- Report: #111736
Complaint Review: Consumer Research Corporation - Columbia South Carolina
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Consumer Research Corporation
3830 Forest Drive, Suite 207 Columbia, 29204 South Carolina, U.S.A.
Phone:
803-782-0957
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Consumer Research Corporation Aka ProductTestPanel.com rip-off! False advertising! Columbia South Carolina
Sounds like I'm not the only one to be taken in by this company's bait-and switch tactics. I NEVER do things like this, but the TaylorMade driver they were offering really intrigued me.
As one of the other reports against this company said, they have completely buried the exact terms and conditions of their "special offers," and then they deliberately mislead consumers who go through the whole process of trying to fulfill the requirements for the free offer. Wouldn't anyone naturally interpret "sign up for 2 offers below" to mean that if they were offered three pages of choices they only had to select two from the total collection? Yes, the words appear at the top of each of the three pages, but come on! It's just deliberately misleading web design.
I also e-mailed the company sometime ago to find out the status of my free golf club, and got no response...not even one telling me that I hadn't yet fulfilled the requirements for the offer. Then, when I called the company and actually spoke to a person, she insisted that there were numerous opportunities to look at the terms and conditions before proceeding with the registration process...not true! She claimed that there was a link to the T&C on the very first page when you click on the link in the e-mail, but guess what? It's not there!
Anyway, enough about that...I'm probably not saying anything that the 16 people ahead of me haven't already thought of. To make matters worse, one of the partner companies that I ordered my "free trial offer" from was just about as deceitful. That one ended up costing me $80 because the instructions for the trial offer were so convoluted they slipped right by me...and I'm a soon-to-be college graduate!
I have no problem with consumer testing services; in fact, I'm registered with one and do surveys for them all the time. I thought that's what CRC was, but they're not...they're obviously in the business making money off of hapless consumers through the "special offers" they promote.
Kerry
Sun Valley, California
U.S.A.
As one of the other reports against this company said, they have completely buried the exact terms and conditions of their "special offers," and then they deliberately mislead consumers who go through the whole process of trying to fulfill the requirements for the free offer. Wouldn't anyone naturally interpret "sign up for 2 offers below" to mean that if they were offered three pages of choices they only had to select two from the total collection? Yes, the words appear at the top of each of the three pages, but come on! It's just deliberately misleading web design.
I also e-mailed the company sometime ago to find out the status of my free golf club, and got no response...not even one telling me that I hadn't yet fulfilled the requirements for the offer. Then, when I called the company and actually spoke to a person, she insisted that there were numerous opportunities to look at the terms and conditions before proceeding with the registration process...not true! She claimed that there was a link to the T&C on the very first page when you click on the link in the e-mail, but guess what? It's not there!
Anyway, enough about that...I'm probably not saying anything that the 16 people ahead of me haven't already thought of. To make matters worse, one of the partner companies that I ordered my "free trial offer" from was just about as deceitful. That one ended up costing me $80 because the instructions for the trial offer were so convoluted they slipped right by me...and I'm a soon-to-be college graduate!
I have no problem with consumer testing services; in fact, I'm registered with one and do surveys for them all the time. I thought that's what CRC was, but they're not...they're obviously in the business making money off of hapless consumers through the "special offers" they promote.
Kerry
Sun Valley, California
U.S.A.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
David
Cincinnati,Ohio,
U.S.A.
If the offer is too good to be true, it is too good and expect a scam.
#2Consumer Suggestion
Mon, November 08, 2004
I work in Market Research. When we do work for a customer, we contact customers with specific demographics that we are trying to evaluate. We call or sometimes email people with an offer to partake in a project. We ask that they answer some demographic questions to see if they meet the requirements of our customer. Some of the projects I have been involved in where for retail stores, fast food restaurants and financial service firms. First and foremost to participate is the requirement that you eat, buy or charge what they are interested in testing. We pay people to participate. We have done some toy studies, but we pay, not leave products with the customer. As a professional, from time to time a vendor has offered me a item for free or at a special discount. I would not expect to receive a free computer if I was not an IT manager, or a free set of golf clubs if I was not a golf pro. I am an IT Director, and I do not recive free computers, but sometimes free software. If the offer is too good to be true, it is too good and expect a scam. IBM, HP, Dell and Apple do not need hundreds of testers. And think how many golf pros are in your town - they do not need the average golfer to test their product. Beware of the Trojan Horse - you may pay and still not get a thing.
Eva
Los Angeles,California,
U.S.A.
legitimate product testers?
#3Consumer Comment
Sun, October 17, 2004
Kerry, What are the names of legitimate companies and what should one look for to know one is real and not a bait and switcher.
