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Purtech - HMI Industries Filter Queen Rick Furgerson Deceptive job ad ripoff to employee and customer Ontario Ohio
Beware of job ads looking to fill various positions for a new outlet or factory outlet. You will have a group interview that is all lies. Turns out you will have to ripoff good people selling filter queen vacumn and air purifier for 3-4 thousand dollars, by selling to friends and family. Don't buy these at these prices either. Nothing but a rip off. You can buy these on Ebay for 600.00.
Steve
mt gilead, Ohio
U.S.A.
16 Updates & Rebuttals
Gary
Dearborn Heights,Michigan,
U.S.A.
FIlter Queen Run in
#17Consumer Comment
Wed, April 25, 2007
I had a recent run in with this company too. on 4/24/07 I called a job ad in the local paper for Polution Control. I called the number thinking that this would be some job cleaning the Rouge River or such.
I receptionist already set up an interview for 2pm that day. RED FLAG
When I finally drive out to the place, I passed up the office twice, because the office did not have a sign of the company anywhere in front of the office or even on the door.
SECOND RED FLAG!
If this is such a successful company, how come the company or product's name is not on the door. Even DS-MAX at least puts a name of a office on their door.
THRID RED FLAG was the office itself, the inside looked as it was not remodeled or even maintained
since the 1980's. This is usually a sign that this company is not making the money like they say they are.
At least the Primerica Office I was at did nto have water stains on the walls and ceiling, ratty carpet and rusted chairs.
First the owner apologizes about the huge group interview as we are stuffed into seats.
The interview was the typical group sales pitch telling you how much money you will be making. I was cramped in this tiny office with 30 other people, they tried to say this is not like VECTOR or those other places. WELL THEY ACTUALLY ARE.
After the pitch he says he is looking for maybe 5 new people and to call later that day at 330pm As I walked out I made up my mind, HELL NO.
I'll look for legitmate employment thank you.
Aaron
Springfield,Missouri,
U.S.A.
filter queen - promised the same things
#17Consumer Comment
Fri, September 23, 2005
well my fiance and i both got jobs at edge technologies and were promised the same things as above. from my understanding hmi has "franchise" distributors. so far weve seen every thing theve promised. we are making no investments and both hold other jobs as a back up. after reading the above comments we will definatly proceed with caution. well update this after a little while after we have more involvement with this "sounds to good to be true" company
Brian
Toledo,Ohio,
U.S.A.
Wow.... found this site, thankful that I just went on another job interview..
#17UPDATE Employee
Sat, April 30, 2005
After reading all of the updates on Filter Queen, I figure its my turn to submit something here.
About a week and a half again I went to a "job interview" for a company calling itself Sierra Industries. When I got there I found a bunch of people waiting on an interview; I was guess since it was listed in an ad in the Toledo Blade online, that people were applying for the various positions that were listed in the ad.
Okay, so 11am rolls around and all of us are shown in and this middle-eastern fellow starts telling all of us about the company and asking for us to forgive him because of the mass interview (he said that they didnt expect so many people would apply...after reading this site....yeah right!). Anyways, he starts asking everyone to raise their hands for the positions that they are interested in (oh yeah, he had us fill out a job application with reference information - I suspect my info and all of my friends and family will be recieving junk mailers and calls from solictors because of all of the information that they asked for...not to mention what they might do with my social security number.)
So we all raise our hands for the jobs we are interested in, and they eventually crosses off one of the job positions on the board because its a commission only position. They he starts telling us all about the company (HMI and Filter Queen), it all sounds legit, but a bit like an infomercial. He then starts telling the people gathered that he's only been with the company a year and that in his first or second month with the company that he made something like 19grand in pay and commissions.
Somewhere along the way its all sounding good, but to me a little too good to be totally believable. So eventually the meeting ends and he starts calling everyone up to the desk in the front of the room to ask when we would be available and if they had ready transportation. He then tells each one of us to call the company back between 1pm and 1:30pm to find out if we have been accepted for whatever position that we were applying for.
