I signed up for a demo account with Forex.com a week or so ago because they seemed to have tight spreads. I never got around to using it. Earlier today one of the representatives called me up (“on the horn”) and asked me how my account was going. I told him I never got around to it and wasn’t planning on going live anytime soon. Of course, he seemed to be soft selling me to use the demo more or open a live account. Is this technically a cold call? It feels strange because I signed up on the internet, a place where you never imagine “real people” exist. It feels like a cold call. He said he would call back in a few weeks, and at that time I might ask him to stop calling. It just feels kind of weird. Is this normal for most brokers? Keep in mind I just opened a demo account.
That’s why my phone number is 123456 when I start a demo account… 
Pretty common practice yeah, annoying? yeah!
I had a very similar experience with the same company I have to say the rep was not pushy and was actually quite friendly needless to say I never opened an account with them. I don’t see anything wrong with the practice of calling potential customers, If one of the things that you are selling is customer service.
If you don’t want call don’t use a real number;)
The same happened to me with Forex.com and GFT Dealbook. Both on demo accts. Reps from both places were very helpful as it was my first experince with Forex and were willing to answer all kinds of general questions about forex. GFT was more of a high pressure sales pitch then Forex.com
Ya, this is how they think :
- you open a demo account
- 70 % percent chance your are a newbie
- 90% traders are losers 99% of newbie a losers
- CONCLUSION : you would be a very very good client.
- == Call every two weeks.
It is the crisis, they need clients…
I dont see how calling potential clients is a problem or how you would be surprised that they do this? If you run a real estate company and inquire online about a house for sale, then you would expect a phone call?! This is standard in any sort of competitive industry and quite often the person on the other end of the phone will have some useful knowledge, especially at the more regulated brokers which will only employ educated people!
I got the same call today, a week since I signed up for a practice account, they also called me the day after I have signed up! They’re push was really for me to sign up for an online course. He did push for me to open an account, saying that I didn’t have to trade with it, but just to sign up.
He claimed that if I wanted, he could seek his managers approval to give me some discount rate for an online course, only available to regular accounts. This is all a sales pitch.
I’ve been able to learn a lot online thus far, and don’t see a need yet, to take a formal intro course.
Yea they called me again today (1/19/10), so I’m guessing today is their sales pitch day…
I see their commercials all over the news and they are one of the bigger brokers. I read somewhere their average client blows up their account in less than 3 months, so I guess I can see why they need to keep calling new people to stay in business!
If you ran a Forex company and somebody registered an interest in your company, wouldn’t you want your salespeople to call that person?
For me it seems weird if a broker doesn’t call me, come on… I’m a potential client, I deserve attention, I’m going to risk my money with them, phone calls gives me the impression that they are REAL, not like all the Internet scams out there.
Look’s like you got scared of receiving a call, you need to get out more often, too much Internet in your life. Use “get us call you” a little more…
Hahahaha 
As a person working in the brokerage company I can say that I got to make lots of phone calls every single day. And the purpose is not only to sell. You do really get some kind of personal touch with some of the clients and most often you gotta … just, you know, make sure that everything is all right and this on is happy and there is no problem etc. Another thing is like giving a person right advise or guidance. You cannot even imagine how often i got asked about books to read, sites to visit, robots to use. So it makes me feel that I am doing something helpful, and people on the other side of the line feel supported.
Its kinda nice to feel that you are doing some helpful things.