[Rick Lee]

Companies don't necessarily call you because they think there's a good chance you'll buy their product. Getting a live voice on the other end confirms it's a good phone # and that goes on ther list, which they can then sell or rent for good money. When I worked in direct mail, we never expected a mass mailing to even come close to paying for itself. But the .1% of people who responded with checks instantly became a valuable list to sell or rent or just hit up again for donations.