Philips can't send a company representative door-to-door to collect the nation's broken kettles.
But revenue was just over $10 million a year, and Quench spent a lot of money sending sales representatives door to door.
In 2003, UNICEF representatives went door-to-door to persuade parents to send their children to school.
Instead of having representatives go door to door trying to meet with harried doctors, he plans to offer a Web site where doctors can learn about new and existing drugs, order samples, and read sales information.
"I don't ever get anybody saying: 'I'm not interested,' " said Denise Driehaus, a state representative and compulsive door-to-door campaign worker.
Last month, 32-year-old Trevor Epps, the chief of staff to a Michigan state representative, opened the door of her home in northwest Detroit to find a tax foreclosure notice.
"It didn't make me happy when they tried to sneak around the back door," Representative Fox said, referring to the lobbying that resulted in the 9 p.m. provision being inserted into the budget bill.
A human resources representative shut the door behind them.
THE cosmetic company Avon Products traces its roots to the horse and buggy days of the late 19th century, when sales representatives sold perfume door-to-door, often to women who lived far from big department stores.
She said major companies had told her that they refuse to let Oracle sales representatives in the door because of displeasure with their pricing and negotiating tactics.
Ms. Allen said that a Medicare beneficiary in Georgia had called the government and its local contractor wanting to know if Medicare representatives were going door to door, discussing the discount program.
