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Web Asylum / Kurt Scholle, websitesuccesscourse.com Stole $4,025 for the design of a website. He is a conman who delivered no website and will not return our money or calls. Lisle. IL Internet
Contracted with company to build us a website for our small business. They (Kurt Scholle) demanded we pay for the website before completion and before we saw an iteration of the "proposed" site. After we had paid for over 90% of the cost we were apalled to finally see what he called the "testbed". It looked like something any third grader could put together and was nothing we could possibly send a client to view.
Mr Scholle said it would cost even more than what we originally contracted for to "fix". After much back and forth we realized it was such so pitiful it was literally unfixable, and we requested a refund.
At this point he got very disrespectful and said there are no provisions for a refund and went on to say he was going to charge us even more if we didnt pay him and then threratened to "see us in court". He will not return our phone calls and we have not received a website, or even a single sentence of the dreadful "testbed". He even took that down.
So we have received nothing and paid him $4,025. For our small business this was our advertising budget, and he will not even give us a partial refund. He is a con man who we found out farms out most of the website work and have discovered others who have also been ripped off. It is despicable.
5 Updates & Rebuttals
Still Stealing
#6Author of original report
Sat, October 14, 2017
Kurt 'the conman' Scholle and Web Aylum (where he belongs) are still at it. He took over $4000 from us and we received nothing in return. We repeatedly asked for a refund due to his incompetance and conman Kurt responds "Ill see you in court"! I bet you will. He took our money delivered nothing and wants to sue. That is insanity. This guy couldnt deliver an email. Keep your distance-the delusional owner is a financial train wreck desperate for your hard earned money.
Still stealing
#6Author of original report
Sat, August 05, 2017
Unfortunately I see this sham is still around.
We paid over $4,000 to this despicable company for a website.
We never received a website. In fact, we received NOTHING. Not a single sentence from the deceitful owner.
They refuse to return any of our hard earned money. In their delusional stupor the company threatens us by saying
"I will sue !" Hot air from an unenlightened fool.
Take our money, deliver nothing, and threaten to sue us. Quite a business plan. Its very sad.
Uneducated AND delusional.
Dont waste your time.
Kurt Scholle
Lisle,Illinois,
USA
Why do you keep asking for the same thing over and over and expect a different result?
#6REBUTTAL Owner of company
Sun, March 19, 2017
Michael Messina,
You are pathetic.
I stopped responding to you because your 10 previous attempts were all the same. I don't believe you've attempted to contact me since November when you somewhat incoherently asked for a refund AND your new website.
As my wife likes to say about you, "You can't have a rational conversation with an irrational person."
I have encouraged you and Rebecca Matchette to consult with a lawyer several times.
I have offered to compromise with you on several occassions. You have always refused and you have never offered your own compromise.
You have renegged on your promises to pay on certain dates and for additional services you requested.
You have tried harassment and intimidation of my wife, clients and partners and you think that will curry favor with me? That's messed up.
I have a lawyer who always says when people act weird, that it's almost always fueled by alcohol/drugs, gambling or sex. What is it with you?
Your account is almost 12 months past due. As I have said before, I will not respond to you until you make a good-faith payment.
Stop the nonsense. Try to be respectable.
This is about to get very expensive for you. But you can limit your exposure by sending payment today.
Con Man Kurt Scholle
#6Author of original report
Fri, March 17, 2017
The facts dont lie, as Mr Scholle continues to duck and run and threaten lawsuits.
The simple facts:
We paid him $4,025
We received nothing in return. We have no website thanks to Mr. Scholle.
We asked for a refund. He refused.
Refund our money and leave us alone.
Kurt Scholle
Lisle,Illinois,
USA
Michael Messina is the Con Man
#6REBUTTAL Owner of company
Fri, March 17, 2017
These Accusations are Categorically False!
In my 21 years developing websites, I have never had a complaint filed against me because we treat our clients right and over deliver.
Since my company and I are being unfairly disparaged or slandered, I'm obligated to respond to this nonsense.
The Real Truth
The author of this complaint, Michael Messina is a realtor in Barrington, Illinois. We had a contract with his wife, Rebecca Matchette, to build a website for their company that sells workforce development services like job coaching and employment assessments.
