03-9937-7700

03 9937 7700 = OCIS (Oceania Customer Interaction Services)

So what or who is OCIS?

OCIS is an Australian company. http://www.ocis.com.au/ 

OCIS currently use three call centres located in Fiji, New Zealand and their Head Quarters in Melbourne.  http://www.ocis.com.au/ContactOCIS/GeneralEnquiries/tabid/66/Default.aspx

Consider questions like these: If OCIS phones you, do they make a up-front disclosure that they are OCIS? Are OCIS trying to give you the impression they are calling from Melbourne Australia? Where is OCIS calling from? Does “Hi, I’m from Optus” or “I work for Optus” really mean an OCIS employee in Fiji or New Zealand is an Optus employee in Australia? Does OCIS try to give you a deceptive impression that they are an Optus employee calling from Australia? Question the operator and ask them if they are an OCIS employee working as an AGENT for Optus.

To some people OCIS practices are shadowy. You see, OCIS has sued people (then dropped the law suit) for saying that OCIS is a “shadowy multinational”. Search Google on the key words “shadowy OCIS” and “hundreds of dollars OCIS”. What’s your opinion? If you think an OCIS employees was deceptive, report OCIS to the Australian authorities (more on this below).

If you want to find out some of the corporate and business names associated with OCIS go here: http://www.search.asic.gov.au/gns001.html and type in “OCIS” [without the quotation marks] as the “Organisation name”.

Details (at the time of this posting) behind the corporate face of the OCIS team include:
CEO - Health Lee http://au.linkedin.com/pub/heath-lee/10/6b9/56a,
Executive Director - Andrew Kaszubski http://au.linkedin.com/pub/andrew-kaszubski/15/2a/74,
Others http://www.ocis.com.au/TheCompany/ExecutiveLe ... 72/Default.aspx)
OCIS operators http://www.unite.org.nz/?q=node/584
What I am saying here is take it easy on the OCIS operators.

Get effective, ask the company OCIS to give you an incentive for your research participation, cash for your comments. OCIS management makes money off you from their operators talking to you. Currently OCIS do not give you anything for your time, but make “hundreds of dollars” from your time (according to a former employee).

Australian regulators love to investigate company practices that annoy or confuse you within your system, see the ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority). Google “ACMA complaints”.

Know your consumer rights not to be bothered https://www.donotcall.gov.au/mi.cfm  put yourself on the “Do Not Call Register” https://www.donotcall.gov.au/ maybe read this PDF document about telemarketing http://www.acma.gov.au/webwr/_assets/main/lib ... keting_call.pdf

OCIS can be either a seller or a researcher when they call you, and may not to tell you up-front the purpose of their call. This happened to me when I was called by OCIS while I was on the Do Not Call Register. You should ask the operator to explain the purpose of their call. Is OCIS trying to “sell” to you or trying to do “research”? If you are an Optus customer and OCIS has been contracted by Optus, then OCIS can claim to be acting or extending your existing customer relationship with Optus. It is the "Optus are paying us to ask you and sell to you" defence. Call Optus and have them "Opt out" your number from any Optus research and selling, then Optus shouldn't ask OCIS to talk to you.

Researchers are not Telemarketers, so do not mix the two up. This advice explains the difference: http://www.mrsa.com.au/index.cfm?a=detail&id=2706&eid=140)

Below is a guide for Australian Market Research or Telemarketing calls:-
1.    Research calls to a “Do Not Call” registered number (are legal)
2.    Research calls to a silent number (legal)
3.    Research calls to combined silent & “Do Not Call” number (legal)
4.    Researchers must identify themselves with caller ID
5.    Researchers must terminate the call if you ask them to
6.    Telemarketers and Researchers must provide you with information on request
7.    Telemarketers and Researchers must not be deceptive or misleading
8.    Telemarketers must terminate the call if you ask them to
9.    Telemarketers must identify themselves with caller ID
10.    Telemarketing (or selling) calls to a publically listed numbers (legal)
11.    Telemarketing calls to a “Do Not Call” number (illegal)
12.    Telemarketing calls where they pretend to be doing research (illegal)

