Complaint Review: StoresOnline - Orem Utah

I want to send a stong message to all, especially my fellow Singaporeans, as StoresOnline is making their foray aggressively in Singapore now. Please read on so that you would not get into the same troubles I'm in!

First, a brief on myself: I'm a honest Singaporean who believes in independent learning and be forgiving to others. But my excounter with SOL just proves too much, so much so that I think I MUST raise it to alert my fellows Singaporeans.

I attended their agreesive hard-sell workshop on 7 Apr 05, and signed up their 6-sites agreement (including the ECI credit card processing, and Links4Trade - a web links provision service) paying S$3000 as first payment. The whole package is close to S$9000. I thought it was a worthwhile investment (Believe me, dear Singaporeans, you would be likely to believe them if you were in the workshop). After their convincing sales promises, I thought they would deliver as promised. They even have a Singaporean (Yeo Hock Quee) as Head of Business Development.

Actually, I kind of suspicious when I received Yeo's namecard. He only has his email address on it. There is no contact address or tel number in Singapore. Nevertheless, I thought, if SOL could deliver their service as mentioned in the workshop, it shouldn't be a big issue.

After signing the 6-sites, I worked hard on it and managed to struggle through the technical parts. Just to let you know, I am not new to web development. Therefore, for those who has no experience at all, I'm pretty sure you would face a tough time, and I must salute you if you can get your site up in 1 - 2 month time.

Here's the problem:

1. I usually checked with their Online Chat actively to avoid unnecessary re-work. After clarification with their Online Chat Support, I registered my domain and emailed my virtual domain hosting application form to them. SOL promised to create the email alias within 10 working days. It's been more than 20 days, and despite the long unacceptable delay, the chat support were unable to update me the status. One chat support staff promised to follow up within 24 hrs for me, and I have not received any reply at all. Being independent, I've also keep contact the Chat support several times to ask how's the status. At a point in time, they even told me they did not receive my application. Oh goodness!

What can I do, since I'm far away from Singapore? Yes, I kept SOL's Singapore Representative Yeo HQ posted. What Yeo did was, he repeatedly said that he does not have the authority and it was not his role. He said he could only forward my issues to SOL at U.S. He said that's the bureacucy.

Imagine if you were in my shoes - no respond on issue and the Singapore Representative could only help to offer mail box service, and advised me it's bureacucy after I've dumped in few thousands dollars in their service!!!!

2. More problems to that. As I have signed up ECI credit card processing service as part of the 6-sites agreement during the workshop, I followed the instruction to apply online. ECI's online application was not working ! I was told that it would not be up for few months! Just imagine, how could that possibly happen to a company with good technical online expertise? Anyway, I downloaded the application form, and I got a rude shock of my life. I realised that the terms and conditions were different from that promised at the workshop! I was asked to cough out at least US$100 to activate their service!

Of cos, I asked SOL for help and told them about this unfair trade practice. Our fellow Singapore Representative advised that he did not use ECI service and not sure. Again he only said he forwarded this enquiry to SOL. I have emailed to SOL on this as well, they did not responded at all.

For whoever reading this (especially my fellows Singaporean), common sense would tell us that E-commerce store would not be viable without Online credit card processing service. And on hearing my repeated urgent enquiry, I did not receive any timely reply at all from SOL. (Well, I'll pause a while here. Take this time and ask yourself : would you like to be in my situation?)

3. I'm someone who multi-task. I got my site up in less than a month, and I decided to activate the Auto-respondent service (the application forms are enclosed in the black box when you signed up the 6-sites offer) while I'm still waiting for their respond. AGAIN! No respond after I emailed them my activation request. I told SOL U.S. and their local representative my problem, but there is no reply at all.

4. Remember I said I signed up the Links4Trade as part of the 6-sites offer. I sent in my application as instructed. No respond from them. I resent it few days later, and requested for a simple acknowledgement. There is still no respond. What can I do, I asked our SOL (U.S. and Singapore) for help, they did not address the issues at all.

Incidentally, the SOL Singapore Representative said he could not address my "operational" issues, and he's only involved in business development. Having said that, he is holding a meet-the-merchant sessions tonight (18 May 05). I wonder what's the purpose of this meet-the-merchants session if he could not help in my case. MORE business development opportunity during the meet-the-merchant session?!!

I said I'm a simple Singaporean, I just want to close the chapter and move on with my life. I've asked for his contact number, and requested him to call me urgently since he's in Singapore. He did not want to call me.

I'll let you judge the support yourself.

He also said if I've raised my complaint through Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), I can wait for CASE's reply. Oh my goodness!!

So, after hearing what I've said, if you think you can still make it through SOL, I must take my hat off for you.

I'm asking for refund and termination of my agreement. I saw the other complaint submitted by Grace on 4 May 05. She said she got her refund without any questions. I'm surprise to hear that. Put it this way, if you didnt hear any update from me, you can conclude at I'm still in this deep puddle of problems and have not got my refund and problems addressed.

Can someone please help? Thanks.

Edwin

Singapore
Singapore

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