In February's blog, we discussed new Caivis gift sites, and the company dinner with Brad Powers and ex-ARG employees. What's happened since then? A LOT. I'll start with the biggest piece of news-- Caivis paid a member. Yes, it really is true, and this member has allowed me to share their experience with you. Below is their correspondence with me, detailing the chain of events from start-to-finish. Please read...
Member's PM:
"update about ondemandresearch
i tested this site. i completed the long survey, it was free, and printed my claim form. mailed it, they received and updated my account to then print a prize validation form. i printed and mailed that form. they updated my account when they received and my updated status says "REJ" like what it was REJECTED? thats rich. i e-mailed them today and waiting for a response. the prize validation form wanted you to attach paperwork proving you kept sponsor offers past 30 days, plus a copy of your drivers licence!! for a $25 gift card?! so i mailed it with a note, that there was no sponsor offers to get the claim form and no sponsor offers on the sponsor offer page accessed thru your account page either. and i did NOT mail them squat about a photo ID. no way. so bottom line is they changed things up a bit, but still look like a scam operation in the end. i kind of knew that but this is hilarious the way it is looking right now. i cant wait for their reply.
ttyl,
member"
My reply:
"hi,
have they replied to you yet? thanks for all the info on the new process with Caivis. I know they scammed that one person in 2010, under one of the OnDemand Research sites, so your experience will prove if they still are scamming or not. thank God your gift is only for $25.00!
thanks,
wozniack"
Member's reply:
"they wrote me back and confirmed it was because i did not mail them a copy of my drivers license.
are they kidding? for $25? i ought to ask them for their photo IDs after having a court shut their old business down and screw me out of $3000. i might write them that.
anyway, i re-mailed them the prize validation form (the second form after claim form) with a copy of my DL with the ID # blacked out. because i came this far and am trying to report them fully by finishing the process from my end. otherwise i would of wrote them a nasty letter and be done with it lol.
member"
My reply:
"thanks for keeping me posted on your progress with Caivis. they just might pay you since they are responsive, and are requesting a photo ID. if they do, I'll tell my readers that they paid someone, but to be careful with them as they cannot be trusted.
alright, well, have a great evening! will talk to you again soon.
wozniack"
Member's reply:
"hi,
it is monday.
any day now they will update my account. last time they checked their mail and updated my account within 1 week. i think it was 4 business days
ttyl,
member"
Member's second reply:
"hi,
the form and the ID worked. now i am "confirmed; to be shipped" ahhck
it says 8-12 weeks on the prize validation form after your verification requirements have been met. i do not think they need that long because it is not as popular as brandarama was. if i dont contact you about it, that means i did not receive anything yet.
someone on facebook posted on their page (ondemandresearch) and claims there is a tracking bug that downloads with the prize validation form, lmao. the file type is unknown but you can open the form with PDF reader. this company..
ttyl
member"
Member's third reply:
"*ARG*
did i tell you? on ondemandresearch's facebook page, a man commented about the prize validation form and alleges that a tracking bug is downloaded with the form? hahaha. a lot of people complain on that page, but this man is the one who uploaded a pic of the form, and he left several comments around the same time.
member"
Member's fourth reply:
"WTF i hit the enter button to go to a new paragraph and it sent my message to you instead ??
no update from ARG, it is 4 weeks now. what are they getting out of people signing up, for a free gift card and they have to do no offers? i mean if they do not intend to pay. i am going to e-mail them now. i want a response by friday
that is all i think for now
member"
Member's fifth reply:
"*ARG*
hi woz, i do not have the time to reply to your other PM right now, i will do that hopefully this weekend at the very latest. this is a PM just to update you on my ARG situation; they updated my account to 'shipped' two days ago, and customer service replied to my PM today that i sent a week ago, saying their records show that my gift card was shipped. i cannot believe it. this is the first time in my life that i ever saw my ARG account page say shipped. but will i receive my gift card? if they are scamming, they are going pretty far to convince you they are sending you your gift. this is getting interesting, hmm
i will get to your other PM as soon as i can, ttyl
member"
Member's sixth reply:
"ARG
hi woz,
i received a $25 visa gift card in leu of the $25 store gift card from ARG over the weekend! it was from ondemandresearch with the 34th st address, and it was mailed from a similar zip code nearby in NY.
i did email them after the 4 week mark about when to expect the gift card in the mail, even though the prize validation form said 6-8 weeks. i received a response a few days later that records show my gift card was shipped the previous day (from the day they responded back to me).
i never received anything from brandarama before so this was a first! the envelope was big enough to fit a gift card in, including the card the gift card is attached to. the return address and my address were printed on address label stickers, and the gift card was taped to an ondemand research letter, like they used to do in the brandarama days.
