Complaint Review: Davis Direct Marketing

I sat here reading this with my mouth wide open in utter shock.  This was a dead on description of "Davis Direct Marketing".  I stayed there almost 2 weeks.  When you said brainwashed, I couldn't have agreed more.  I'm so logical.  I don't know how they brainwashed me.  It pisses me off now that I fell for that whole scheme.  I can't believe I was that stupid.

I used to work for DDM and I have to say it was the worst job I have ever worked in my life!! you work 12 hours a day 6 days a week.  I remember when Julia went through a plan of "how to organize your day so you can have time to go to the bank" yeah right.. you have to be at the office by 7 and be back at the office 7.. the bank opens from 9-5.. you have no time to go to the bank.. by the time you get home at night, which yo uusually get home around 7:30-8, you are to exhusted to do anything but go to sleep..

Milgirl08 I have to agree with you on the sick days.. what kind of company cannot give you a sick day at all... one time I we went out of town.. Julia paid for a hotel for us to work somewhere in wisconsin and they sent me to super walmart where no one really comes in and out of my side but my co-worker was on the other side where the sun was shinning and have constant traffic.. I got really sick for standing in the cold for 12 hours a day that I had to go back to the hotel to rest.  Julia was so mad that they wanted me to come home and take the rest of the week off and granted I was 3 hours away from milwaukee... I had to rethink what my goals are.. WTF!

If you cannot ring "BELL" then don't even think about coming back to the company.  Bell is making over 300 dollars.  There are so many times that I was at pick n save after 8 trying to pitch to people so that I can ring bell at least.  What kind of company tells you to do that? and if this is really for charity then why do we need to tax people for anyways.. charitys do not tax!!

I cannot believe that I fell for this stupid scam!! people do not believe what DDM tells you and do not buy thier products!! they say that you are guarntee to make over $100,000.00 but that's a lie.. no job is worth standing outside in the cold for 12 hours just to try to make $100 a day which you don't even make that much a day!! my check for a week was only $300 not even... what a waste of my TIME!!!

Oh, they have already done this multiple times. they have gone under DDM, Davis Direct Marketing, Difference Defined Milwaukee, Next Level Promotions. They used to be located in Menomonee Falls, then they moved their office to a Brookfield location, and have again moved to a different Brookfield location. And all these changes have happened within only the past year or two.

Seriously, what legit business changes their name and location that many times in such a short period?? And this is a common practice for all of the businesses under the Quantum/Cydcor/DS-max/Innovage umbrella. They have to keep changing things to keep bringing people in. Once word gets out about how shady they are, they change their name and location to suck more unsuspecting people into their "cult". It is sad that therre are actually some fairly smart people who have been and continue to be fooled by companies like this. People who choose to believe all their lies and unfulfilled promises.

Becky-
I'm still waiting for answers to all of my questions that I posted in OCTOBER of 2008. If you were truely an ethical business with a reputable business, I think you could easily defend yourself and the company you work for. Since you cannot answer any of my questions and you choose to lie about who you are, I think you are making a worse case for your company. By lying about who you actually are on Ripoff Report, you are actually helping our cause in proving that you are in fact a deceitful company. If you have to come up with alternate names to try and prove yourself "moral," you really should re-evaluate your business and its practices.

Throughout this hard economic time, I would hope that you tell the applicants of the shady practices of DDM prior to hiring them. After all, they are going to find out via google eventually and then you will have wasted all of your precious time training an employee just for them to quit less than one week later. This can only go on for so long before you will not only have changed your name but also the location of your business in order to find more customers and employees to scam.

This place caught my eye, they are at Pick N Save in West Allis, all the time. I had been studing Criminal Justice. I wondered about this finger print buisness. I really do not understand how they snow balled Pick N Save, into allowing a scam company to stand outside their store and rip people off in the name of a charity. I would have thought this store would have done a little research before allowing them on their property. Maybe Fox6 Catrina Cravy should hear about this one.

i'm just curious- how do you know about DDM and how shady they are? did you used to work there, or know somebody who did? it is really sad the way these "companies" take over people's lives. i have seen it first hand put people in debt, lie to them, ruin their relationships with family and loved ones.

The poster Grnpunk8, you will chuckle when you read report number 2955866, its from a Jay in New Berlin, your detail about Becky is dead on.

isn't it odd how the last rebuttal claiming what a great company it is comes from the same "Becky" in okauchee, wisconsin that wrote the first "consumer suggestion" rebuttal? yet she signed her "I loved my job with Davis Direct..." "employee" rebuttal as "Sher". So, is your name Becky or Sher? Are you an employee or a consumer?

just another example of the shadyness and deception this "company" uses. multiple positive rebuttals, yet they seem to come from the same person, just trying to use a different name. the only people who have anything good to say about this and any other quantum/cydcor/innovage/ds-max company are those who are in it-the ones who are completely brainwashed or who's job it is to brainwash others.

anybody who has made it out of this company will tell you how horrible, unethical, and shady it is. and that includes the ones who were "successful" in it- the ones who made it to owners, the ones who opened their own and multiple offices. the ones who made it out and realized the truth of what they were doing will all tell you how bad it truly is. it is full of lies, unfulfilled dreams, and broken promises. it steals your life, yet somehow makes those who are in it believe it is all being done for their own good. to "help them grow and become good leaders and business owners." so full of lies.

