So I'm not sure where to even begin with this saga.
I live in Grand Blanc, Mi. For those of you who aren't familiar with it - it's about 10 minutes south of Flint. It had been a hectic week bustling around the area, as well as farther south of here, interviewing for numerous job positions.
I was searching on www.mlive.com and saw a job opening ad that read "Advertising - ENTRY LEVEL! Play play play! Innovative Sports Marketing Company is in need to fill Entry level Positions ASAP. * Paid Training * Must work well in fast paced environment. * Must have strong PR skills and professional image. No experience necessary, we will train. Call Carter 248-370-9161"
Thinking "Okay. Entry level, paid training, and no experience necessary?" This could be a good thing. So I called and asked for "Carter." "Carter isn't in right now, but I can go ahead and set up an interview if you'd like." "Awesome, " I thought.
Thursday, March 20, I drive down to Rochester/Auburn Hills. I exit @ University Dr. And turn left. I go about half a mile and turn right into an office complex off the same road as a Delphi building-High Meadows Circle. I find the RANAL Building, go inside, and follow the hallway all the way down to the right where I find 'suite 190.' I texted my boyfriend, Ryan, and my mom and told them both to wish me luck.
Ha. A monkey wouldn['t have even needed luck for this lousy job - But I didn't know that yet.
I waited in the lobby for about 20 minutes until 'Thomas' comes out and greets myself and another girl for our interviews, and takes us both back to another man, Paulos, office. He talks about the business and how they sponsor Wheelchair Basketball and advertise for businesses and sports teams such as the Pistons, Tigers, Little Caesars, Papa Johns, Hungry Howies, etc. He said it wasn't sales - it was "servicing exhisting customers." I couldn't have been more excited when he asked me to come back @ 9:30 A.M. The next morning for a job shadow.
The next morning, Friday, March 21, I arrive @ BOSS Advertising @ 9:30 A.M.in nearly the same attire that I had on the previous day. After all, that is what he told me to do. I arrive in black dress pants, stilettos, a blouse, and a light leather jacket. "You look very professional, " I was told. I wait in the lobby with approximately 10-12 other poor souls for about 25 minutes until we all begin to get called back one by one and matched up with an "awesome rep."
I get matched up with this girl thats 5 months pregnant, Shawn. "Whatever she tells us about you at the end of the day will weigh heavily on whether we ask you to come back or not, " some tall man named Nick told me. "I hope you've cleared your day out until about 7 or 7:30 P.M."
What the HELL? 7:30 P.M. For a GD JOB SHADOW?! Holy sh*t I kept telling myself... But whatever.
Shawn took me in some back room and asked me if I drove - in which I did. She told me that that was a good thing because there was another person coming with us and we were going to an 'event.' The vehicle they were planning on taking wasn't going to fit the 3 of us, and their stuff. I didn't think it was going to be that big of a deal. So I'd drive myself. Whatever. It was probably for the better. Until she asked me to pop my trunk and started putting the shit in my car.
Hm. Maybe there wasn't enough room in their vehicle for the both of them AND their stuff...? Until she climbed in the backseat of my 2008 2-door cobalt, and a 400 lb. Man got in my front seat. I couldn't help but look at them both and say "What the f*ck." Confused, unhappy, disgusted, irritated, and even more confused, they said we were only going up the road a few miles and they'd give me directions as we got closer to the roads.
The event we were doing today was at the Kroger grocery store. I still had no idea what the hell an event was, nor did I have a clue as to what my job was really going to entail. All I knew was that I was stuck. We were in MY car, in an area I was certainly NOT familiar with, and I really needed a job that Thomas told me would make me about $80-120 a day, and anywhere from $32k-$38k a year.
As we arrived at the Kroger grocery store and pulled their s*t out of my car... I went and parked while they 'set up.' As I walk back towards the inside of the store, I realize that they have set up OUTSIDE of the grocery store, next to the cart corral. This wasn't funny in the least bit. And when I saw Shawn and the fat man, Adrian, begin to pull out COUPON BOOKS from a box, I knew I was screwed.
The way they advertise for all those companies is by making COUPON BOOKS for them - and compiling them all together with numerous other businesses.
The book included sit down restaurants, pizza, automotive, entertainment, and golf. "A little something for everyone." - Get bent! 50 cents of every book sold is what supports Wheelchair Basketball - and the SALES PEOPLE get paid $10 per book they sell, which costs $30.
So here I was, standing next to wet, snowy carts all day long from 10:15 A.M. Until 6:45 P.M.in my stilettos and dress clothes - freezing my a*s off getting snowed on myself while getting wind burn on my face.
I couldn't believe what the hell I had gotten myself into. I was ANGRY. They could have taken their 'paid lunch' Chinese food and 50 cent 'hot chocolate' and shoved it up their a* for all I cared. The rice wasn't warm and the hot chocolate was brown water. I couldn't have gotten anymore lucky.
I was stuck listening to Shawn say the books were just "30 bucks"... Which couldn't have sounded any more unprofessional. How about dollars? Wouldn't that sound nicer? And the fat man Adrian who had gastic bipass surgery certainly STILL couldn't have given a sh*t about his weight because everytime I looked at him he was guzzling yet ANOTHER energy drink (WITH sugar) and taking a smoking break every 20 minutes. Not only did I not want to smell his ashtray breath, I'm sure that every disgusted grocer that he tried speaking with didn't want to either.
So much for these people being such high professionals that work at the "youngest, most sought-after advertising firm."
Yeah. Right.
Over lunch with Shawn I learned that she, Thomas, and a homosexual man, Darren, all moved here from Grand Rapids from one of their other offices. They were currently renting a house together... And were going to do the same again in May when they transferred down to Indiana for another office they were opening up. Once again... 3 co-ed co-workers living together...? Sounds even more unprofessional to me...
I got back to their professional APPEARING office around 7:15 P.M. To tell them this was NOT for me. I don't want your job. This is a joke. The advertisement I had read was an absolute bluff and there wasn't any way in God's creation I was going to spend my days and earning a living selling COUPON BOOKS in front of grocery stores, businesses, and even door-to-door for the poor residentials that happened to be home when they knocked on your door. "Are you sure..?" some young kid Drew asked me?"Shawn had nothing but positive things to say about you and we'd like you to start as early as Monday?"
I couldn't have been more in shock. I didn't want this job. I couldn't stand this job. I couldn't have been paid a million dollars to go back to that job. It was an absolute JOKE. A ripoff. A scam.
I drove home in tears, with no paycheck, an empty gas tank, damp clothes, and FROZEN finger and toes.
After all, I had been standing outside for 8 hours in stilettos with no gloves, hat, scarf, etc. My boyfriend, Ryan and his friend Derrick looked at me like I was insane when I tried to tell them about the numerous castastrophes I had encountered in my day. I was hungry, tired, and pissed. I had wasted 2 days and a full gas tank on a lieing joke.
I don't recommend ANYONE for this job.
Get away. Get out. Run away... Far away if you're in this business and/or are interviewing with them.
PS. There really is no Carter - it's just a name they used to cover their asses so people reading the ads wouldn't put that business with this one. They'd think it was a different company since the names PAULOS, NICK, and THOMAS weren't on there.
Kaila
Grand Blanc, Michigan
U.S.A.
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