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Thread: Hellopeter.com - more than meets the eye.

  1. #21
    Site Caretaker Dave A's Avatar
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    Maybe a swim is a good idea, Chatmaster. Summer is coming fast

    My original unease was borne from the conditions around the classification of companies that don't respond. Now it's been a while since I last looked so I took a quick peek now.

    Certainly no shortage of companies listed, but there is also this piece of text at the top:
    The companies listed below have had a minimum of five comments written about them in the last year. As they are not subscribers, they cannot respond to your comments, because they are not provided with your contact details.

    Once a Company subscribes and becomes a Company Who Responds, it is removed from this list and transferred onto the list of Companies Who Respond, so enjoying all the benefits of existing Companies Who Respond.
    from this page
    They might not be able to respond directly to the person, but Peter (if I've got this right) does not allow them to respond in the form of a message on the site either without coughing up a fee.
    Ironically the so called "PR genius" has his own PR problem to deal with.
    Well there's not much wrong with his marketing! The old saying goes "There's no such thing as bad publicity." I wonder how many hits he got today.

  2. #22
    Platinum Member Chatmaster's Avatar
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    I often like to argue that bad publicity is a fantastic opportunity for any business. There are some examples where I would much rather NOT have bad publicity though

    I think Peter has a serious problem here. He has clearly made several false statements and it is coming back to haunt him. Under such circumstances bad publicity might hurt you rather than help you. I think it is time he reinvent his business model and listen to what people are trying to tell him. He has an excellent site, but an unfair business model. Fix it and he will not look back!
    Last edited by Chatmaster; 18-Sep-07 at 12:49 PM.
    Roelof Vermeulen (Entrepreneurship in large organizations)
    Roelof Vermeulen| Rock flaps south africa

  3. #23
    Email problem RKS Computer Solutions's Avatar
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    Isn't it funny how the "champion of consumer service" is a SCAM ARTIST himself? I agree with you CM that any publicity is good for a business, but what Peter has gotten himself into will see his ship slowly sinking... preferable somewhere offshore in deep waters...

    I posted a message on the wetpaint wiki, stating that if I should have to pay R13,500 right now, I might as well close my doors... I still believe that if a client doesn't contact me first to try and sort out a problem, then they haven't really tried at all.

    In todays corporate environment where companies plough through their customers first and make amends later, it's not an unlikely situation where a company will ignore a client until they go public about their issues. Then only will the company respond and sort it out...

    But, like the poster on the wiki said, having to pay an exuberant fee to only reply to a client who was in breach of contract, makes them seem as if they were the faulty party.

    For small companies who are watching their budget, I still believe that if a client doesn't contact you directly first, and makes sure he speaks to the owner/manager to get it sorted, then they have reason to go to someone like hellopeter...

    For myself, also being a small company, I reckon it's rather a case of byebyepeter than hellopeter... I'd rather a client phone me up at 2am in the morning stating that he got the wrong stuff or his new build is not happening because of faulty stuff, than have my company name smeared over the internet without a chance of me sorting it out first...

    Even though I have never had issues with any of my clients, I dread the day when I get a SCAMmail from byebyepeter instead of a phone call from my client first...

    so, byebyepeter

  4. #24
    Email problem RKS Computer Solutions's Avatar
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    http://www.alexa.com/data/details/tr...ellopeter.com/

    the alexa stats for the site shows it's in decline... he might get a few spikes about the news stories flying around, but it will die a slow death indeed...

  5. #25
    Email problem RKS Computer Solutions's Avatar
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    another thought...

    why is hellopeter themselves not listed under companies who don't respond?

  6. #26
    Platinum Member Chatmaster's Avatar
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    Well reading the article on MyADSL. He is getting in the region of 34 416 Unique visitors per month. This is very realistic, but makes me ask even more questions about what Peter is saying on his website. OK, so lets be honest about one thing. Hellopeter definitely has successes with consumer complaints, and many people are extremely happy about their service. It will definitely not just disappear of the map, just like that!
    Roelof Vermeulen (Entrepreneurship in large organizations)
    Roelof Vermeulen| Rock flaps south africa

  7. #27
    Email problem RKS Computer Solutions's Avatar
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    But he will be a null on a contract in the eyes of the small company...

    Would you trust any details regarding visitors he's given through to anyone after his story keeps on changing? I personally would trust only figures I see when logged onto his server and call pull those stats directly...

  8. #28
    just me duncan drennan's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by RKS Computer Solutions View Post
    For small companies who are watching their budget, I still believe that if a client doesn't contact you directly first, and makes sure he speaks to the owner/manager to get it sorted, then they have reason to go to someone like hellopeter...
    I think for most clients they have already exhausted their options by the time they go to a site like HelloPeter. The problem is when they don't get through to the manager/owner/etc. Most companies big/small would respond if an unhappy client got through to the owner, and what would the owner do? Probably crap out the person that should have dealt with it. And what is the direct consequence of that? The person who should deal with it will go out of their way to ensure that the client does not get through to the owner/manger....which leads to them going to HelloPeter.
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  9. #29
    Email problem RKS Computer Solutions's Avatar
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    I agree with you Duncan, but then how do I go about proving that my customer service is better than any other company in SA?

    I will be the first to tell you that general customer service in SA is crap, but having spent 5 years in Europe and the surrounds, I've picked up a thing or two in regards to how a customer should be treated and I brought that mentality to SA with me...

    All the contact details on my site leads directly to the mobile phone I carry by me 100% of the time, so anyone saying they couldn't reach me, must be pretty sure the cell networks were completely dead and the internet destroyed before they can claim that...

    Ho do I then, as a small business owner, go about business in such a way as to be the first option a client thinks of contacting?

  10. #30
    just me duncan drennan's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by RKS Computer Solutions View Post
    I agree with you Duncan, but then how do I go about proving that my customer service is better than any other company in SA?
    Is this really something that can be promoted effectively directly?
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