The content of this article is a long overdue explanation to my readers about sudden disappearance of posts addressing one particular company, namely ePerks. If you are not familiar with the issue, you probably will be much better off to skip this post, because it is going to be a very long post. If you however interested in Chilling Effects, you might as well stick around. I believe I have a classic example how can a behemoth company silence a blogger.
If you are a regular reader, you may remember several posts on my blog addressing dealings of ePerks. These post have generated over 200+ comments. Majority of those comments were quiet negative to say the least. On February 13, I have received a Cease and Desist (see below) notice from ePerks attorney. The letter contains nothing but untruthful accusations. To write 200+ comments on my own posts would require my presence in 200+ locations across the United States in a span of very short time frame. The accusation that I am financially involved with ePerks competitor(s) is complete lie, because ePerks was the only company that I was financially involved with. In fact they paid me to write a review about their website. The only thing that did not go according to their plan, was the fact that many of my readers are real estate agents. This also taught me a difficult lesson about “paid or sponsored reviews” model of blogging. Needless to say I discourage you to ever write a paid review.
It was not easy decision to take the articles down. It felt like I was betraying all those who commented on my posts. But I simply wanted the issue to go away, because I was also tired of moderating my posts from false testimonies of ePerks fans, who would leave four or more “positive” reviews during just one single visit to my website.
So why am I publishing this post? It appears that many visitors and regular readers are still looking for those posts and I think they deserve an explanation:
Hi! My name is ***** and I am a real estate agent from *******. I have had an absolute horrible time with eperks…disputing unauthorized charges (canceled in Jan but still getting charged) among numerous other complaints! Filed with the BBB also. A link to your blog pops up when I search eperks scam, but I can never actually get to the blog? I was hoping you could help me out…would really like to read it.
Thanks!
I also hope that some of the leading real estate blogs and websites will notice this issue and will stand up for the freedom of speech on the Internet. I also have reasons to be concerned about my and my family’s safety.
So without further ado, here is the letter I received from Ronald J. Cook:
WILLOUGHBY, STUART & BENIN
A Professional Law Corporation
50 West San Fernando, Suite 400
San Jose. CA 85113
Phone 408 289 1972
February 13, 2008
Volodymyr (Vlad) Zablotskyy
Street
City, State Zip
Re: My Client: Eperks.com
Our File: 1805.10806C
Dear Mr. Zablotskyy:
I represent Barbus Ventures Corporation, the parent company for ePERKS.com. You are hereby instructed to terminate your ongoing efforts to unfairly disparage and slander ePERKS.com through the dissemination of false and/or manufactured information. Any resistence to our demands will be met with swift and decisive action.
As you well know, we are referring to your blogs that reference the name ePERKS, including such title as “ePerks- A Scam Or A Gem”; “How Much Does it Take to Take Advantage of a Realtor?”; “ePERKS- Putting The ePerks Saga to Rest”; and “ePerks- Three Critical Mistakes a New Startup Should Avoid”, amongst others. Your blogs create the false impression you are inviting comments from legitimate ePERKS customers, when the truth is your only goal is to cast ePERKS in a negative light for personal gain. In that regard, your blogs deceptively fail to inform the reader that you are motivated by an undisclosed proprietary interest in an ePERKS competitor.
Having researched the content of your blogs, we have come to conclusive proof that a substantial number of your postings are bogus, in that they frequently describe experiences that never happened and people who do not exist. Moreover, you are fully aware of these fals stories, yet posted them anyway. Your complicity of their creation is very serious matter.
Our research also shows that negative remarks are not only invited, but are posted without a challenge. Conversely, favorable remarks are met with hostility and belittlement, including demands that the posting party either prove they are participating agents, or do not work for ePERKS.
We have determined that our damages as a direct result of your activities are in multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars. Such substantial money and brand name damages can no longer be tolerated.
You are hereby instructed to promptly do the following: (1) shutter and prevent access to all blogs with any ePERKS reference or content; (2)remove any record of their existence; (3) terminate any links pointing to any blogs that reference ePERKS; and (4) cease and desist from any and all current and future digital, print, Internet or verbal reference to ePERKS.com or Barbus Venture Corporation. This includes closing down your January 28, 2008 bog that continues to direct readers to your previous remarks and postings. We demand that you complete these actions immediately, and in no event later than five days of this letter. Your failure to comply will result in prompt legal action, including, but not limited to, a claim of money damages and appropriate restraining orders.
We will be closely monitoring your activities. Barbus Ventures Corporation continues to reserve any and all rights under the law, including the right to pursue any and legal remedies against you, your employer, your clients, and/or your web host. Should you have any questions or comments about the contents of this letter, please contact the undersigned.
Respectfully,
WILLOUGHBY, STUART & BENING
Ronald J. Cook
I also would like to say thank you to at least two bloggers for offering their support and help. Although if it only meant to take links to my blog down: Paying bloggers to say nice things and Eperks commercial.