Okay, I call and they guy on the phone sounds nice enough. He asks me if I'd be happy to learn that I was accepted in to the company, I say yes of cource (at this point I have been unemployed for about 4months- so any job to support my family is a promising prospect). He tells me to come in the next day for training ( which was to be unpaid as everyone else has said before on here).
So I come in for the training thing and find this italien looking guy in a black suit coat and slacks with a black izod shirt on and a look on his face like "you want me to put a clip in him boss?". Well, he starts explaining to us about the company again....same stuff as the day of the interview. About 15 minutes in I finally speak up and tell the guy that I was there for the Service Technician position and had no interest in the Setup and Display position. So Mr. Mike Mohney (the italien guy) leaves the room and comes back for myself and the other guy that was there for the service tech position (for some reason I got the feeling I was going to be wearing cement shoes and at the bottom of the Maumee River by the end of the day). Mr. Mohney takes us to a guy named Chad who was supposedly in charge of the Service Tech Dept. Chad tells me and the other guy that he would set up a time for us to train and that it would be in the evening. Then he just sends us home; telling us he'd give us a call about it once he had everything set up. He told us he'd be in touch with us by Fri. (the next day)
So I call on Friday because I'm not one to wait on the incompetence of others. I reach him and he tells me that I'll have to wait for the 3rd of May, I tell my wife and parents about it and they say thats pretty normal. So I'm not thinking anything is off. Then somewhere along the way curiousity sets in and I start looking up Sierra Industries on the Net; all I find is a listing for a Aircraft parts company. Something was definitely smelling fishing. Okay, so a week goes by and I finally call back on the following Wed from when I was "hired" on. I get this beat around the bush answer from Chad that as of the 3rd he would know exactly when training would begin. On the prompting of my wife and parents, I call back two more times; the first time getting some guy that seemed clueless and he said that he'd fax their human resources dept my application and see what was up (I asked if they had my contact# and this guy said yes - I heard the rustling of papers which could have just been for my sake). The second call for the following day....a Friday and I get Chad again. This time Chad doesnt seem to even know who I was and he would have to check on everything. Thats when I started to worry.
I make a long story short, I told my friend in Cincinnati about this and he was the one that found this site for me.
It is now April 30th 2005, I had yet to hear from anyone at the company and I am thankful that I just went on another job interview the day before for a local resturant. Thank the Gods and Goddesses that I wasnt greedy or I would have been sucked into the selling scams I have read about on here.
Brian,
(technically a service tech for Sierra Industries aka HMI)
Paul
Anaheim,California,
U.S.A.
I love jobs like this. If you understand how to work them, you can make tons of money.
#17Consumer Suggestion
Wed, March 02, 2005
Normally, I don't go into a new job expecting to rip anyone off.
But, when I see a fraud that's out to cheat people, all bets are off. No more mr nice guy. Now, it's simply a question of who is going to cheat who.
For example, keep the vacuum you do the demonstrations with. Sell five or six to friends. Get them to write out worthless checks. That way, you take five or six vacs home with you.
Office cleaning? Hey didn't there used to be a flat screen monitor there? What happened to it?
Basically, no more rules. Steal anything that's not bolted down. Wait, scratch that. I got wrenches in the car. Make it: steal anything that's not welded down.
Trust me, when I get done working for these people, they won't have enough money left to place any more of their phony ads.
You see, all you need to do is learn the game. I can win at anything, right or wrong. It's just a matter of doing the correct things.
Lacey
Vancouver,Washington,
U.S.A.
I totally sympathize with you guys!
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, March 02, 2005
What you guys are saying is exactly what I went through! I worked there for a month (ours was called Micron Filtration) and was two presenations short of their quota so they wouldn't pay me. I put in 14 hour days, 7 days a week for a freaking month! Nothing!
One day, the IRS or someone will catch up with these guys and then they're going behind bars!!!
