On February 11, I received a letter from Cambridge Who's Who at work. The letter congratulated me for being considered for inclusion in the 2009 Cambridge Who's Who Among Executives and Professionals Honors Edition.
I am a part-time student but also an entepreneur. My last undertaking has been very successful, even receiving national media attention. Therefore, I thought this letter had something to do with my work.
Ironically, two days before I got this letter I was with someone who was included in a legitimate Who's Who book, so I immediately thought this was legitimate.
I was asked to fill out an online application, which I did.
On February 13, CWW left me a voicemail, saying they had reviewed my application and wanted to speak with me. I promptly called back and was transferred to "Mindy", a member of the selection committee.
Mindy interviewed me for approximately 15 minutes, asking me about my career goals, my daily responsibilities, my motivations and ambitions, etc. Like an idiot, I fell for this. I treated this almost like a job interview.
CWW really makes it seem like world-class executives are featured in their database and that being included in their registry is a true honor.
My gut instinct, which I usually listen to, was telling me this didn't seem right. Yet, in that moment, I ignored it. Particularly odd was that when I was asked, for example, what I liked to do in my free time, I gave five activities and half a second after I finished, "Mindy" responded, "Duly noted" in a monotone voice. She obviously wasn't writing anything down.
Looking back on it, it was clear she was reading from a script (ie: "We find that professionals in your field all choose the platinum subscription.") I ended up signing up for the platinum lifetime edition, which includes 2 plane tickets, a frame, and the book in print and CD version.
Mind you, I was never told sales were final or non-refundable before I paid.
Immediately after hanging up, I realized I had been pressured into signing up for this as well as totally deceived. I Googled the company and came across countless webpages/blogs about the scam this company is running.
I immediately called my credit card company, but the payment was pending, so I could not cancel it.
I called "Mindy" back but there was no answer. I called again... No answer. This time I left a voicemail saying I wanted my money back. I mentioned calling the BBB, FTC, and NY State Attorney, as I had realized I had been scammed.
On February 14 at aproximately 4:30 PM, a "Daniel" left me a voicemail saying he wanted to discuss my membership.
I was unable to call back until later that night, so I decided to wait until Friday, February 15.
I called "Daniel" three times: 9 AM, 3 PM, and 4 PM. I left messages each time, since he did not pick up.in my last message, I notified him of all the laws they were breaking (this was actually great research!). I mentioned the fact that there was no disclosure that sales were final or non-refundable, and if I did not get my money, that was a direct violation of the FTC's telemarketing laws.
I also mentioned statutes about false advertising, since the original letter reads, "there is no cost to be included in the Registry."
At 6 PM, I get a call from "Daniel." He begins the call by saying that he was calling because it seemed I had budget issues.
I told him that was not the case, that I wanted to cancel my membership and get a full refund, as I am legally entitled to.
He asked why, I said because I Googled the company and saw countless pages about the scam they run.
He began by asking me why, then, I chose the platinum ($818) over the gold ($600-something). I said I felt pressured to.
He then wanted me to go online so we could go through the blogs together. I said I was not going to do that. I wanted a refund.
He got defensive and said that if it comes down to that, he will be more than happy to do so, but he thought it was "only fair" that I hear him out.
I let him talk for three whole minutes about how the blogs are supposedly unfairly attacking them, etc, etc.
When he finished I said, "Okay, thanks for that. I want to cancel my membership and get a refund."
He told me he would do so. I asked him to confirm. He did. He was definitely upset.in fact, the last time I said I wanted a refund, his response was, "Hmmm... VERY odd. Very odd." I ignored that.in the end, he said I would get a refund in thirty business days.
I later realized I should have asked to get that in writing, so I e-mailed them letting them know I needed that in writing. I notified them that if they did not do so, they would be in violation of the law, so I would be notifying the BBB, FTC, and NY State Attorney.
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