Since there is no where to post POSITIVE comments about a company I decided to post it here.

I worked with this company for almost 6 months part of the time was an internship. I read the article that a girl had written about this company and was appauled by its inacuracy. Since she NEVER even worked for the company HOW would she know what it's like?

What's even more disturbing, is that in a failing economy while many other companies are shutting down this one is growing and to try to convince people not to take a job that I found was very useful is cruel.

People go on second interview with this company becasue they represent charity partners and major retailers. I did not get in a car with other people I followed them to an event that was very professional. Everyone in the office was also professional and nice.

I worked all summer and gained a ton of knowledge I didn't have before about direct marketing, brands, they even paid for me to travel to Arizona! I don't know about any other companies that would do that for just an intern (when I started).

I think it's funny that all of these reports are from people who either have only interviewed or just worked there for a few weeks...you probably didn't understand or ask enough questions about certain things. I always got paid, everyone was honest and up front about what we would be doing and I am very glad I didn't believe these reports when I read them before I took my internship.

I wanted to see for myself, and I did and it was wonderful.

So thank you Davis Direct you showed me how to interview and gave me hands on training that I am now applying.


Sher

Becky-
I am very entertained by your defense against DDM. In a typical day at work, do you every explain to customers that you get 95% of their "contribution?" Do you ever explain that only 5% of that "contribution" is actually going to help continue searches for missing children? Do you ever explain that the other 95% of their "contribution" goes to pay for the merchandise, your "commission," or the $90,000+/year that your owner makes? This is not a cause that anyone should support. These poor customers are sucked into your selling tactics and never informed of the acutal use of their "contribution." Is it even in small print on their recipt?

When searching for "direct marketing" in a textbook, one can find that it will say "see also, "personal selling."" In your case, you claim that no selling is involved, yet direct marketing is in fact personal selling. In your case, the amount of sales you accumulate actually alters your pay from week to week. This would lead one to believe that it is a comission based job and possibly a pyramid schemed operation. Somehow this company is getting around the legalities in deception by performing unethical practices of selling. Whether or not these practices are legal or not isn't even the point I'm trying to make. What happened to ethical practices in business? How can you people sleep at night? You justify that you are doing something good for others by standing outside each and every day trying to scam people. Really though, you are wasting your time and the time and money of others.

At a time like this when many people are having hard times financially, how can you look at yourself in the mirror? Not only are those who contribute being lied to, but also the stores in which DDM is allowed to stand outside of harassing each and every person who walks by or into the establishment. Not to mention, I was paid a total of $100 for the two days that I worked. I later felt incredibly guilty for ever being paid for my unethical practices. Do you ever feel guilty getting paid? Mind you, in order to get paid I had to jump through hoops. It only equated to about $50 per day. This to me is also unethical. How can a company expect their workers to stand outside 6 days a week and only make $50 per day? This is less than $5/hour for most of the employees. If they were truely helping out missing children, I could see how they would want to make such little money. Most people doing a job like this actually volunteer in which they aren't getting paid at all. Obviously they are being promised something more, which causes them to stay employed with such little pay. Since so little money actually goes to the organization, I don't quite understand why they would want to stand outside and consume their lives with lies other than advancement opportunities that are near impossibly to reach. Actually...I do understand. It must be because it is a comission based job (not included in the job description) that is, in fact, some sort of legalized pyramid scheme.

When I asked "what happens if you don't sell X amount of product?" I was first corrected that we weren't selling and then never given an answer. I still question what happens to those who do not sell enough product in a given week. Do these individuals get fired? Are they suspended? Are they paid substantially less? One individual wrote that they weren't allowed to come to work for a week at a time when her "sales" weren't high enough.

Contributions to any organization should be a voluntary act, not something that is pushed and pushed upon an indivdual through the unethical sales tactics by the staff of Davis Direct Marketing. Though these people are voluntarily purchasing the items of DDM, they are unaware of the uses of their contributions. I feel like I keep saying this, but it still shocks me that this is actually happening to people that I may know. There must be an ultimate goal for someone to behave unethically on a day-to-day basis.

From what I've read, I believe the ultimate goal is to open your own unethical organization that is linked to Davis Direct Marketing. Having that goal in mind, the individual is selfishly expecting to screw people over day-in and day-out until they are able to open their own franchise-like company and then teach others beneath them to act unethically, just as they previously did. It is a cycle that needs to somehow be stopped. When the owner is making double what the missing children's organization (CPEA) is accumulating yearly, a red flag should be going up to anyone who practices ethical business. When I saw one of DDM's employees at my local grocery store (over one year after the individual began working for DDM) STILL standing outside advocating for the missing children's organization, I immediately realized that this company is not only unethical, but full of empty promises. This particular employee had been hoping for a promotion and 3 months after I quit, clearly didn't receive one. Why this employee is still wasting their time believing they will someday open their own version of DDM is beyond me.

