Before I begin, let's refresh our memories by revisiting February's blog discussing the star subsidiary of PRIMIS Marketing Group, Redsail Media: http://www.diyfreebies.com/?m=201002 First I will introduce you to Sean McCormick of Ifficient Interactive so his role in all this is understood.
Sean McCormick is a founding partner of Ifficient, Inc. an international lead generation and customer acquisition company. Sean sets the direction and oversees the operations of the organization. Ifficient's founders deliver a profusion of experience extending 30 years. Sean once served as SVP & General Manager of RedSail Interactive, which grew $600,000 to $9 million in revenues from 2004 to 2006. He was a key driver in the acquisition of RedSail Interactive to PRIMIS Marketing Group. In addition to his latest venture, Ifficient, Inc., he is President of degreechemistry.com, an education lead portal. His sedulousness earned him a bachelor's degree in Business Administration, with a major in Accounting coupled with minors in English and Economics from the University of Rhode Island.
So Sean McCormick is done with Redsail Media that is now owned by PRIMUS Marketing Group. Early on I spotted whois information that contained the Norwalk, CT address and Sean McCormicks name. In that registration info was "Redsail Media." Sadly, that information doesn't exist anymore... The Norwalk address is now listed under "Ifficient, Inc.", which is what we'll call them now. It's better to remember them by Ifficient/Ifficient Interactive since Redsail Media was sold to PRIMUS Marketing Group, and have nothing to do with Sean McCormick anymore, and Ifficient, Inc. is under the Norwalk address. Sorry this is something else to alter your mind, it's an even bigger pain for me as I must change the "Official company and address", and "Official T&C and DBA" lists.
gift site address:
Ifficient, Inc.
There is more... Got a reply from customer support. I'm rather suspicious of this bunch, because why can't a company give you their name?? Bear in mind that I have NEVER created an account with them. To get their company name I pretended I was a member in need of information. *w*
My exchange with them,
"from Fulfillment
to "xxxx@xx.com"
date Tue, Oct 12, 2010 at 3:43 PM
subject RE: How do I receive my free gift?
hide details Oct 12
Hi me,
We have no record of you registering with the above email address. Our system very definitively tracks individuals registrations as well as their level of participation with our sponsor offers. Did you possibly use a different email address?
Also, ExcitingRewardsNow.com is not associate with the company RedSail Media.
Thank you,
ExcitingRewardsNow.com"
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Fulfillment
date Tue, Oct 19, 2010 at 9:39 PM
subject Re: How do I receive my free gift?
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Oct 19
Hi,
Thank you for responding. To make sure I don't have my information mixed up, what is your company? I'm pretty certain I completed my site through your company, and I will go over my information again to make sure I have the correct e-mail.
Thanks,
me"
Them, "from Fulfillment
to "xxxx@xx.com"
date Wed, Oct 20, 2010 at 1:48 PM
subject RE: How do I receive my free gift?
hide details Oct 20
Hi me,
Our site information is www.excitingrewardsnow.com."
*four e-mails later with the last two having been sent twice...*
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Fulfillment
date Wed, Oct 20, 2010 at 8:59 PM
subject Re: How do I receive my free gift?
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Oct 20
Hi,
But what is your company name? I just wanted it for my records as I organize the offers I do by company, and keep it in a spreadsheet. I'm sorry if I'm asking for too much information.
Thanks,
me"
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Fulfillment
date Sun, Oct 24, 2010 at 3:11 PM
subject Re: How do I receive my free gift?
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Oct 24
Hi again,
Another reason I'd like to know is because scams are reported on the web, and I like knowing who I'm dealing with. Reward House is one of the scams I speak of. Are you Ifficient? Ifficient has the same Connecticut address in your policies, which is why I'm asking. Consumers Reward Solutions came to mind as well, though they operate out of Canada. Above all, I like having this information for my records as it helps better organize everything. Please let me know.
Thanks,
me"
*e-mail that was sent twice...*
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Fulfillment
date Sun, Oct 31, 2010 at 4:06 PM
subject Re: How do I receive my free gift?
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Oct 31
Hello? Could you please answer my previous question in regards to who you are (your company). I don't understand why you cannot share this minor detail. Most people simoly like knowing the companies rewarding them. And in my case I'd like to know so I can separate your company from the others I pursue. I don't want to confuse my information from the other companies with the information I have saved with yours, i.e. trial offers, name, address and e-mail, etc. I'm organizing my spreadsheet by company, so knowing your company name would be very helpful. Let me know if this is received, because I don't know if my other messages were or not.