Jan
Vincennes,Indiana,
U.S.A.
reading your report sent chills down my spine, I just finished going through the same exact thing
#17Consumer Comment
Mon, December 13, 2004
I gotta tell you reading your report sent chills down my spine, I just finished going through the same exact thing just with a different distributor. I responded to an ad for someone to answer the phone and set up appointments and it turned into exactly the same thing you went through. I went in expecting to be interviewed and there were a ton of people there.The training was exactly the same expect I didnt stick around long enough to go in on Monday morning and clean the office. I went on my first "practice" demo on Saturday and when I called to check in, I was totally embarrassed for me and my friend who allowed me to practice on her. I told the guy that the customer wanted to think about it and he said "They liked the product what is there to think about, I am confused". He was not going to let me off the phone until I sold that thing, which I didnt... haha Hey I would have to think about it too when I am shelling out over 3,000 for a glorified vacuum cleaner. I mean its works great but its NOT worth that much...
Carrie
Marion,Ohio,
U.S.A.
HMI INDUSTRIES IS BEHIND THE WHOLE SCAM
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, July 08, 2004
HMI Industries is the manufacturer of filter queen products. They are behind the whole distribution scam. They actually train the guys to go out and scam everyone. Seems to me they could sell more if they did it honestly. They train them to beat taxes too. maybe Uncle Sam with catch up with them and put them out of commission.
Ann
Seattle,Washington,
U.S.A.
Filter Queen must know of their deceitful practices and they must not care!!!
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, June 24, 2004
Just to give the parent company, {Filter Queen,} a heads up on how unethically their product is being sold, I shot them an email telling them. They haven't bothered to reply so, they must know and not care!
Rita
Cardington,Ohio,
U.S.A.
They changed their want ad to DISTRIBUTION CENTER -- Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, June 23, 2004
I went through the same thing. All a big SCAM. Never pay you . Purtech is a Bogus Company. ALL FRAUD. DON"T APPLY TO ANY WANT AD FOR A NEW DISTRIBUTION CENTER NEEDS PEOPLE FOR VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS. Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever.
Rita
Cardington,Ohio,
U.S.A.
They changed their want ad to DISTRIBUTION CENTER -- Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, June 23, 2004
I went through the same thing. All a big SCAM. Never pay you . Purtech is a Bogus Company. ALL FRAUD. DON"T APPLY TO ANY WANT AD FOR A NEW DISTRIBUTION CENTER NEEDS PEOPLE FOR VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS. Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever.
Rita
Cardington,Ohio,
U.S.A.
They changed their want ad to DISTRIBUTION CENTER -- Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, June 23, 2004
I went through the same thing. All a big SCAM. Never pay you . Purtech is a Bogus Company. ALL FRAUD. DON"T APPLY TO ANY WANT AD FOR A NEW DISTRIBUTION CENTER NEEDS PEOPLE FOR VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS. Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever.
Rita
Cardington,Ohio,
U.S.A.
They changed their want ad to DISTRIBUTION CENTER -- Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, June 23, 2004
I went through the same thing. All a big SCAM. Never pay you . Purtech is a Bogus Company. ALL FRAUD. DON"T APPLY TO ANY WANT AD FOR A NEW DISTRIBUTION CENTER NEEDS PEOPLE FOR VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS. Rick Ferguson is the biggest con artist ever.
Ann
Seattle,Washington,
U.S.A.
I wish they didn't have so many aliases because then the true extent of their deception would be revealed!
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Mon, June 14, 2004
I answered an ad that stated I could make like $1973.00 a month so, I phoned for an interview. It was a group presentation interview. They explained how the hourly wage was broken down and said that they would set you up with 3 presentations a day. These presentations were supposedly to people who were already interested in what you had to offer. Based on 3~2 hour presentations per day, you would make that amount of money per month. If you made a sale, you would make even more.
After the group interview, we were each interviewed independently. We were then told to call again in a few hours to find out if we had been chosen. {I now suspect that everyone who called at that later time was told to come the next morning.} There was to be 3 days of unpaid orientation.
I arrived the next day at I think 12PM. There were about 15 of us. We were there for a few hours learning about the history of the company. The next day, there were less people. We learned more about the product. The third and final day there was even fewer people. On the end of that day, we were given the 2 products and asked to set up as many appointments as we could with the people we knew so that, we could practice what we had learned. There were huge incentives for us to do as many as we could. I did a few. We were to return on Monday to practice and to then get sent with someone else to see how the job worked.