I truely hope that all of the organizations (such as the Child Protection Education of America (CPEA)) involved with DDM someday realize who they are letting represent them. I hope that those stores, restaurants, and other businesses who allow DDM to stand in or outside of their establishments soon realize what DDM is really about. I highly doubt that a company as large as Wal-Mart actually wants a company like DDM, with such terrible business ethics to be standing outside of their store.

Becky, you can continue to defend this company and claim that I (and others) am prejudging a company that I know nothing about, but as far as I have seen, I am not the only one making these "judgements." It is a common theme among each and every post regarding Davis Direct Marketing. Some are even grateful for reading the posts on this website because they didn't have to experience what some of us have.

You should be embarassed to even defend such a terrible and unethical company. We should be focusing our efforts on actually finding these missing children, NOT profiting from their search and the fact that they are missing. If that was your child or loved one that was missing, would you be interested in contributing to DDM's shady business? Probably not. Instead, you might try to find every non-profit missing persons' search and go to them for help. You would want to know that ALL of your money was going to help find your missing child or loved one and not just 5% of of your money, wouldn't you? You would probably NOT contribute to the CPEA through DDM because you, unlike most people, know where money contributed to the CPEA goes--to DDM and its employees, right? Unlike most people, you would have the advantage of knowing that there are other ways to donate and help missing children other than through DDM. To truely understand why the practices of DDM and its employees is unethical, would you need to experience losing a child or loved one?

It is very very disappointing that this kind of business is legal, if it even is. If so, what exactly are the terms and conditions to which allow it to be legal? Do you even know? Or is it just a legal business with an unethical mission, unethical employees, and unethical business tactics? Is your name even Becky?

I'm so thankful to all of you who submitted your reports about DDM. I was called for an interview today and will not be going, thanks to all of you. I was wondering why they got back to me so fast (I applied yesterday, Sunday). Any company who is that desperate to hire new people so fast is obviously doing shady business. Thanks again for all your info!

Actually "Becky" if that is even your name..... she nailed it right on the head. I wish I would have caught on to the lies of the company sooner. In fact everything that everyone has said about Julia Davis's company (one of hundreds of Pyramid Schemes) Davis Direct is in fact pathetic in its nature. It is all commission, the only things that help the CPEA out have the logo on it... so just the shirts. I called people too Becky and their stories are very different from yours. The Charity uses third party marketing and yes a small amount goes to the CPEA, but that is not the issue here... the issue is being told to lie to people to sell stuff and tell them it is all helping the charity, sadly you are upselling items based off of someones deepest fears, lossing a child. All for the ultimate benefit of the top dogs in the company. wow... I am ashamed that I did it and I feel sorry for the people who work there. Brain washing people into thinking they are helping a charity is not a normal job practice. In fact while I was there if I or anyone else got sick and needed a sick day or if there was a death in their family, they were told to take the week off... what company who values there employees does that? Or sells something that is broken to a client. It all became too real when I went to Julia and asked to see the legal document stating the amount and numbers that where actually helping the CPEA and she could not provide them. (maybe those are lost in the same burried box as those paychecks?) Please anyone reading this take note: Anyone really raising money for a Charity will take donations, they will not force you to purchase a thing. If you want to help out CPEA go directly to the website. If you do see the CPEA table and you feel bad for the kid standing at the table (due to the fact it is commission based off of how much they sell) pick up a t-shirt that is only $10 regardless of what they pitch (a sales Tactic) at least you will know you purchased the only thing that helps the cpea by 20% (if that wasn't a lie... never got to see any official document) and you are helping the kid get 30% commission so that they can afford to get a coffee. They work from 8:00-8:30pm! FYI "Becky" Work= anytime frame you are required to be at work: aka: the field or the office. Sad! Oh and if the sales person doesn't make $200 they are told to run around parking lots and sell until they hit their goal (illegal) also very dangerous to do... I thought you were trying to help prevent people from becoming a statistic? Wow I hope you are proud... or "Becky" You can take your mother for dinner at Cheese Cake Factory but you can't buy professional clothes or a nice office??? I guess we just have to open our eyes to see the Millions you claim to make aren't rolling in.

It saddens me to read such horrible things about such a great organization. This person only worked for a few days and has prejudged a company they know nothing about. I've called the Charity Davis Direct works with, and talked to the Executive Director Hilary.

She told me how much this organization does for their community and because of their reps they were able to aid a family in finding a missing child. Their organization alone has helped with over 50,000 dollars in one year.

I too thought 5% wasn't very much but after talking to Hilary and realizing how influencial that percentage is my view was changed. How many of us are willing to stand outside and talk about a cause for an 8 hour time period daily. I have nothing but respect for those individuals who choose that as a career, and shame on anyone who prejudges a company without finding the facts first.