KLMN Readers Services Magzine sales SCAM!! Chesapeake Virginia

I purchased a magazine subscription from a nice gentleman in April of last year.  I wasn't concerned about the 120 days.  But when October arrived and I had not yet received a copy, I began to wonder.

After many attempts to leave messages on a full voice mailbox I was overjoyed to find out I finally got through.  I left a message.  A couple days later left another message.  Sent numerous emails.  It is now January.  I have done this several times from October to January.  I have not heard a word from this company.  This is the first time I decided to research this company.  I am not liking what I am finding out.  

I paid $36 for this magazine subscription and have just found it online for $14.  If this company says it is legit, answer my emails, my voicemails, or send me my magazine or give me my money back.  Plain and simple.  It's amazing things that people get away with these days.  I still have my original receipt and it did take only 2 days to cash my check.  

This response, presumably from Michael G Whitely is so misleading, it warrants a reply to shed some light on the truth and some ideas how he can accept some accountability and improve his business.

> I can not understand why these dissatisfied customers, who call the company to
> find the voice mail full, simply send in their concerns in writing.

You dont understand?!?!?!  What dont you understand?  Your company Mr. Whitely, is so crooked and criminal, that people have no other alternative to use the internet to voice their concerns.  From the BBB to the woman your company tried to steal $70,000 from in Colorado, there are hundreds of complaints against KLMN.  These are NOT isolated incidents.  This is how your company operates. 

If you provided a telephone number that works, then we wouldnt need to come here.

If your website provided an email address, then we wouldnt need to come here.

If your company read snail mail, then we wouldnt need to come here.

> And also allow the company ample time to respond.

Um... we do give you time.  Im sorry but this is the 21st Century.  With the current state of technology, waiting 60 120 days, when your company does not provide an operational telephone number, is simply unacceptable.  Thats too long to wait... especially given the reputation of KLMN.

> Every customer who purchases a magazine subscription through this agency
> (KLMN) will receive either get what they paid for or their money refunded.

NO THEY DONT.  You STOLE money from me Mr. Whitely.  I did not get my refund.

> I wish to God that the hundreds of thousands of customers who are receiving their
> subscriptions through this agency would go on ripoff.com and state that.

If your product was so good, people would probably do that!  Theres a reason why all the information about KLMN is negative.

>  There was a time when these dissatisfied customers would simply write the BBB
> (Better Business Bureau), they would then send the complaints to the agency, and
> the agency would be given the opportunity to respond.

Your BBB rating is an F.  Its an F by a long shot.  Theres no mistake here.  KLMN earned their F rating.  http://www.bbb.org/norfolk/business-reviews/magazines-sold-door-to-door/universal-subscription-agency-in-chesapeake-va-90009857  The BBB gives you ample time to respond.  You have NOT.  Your excuses here dont hold any weight!!!

> Unfortunately we are in the Internet age and it only takes 30 seconds to destroy a
> company or persons reputation.

If this is true, they why isnt your company working harder to clean up its image.  The internet is not a fad, its not going away, you better learn to accept the impact the internet can have on any business. There are complaints from all over the country regarding KLMN.  All these stories tell the same thing.  YOU send minority kids into well-off, sometimes predominately Evangelical neighborhoods, to tell perspective victims sob stories about how hard their lives have been.  When the victims dont want to buy magazines, your sales people curse at them and call them racist.

All these strangers are NOT trying to destroy your reputation... YOU are doing a fine job of that yourself!

> Do you remember the feud between the Hartfords and the Magregors?

No... I dont... because its NOT them... its the Hatfields and McCoys.

> The two families who hated each other for centuries and most of them did not
> know the reasons themselves.

Irrelevant point... how about fixing your company and providing some customer service instead of hiding behind excuses or fairy tales about feuding families ?

> For these few customers who are slandering this company on rippoff.com

Its NOT a few, its just NOT ripoffreport.com, and slander is a very SERIOUS charge Mr. Whitely.  You better be prepared to back such charges up.  Its NOT slander if your companys representatives are intimidating customers and its NOT slander when YOU are STEALING from people!