When we arrived we were informed that the first order of business was to clean up the office, {vacuum, take out garbage, etc.} After that, we sat in a room with the 3 or 4 other sales people, practicing the sales pitch. Then, we were sent into the field. My first turn~off was how many times we would be sent somewhere and there wouldn't be any such place or the people weren't home. {One place we went, the woman didn't even understand English.}
It was about my second day when I was supposed to meet one of the experienced salespeople to do a presentation. That person did not show up, {because he had quit,} so I was asked to do it by myself. They were very nice people and because of that, it went very well. I didn't make a sale but, it was okay, {at least by me because I was still supposed to get paid for my efforts.}
We were expected to follow this routine everyday, get there at 9, clean the office, practice until 12 and then MAYBE be sent into the field but, remember, they had said we would be sent out 3 times a day.
It was at my second presentation that I found out about how they were misleading the people to get us in their house. They were calling them and saying that they had won a prize and to collect their prize, they were to watch a 30 to 45 minute presentation. Therefore, they had lied to us saying that they were sending us to places where we were expected and welcomed. They were also lying to their potential customers because they knew our presentations were at least 2 hours long.
As if that all isn't bad enough, at the end, they had us call in. They had us make it look like we were just reporting in. In actuality, they would be seeing if we had sold their crap or not. If not, they would have us offer them a different deal. Then another one and another one...... We could tell if the people were going to do it or not so, it just made us look really stupid. I personally would cover the phone when I was talking to the people so they couldn't hear me profusely apologizing about having to keep offering them different deals.
That was the second and last time that I tried this. I'm surprised that the people didn't throw me out for a number of reasons. First because it was soooo long and second because it seemed like I was never going to quit offering them deals and leave.
I didn't quit. I continued to show up in the mornings to improve my technique. During the second week, thank God, {literally,} I lost my car key so, they decided I had issues and I should forget it. They never paid me one cent as I suspect happens to a lot of people.
There was this other person who tried this a week or so after me. He was fantastic at it! He was entitled to every incentive that was promised. He was supposed to get one of each item that we sold, a whole bunch of cash and a trip or two. Not to mention like $250.00 per unit sold. All he got was the equivalent of 1 commission and he sold like 15. Thankfully he has also quit and he's a great car salesman!
It was a terrible experience. I am so surprised to see that there are not more complaints about this. If you guys only knew, poor me. I jumped from this to an equally huge scam called dsmax. Now there's a company that has tons of reports on this website. Like dsmax, who's reports are spread out because of their various names to avoid legal issues, I suspect that this company probably also has a lot of complaints on here but because they go under so many different names, it's virtually impossible to have all their complaints in one place. I will say also though that the staff at this site is doing an even better job of getting the numerous aliases of these companies figured out and placed accordingly.
I guess the worst part is that I think Filter Queen has a great product and their presentation is convincing and impressive. They just need to find a new way to market it. It seems like infomercials would be more cost effective and they wouldn't get such a bad reputation based on the individual offices shady policies. They could probably even sell it for a consumer friendly price since they wouldn't have all those commissions.
Then again, if so many people are getting screwed out of their pay, I guess maybe they're just putting profits before integrity. There has to be some reason why they continue to do business the way they do!
Ann
Seattle,Washington,
U.S.A.
I wish they didn't have so many aliases because then the true extent of their deception would be revealed!
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Mon, June 14, 2004
I answered an ad that stated I could make like $1973.00 a month so, I phoned for an interview. It was a group presentation interview. They explained how the hourly wage was broken down and said that they would set you up with 3 presentations a day. These presentations were supposedly to people who were already interested in what you had to offer. Based on 3~2 hour presentations per day, you would make that amount of money per month. If you made a sale, you would make even more.
After the group interview, we were each interviewed independently. We were then told to call again in a few hours to find out if we had been chosen. {I now suspect that everyone who called at that later time was told to come the next morning.} There was to be 3 days of unpaid orientation.
