They do nothing...
I work in an unrelated business and just hang up on them when they call....
Its none of their business what my business does or earns ...
they sort of keep a file on you like a credit reporting agency...
We have never missed out on any work because we do not have a d&b #

Dun & Bradstreet is a credit rating company. The general contractor that I work for has his company registered with them so he has a DUNS #. Most people that we do business with, as far as receiving goods on credit, always ask for this number in their credit application, after all they want to make sure that we're good for it.

So, I guess its according to how big your company is & how much business you do on credit according to whether or not you'd be interested in registering your company with them.

Have a blessed day,
Beth

OK. Thanks Rebecca and Beth. Since my company is very small and we don't do any business on credit right now, I guess I don't have to worry about it. Is there a fee for registering with them? All these business things are stressful to me:-(

Check out the following site. It should answer all of your questions:

http://www.dnb.com/us/

God bless,
Beth

Forget the Dun and Bradstreet call ... I use to get them all the time ... a better call you will get ... even more absurd is the Better Business people ... you don't need them either ! They need you.

Good Day ...

have fun with them....
when they ask how much your business made this year, either:

1. make up an absurb number (I apparently made 1.72million last year with my business of one man. Course now I get alotta calls about people wanting me to invest money).

2. swap info for info.
D&B: Sir, how much did your nursery gross last year?
drew: welp, I'll letcha know, but first.... what type of underwear do you prefer? boxers, briefs, thongs?
D&B: uhhhh yeah, and how many employees are you currently employing?
drew: depends... do I count that lil retarded boy I keep out in the barn? have you ever done anything you've been REALLY ashamed of?
*click*

best of luck,
dp

I guess they didn't call the cops about that boy in the barn.

Thanks for the web site Beth. I'll check it out.

Well, I feel better:-) I'll be ready for the Better Business call.

Drew, my Dad would love you! He does that to telemarketers all the time.

Hi vegangirl,

If you're working on your own, I would suggest investing in two phone upgrades - caller id and voice mail. You can then ignore the unknown numbers and let them go to voice mail. Most of the annoying solicitors don't leave messages. If you ignore the wrong call, you can get the message and call them right back.

If you do take the calls, there are some important things to remember. First of all, ALWAYS ask what company they are calling from if they don't give that info right away (or if you miss it). The scammers will usually hang up at that point. Second, if it's a legitimate business but you have no need for their services, ask them to place your number on their do not call list.

Many of the calls are just plain annoying, but some of them can lead to trouble, by seeking your approval to send you over-priced office supplies or switching utility providers or other such nonsense.

In a past job, I was butting heads with a woman who had come out of the Fortune 500 world and did not understand some of the day to day realities of small business. She demanded that any calls regarding office equipment be sent to her, and it didn't take too long before she authorized the purchase of copier toner from some of the infamous "toner pirates". The toner that she ordered cost $300 versus about $60 from our regular supplier, did not need to be purchased at all since we had a maintenence contract that covered toner, and was of inferior quality. Since she had wanted to be in charge of this stuff I graciously let her handle the "no returns" policy of the company she had ordered from.

Of course, when the NRA kept trying to call both my husband and son at home, I was tempted to make up some awful shooting accident that had them both hospitalized...

V.

V, How kind of you to let the lady handle the no returns policy! LOL!!

You're right, I do need to get caller ID and voice mail. That would save me a lot of aggravation I'm sure. I'm so new at having a business that I'm often not sure if I need to listen or ignore. For instance, one week, I had received numerous calls from credit card companies or whoever wanting me rent or buy a credit card machine, etc. Finally one guy called and asked "Do you take credit cards?" (This was the way all the other calls started out too.) I snapped, "No, I don't and I don't want to get a credit card machine either!" A very apologetic guy replied, "I'm sorry, I'm not trying to sell you anything. I just wanted to know if you would take my card". I felt like crawling into a hole and staying there.

Information is a commodity.
They are going to sell the info to their subscribers.
There is nothing in it for you.
Other than interrupting your work and train of thought.
When they call ask them to remove your name from their calling list and to never call again.

Bambooo, I'm going to do just that:-)