member"
My reply:
"that's great news!! would you mind if I posted about it in my blog? I wanted to update my readers on Caivis. not only does it seem like they are paying you, you gave a lot of good info on the new process to get approved. also, would you happen to have the Facebook link for OnDemand Research? I cannot find it anywhere, and I wanted to investigate it.
thanks,
wozniack
Member's reply:
"you can blog about my caivis experience, sure - just leave my name and aliases anonymous lol and i would caution them that just because they paid me does not mean they are legit. i honestly dont know what they are up to but if they pay all others too that is great, but remember what they did to us a few years ago...
it appears they deleted their facebook page (ondemand research). but i swear by everything i read, lots of questions and complaints about where's my gift card, and that one guy uploading pics of his prize validation form with the accusation that a tracking bug was attached to his form download.
ARG/ondemand
hint: the starbucks survey ($25 gift card) is one that worked for me. you have to go through the whole survey including an ipad nuitech gift site including the offer pages and the platinum offer page has the link 'click here when finished' that went to the claim form page. i just tested a number of their other gift cards and they all were broken somehow.
member"
Caivis paid this member, so I am reporting payment. However, Active Response Group (ARG), operated by former CEO Brad Powers, and InPhonic, a company founded by David Steinberg, which sold wireless services and devices online, both had rebate scams. So we must be careful when pursuing any gift site by them. Kinda like the big Acquisis scam several years ago. After that scam, there were payment reports from several members. I get the feeling though that we will be seeing OnDemand Research for a long time, that Caivis's gift program will not disappear like Acquisis's did. I also feel that since Steinberg and Powers work together that Powers may be helping Steinberg with his gift program as well. Below is a write up for the company they both work for, it's called Cupcake Digital.
In June of 2012, Cupcake Digital came about when Brad Powers teamed with Susan Miller, an entrepreneur, producer and consumer products licensing expert, to develop digital storybook apps and games, based on her Emmy Award-winning animated television series, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! Susan Miller is the President, Executive Producer, and a Board Member of Cupcake Digital. She is a founding partner of Mixed Media Group, Bolder Media, Inc., and works in book publishing, which she has generated 12 New York Times bestsellers. She held executive positions with Warner Bros., American Express, Colgate and Xerox. The 2010 advent of the iPad inspired her to launch Mixed Media iBooks and Cupcake Digital. Susan received a BS from Cornell University, and an MBA from New York University. Brad Powers is Chairman and Executive Producer of Cupcake Digital, and David Steinberg is a Board Member. Collectively, they exchange ideas and create digital apps and games for children. Cupcake Digital remains a booming business in New York, New York.
url: http://www.cupcakedigital.com
If you scroll down the Board page, you will see videos of Brad Powers and David Steinberg...
url: http://www.cupcakedigital.com/about/board/
That's when I knew they were working together. It may not confirm a gift program partnership, BUT it may suggest one amongst other ventures. If they collaborate on Cupcake Digital projects, they may manage the OnDemand Research gift sites side by side. Although Caivis are paying, if Brad really is working with them, I think its in bad taste to allow him to. I understand David Steinberg never had a gift program before now, nor was he part of ARG, so if he wants to try his hand at one, fine. But out of respect for everyone that ARG scammed 4 years ago, Caivis should not give gift program-related jobs to any former ARG execs. In addition to that, I haven't forgotten about the InPhonic rebate scam, and I feel that because of what happened, Steinberg shouldn't be running a gift program at all. Personal thoughts aside, I applaud Caivis for paying that member. Hopefully this becomes a trend across all Caivis sites, and its not another ARG in the making.
I solved TWO cases, leaving me with the CRS, Consumer Gain, and newgiftdepot/topbrandgifts investigations. Let me start by giving you details on the closed cases-- WRS Consultants, and Consumer Online Rewards. If you need to refresh, please see December's blog: "Holiday blog with new companies..." - Below is my correspondence with WRS Consultants and Sloan Media Founder, Brian Sloan.
My e-mail:
"from: diyfreebies@gmail.com
to: xxxx@xx.ca
date: Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 3:54 PM
subject: Question about WRS Consultants, Inc. and consumerpanelrewards.com...
Hi,
Does this site belong to you? Web site: consumerpanelrewards.com -- If so, what are your current promotions? Also, I found your corporation under a Canadian location, and I wanted to know if the Canadian address is one from a previous company, or if your company has locations in Philadelphia, PA as well as Canada? Below are the addresses I have that are listed under your corporation, WRS Consultants, Inc.
WRS Consultants, Inc.
113 Amik Court
Box 117
Kimberly. Ontario N0C 1G0
Canada
WRS Consultants, Inc.