Thanks,
me"
So after what seemed like an eternity they responded with,
Them, "from Fulfillment
to "xxxx@xx.com"
date Wed, Nov 3, 2010 at 3:55 PM
subject RE: How do I receive my free gift?
hide details Nov 3 (12 days ago)
me,
Your not in our database."
Now what was it they asked in the above e-mail? "Did you possibly use a different email address?" I hadn't given them my e-mail, so I replied again.
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Fulfillment
date Wed, Nov 3, 2010 at 5:18 PM
subject Re: How do I receive my free gift?
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 3 (12 days ago)
How do you know that? I haven't given you my e-mail address yet! And please answer my question that I have asked 600 times. Why is it so hard to tell me your company name?
Thank you,
me"
After nearly 2 weeks without a response my final e-mail...
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Fulfillment
date Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 3:54 PM
subject Re: How do I receive my free gift?
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 12 (3 days ago)
Is your company Ifficient, or Consumers Reward Solutions?
Thanks,
me"
I flat out asked them. What do I have to lose? They know I'm on to them which explains their reluctance, and delayed responses. Call me crazy, but when a company dodges a simple question like "What is your company name?" that is incomprehensible to me. I'm not one of those scammers overseas begging for their bank info. I suddenly recalled some of you stating that this company sounded like Consumers Reward Solutions. So while interacting with them, I goaded Dave to get him to talk. I had to pretend, again, to get answers as I have no real account with Consumers Reward Solutions. I thought that if the one's who I thought were Redsail Media WERE the Consumers Reward Solutions, then Dave could possibly tell me himself since he's so cooperative.
Our exchange,
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Svc Acct
date Thu, Nov 4, 2010 at 3:22 PM
subject Re: [2EA-14193CE6-B005] Attention me
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 4 (11 days ago)
Hi,
I made a mistake. The $1,000.00 Best Buy site I did was here: http://gofreegifts.com/LP/prom-204630/aba53da2f6.php?a=2781-AP&ce_cid=000hZR18eGjL1jJzKO5ZvMTCLq000000&dp=1717 --Someone told me the company managing that one is Nuitech, I'm sorry. I found another site that I think is your company though. Can you confirm this?? http://globalrewardsgroup.com/giftpage.aspx?gid=1&pubid=-1&subid=-1_ <--- I'm trying to organize my spreadsheet by company name so it's easy to keep up with, and I would like to do the $1,000.00 Target site. I'm sorry to bother you with this, but if you could help me it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
me"
Dave, "from Svc Acct
reply-to Svc Acct
to xxxx@xx.com
date Tue, Sep 7, 2010 at 1:12 PM
subject [2EA-14193CE6-B005] Attention me
hide details Sep 7
Hi me,
Your email address does not show up in our system at all?
Could you have used a different email address?
Dave"
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Svc Acct
date Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 3:23 PM
subject Re: [2EA-14193CE6-B005] Attention me
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 12 (3 days ago)
Hi,
Which site is my e-mail not showing up on? gofreegifts.net, or globalrewardsgroup.com? I'm confused by all this. My name is me. I need to look back in my information to see which phone number and address I used as I moved a few weeks back. I haven't been keeping up with this, so my mind is a bit foggy.
Thanks,
me"
Dave, "from Svc Acct
reply-to Svc Acct
to xxxx@xx.com
date Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 3:27 PM
subject [2EA-14193CE6-B005] Attention me
hide details Nov 12 (3 days ago)
Hello,
Your email address does not show up as registered with us in any capacity.
Sometimes people make a mistake with there own email address while registering.
I still need your complete name and address and phone number for me to do reverse search.
How many offers have you completed?
Dave"
Me, "from xxxx@xx.com
to Svc Acct
date Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 5:15 PM
subject Re: [2EA-14193CE6-B005] Attention me
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 12 (3 days ago)
Hi,
I'm sorry. The company I did was Nuitech, not the one you work for. I called Nuitech shortly after your reply, and they found my information. It would explain why I'm not showing up in your computer. Do you know anything about globalrewardsgroup.com, and or globalrewardsone.com though? I don't know which company is behind those two sites, but I think they are the same.
