Being in the business world, I come across unethical people often. Most of them seem to hail from Boca Raton. But there is one organization that trumps them all in the world of short sighted, unethical behavior. I can’t say their name because they are very litigious, but it’s a major brand.
This organization was a client of USWeb, and we did a great job for them, at a very low price. They reciprocated by endorsing us to a lot of prospects, which really helped us grow. But along the way I would have people telling me not to trust them. Many stories started to pop up that were concerning, to say the least.
Then I started to notice certain behaviors that made me question their ethics. Abusing marketing techniques to the point of making them Spam, not paying us on time, and lying about their numbers to make us perform make-goods on campaigns. (we had access to their numbers, so we knew they were lying). Even with these signs, I made a horrible mistake and went deeper into partnership with this company. I presented one opportunity to them that would have made them a lot of money, and USWeb very little. They shot down the idea, tried to roll out their own version of the idea without us, and it failed to really do anything. Recently a major company launched this idea, and it’s been very well received.
I then made a further mistake is going into an even deeper partnership with them. And this time I compounded the problem by bringing our clients into the mix. The deal I put together was a complete no brainier. I honestly didn’t see how a company could screw it up. Well, they did. They tried to screw our clients, and then get us to pay them more money.
After a heated conversation with my main contact, who claimed he could do nothing to fix the issue, I flew that night from LA to NY. I flew on a red-eye, got in at 4 in the morning, and hung out for hours until they opened. I met with my contact that said everything was arranged to meet with the CEO at 10am. I waited in their lobby, and at 10am I went into the conference room for our meeting. Their CEO showed up over 2 hours later! He didn’t apologize for being late, and then started to tell me how things were going to happen. Yes, our clients were screwed, and how USWeb just better keep paying them. I kept my composure and tried to lay out the plan to fix the problem without them having to do anything. He refused and told me the solution was to keep paying them and to pretty much shut up. He then called me an “indignant punk� and touted that he was the CEO of ******.com. The whole thing ended in an argument, and him storming off.
They of course continued to screw our clients, and USWeb had to make good to each of them on our own. I’m a pretty smart guy, so I figured out how to salvage the deal on our end and make some good cash. Then out of the blue, they duplicate our deal with another firm! At this point I was amazed at how incredibly unethical they can be. The best part was that the deal with the other firm was in barter for Spam. It’s like trading heroin for guns. I put a plan in motion, brought in help from someone who became a legal nightmare to them, and got out of the deal.
I am a strong believer in karma. With the belief in karma comes patience. You have to believe that all your deeds imprint upon you, not only in this life, but the next. I may have to wait until that CEO is reincarnated as a chicken sold to KFC, but someday he will get his.
But karma came down my chimney early this time. I only had to wait a few months. It seems their Spammy ways have not gone unnoticed by the powers that be. They have been given the proverbial pimp hand by a tremendous source of their revenue, and they are in a panic about what to do next. I’m certain they will weasel their way out of this. I am also just as certain that karma isn’t done with them yet.
