A fellow blogger was expressing his disgust at Multi-Level Marketing, about how a friend he has known for a number of years treated him as just a business prospect. If you remember my post on the scam on time-sharing and how I have been conned a few times, you will understand my negativity towards Multi-Level Marketing, which I think time-sharing is just another form.
No doubt people are doing their jobs, but the terms and conditions should be more properly represented. These companies can get themselves sued for misrepresentation. For instance, if people are told they only need one hour to complete a questionnaire, then make sure it is really a one-hour questionnaire, not anything else. And do not tell people otherwise if it is just another time-sharing presentation.
Sometime last week, I got conned again. True, I should be more wary, but this time it was really unknowing on my part, as the modus operandi was different. There were no kids doing surveys, and sending people up to the office building, nor were there any cold calling of people saying that they have won gifts from some lucky draw. It was an innocent visit of enquiry.
What happened was that I was surfing the net looking for some cruise companies as I thought of bringing my parents on a cruise. I stumbled upon this company which claimed to be newly set-up and they have cruises to very exotic places like Turkey, Greece, Italy, etc.
So I called the number for enquiry. The receptionist put me to an officer in charge who asked me to go down to their office to look through the brochures and she could answer my queries there and then. Standard procedure of any tour company, so of course I would not suspect anything.
I set up an appointment with her, which I postponed twice due to last-minute work commitments. The second time I postponed, the officer put me on a guilt trip saying that it was actually her off day but she specially came back for me. So when she called me the third time to fix an appointment, I agreed to try to make it.
The day of the appointment, the manager himself called me and asked if I would be going down. I answered in the affirmative, to which he said in that case he would call the officer who served me back since it was her off day.
After all these, I should have realised, since they seemed so desperate for me to go down, but I did not as I thought they were just trying their best to make business. So that day I made sure I did not have any last-minute work and left office on time just to make my way down.
When I stepped into the office, I was asked to fill in (fill up?) a form. I still thought nothing of it since new companies would want to build up their network of people. But when this guy came and receive me instead of that lady who called me, alarm bells should have already gone off in my head.
Still, I followed him, and by the time I went in and saw the familiar setting, warning bells were sounding. And when I realised it was the same time-sharing thing, I told them I had no time for that and needed to go off.
The guy said I promised to pledge my time. I said I was only told to spend an hour looking through brochures and asking questions about the cruise programmes, not to listen to another three-hour presentation that I have no interest in.
He guaranteed that he would only take up an hour of my time, to which I said in that case, just let me look through the cruise programmes and I would go. Then he said I have to listen to the presentation first before he could let me see the cruises available, and I have to sign up as a member before I can be entitled to any cruises.
After that, he said that he is being paid S$25.00 per presentation, so why do I not help him out by letting him get on with his work, then I can just go at the end and he can still get his pay? Can you believe that?!
I told him that I did not go all the way to their office to be conned, and besides, what I was told through the phone was totally different. He had the nerve to ask the manager to come talk to me and explain that I went there on my own free will, and since I already filled in the form so I have to listen to their presentations.
I said that the company was misrepresenting people, since what I expected was totally different. They finally let me go after they realised that I am working in the legal sector. The manager then said he could offer me a free three-day two-night cruise to which I turned it down.
These people may be running a legitimate business, so it is not within anyone’s power to close them down, but still, they should be truthful and let people know exactly what they are up to.
If people were given the whole picture on what they were getting themselves into, and still went ahead, then that would be the person’s own free will and have no basis for complaint. Do they not care how people will feel after being misrepresented? Or is making the sale or earning the keep all they care about, thus always trying to prey on unsuspecting victims?
No doubt people are doing their jobs, but the terms and conditions should be more properly represented. These companies can get themselves sued for misrepresentation. For instance, if people are told they only need one hour to complete a questionnaire, then make sure it is really a one-hour questionnaire, not anything else. And do not tell people otherwise if it is just another time-sharing presentation.
Sometime last week, I got conned again. True, I should be more wary, but this time it was really unknowing on my part, as the modus operandi was different. There were no kids doing surveys, and sending people up to the office building, nor were there any cold calling of people saying that they have won gifts from some lucky draw. It was an innocent visit of enquiry.
What happened was that I was surfing the net looking for some cruise companies as I thought of bringing my parents on a cruise. I stumbled upon this company which claimed to be newly set-up and they have cruises to very exotic places like Turkey, Greece, Italy, etc.
So I called the number for enquiry. The receptionist put me to an officer in charge who asked me to go down to their office to look through the brochures and she could answer my queries there and then. Standard procedure of any tour company, so of course I would not suspect anything.
I set up an appointment with her, which I postponed twice due to last-minute work commitments. The second time I postponed, the officer put me on a guilt trip saying that it was actually her off day but she specially came back for me. So when she called me the third time to fix an appointment, I agreed to try to make it.
The day of the appointment, the manager himself called me and asked if I would be going down. I answered in the affirmative, to which he said in that case he would call the officer who served me back since it was her off day.
After all these, I should have realised, since they seemed so desperate for me to go down, but I did not as I thought they were just trying their best to make business. So that day I made sure I did not have any last-minute work and left office on time just to make my way down.
When I stepped into the office, I was asked to fill in (fill up?) a form. I still thought nothing of it since new companies would want to build up their network of people. But when this guy came and receive me instead of that lady who called me, alarm bells should have already gone off in my head.
Still, I followed him, and by the time I went in and saw the familiar setting, warning bells were sounding. And when I realised it was the same time-sharing thing, I told them I had no time for that and needed to go off.
The guy said I promised to pledge my time. I said I was only told to spend an hour looking through brochures and asking questions about the cruise programmes, not to listen to another three-hour presentation that I have no interest in.
He guaranteed that he would only take up an hour of my time, to which I said in that case, just let me look through the cruise programmes and I would go. Then he said I have to listen to the presentation first before he could let me see the cruises available, and I have to sign up as a member before I can be entitled to any cruises.
After that, he said that he is being paid S$25.00 per presentation, so why do I not help him out by letting him get on with his work, then I can just go at the end and he can still get his pay? Can you believe that?!
I told him that I did not go all the way to their office to be conned, and besides, what I was told through the phone was totally different. He had the nerve to ask the manager to come talk to me and explain that I went there on my own free will, and since I already filled in the form so I have to listen to their presentations.
I said that the company was misrepresenting people, since what I expected was totally different. They finally let me go after they realised that I am working in the legal sector. The manager then said he could offer me a free three-day two-night cruise to which I turned it down.
These people may be running a legitimate business, so it is not within anyone’s power to close them down, but still, they should be truthful and let people know exactly what they are up to.
If people were given the whole picture on what they were getting themselves into, and still went ahead, then that would be the person’s own free will and have no basis for complaint. Do they not care how people will feel after being misrepresented? Or is making the sale or earning the keep all they care about, thus always trying to prey on unsuspecting victims?
7 comments:
Well the way i see it they can't make you listen to the presentation. Any form of detention could be sued for "false imprisonment" charges.
you came down there on free will and you could leave on free will too.
I am already very wary of filling forms :P
Gus : Totally right. That's why I have every right to leave and they have no right to stop me. Which is why I'm so pissed.
Ole Wolvie : What can I say? I'm dumb, simple as that.
Did u retrieved back the form u've filled? If not, I'm very sure these ppl will call u again, and again, and again...
Oh... didn't. But next time someone like that ever call I'm not going to entertain them anymore.
That was a close shave. Haha, I think you have to be on your toes at those non-transparent agencies who preached a different agenda... I really do find it annoying when things are not what they seem to be.
Yes, that's why I felt so angry and cheated.
Post a Comment