I recently responded to an online advertisement for the CuteKid of the Year contest, which is run by Parent Media Group, Inc. According to the CuteKid.com website, one has to upload a picture of one's child in order to enter the contest. I did not realise till after I had uploaded some pictures that there is a contest entry fee for each photo that one wants to submit.
I decided to enter two of the photographs I had uploaded to the contest. The website advertised a free magazine subscription plus a free canvas portrait for each contest entry. I understood that by entering the November CuteKid contest I would be getting these free items, plus a chance to win the CuteKid of the Year contest.
After giving my credit card information for the contest entry fees, I proceeded to fill out the information required for my "free" canvas portraits. I soon discovered that the portraits are not really free, since the client has to pay exorbitant shipping and handling fees. I went ahead with the shipping and handling charges, thinking it might still be worth it in order to get the canvas portraits from Parent Media Group's affiliated company, the Canvas People.
It wasn't till after I had entered the contest and ordered my canvas portraits that I came across some information on the website stating that the free magazine subscription is only available to U.S. Residents. Since I am Canadian, I was upset that the website didn't display this caveat in its original advertisement on the Submit a Photo page.
I became even more upset when I realised that the shipping and handling charges for the "free" canvas portraits were almost twice what I would pay if I purchased the same canvas portraits at a local photography shop. I decided to try to cancel my portrait orders and get the shipping and handling charges on my credit card reversed. However, there was no telephone number listed for customer services, and I eventually came across some information on the website stating that customer service representatives for the Canvas People were not authorised to perform returns on merchandise over the telephone. I did find an email address for the Canvas People, so I immediately emailed them asking to cancel my orders and obtain a refund.
Even though I made my cancellation request the same day as I placed the orders, I received an email from a Canvas People representative the next day saying it was too late to cancel the orders. I believe a reputable business would have given me options for cancelling my order, with a telephone number provided for making my concerns known to the company. No one addressed my concern that the shipping and handling charges were more than what the product was actually worth.
I am also upset that Parent Media Group, Inc. Advertises a free magazine subscription as included in the contest offer, but then later specifies that the subscription is only available to U.S. Residents. None of the conditions and charges for the contests are disclosed up front. Finally, I am upset that I get emails from Parent Media Group almost every day urging me to enter more contests and to buy products from their affiliated companies. Although I did receive my canvas portraits, I have not received any other benefits from my CuteKid contest entries, not even an acknowledgment that my photographs were entered into the November contest.
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