I arrived the next day at I think 12PM. There were about 15 of us. We were there for a few hours learning about the history of the company. The next day, there were less people. We learned more about the product. The third and final day there was even fewer people. On the end of that day, we were given the 2 products and asked to set up as many appointments as we could with the people we knew so that, we could practice what we had learned. There were huge incentives for us to do as many as we could. I did a few. We were to return on Monday to practice and to then get sent with someone else to see how the job worked.
When we arrived we were informed that the first order of business was to clean up the office, {vacuum, take out garbage, etc.} After that, we sat in a room with the 3 or 4 other sales people, practicing the sales pitch. Then, we were sent into the field. My first turn~off was how many times we would be sent somewhere and there wouldn't be any such place or the people weren't home. {One place we went, the woman didn't even understand English.}
It was about my second day when I was supposed to meet one of the experienced salespeople to do a presentation. That person did not show up, {because he had quit,} so I was asked to do it by myself. They were very nice people and because of that, it went very well. I didn't make a sale but, it was okay, {at least by me because I was still supposed to get paid for my efforts.}
We were expected to follow this routine everyday, get there at 9, clean the office, practice until 12 and then MAYBE be sent into the field but, remember, they had said we would be sent out 3 times a day.
It was at my second presentation that I found out about how they were misleading the people to get us in their house. They were calling them and saying that they had won a prize and to collect their prize, they were to watch a 30 to 45 minute presentation. Therefore, they had lied to us saying that they were sending us to places where we were expected and welcomed. They were also lying to their potential customers because they knew our presentations were at least 2 hours long.
As if that all isn't bad enough, at the end, they had us call in. They had us make it look like we were just reporting in. In actuality, they would be seeing if we had sold their crap or not. If not, they would have us offer them a different deal. Then another one and another one...... We could tell if the people were going to do it or not so, it just made us look really stupid. I personally would cover the phone when I was talking to the people so they couldn't hear me profusely apologizing about having to keep offering them different deals.
That was the second and last time that I tried this. I'm surprised that the people didn't throw me out for a number of reasons. First because it was soooo long and second because it seemed like I was never going to quit offering them deals and leave.
I didn't quit. I continued to show up in the mornings to improve my technique. During the second week, thank God, {literally,} I lost my car key so, they decided I had issues and I should forget it. They never paid me one cent as I suspect happens to a lot of people.
There was this other person who tried this a week or so after me. He was fantastic at it! He was entitled to every incentive that was promised. He was supposed to get one of each item that we sold, a whole bunch of cash and a trip or two. Not to mention like $250.00 per unit sold. All he got was the equivalent of 1 commission and he sold like 15. Thankfully he has also quit and he's a great car salesman!
It was a terrible experience. I am so surprised to see that there are not more complaints about this. If you guys only knew, poor me. I jumped from this to an equally huge scam called dsmax. Now there's a company that has tons of reports on this website. Like dsmax, who's reports are spread out because of their various names to avoid legal issues, I suspect that this company probably also has a lot of complaints on here but because they go under so many different names, it's virtually impossible to have all their complaints in one place. I will say also though that the staff at this site is doing an even better job of getting the numerous aliases of these companies figured out and placed accordingly.
I guess the worst part is that I think Filter Queen has a great product and their presentation is convincing and impressive. They just need to find a new way to market it. It seems like infomercials would be more cost effective and they wouldn't get such a bad reputation based on the individual offices shady policies. They could probably even sell it for a consumer friendly price since they wouldn't have all those commissions.
Then again, if so many people are getting screwed out of their pay, I guess maybe they're just putting profits before integrity. There has to be some reason why they continue to do business the way they do!
Ann
Seattle,Washington,
U.S.A.
I wish they didn't have so many aliases because then the true extent of their deception would be revealed!
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Mon, June 14, 2004
I answered an ad that stated I could make like $1973.00 a month so, I phoned for an interview. It was a group presentation interview. They explained how the hourly wage was broken down and said that they would set you up with 3 presentations a day. These presentations were supposedly to people who were already interested in what you had to offer. Based on 3~2 hour presentations per day, you would make that amount of money per month. If you made a sale, you would make even more.
