White and Yellow Pages Delivery
March 7th, 2006 at 09:57am
On the weekend just over a week ago, the new editions of the White Pages and Yellow Pages (the telephone directory books, for those of you in countries who use a different system…do any countries use a different system?) were delivered to my house.
I was very pleased with this, not just because of the new books, but because the standard of delivery has improved. In recent years the deliveries have been carried out by people who hurl the books about, look untidy (ie. only wearing shorts) and don’t really seem to care if you get your copy or not. Sensis (the people who produce these books) certainly were not perceived in a good way with these people effectively representing their company.
This year, I was very pleased to see that a fully clothed (Casually, but it was the weekend and they are delivering a heap of heavy books, so I wouldn’t expect a suit and tie, just as I don’t expect a suit and tie from a courier, just a neat set of clothes, preferably with the company’s logo) person delivered the books by putting them on the ground, not hurling them from the other end of the path and hoping they didn’t break anything. This ensures that the books arrive in good condition, and everyone gets their copy.
Interestingly, on Sunday this week the deliverer had involved his family in the process (presumably to speed it up), and came through my area again. A number of residents informed him that we already had the books, so the family of deliverers went on to the next area.
It is nice to see that Sensis have lifted their standards and have decent deliverers this year. The idea of involving entire families (which I suspect was the deliverers idea, not Sensis’ idea) is a great idea as it speeds up the process, keeps the family together, and makes the whole thing look much nicer from a recipient’s perspective.
Well done Sensis!
Samuel
Entry Filed under: Samuel's Editorials
22 Comments
1. cunninglinguist | March 7th, 2006 at 10:43 am
Well, I’m disappointed. I like to see a nice pair of shorts and nothing else, gives me something to look forward to, but naked would be even better.
2. cunninglinguist | March 7th, 2006 at 10:45 am
Gosh, Samuel, are you sure you aren’t my 78 year old grandpa? You sound so much like him. Come on, grandpa, stop pretending, I know its you! ๐
3. petedixton | March 7th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
Samuel the delivery job, particularly in residential areas, is usually tendered out to organisations wanting to raise money. I know the Scouts use to tender for a lot of delivery areas, as do Lyons etc. They bid for certain delivery areas, and the cheapest price wins the contract. It’s very long and hard work for a very small reward, hence the teams throw the books, and wear practicle clothes (ie. shorts).
So I’d say a different organisation won the rights to your delivery area this time around. Unless they’ve added something to the contacts, Sensis wouldn’t have a clue what their delivery people are wearing, and probably couldn’t care less either, phone books are phone books, it’s not like people are going to refuse to use them if they’re delivered by a guy wearing shorts.
4. heatseeker | March 7th, 2006 at 12:33 pm
Where I live in Surry Hills in Sydney the delivery guy was wearing a pair of leather pants with his bare buttocks showing out the back … personally I prefer my Yellow Pages presented on a silver tray …
5. cunninglinguist | March 7th, 2006 at 1:08 pm
Oooh ahhh leather chaps, that is more like it ๐
6. Chuck A. Spear | March 7th, 2006 at 3:08 pm
Change of topic I have found a secret msg while listening to pink floyd backwards. Anyone want to hear it?
7. Kooky_Pound_Puppy | March 7th, 2006 at 3:09 pm
Talking grandpa’s my yellow pages were delivered by well, “a Grandpa”. He was not scantily clad, but perhaps to over dressed for a 30 degree day.
He seemed to strain and suffer from those heavy books.
Perhaps catalogues from Target K mart and the like may suit him better.
8. Chuck A. Spear | March 7th, 2006 at 3:14 pm
I am all for delivery naked girls.
9. Chuck A. Spear | March 7th, 2006 at 3:16 pm
delivery ‘of’ naked girls
10. Chuck A. Spear | March 7th, 2006 at 3:18 pm
Delivering telephone books should be like strip poker. The more you deliver the less you wear. Alan Jones likes the local Scouts to deliver his.
11. Samuel | March 7th, 2006 at 3:46 pm
Yes Pete, I have no problem with shorts. I would just prefer that the heavy solid books get delivered to the gate or the door in the deliverer’s hands, not being tossed about.
I would also prefer it if the deliverers wear at the very least a shirt and shorts.
12. Chuck A. Spear | March 7th, 2006 at 3:54 pm
Was it a hot day?
13. John B1_B5 | March 7th, 2006 at 3:54 pm
I found mine dumped on the ground at the top of the driveway. The lazy bastads didn’t even bother leaving them at the other end of the driveway !
14. Samuel | March 7th, 2006 at 3:56 pm
Chuck, I wouldn’t say so.
15. Chuck A. Spear | March 7th, 2006 at 4:02 pm
I only ever use wet phone books to flog criminals who will not talk. Also a garden hose does wonders.
16. heatseeker | March 7th, 2006 at 4:47 pm
Perhaps John Laws could lobby Telstra and Pacific Publications to demand dress standards for the people who deliver the Yellow Pages … or was it Alan Jones who had “that” arrangement.
17. punky_brewster | March 8th, 2006 at 8:57 am
Saw you in ‘Faces for Radio’ on the radioinfo website.
Nice one ๐
18. wonko the sane | March 8th, 2006 at 4:35 pm
I think the Yellow Pages people should actually fashion rude garments out the books themselves. The plastic covering could form gusseting of some sort, while the pages could be rolled to form sleeves, a conical hat and pant legs and so on.
Sure they might look a little bit like a yellow Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz, but at least they’d be seen to be endorsing the product.
19. heatseeker | March 8th, 2006 at 7:11 pm
A stroke of genius wonko … not only is your proposal a form of environmentally friendly recycling, but it’s also an attractive fashion statement that effectively transforms the delivery contractors in to mobile billboards for Yellow Pages AND their advertisers – a winner on all counts!
You never know, but I’d bet Lawsie would give it a very favourable mention if Sensis adopted your idea!
20. wonko the sane | March 8th, 2006 at 7:57 pm
Why thank you heatseeker. You could always take the idea through to its logical conclusion — ie all travelling sales types, delivery people etc have to adopt a character from that wonderful musical.
The Avon Lady could simply go nude apart from a thick slathering of anti-wrinkle balm, a few trowelfuls of kelp-extract self-hydrating lotion and a few tinctures of Dr Zeldard’s Brain & Nerve tonic, and you’d have the Wicked Witch of the West.
Not sure who might play Dorothy, the straw man or toto… maybe you guys can help me out?
21. Chuck A. Spear | March 8th, 2006 at 10:32 pm
I think our maestro is away or busy tonight,
22. wonko the sane | March 9th, 2006 at 12:41 am
I am sure that the Latter-Day Saints would go for that.
——
Totally! Being dressed in those austere suits on a sunday morning, plodding through suburbia with those giveaway briefcases is a deliberate tactic of these godbotherers to help advertise their faith. Being embarrassed is the whole point — feeling the embarrassment, then quelling it with piety and self-righteousness.
So, using their logic, why not go niude? With our without the tincture of nerve tonic?
A friend of mine, Dylan, used to get his dad to scream and yell violently when they saw these characters walking up the drive. When they knocked on the door, usually after much debate, Dylan would emerge with his dad holding him roughly by the arm with a baseball bat in one hand. His dad would say savagely, ‘whadder you want?!’ with a wild look in his eye with Dylan pretending to weep.
The jehovahs would flee, every time, and I still can’t work out how child services weren’t called. But when you have a 10 stone Welshman with wild eyes and chronic pain from a bad back making him crazy, I wouldn’t want to buy in more than I had to.
I wonder what Jehovahs think about telemarketing? DO you think they want to drop rocks on their heads?