing to do. When it's stats Canada or census they will always call you back at a time more convenient to your schedule. Yes my time is money as well, but forget the idea their going to pay you $60-$100, if it's the government you would be just getting your tax dollars returned, not to mention the increased administration.

[burnt]

Those calls can provide a lot of entertainment if one's not busy.

If I don't have time to play, I tell them to send me my $250 fee and that always ends it. 20 seconds.

If I have time, the fun begins. I sometimes ask for their home address and telephone number so I can "get in touch with them when I need to" LOL! Usually ends it there.

Once they are suitably engaged with pleasantries, my favorite response is to inject enough funny stuff that it makes them laugh - - for instance, the time we had a duct cleaner call; "Do you have any dogs or smokers?". "Oh my goodness, no ma'am, none of our dogs smoke!" etc...everyone in our house was splitting their sides laughing loudly and eventually the woman doing the call - she could hear us - was laughing too. It was a blast. Likely a lot better than some of the calls she made. Or "Clean my ducks? Nah, we use a fork and shovel..."

It depends on the day and depends on the call.

[malleefarmer]

Here in oz we have surveys and you know a lot of them sre just uni students earning a few bucks on the side.
Depends on survey topic and reward occasionally its a box of beer or case of wine I say yep under proviso it under 15 minutes. Another time was a grain company I deal with so I gave them loaded replies to loaded questions and prize was enter into draw for a $350 pair of boots poke me in the eye with a blunt stick I won the boots or reality may have been I was only guy that did survey

[mcfarms]

This is funny last week it was 20 bucks or 40 an hour this week I got a potential raise to 60 an hour.

We just need a few more farmers from your area to tell us how they use agronomic data on their farms. We will combine your input with the views of other farmers and make sure that the manufacturers receive an unbiased, accurate report that is based on farmer experience.

But our time is running out. We need your input within the next few days so we are willing to pay you $30 to complete this survey. The survey is scheduled to close on December 9, or sooner if we receive the required number of responses

The survey usually takes about 20 to 25 minutes to complete.

To qualify for this survey you must be one of the main decision makers for crop input purchases on your farm and you must farm at least 2,000 acres of total crop in 2016.