It is illegal for an OCIS operator to deceive you by claiming to be a researcher and then using a "bait-and-switch" tactic to change the initial market research call into a selling call.
http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/tpa1974149/s52.html)

If OCIS phones you and they tell you they are "selling" and you are on the "Do Not Call Register" OCIS may have committed an offence under the Do Not Call Register Act 2006. It is OCIS’s responsibility to “wash” their databases clean of people on the Do Not Call Register. Consumer complaints are very valuable to the ACMA, and they want you to complain to them if you think OCIS is selling you something when they should only be researching because you are on the “Did Not Call Register”. You must have been on the Do Not Call Register for at least 30-days before you can claim its protection. Start with the ACMA website on how to lodge your complaint: http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_310679 

Think carefully about any OCIS offer for them to “Opt out” you out of their records. You see, if you have been on the Do Not Call Register for 30-days or more they should not have your number on their selling database. With your consent, they can cover up their error and try to avoid an ACMA complaint by appearing helpful. Again, it is OCIS’s responsibility to “wash” their records clean BEFORE they call you. Without a complaint to ACMA, ACMA does not get a full picture of failures by companies like OCIS to observer the “Do Not Call” legislation.

Ask OCIS if they are recording the call, because OCIS claim that they do “100% recording” of their calls.
http://www.ocis.com.au/MarketResearch/Technology/tabid/64/Default.aspx

OCIS operators are supposed to be trained to an industry standard. http://www.mrsa.com.au/index.cfm?a=detail&id=2653&eid=138 If you know what the operators are required to do, then you can hold them to that stardard. For OCIS to receive the benefits of being a member of MSRA, their operators must keep to the AS / ISO 20252 protocols.
OCIS joined the MSRA around the end of 2007. http://www.mrsa.com.au/index.cfm?a=detail&eid=146&id=2729

If you become aware of an alleged OCIS breach of either the Trade Practices Act (deceptive conduct) or the Do Not Call Register Act 2006, you may also like to alert MSRA (an Australian professional membership body of marketers) of that alleged breach. Require OCIS to be a good corporate player.

Tell the agevnt to remove gyour name off the calling list that would do or register your phone on Do Not Call

I hope people who read these posts understand that these stories are completely fabricated.

Well you are a silly little boy then aren't you John? The reality is there are nineteen pages of comments under your lone-wolf call. We, the people on this forum can see that in John's Disney Land view of life our nineteen pages or frustration, anger and information are "completely fabricated." Wake up Jon-jon and smell our coffee. Currently you are walking around unconscious, trying to impose an insane view on us. Sort of like a stumbling slow-moving zombie trying to eat our brains. Is that need to be unconsciously biased because you work for OCIS Johny? Are you trying to prevent people from becoming aware that OCIS should pay busy consumers for our time as we organised against shoddy industry practices? Go back to sleep John we are using our brains without you, and everybody knows zombie movies end badly for zombies.

Seems they are now changing tact, I used to get the call from the number this thread refers to, but now get called continually from 03 9009 6600.

I called back from a land line with private number display and get the whole leave your name and number phone message only for it to cut out and hang up before one can leave ones very irritated thoughts about their continual harrassment, sometimes at 830 in the morning on a saturday!!!!

Maybe John (31 Aug 2010) has fabricated a new number

I have been called repeatedly over the past 3 weeks..
Has anybody considered police action?
I need my phone as I am in the defence force and can't have this happening several times a day

I've been receiving calls, even after calling Optus and being removed from their sales/marketing list (apparently).  I'm also on the Do Not Call register.  So they can only, legally, be acting as researchers.

One thing I find slightly scary is that since I've been receiving calls from OCIS, I also received a missed call (at 5 am on a Friday morning) from a Nigerian phone number (+234 country code).  I let it ring out, especially seeing as I was half asleep.