> if you read their complaints carefully you will see that they are only alarmed
> because they saw something negative on the Internet and not necessarily
> something that happened to them.

Youre the one with the reading comprehension problem.  Mr. Whitely, YOU need to read more carefully... the complaints are about:  1.  Not being able to contact the company.  2.  Not getting the product promised.  3.  Not getting a refund.

> The process of this order is as follows: 1. Salesperson sold the order on March
> [snip]

Another irrelevant point.  The average customer doesnt care about your business process. 

The average customer cares that they get the product they paid for.  120 days is NOT an industry standard.  There is NO other company is this nation which takes FOUR MONTHS to deliver their product or service. 

> That is why it clearly states on the receipt, This Company does not send
> magazines to charities.

Then quit having your salespeople state they do.  Its really that simple!  Quit making excuses.  You are the boss.  Exercise some leadership and put a stop to the lying and questionable sales practices.  Exercise some accountability over YOUR company and hold YOUR employees accountable for their misconduct.  YOUR name is on the business Mr. Whitely NOT the bad apples as you say.

> The few bad ones should not be allowed to cause damage to the majority of good
> ones.

Perhaps... but the truth of the situation is perception is reality.  Its that way for ANYONE who is in business.  Honest business people understand that!!!

> If God wanted to punish one person for the others sin He would have made us
> Siamese.

Ever notice how crooked people in the news, or politicians when they get caught doing something illegal, they always turn to God, or quote Scripture all of a sudden when faced with controversy???

> It is quite possible that a sales person did misrepresent himself

Indeed it is, and if you werent in such a state of denial, then perhaps KLMN wouldnt have a F rating.

> As you can see, he is not very bright

Way to go... KLMN has an image and reputation problem, youre complaining about the power of the internet, and yet, you use the internet to insult your customers.  Fix your business instead of attacking people Mr. Whitely.

Just had "Elijah" knock on my door late this evening in Lafayette, CO with the same story.  He kept asking me leading questions (for example, "do you support minorities going to college?")  I can't stand this kind of guilt-trip sleazy sales pitch.  I politely told him I wasn't interested in buying a magazine subscription, and then he proceeded to call me racist for not helping him out on MLK day "of all days".  I'm glad I trusted my gut on this and didn't fall victim to the con game.

liKE I SAID BEFORE MIke is a CROOK. I mean think about it he takes the the time to answer this ad BUT CAN take the time to answer the customer complaints. I didnt say antthing about mike because like you TOLD me BIRDS OF A FEATHER FLOCK TOGETHER. THE SAME WITH CROOKS LIKE YOU. YOU know that YOUR people are out there stealing checks and ROBBING people. YOU use people. EXPLAIN WHY YOU KEEP CHANGING THE COMPANY NAME HUM? what ABOUT THE ADDICENTS killed and hurt people? THe stolen Checks? DOnt make it seem like I can bring up DIRT on you mike bbecause YOU are ONe of the BIGGEST CROOKS on the ROad. SOn PUBLIC BEWARE OF KLMN READERS/ WORLDWIDE READERS/ AND ANY OTHER NAME THAT MIKE IS THE OWNER OF. DRUGS AND SEX AND PARTYS ARE ALL THIS FRAUD COMPANY IS ABOUT.

Yes, Corey Brown worked with my organization for the better part of 17 years. I was a sales manager working under North American Book Sales (a subscription agency out of Michigan City, Indiana) when Corey Brown (Mr. C I gave him that name) started working with me. That was the year 1990. I dont know what is going on in his life, maybe the company he founded (CREAM Enterprise, Inc) failed. This I dont know. I have not seen or heard from him since December 2007. I want Mr. C to know that I love him dearly, after all I have always accepted him with all his faults. I was the person who took him to get his first drivers license in 1991 (one year after he came in the business). I was the one who promoted him to a manager in 1996 (after the Christmas banquet). I also gave him a $5,000 bonus to start his business (we have it on tape and we will be putting it on our website). It is quite funny that with all the bad things Mr. C says about the business, the only thing he could say about me personally was that I was a smooth talker.