Thank you for your time,
me"
I gave up because I couldn't get a straight answer. Dave wasn't succinct, and I liked that... Do you notice a difference in the string of e-mails? I'll give my reasons for thinking why Consumers Reward Solutions aren't the one's behind fulfillment@globalonerewards.com, belonging to the first batch of e-mails. 1. Addresses are in Connecticut, not Canada. Of course CRS might have U.S. locations, this is just me thinking. 2. E-mails aren't answered by "Dave." You get a robotic three-worded kind of response. Wait... Could it be Stewart Fotheringham behind fulfillment@globalonerewards.com? lol. *kidding* 3. If the domain, globalonerewards.com, that is connected to the Norwalk, Connecticut address really was Consumers Reward Solutions, then why couldn't Dave simply say so? He never answered me. I think he would have said, "Yes, that is our site." I got a totally different vibe from globalonerewards.com... My gut tells me it wasn't the same person.
While on the subject of Consumers Reward Solutions... Does "backorder" ring a bell? I have permission to share the following e-mails between myself and members of CRS that will explain this issue.
member, "from member
to diyfreebies@gmail.com
date Thu, Nov 4, 2010 at 7:30 AM
subject Consumer Rewards Solutions
mailed-by xxxx.com
signed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 4 (12 days ago)
Hey Wozniack,
Ok so I came across your blog. I wanted to tell you that last March I did consumer rewards solutions and that same Dave guy said I had won the free macbook air promotion they were doing. I did the 13 offers and he said to wait 8 weeks. I did then I emailed him and he told me that they were "back ordered" and I had two choices I could take a 1000 dollar check or wait until they were ordered. I took the 1000 dollar check but now it seems like thats what hes been doing to everyone. I mean I did get 1000 dollars out of it but I really wanted the macbook air. I really don't think they have any prizes I think that they will pay up to 1000 dollars depending on how many offers you do, I had to do 13. It is still a scam anyways but I wanted to let you know what happened to me. They will probably never give you any real prize.
Thanks,
member"
Me, "from wozniack
to member
date Sun, Nov 7, 2010 at 4:00 AM
subject Re: Consumer Rewards Solutions
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 7 (9 days ago)
Hi,
Thanks for coming to me with your CRS story. Would it be alright if I shared this with our readers? Your experience is a lot like Ursula's. I'm guessing you read her comment in my blog entry,
"After reading the previous post (Thanks Charlie!), I emailed Dave, albeit 2 weeks early, to inquire about the status of my gift and whether it would be shipped on the 25th. He responded that the gift is on backorder and he doesn’t know for how long, but offered me a check for two-thirds the value of the gift, which is unacceptable."
She also did the Macbook Air site. Like you, I'm beginning to think there are no real prizes, just checks. Seems like a laptop would be easier to send than a gift card? They had "Canadian currency issues", which prevented them from shipping gift cards, so they shipped checks instead. But a laptop should be easy to get and ship to someone. Also, the "backorder" excuse of theirs is getting a little old. This was in last month's entry, too,
"now “Dave” is claiming that his new gift supplier is on “back order” for the iphone 4 and it wil be a couple of months before it comes off back order…"
It's looking more like a lie to me now. The only positive is that members aren't leaving empty-handed, just some are getting less or not the exact gift.
Thanks again for sharing your experience with me!
wozniack"
member, "from member
to wozniack
date Mon, Nov 8, 2010 at 10:27 PM
subject Re: Consumer Rewards Solutions
mailed-by xxxx.com
signed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 8 (7 days ago)
Oh Hey,
Yeah its cool to share my story. I just wish they would give the prizes because I can't exactly take a 1000 check and then go buy the computer they said I would get. So the reason I wrote in was because I did another of their sites recently (2 weeks ago) for the Macbook Pro and it was easy they said I won the prize cause I completed all the offers in one day emailed them and they wrote back pretty fast. The same guy Dave answered again I feel like hes the only one that works there. He Told me to wait 6-8 weeks but then I stumbled upon your site and realized I'm not going to get a Macbook Pro (That was the new offer I did from one of their sites since I never got the air just the 1k check). So I'll probably end up with another 1k check which isn't bad for spending only 68 bucks, but I would really rather have the computer that's worth close to 2k. So lesson no prizes I'm sure they don't have any.
Thanks
member"
After that I recalled a member who was promised an Alienware laptop. I decided to check up on her to see if she received her gift, or a check for a lesser amount.
Me "from wozniack
to "member"
date Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 8:42 PM
subject Re: Direct Survey reply
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 12 (3 days ago)
Hi,
Did your Alienware laptop arrive on time? Hope I'm not bothering you, just wanted to check in. :)
Thanks,
wozniack"
member, "from member
to wozniack
date Fri, Nov 12, 2010 at 9:33 PM
subject Re: Direct Survey reply
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 12 (3 days ago)
Oh, sorry I was going to tell you, but I forgot. They said that it would take a long time for their supplier to send them the Alienware, so they replaced it with a $1000 check, which I, as a matter of fact, received. I was quite happy. Direct Survey Solutions was a pain in the neck, but because I actually received a reward, it means they aren't a complete scam (emphasis on "complete").