I'm actually concerned now about OCIS' third party policy, since I don't put my mobile number on the Internet anyway.  I've emailed them for a copy of it, citing my concerns.

Failing that, I'll be contacting them directly to obtain their policies and to retrieve (and have removed) any information they have about me.

Hey 'someguy' - John's my real name, I used to work with (not for) OCIS and I understand how the process works, it's very straight forward.  To get removed from a calling list all you have to do is tell the call centre agent to remove you, it's that simple.  It doesn't matter if you are on the DNC list if you have an existing relationship with a company they have the legal right to phone you.  Which is why I say that more than half of what you are reading on this site is fabricated.

I'm not asking that anyone believe what I've posted, look it up for yourself.  If you want the calls to stop you really only have one option.  If you just want to post messages on a website then be my guest.

['Someguy', sorry for the late reply, I don't live my life on message boards and I do use my real name when I post something.  You tell me who's living in an imaginary world, 'someguy'.  Smart money says you are one of those people that was fired from a call centre at some stage and you have some bone to pick.  Get a life.]

hanging up on them is the worst thing you can do if you don't want them to keep calling. When you hang up on them they consider that a NA (no answer) and NC (no contact) and you go straight back into the pool of numbers to be called the next day. Instead, take the call and simply as that they place you on THE COMPANIES do not call list and be sure not to call your number again, tell them to make it very clear. If you do this calmly and politely they are far more likely to oblige and pity you.

I work for OCIS, this thread is funny lol.

Just got my first call from these idiots. Glad I thought to google it and not answer, it seemed odd. I have just added myself to the do not call register and sent Optus an official complaint. Its unacceptable.

Just received a call from this mob 0399377700. They asked to talk to the owner of the business. Told him the owner died last week. His response was - 'I call back next week when he returns' Dope!!!

I just got a call, I called back from a switch phone and it was a recorded message saying they would call me back.  There was another number on there so I called that... 1300 763 765 and it went through to a voice mail.  I just left a message with my phone number and asked them not to call me again.  Hoping that works.  Dissapointed with Optus if that is who it is.  I have never had an account with them.

Really?  make sure you tell management that these calls are just plain annoying, they need to find a better business model.  What are they trying to sell?

Though I have been reading so many complaints..I honestly believe these people who are calling us dont have any say in what they do but their Superiors! Its always right to take this up with relevant company to discuss whats happening or even email them...rather than trashing and swearing at them. They are just doing what they are told to do! We can swear at them....trash them to the bone but all comes down to their Superiors who make the shots. I hung up on them once and the next call I found out that this bloke was even more polite than my Aussie friends. Told him I was NOT interested and he thanked me for taking up my time after I swore at him about 4 times! Now that was really humiliating and I felt so bad...Please give them a minute...and if you dont like it then just tell them straight up! There's nothing wrong with that!!!

Don't bother calling me. It just annoys me.  This type of marketing annoys rather than attracts potential clients. Read the posts!

I have this number in my addressbook as "Optus Telemarketers". I quickly answer (so they have to pay for the call) and then just put them on hold. They generally stay on hold for about 5mins max.

This suggests that the maximum reasonable time to put people on hold, according to professionals hired by Optus is 5 mins.

I have so many missed calls from this number, especially this past week. Don't worry, it's only A marketing company haha, don't even bother answering. If you want your number removed, just call them back, follow the prompts, all you have to do is "press 1"

Just got a call from this number - the woman (with a heavy accent) said she was from Virgin mobile, stated my name and phone number (obviously she knows my mobile number, as she is calling me!) and then asked for my 6-digit pin to confirm my details! Don't fall for it!!! I said "why on earth would I give you my account password and details when you are the one that has called me?" Sounds dodgy...

Just got a call from this number. At first the woman seemed to be mimicing everything I said.
Then she claimed to be from optus and tried offering new services yet didn't understand a thing I said.