Jen,
While you at it, could you also ask who posted following on Yahoo! Answers?
http://www.go-beyond-mls.com/silencing-a-blogge…
😉
Open and Honestly … jennifer.plankenhorn@eperks.com … new employee …
Wow, I never knew there was so many mixed feelings about ePERKS. I JUST started working here 2 days ago (I have not even hit the phones yet) and I definitely want to make sure my team manager is aware of this and I will inquire about the class-action lawsuit and cease and desist blogs. (??? C&D, honestly … who thinks they can silence people like that?!?)
Many of my co-workers are a bit less customer service savvy and more “get it now” type attitude. However, that is the attitude they want us to take because we do face a lot of rejection and in order for employees to not feel like complete failures, they want us to toughen our hides. I think this could contribute to poor service. I want to improve it.
In all honesty, this method of generating business is going to work for some and not for others. Whether it is simply the lack of business in zip codes that are chosen or if people aren’t willing to really invest time into marketing themselves in many additional outlets instead of just waiting for the phone to ring, it just depends. Everyone’s experience is going to vary.
How I see it, not only as a new employee, but as someone who takes what I do personally and wants to help as many people as possible, I think it overall is a product that is valuable and makes sense but might not be right for everyone.
Unfortunately, people who do not hold themselves to standards like I do may burn valuable bridges. I used to work for ELOAN, until they laid off 500+ people and I loved them too, until I was let go for a bogus reason to avoid being paid severance. And do I have a bad taste in my mouth from that? Hell YES I do. Does that mean that ELOAN is a bad choice for everyone? Not in the least.
What I can say is the job looks like it is going to be really hard, and there is a high turnover even for people who have early success. I want to be successful there so I am trying to know as much as I can from all angles. They have told me that the cancellation process has been crappy because of the way it has to be done and some employees aren’t clear to their agents how to do it. Agents are calling to cancel WITHOUT SENDING WRITTEN EMAIL CONFIRMATION to clientservices@eperks.com (OMG I will TOTALLY make sure this is the right email, I still haven’t had my work station 100% set up!!!) I’m sure that plays a part in miscommunication about payments and unauthorized charges.
Wow, this is long. I tend to do that. If you ever hear from a Jennifer from ePERKS, I won’t ask you to give me any special treatment, but I am driven to be better than anybody else, and will make sure ROI gurantees are fulfilled on agents I sign up and that if they need to cancel for whatever reason that it gets DONE. (my referral ID: jp10) ^_~
I can’t make the same promise for my co-workers, everyone has a different ethical sense.
I hope things work out for people who give ePERKS a try. If they find it doesn’t, I hope they don’t try to rain on anyone else’s success and be sure to follow through on cancelling the service as completely as possible. If it works, share great success with others! I tried recruiting tons of collegues to ELOAN while it was riding the wave. ePERKS is NEW NEW NEW only since July 2007! They already have commercials running (although I didn’t like the truck hitting the lady one at all!) but still, it’s got to mean something.
I am going to stop typing, I promise, I seriously try just way too hard to say everything I want in one shot! This is one of my “tasks” to overcome at work coincidentally, as well as the homework I have to do tonight. So good luck everyone, and I am going to make sure I know all about these incidents before I hit the phones tomorrow. Thanks for reading, I’ll keep checking back and see how things go.
Thanks Vlad for your desire to help others. That is really all we can do in life or why bother with the freedom we are given here?
-jen-
Jen,
Good luck with your position at ePerks. I hope to see you here an leave comments a week from now. If I were you, I would not inquire about this cease and desist letter, if you want to keep this job. I am serious about it.
Unless of course you are just here to create more hype for this company.
Best of luck!
Jen,
While you at it, could you also ask who posted following on Yahoo! Answers?
http://www.go-beyond-mls.com/silencing-a-blogger-with-discusting-tactics/
😉
You sound real, so get a real job!
DON’T BUY EPERKS..What a scam..They called me I signed up..Then within an HOUR..they could not deliver what they promised. I called and cancelled..The salesmen calls us a few times a month to get back on..NO I have repeated told him..Then they call and say I owe them $100. I said I never had your service..Then they sent the $100 to a collection agency..WHAT A SCAM..DO NOT DO BUSINESS with them..Say yourself allot of grief.
Keep up the posts. It is still amazing when a corporation decides to hide behind lawyers instead of addressing comments and reviews as a chance to change their business procedures. No one is perfect and they should look at it as an opportunity to recapture those people and change their processes.
Keep up the posts. It is still amazing when a corporation decides to hide behind lawyers instead of addressing comments and reviews as a chance to change their business procedures. No one is perfect and they should look at it as an opportunity to recapture those people and change their processes.
Shame on ePerks. Maybe someone there at ePerks should try to fix the problems or perception of problems that the blogger is talking about instead of suing the blogger to try to censor free speach. Hopefully, ePerks will let up, but if not, I hope the blogger gets costs, fees, and maybe even some exemplary damages. Don’t let them silence your opinions!
Joe
You would think a lawyers office would have proof read the letter for spelling mistakes before sending it out.
You would think a lawyers office would have proof read the letter for spelling mistakes before sending it out.