I would love to send Mr. C two tapes: 1. The Movie DAVE 2. The Movie Its A Wonderful Life I want Mr. C to watch them both in their entirety by himself. For Dave: at the end of this movie, the secretary of state having made up all those lies about the vice president was left in that room by himself. I want Mr. C to know that I would not abandon him, as love is unconditional. For Its A Wonderful Life: the character George Bailey gave the shirt off his back to each and everyone. Mr. C, who does that person remind you of? 

Mr. C I would like you to know why I have been able to operate a sales crew for 20 plus years. It is because of one word sir (TRUST). People trust me. Trust is not measured by money, sir. Trust is earned. If I wouldnt say anything bad about Mikey (and you were there when he was born), I wouldnt say anything bad about you.

also the guy Elijah who answered the ad is the main one STEALING your money. HE is one of the junkies on the crew I was telling you about. He smokes CRACK. Mike knows this but DOESNT care beacuse ELIJah is one of his top sellers. Also the guy that caused the accident in califorina is STILL with the crew! IF you do business with KLMN READERS you 7 times out of 10 you WILL NOT get what you paid FOR.

This company is a scam. I use to work for this company. MIke the guy that owns the company changes the name every other year. This company use to be known as Worlwide Readers Service, Worldwide Readers, UNiversal Readers, and now known as KLMN Readers. This crew is mostly junkies. This company has had some of its employers killed and hurt in van accidents on the road. MIke knows his drivers use drugs and get behind the wheel an drive. Some of his employers smoke crack and do coke. The people that show up at your door NOT ALL BUT MOST fromthis company are going to steal your money. This company has a long histiry of bad dealings with the public. GO onlie with the BBB in Washinghton State and find out how some of his workers were robbing people houses and steling their checkbooks and other belongs. REmber deal with thiscompany at your own RISK. REmber hundreds of people cant be wrong about this company. MIke is a smooth talker so he will try to convince you that this is not a SCAM but thats all this is is a SCAM. Also the accidents happened in CALIfornia And in oklahoma. The one in California KILLED one person. THe one in OKLAHOMA hurt about 12 people and one is in a wheel chair for the rest of his BEWARE OF KLMN READERS.

Hello my name is Erica and I live in Colorado. A magazine salesperson knocked on my door, and he told he wanted to earn points toward paying for college. I ended up buying a few magazines, but I felt skeptical at first. I called the 757 number on my receipt, and at first all i got was recorded message. I left a detailed message regarding my concerns about the company. I went on the Website also that did not give me much to go on. So,I chalked it up to being a scam since i gave the gentleman cash. To my surprise a young lady called for their corporate office and apologized about the wait. She told me that there in the process of hiring more customer service agents. I told her I wanted to make sure this was not a scam. She informed me I would be receiving my magazines and that they were updating there Website. She apologized about the wait time for a response, and I hung up the phone a satisfied customer. Erica from Colorado!!

I can not understand why these dissatisfied customers, who call the company to find the voice mail full, simply send in their concerns in writing. And also allow the company ample time to respond. If the sales person sold magazines totaling $320.00, that is the cost of the written terms. The clearinghouse sends the agency (KLMN) the prices and we authorize the sales agents to sell the subscriptions at that price. If this person (Caregiver) is implying that the customer, whoever he or she is caring for, is not in the right state of mind to make a purchase then this company (KLMN) will make a full refund. And when this is done I hope that you will quickly go to ripoff.com and state that. Every customer who purchases a magazine subscription through this agency (KLMN) will receive either get what they paid for or their money refunded. I wish to God that the hundreds of thousands of customers who are receiving their subscriptions through this agency would go on ripoff.com and state that. Unfortunately good news is always taken for granted and the little bad experiences, or in these case misunderstandings, makes the headlines. There was a time when these dissatisfied customers would simply write the BBB (Better Business Bureau), they would then send the complaints to the agency, and the agency would be given the opportunity to respond. Unfortunately we are in the Internet age and it only takes 30 seconds to destroy a company or persons reputation. Do you remember the feud between the Hartfords and the Magregors? The two families who hated each other for centuries and most of them did not know the reasons themselves. For these few customers who are slandering this company on rippoff.com, if you read their complaints carefully you will see that they are only alarmed because they saw something negative on the Internet and not necessarily something that happened to them.