Suite 300
630 West Upsal Street
Philadelphia, PA 19119-3626
I looked up wrsconsultants.com on Wayback Machine, a domain archive service, and it pulled up your old site from 2005. I am sending this e-mail to both e-mail addresses; one under the Canadian location, and one under the Pennsylvania location. Reply at your convenience.
Thanks,
me"
Brian Sloan's reply:
"from: Brian Sloan
to: "diyfreebies@gmail.com"
date: Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 4:47 PM
subject: Re: Question about WRS Consultants, Inc. and consumerpanelrewards.com...
mailed-by: sloan.ca
signed-by: sloan.ca
Hi Me
consumerpanelrewards.com belongs to the Canadian WRS Consultants.
No affiliation with the US/PA WRS Consultants Inc.
sloan.ca is the official site of WRS Consultants Inc Canadian address.
consumerpanelrewards.com operates digital marketing campaigns across numerous demographic markets.
I'd be more than happy to assist you with setting up a profitable digital marketing campaign.
Cheers
Brian"
My reply:
"from: diyfreebies@gmail.com
to: Brian Sloan
date: Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 6:10 PM
subject: Re: Question about WRS Consultants, Inc. and consumerpanelrewards.com...
mailed-by: gmail.com
Hi Brian,
Thank you for your answering all my questions. I can now let my readers know that WRS Consultants, Inc., under the Philadelphia, PA address, has no connection to the Canadian WRS Consultants, Inc. I had written a blog back in December on consumerpanelrewards.com and WRS Consultants, Inc: My blog - The purpose of my blog is to bring people great deals I find on the web offering gift cards and physical gifts, which is how I discovered consumerpanelrewards.com.
What are some of the campaigns under consumerpanelrewards.com right now? This is written on your site but there is no advertised reward, "In order to be eligible for a participation gift, user must both meet offer requirements and must complete survey to claim gift." Are there anymore sites under consumerpanelrewards.com that offer gifts such as, gift cards and physical items? Also, this is written, "CPR is not responsible for gift fulfillment." Who handles Fulfillment? Or does your company not actually manage a rewards program, but just operates various digital marketing campaigns under consumerpanelrewards.com?
I apologize for asking so many questions, I am just making sure I don't leave anything out. I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to respond. If I ever require your services in the future, I will let you know.
Regards,
Me"
Brian Sloan's reply:
"from: Brian Sloan
to: "diyfreebies@gmail.com"
date: Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 7:40 PM
subject: Re: Question about WRS Consultants, Inc. and consumerpanelrewards.com...
mailed-by: sloan.ca
signed-by: sloan.ca
Hi Me
That's an interesting article.
It almost reads like a private eye novel.
Consumer Panel Rewards consumerpanelrewards.com, and Shot Rewards shotrewards.com are part of Sloan Media sloan.ca which is WRS Consultants Inc. Together we manage consumer surveys on behalf of our clients who prefer confidentiality. Each client determines the reward, or incentive for the consumer. Perhaps we could help you plan, and manage an information survey for your readers. You provide the incentive, or prize, and also help craft the survey, and we do the rest. Our fees are reasonable, and in Canadian dollars if you prefer.
Cheers
Brian"
My reply:
"from: diyfreebies@gmail.com
to: Brian Sloan
date: Fri, Mar 22, 2013 at 4:46 PM
subject: Re: Question about WRS Consultants, Inc. and consumerpanelrewards.com...
mailed-by: gmail.com
Hi Brian,
What I do requires a great deal of detective work, but I try to make my blogs fun for my readers while getting the information they need. :)
Thanks for answering all of my questions. You've been very helpful! I have given some thought to the information survey, but as good and profitable as it is, I have to decline at this time. I have, however, filed away your company information if I ever require your services down the line.
I do thank you for everything. I wish you and WRS Consultants/Sloan Media all the best.
Best Regards,
Me"
According to the content above, Brian Sloan stated that the Canadian WRS Consultants has no affiliation with the U.S. WRS Consultants, which belongs to Sam Sneed at the Philadelphia, PA address. He also claimed ownership of consumerpanelrewards.com, so the site is managed by the Canadian WRS Consultants. However, WRS Consultants aren't the ACTUAL ones in charge of these gift sites, they only manage them for their clients. Think of it in terms of Amped Media and Nuitech. Nuitech handles support for Amped Media, but Amped Media pays for their customers' gifts. We can now mark Sam Sneed off the list as he has no ties to WRS Consultants, Inc. On to the next one...
I had the pleasure of speaking with Kevin Davis of Born Buckeye again. He answered all my questions, and has suggested we not do his sites for the reason given in our conversation below.
My message:
"Hi Kevin,
I'm sorry to bother you here, but I had a question about Consumer Online Rewards... I just wanted to know if billing statements are required to confirm your participation in your gift program? Or would e-mail confirmations suffice? I ask because I am interested in doing this one: http://consumeronlinerewards.com/ - Could you also tell me a little more about Consumer Online Rewards? For example, when it came about, where it originated, why you desired your very own gift program, etc.