The scope of the project was fairly simple, to clone an existing website that was built for them by another vendor and to add 2 or 3 pages of content supporting sales of Michael Messina's employment assessments.
We quickly created a new WordPress website per the scope of our agreement and transferred the existing content to the new site. Rebecca Matchette was responsible for making any edits to the approximately 10 pages on the existing site. She and Michael would create the content for 3 new pages.
The site has been available to them for review every step of the way since February 2016.
We have consistently over-delivered.
We Can't Build Your Site Without Content, Dude!
Michael was asked to write 7 to 10 questions that he is most frequently asked about employee assessments and after 4 or 5 weeks said that he couldn't do it. I thought he knew more about the subject, but I offered to research the topic and come up with a list of questions that I could interview him on and have transcribed for the new site.
He quickly agreed.
All in all it took 4 or 5 hours to do and this was not included in the scope of work.
We put together a Content Word Document for Rebecca Matchette to complete. It included all of the pages we agreed to in the Scope of Work. She submitted a page or 2 for comment, but found it difficult to complete for some reason. I offered to work on the content with her online and she accepted the offer. That too was out of scope.
She began submitting content in a form that was not agreed to. The pages were all over the place and it was delivered in PDF format, which is difficult to paste into WordPress. Our agreement stipulates that content will be delivered in Word.
On another occasion, I took pictures of Rebecca consulting a client. Several more out of scope hours of work.
We Can't Deliver Your Site Until You Pay for It!
Michael and Rebecca had negotiated paying for their site over 4 months, rather than the 3 we had requested, but failed to make the final payment on March 31, 2016, as specified. We continued to work on the site despite their deficiency.
The Scope of Work specifies that all content be delivered before development begins, which is standard in the industry. It also allows for one round of revisions.
By June the project was 3 months overdue as we waited on content. She and Michael began asking where their new website was, but didn't seem to understand that we needed content to build it. I used building a house as an example; we could not build it without concrete, lumber, windows, carpet and nails.
Fixed Bid Quote
I informed them that the endless content revisions were out of scope in the fixed-bid quote and that any additional changes would be billable as change orders. Rebecca agreed in email to pay for the revisions.
Yet in his complaint, Michael makes it sound like we were taking them to the cleaners, when in fact his wife understood and agreed to the changes.
And then refused to pay for them.
We Had to Put the Project on Hold
Since they were 6 months overdue on a payment due March 31 and had refused to pay for any change-orders from June, we put the project on hold in September and tried to resolve the issues.
They began asking for a refund, which was denied at least 10 or 12 times since we were in compliance with the scope and they were not.
But they also kept sending content changeorders. WTH?
A Pattern of Harassment
Then Michael decided to call my wife at her work pestering her to have me give them a refund AND finish their site. She has no involvement in my company and was uncomfortable with his harassment, so she notified their company security team who heard Michael's voicemail, banned him from the property and encouraged us to contact the police.
We filed complaint #16-44141 with the Village of Lombard police, who contacted Michael Messina to say that his approach was wrong and to stop calling my wife immediately.
He left threatening voicemails for me, including one that says, "Kurt, it's Michael. Don't make me come over there for that money." I filed a complaint (#16-22229) with the Lisle police, who also contacted him and told him if he were to show up it would be considered a form or criminal trespass and that he should seek relief in another manner.
They have since began contacting current and former clients and partners libeling me and my company. The people he and Rebecca have contacted are justifiably upset.
You Can't Have a Rational Conversation with an Irrational, In-Experienced Person
Michael once told me that of course they knew what they were doing because they are entrepreneurs. Ignorance is bliss!
Since July, we have offered many compromises and all have been rejected. They have not offered any, so his characterization is simply a lie.
Since September, I have encouraged both of them to discuss this with a lawyer, but it's obvious they have not. No lawyer would have told them to libel and slander my company and me.
If I were going to buy or sell a home in Barrington, I don't think Michael Messina has the character I would feel comfortable with, but that is your choice. He scares my wife.
If I were in need of workforce development or employee assessments, I would not be impressed with DreamTeamWorkforce.com, Rebecca Matchette or Mike Messina.
Michael, to see the con man in this dispute, you need to look in the mirror.
See you in court.
Best,