The customer that stated that she purchased the subscription on the 17th of March goes on the Internet, a month later, and report that she was ripped off because the magazines have not started to arrive. If this customer had taken the time to read her receipt, it states, Your first issued should be received within 120 days. The process of this order is as follows: 1. Salesperson sold the order on March 17th and turns in the orders (along with checks and cash) that night. 2. The orders, with checks, are forwarded to the agency the following morning via Federal Express. 3. The agency receives the orders and checks on March 19th. The checks are then processed for deposits. 4. It takes 30 days for the bank statement to determine if the checks cleared, have stop payment, insufficient funds, or account closed. (It is called due process) 5. After 30 days, the cleared orders (cash orders or orders with cleared checks) are loaded on a disk and forwarded to our clearinghouse with the fee in the form of a cashier check. 6. The orders are processed at our clearinghouse and then are forwarded to the individual publishers. 7. The publishers then forward the orders to the customers. Customers who cancel within the 3 business days (Saturday included) are issued a refund check and everyone is satisfied. The salesperson that stated that the customer could donate a magazine to an after school program for kids misrepresented and that is why it clearly states on the receipt, This Company does not send magazines to charities. There are bad apples in every barrel. Fortunately, most of the apples are good and most of the sales agents are hardworking and sincere. The few bad ones should not be allowed to cause damage to the majority of good ones. The customer who stated that she has bought magazine subscriptions from sales agents before, and have always received them, will receive hers in due time. When I (I can be anyone) moved into my neighborhood, the lady next door told me to avoid the neighbor across the street at all cost. For the first year, when I crossed paths with my neighbor across the street I would look the other way. One day I had a crisis and would you believe the only neighbor I did not hear from was the one who warned me. As a matter of fact, the neighbor who I went out of my way to avoid (because of what I heard) turned out to be my best neighbor. The lesson learned was to let each person stand on his or her own merit. If God wanted to punish one person for the others sin He would have made us Siamese.

To the gentleman Chris, who was the first one to take this company to ripoff.com, seems to have all the time in the world to browse the Internet. It is quite possible that a sales person did misrepresent himself, which would entitle Chris to a refund of his $20.00 if Chris can send in his receipt. But Chris lied when he stated that this company (KLMN) bombarded him with junk mail. Where would the subscription agency get such mail to send to Chris? We are not the publishers. When a sale is made the order is paid in full. The only papers Chris, or any customer, would receive are the 2 duplicate receipts. When your order is processed, the publishers send out the magazines you order. Chris, this company did not make the rebuttal that you see on the Internet. A sales agent who, like yourself, has access to the Internet made it. As you can see, he is not very bright but I believe he meant well. Unfortunately, your report and his rebuttal are online to stay and we have to chalk I to the power of the Internet.

I tried to call the number but the mail box has been full...for days.

the company's rebuttal is weak. the customer was genuinely concerned with no one to contact. the angry and quite immature response is no less incriminating than the comment it addressed in the first place.

how about you clear your mailbox and provide a bonafide contact for customers to contact in case questions arise. Then you can avoid comments on this site and have a cleared name. Otherwise your "DON'T LIE" comments mean nothing to anybody who sees them..except the bbb.

THERE IS NO WAY THAT THIS CAN BE TURE. DUE TO FACT THAT STILL HAVE CHRIS'S ORDER FORM IN MY FACE AS WRITE THIS TO LET YOU KNOW THAT CHRIS IS LYING BECAUSE HE KNOWS IT TAKE AT LEAST 4-6 WEEKS FOR JUST THE PUBILSHING COMPANY TO GET THE PAPER WORK FROM OUR COMPANY. AND OUR COMPANY PHONE NUMBER DOES WORK, WILL WORK AND WILL ALWAYS WORK. IF CHRIS STILL FEELS THAT HE HAS BEEN SCAM BY OUR COMPANY I CHALLEGEN HIM TO CONTACT US WITH THAT AGENT NAME SO WE CAN GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS LIE. WE DONT SEND BOOK'S OR ANY OTHER READING MATERIAL TO TROOPS OR CHARITIES