Thank you in advance for reading this. Have a great weekend...
wozniack"
Kevin Davis's reply:
"Hello,
Thank you for your interest in ConsumerOnlineRewards. I do want to tell you that the site is no longer currently in operation, I am no longer running the promotions for users to complete offers and receive gift cards. It was taking up too much time away from my other job. So it would be my advice to not complete the process or any offers.
That being said - when the site was in operation you did not need to provide billing statements - the redemption process was handled on our end with the advertisers whose offers were completed. Basically every week they would pass back a file of user emails who successfully completed offers by which we would determine who was due a reward gift card.
You mentioned wanting to purchase the site at one time in an email, if that is still something you are interested in I will sell you the website and domain for $3000.00 (USD). That is basically what it has cost me to design and maintain.
Also - as much as I appreciate you promoting the site on your blog here - http://www.diyfreebies.com/ - I need you to please remove the registrar information with my telephone number and also please delete this paragraph - ::deleted paragraph::
This is far more personal information than I would ever approve to be published about any of my projects. Please take this down off of your site immediately.
Please reach out to me via email at bornbuckeye@gmail.com for additional communication.
Thank you,
Kevin Davis"
My reply:
"Kevin,
Thank you for your reply. I am greatly sorry about the personal information; it has been removed from my blog as well as the registrant info. I sent you an e-mail once I got your Facebook message regarding COR and your web site, it should be there now.
Take your time in replying. I'm sorry for contacting you here, but I wasn't sure if you got my last message on gmail. I really do appreciate the information you have provided, and I hope you have a good evening.
Thanks again,
wozniack"
My e-mail to Kevin Davis:
"from: diyfreebies@gmail.com
to: bornbuckeye@gmail.com
date: Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 4:50 PM
subject: Facebook reply...
mailed-by: gmail.com
Hi Kevin,
I have removed the paragraph as well as the registrar info containing your phone number. The purpose for me posting registrant info is for address comparisons; my readers and I compare addresses so we can identify each company offering a gift program. Is it okay if I black out your phone number so I can keep the whois registrant image on my site? The reason I'd like it there is so my readers see that it was taken from an authentic whois database. If you'd rather me not, I will leave it off at your request. I'm sorry about all of that.
I will let my readers know about ConsumerOnlineRewards, that they should not complete any offers. Thank you for the information you have provided. As for purchasing the site, I have decided against doing so as I'm in the middle of selling a site of my own, lucrocash.com. I just don't have the time I used to to run it properly. I have some friends though who may be interested. If its fine by you, I will ask around. :)
I appreciate you taking time out to get back to me. Thank you so much.
Best Regards,
wozniack"
Kevin Davis's reply:
"from: Kevin Davis
to: "diyfreebies@gmail.com"
date: Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 7:55 PM
subject: Re: Facebook reply...
mailed-by: gmail.com
signed-by: gmail.com
Hello,
Since the site and the promotions are no longer available I would prefer that you left the registrant information image off all together. I appreciate the exposure for the website but since it is no longer available to customers I don't really need it.
If you have any friends interested in purchasing the site you can forward them my email.
Thanks for your help.
Kevin Davis"
Alright, so the site, consumeronlinerewards.com, as well as any other site registered to Kevin Davis, is no longer in operation, and he has terminated his gift program. So please do not sign up on consumeronlinerewards.com, or any other site belonging to Kevin Davis. Can't tell you how happy I am to close the WRS Consultants and Consumer Online Rewards cases. Some cases never are solved, some take years to solve, some are solved; but I work to solve each one. With them out of the way, I can now refocus on CRS, Consumer Gain, and newgiftdepot/topbrandgifts. Those are my cases for the next two months.
My earnings from Feb 1 - Apr 1: $10.00 from I-Say panel; $5.00 Tango Card from Media Insiders mobile app; $100.00 Sears gift card from MyPoints; $75.00 in checks from Clorox; an $8.00 check from Business Innovators Forum; $20.00 in amazon from SurveyScoutResearch; a $30.00 virtual Visa, and a $25.00 Tango Card from Toluna. Please contact me at if you're interested in these exciting panels and points sites!
Yay for our accomplishments this month!! Two cases were solved, and we uncovered a working partnership between Powers and Steinberg. That's huge. To assume something is one thing, but to actually present cold, hard facts is another. Our link list is still in progress, btw. I need more time to put it together, so please check back in throughout the week. Those who requested referral links to my points sites and survey panels will get them soon. I have put you on a list so you're not forgotten. If anyone has any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at: diyfreebies@gmail.com
Take care,
wozniack
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