After the group interview, we were each interviewed independently. We were then told to call again in a few hours to find out if we had been chosen. {I now suspect that everyone who called at that later time was told to come the next morning.} There was to be 3 days of unpaid orientation.
I arrived the next day at I think 12PM. There were about 15 of us. We were there for a few hours learning about the history of the company. The next day, there were less people. We learned more about the product. The third and final day there was even fewer people. On the end of that day, we were given the 2 products and asked to set up as many appointments as we could with the people we knew so that, we could practice what we had learned. There were huge incentives for us to do as many as we could. I did a few. We were to return on Monday to practice and to then get sent with someone else to see how the job worked.
When we arrived we were informed that the first order of business was to clean up the office, {vacuum, take out garbage, etc.} After that, we sat in a room with the 3 or 4 other sales people, practicing the sales pitch. Then, we were sent into the field. My first turn~off was how many times we would be sent somewhere and there wouldn't be any such place or the people weren't home. {One place we went, the woman didn't even understand English.}
It was about my second day when I was supposed to meet one of the experienced salespeople to do a presentation. That person did not show up, {because he had quit,} so I was asked to do it by myself. They were very nice people and because of that, it went very well. I didn't make a sale but, it was okay, {at least by me because I was still supposed to get paid for my efforts.}
We were expected to follow this routine everyday, get there at 9, clean the office, practice until 12 and then MAYBE be sent into the field but, remember, they had said we would be sent out 3 times a day.
It was at my second presentation that I found out about how they were misleading the people to get us in their house. They were calling them and saying that they had won a prize and to collect their prize, they were to watch a 30 to 45 minute presentation. Therefore, they had lied to us saying that they were sending us to places where we were expected and welcomed. They were also lying to their potential customers because they knew our presentations were at least 2 hours long.
As if that all isn't bad enough, at the end, they had us call in. They had us make it look like we were just reporting in. In actuality, they would be seeing if we had sold their crap or not. If not, they would have us offer them a different deal. Then another one and another one...... We could tell if the people were going to do it or not so, it just made us look really stupid. I personally would cover the phone when I was talking to the people so they couldn't hear me profusely apologizing about having to keep offering them different deals.
That was the second and last time that I tried this. I'm surprised that the people didn't throw me out for a number of reasons. First because it was soooo long and second because it seemed like I was never going to quit offering them deals and leave.
I didn't quit. I continued to show up in the mornings to improve my technique. During the second week, thank God, {literally,} I lost my car key so, they decided I had issues and I should forget it. They never paid me one cent as I suspect happens to a lot of people.
There was this other person who tried this a week or so after me. He was fantastic at it! He was entitled to every incentive that was promised. He was supposed to get one of each item that we sold, a whole bunch of cash and a trip or two. Not to mention like $250.00 per unit sold. All he got was the equivalent of 1 commission and he sold like 15. Thankfully he has also quit and he's a great car salesman!
It was a terrible experience. I am so surprised to see that there are not more complaints about this. If you guys only knew, poor me. I jumped from this to an equally huge scam called dsmax. Now there's a company that has tons of reports on this website. Like dsmax, who's reports are spread out because of their various names to avoid legal issues, I suspect that this company probably also has a lot of complaints on here but because they go under so many different names, it's virtually impossible to have all their complaints in one place. I will say also though that the staff at this site is doing an even better job of getting the numerous aliases of these companies figured out and placed accordingly.
I guess the worst part is that I think Filter Queen has a great product and their presentation is convincing and impressive. They just need to find a new way to market it. It seems like infomercials would be more cost effective and they wouldn't get such a bad reputation based on the individual offices shady policies. They could probably even sell it for a consumer friendly price since they wouldn't have all those commissions.
Then again, if so many people are getting screwed out of their pay, I guess maybe they're just putting profits before integrity. There has to be some reason why they continue to do business the way they do!
Ann
Seattle,Washington,
U.S.A.
I wish they didn't have so many aliases because then the true extent of their deception would be revealed!
