I signed up for this service to learn about affiliate marketing and ad placement. It said "Just $1!", and talked about what an idiot you'd be to pass up all this for only $1. The testimonials seemed legit, so I figured I'd go for it.
I was given instant access to the materials, which seemed to be thorough and honest. Not once did I see anything about the length of the trial period, or any ongoing costs if I didn't cancel my membership. When I checked my confirmation e-mail, it said Price: $1; Membership: 3 day trial. Based on that one might assume that the trial would simply expire and you would just lose access. I did find one link at the bottom of the page that said "Disclosures". It took me to a page that described the details: If I didn't cancel within 3 days (!) I'd be charged $129.95 up front (!!), and then a monthly fee of about $39.98 after that. It also said it enrolled me automatically in another online service, "Home Source" (whatever that is) that would charge me monthly if I didn't cancel. So nothing of this appealled to me. It seemed to me that if they wanted people to know about these charges they would include them prominently in the confirmation e-mail instead of quietly, at the bottom, linking to another page with that information. They're hoping that you DON'T click on that link, but they include it to cover their butts.
The disclosures gave a number to call if you wanted to cancel, but it said "M-F, 7am-5pm, MST". Given that the end of my 3-day trial fell on a Saturday, I reasoned that Monday would be the earliest I could reach anyone there, but I decided to try calling anyway. What I got was a busy signal. I called again and got the same thing. Sunday I tried once more and it was still "busy".
Monday I called and finally got an answer. I was put on hold for about 10 minutes or so, and was finally connected with a person. After giving my information, I was told that my 3 days had been exhausted and that my account was active. I explained that I tried calling and couldn't reach anybody, and she told me very sternly that I should have sent an e-mail Saturday, which they would have gotten right away. I then asked her that since the "Disclosures" said M-F, why would I assume that they did any business on the weekend? She became increasingly belligerent and replied that even so, they would have come in Monday morning, read the e-mail, cancelled my account, and not charged my credit card. Nevertheless, she said, she would cancel my account and I would not be charged "any further". Umm, SUPERVISOR.
She put me on hold again, where I remained for over 40 minutes. I was finally connected with a supervisor, who was much more pleasant than the woman I spoke to first. He read to me what the woman had written describing my complaint. It wasn't accurate, so I explained my situation to him. He put me on hold for a few minutes, came back to tell me that I would be refunded, and gave me a confirmation number. I don't know yet if it posted to my account.
I clicked on that "Disclosures" link after my call and found that the number I had just called to cancel my membership had been completely removed from the page. The one to cancel "Home Source" was still there. Overall, it's just really shady and sneaky. Stay away from this thing and others like it. It isn't worth the hassle.
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