So Direct Survey Solutions really does pay out, but you have to be patient, determined, and be somewhat intelligent, or you will be scammed, and there will be a lot of reoccurring charges on your credit card.
I guess that is how they make their money.
-member"
Me, "from wozniack
to "member"
date Sat, Nov 13, 2010 at 12:18 AM
subject Re: Direct Survey reply
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 13 (3 days ago)
Hi,
Thanks for getting back to me. Would you mind if I shared your experience with others? It would give them an idea of what to expect from the company, and may even offer them some hope. I'm very pleased to know you received a thousand dollar reward. It's nice hearing someone not being scammed by a dodgy company for a change. If you don't mind me asking, when did your check arrive? I was curious as to how long their shipping was. :)
Thanks again!
wozniack"
member, "from member
to wozniack
date Sat, Nov 13, 2010 at 1:25 PM
subject Re: Direct Survey reply
mailed-by xxxx.com
hide details Nov 13 (2 days ago)
Sure, you can share my experience.
It took probably 10-12 weeks instead of the 6-8 that they said to receive my gift. I had to remind them a few times, and they didn’t even send the check in the week they told me they would. But I received it, which is what really matters.
-member
P.S. Remind people not to do the Specialty Merchandise Corporation (SMC) offer, because it is impossible to cancel, and they will be charged $60 per month if they don’t change their credit card number. All of the others were pretty easy to cancel, though."
CRS are pushing the "backorder" excuse as far as it will go. I'm very suspicious since the iPhone, and various physical gifts are always on "backorder." If they don't intend to ship physical gifts, why advertise them at all? This rattles my cage because they advertise high-priced gifts, then settle it by paying members off with a reduced check. Could someone estimate the offer count of a typical $1,500.00+ CRS site? Seems like more offers would be required on those. If so, they're undervaluing the gift in the end by giving less than the advertised amount. Companies lowball, but when hundreds of dollars are deducted on top of the surplus of offers, that's awful. If I did them I would seek out the $1,000.00 gift card sites. 1. You're only getting $1,000.00 anyway. 2. No lowballing. 3. Less offers. If I'm wrong about how CRS are handling things, please chime in. From the outside it looks rather bad.
Regarding the "P.S." warning above, the choice is yours if you want to try a SMC offer, but if you don't like recurring charges, you may want to read this...
"When I completed the Direct Survey Solutions offers, I had the intention of quickly cancelling them the next day, which I did, for most of them.
It seems that all of the offers in the Direct Survey Solutions Alienware thing were fairly easy to cancel, except for the SMC "Specialty Merchandise Corporation" offer. If anyone asks you about Direct Survey, advise them to not complete this offer, because it is impossible to cancel. After waiting on hold for nearly an hour, waiting for a "Cancellation Department Representative," someone finally answered. After I stated that I wished to cancel my membership, the lady promptly told me she was transferring me [again] to the cancellation department, where I remained on hold and was never again answered. Later that day I was billed $59.95, which wasn’t supposed to happen until the end of my 30-day trial period. I had to call my bank and get a new credit card to avoid any reoccurring fees.
All of the other offers seem legitimate to me except for this one (although I wouldn’t recommend using any of the free trial weight-loss supplements =D)."
The point in posting this is to protect faultless members from unauthorized charges. I think we've all been victims of that at some time or other. It happens a lot. Thanks again to the members for allowing me to share their e-mails.
I forgot to mention Consumer Gain's offer rotation last month. It's easier to copy and paste their response instead of typing it out...
"Hello,
Thank you for letting us know that you received your check. Happy Spending!!!
As for your friend, what is their email address (if you know it)? Once I look him up I can see what we can do to work with him.
The offers rotate, but it's hard to say what Section they will be rotating from and to. It's really based on popularity from previous months.
Regards,
Member Services"
This confirms they rotate offers, just not frequently. They'll assist you with this problem, though I have no inkling as to how they go about it. All questions should be sent to their customer support by clicking "Member Support." If that fails try their direct e-mail: cgmemberservices@gmail.com
This concludes November's entry. For links, please return to "ARG Bombshell is dropped, Part 1", as that is the location our link list. I could only cram so much in one blog, lol. Alrighty guys, let me know if you need anything. Wishing all of you an early Happy Thanksgiving. Stay safe, and have fun.
Bye for now,
wozniack
1 comment:
Wozniak,
Feel free to contact me directly.
- Sean McCormick
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