#17UPDATE EX-employee responds
Mon, June 14, 2004
I answered an ad that stated I could make like $1973.00 a month so, I phoned for an interview. It was a group presentation interview. They explained how the hourly wage was broken down and said that they would set you up with 3 presentations a day. These presentations were supposedly to people who were already interested in what you had to offer. Based on 3~2 hour presentations per day, you would make that amount of money per month. If you made a sale, you would make even more.
After the group interview, we were each interviewed independently. We were then told to call again in a few hours to find out if we had been chosen. {I now suspect that everyone who called at that later time was told to come the next morning.} There was to be 3 days of unpaid orientation.
I arrived the next day at I think 12PM. There were about 15 of us. We were there for a few hours learning about the history of the company. The next day, there were less people. We learned more about the product. The third and final day there was even fewer people. On the end of that day, we were given the 2 products and asked to set up as many appointments as we could with the people we knew so that, we could practice what we had learned. There were huge incentives for us to do as many as we could. I did a few. We were to return on Monday to practice and to then get sent with someone else to see how the job worked.
When we arrived we were informed that the first order of business was to clean up the office, {vacuum, take out garbage, etc.} After that, we sat in a room with the 3 or 4 other sales people, practicing the sales pitch. Then, we were sent into the field. My first turn~off was how many times we would be sent somewhere and there wouldn't be any such place or the people weren't home. {One place we went, the woman didn't even understand English.}
It was about my second day when I was supposed to meet one of the experienced salespeople to do a presentation. That person did not show up, {because he had quit,} so I was asked to do it by myself. They were very nice people and because of that, it went very well. I didn't make a sale but, it was okay, {at least by me because I was still supposed to get paid for my efforts.}
We were expected to follow this routine everyday, get there at 9, clean the office, practice until 12 and then MAYBE be sent into the field but, remember, they had said we would be sent out 3 times a day.
It was at my second presentation that I found out about how they were misleading the people to get us in their house. They were calling them and saying that they had won a prize and to collect their prize, they were to watch a 30 to 45 minute presentation. Therefore, they had lied to us saying that they were sending us to places where we were expected and welcomed. They were also lying to their potential customers because they knew our presentations were at least 2 hours long.
As if that all isn't bad enough, at the end, they had us call in. They had us make it look like we were just reporting in. In actuality, they would be seeing if we had sold their crap or not. If not, they would have us offer them a different deal. Then another one and another one...... We could tell if the people were going to do it or not so, it just made us look really stupid. I personally would cover the phone when I was talking to the people so they couldn't hear me profusely apologizing about having to keep offering them different deals.
That was the second and last time that I tried this. I'm surprised that the people didn't throw me out for a number of reasons. First because it was soooo long and second because it seemed like I was never going to quit offering them deals and leave.
I didn't quit. I continued to show up in the mornings to improve my technique. During the second week, thank God, {literally,} I lost my car key so, they decided I had issues and I should forget it. They never paid me one cent as I suspect happens to a lot of people.
There was this other person who tried this a week or so after me. He was fantastic at it! He was entitled to every incentive that was promised. He was supposed to get one of each item that we sold, a whole bunch of cash and a trip or two. Not to mention like $250.00 per unit sold. All he got was the equivalent of 1 commission and he sold like 15. Thankfully he has also quit and he's a great car salesman!
It was a terrible experience. I am so surprised to see that there are not more complaints about this. If you guys only knew, poor me. I jumped from this to an equally huge scam called dsmax. Now there's a company that has tons of reports on this website. Like dsmax, who's reports are spread out because of their various names to avoid legal issues, I suspect that this company probably also has a lot of complaints on here but because they go under so many different names, it's virtually impossible to have all their complaints in one place. I will say also though that the staff at this site is doing an even better job of getting the numerous aliases of these companies figured out and placed accordingly.
I guess the worst part is that I think Filter Queen has a great product and their presentation is convincing and impressive. They just need to find a new way to market it. It seems like infomercials would be more cost effective and they wouldn't get such a bad reputation based on the individual offices shady policies. They could probably even sell it for a consumer friendly price since they wouldn't have all those commissions.
Then again, if so many people are getting screwed out of their pay, I guess maybe they're just putting profits before integrity. There has to be some reason why they continue to do business the way they do!