WebsiteBusiness.com
Complaint 74205 Details

Website Business Complaint

On June 24, 2010 I received a call from a business called Website Business out of Phoenix, Arizona. The person on the phone explained to me how I could make money from my home if I was able to write about any topic of interest to me. I could pretend it was like a diary and talk about my feelings or happenings that occurred in my life. For every two “original” articles that I wrote I would have to go on one of their own sites, retrieve an article and write something positive about that article. I also would have to highlight the browser address and come up with 100 words. My own “original” articles had to be 200 words long. For each of my own original essays I would receive five dollars.
I was hesitant to do this as I was told it would only cost me $199.00. In no time at all I would be able to recoup that amount. After going back and forth with this company, I agreed to try it, with the knowledge that I had 90 days in which to get out of this business and get back my money. I was sent a contract on my computer and somehow was able to put my signature on the screen. But after two weeks, I wanted out. So I called this business to tell them I wasn’t feeling good about doing this and was told I would have to talk to a gentleman by the name of Mike Linskey, the owner. He always talked to people who would change their mind, I was told. He told me that I couldn’t get out because I could make big bucks. My Web name- “SlimShapeTrim.com” name was worth over $60,000 alone. He made it rough for me to get out.
I was never given names of people who I could go to with help with this project. The names of the people that were given to me the first day on the phone seemed to have quit when a few weeks later I inquired of who to help me with this business. I was finally given names of people in the technology end of the business who would guide me through technology part of the business. And when I would ask these people about names of higher up people in this business, no one seemed to know anything. Then all of a sudden when I asked about Mike Linskey I was told he was out on medical leave because he had had a major heart attack. I never heard of him again and was floundering with my business.
In order to get an article to write on I would have to sit at my computer and wait for the top of the hour to come along and then articles would appear on their site and I was to quickly latch on to one of these articles so I could get my five dollars by writing about it. The trouble was that many times I wasn’t quick enough or didn’t get to the site at the top of the hour because I would get locked out because others were doing the same. It was very frustrating. I still had no main manager to help me other than the techies.
Finally on August 29, 2010 one of the technologist said I had been given an
Account manager by the name of, C. Montrel Terry (Michael Terry) who could help me. When I called him he didn’t even know about me and later said that he just inherited me and didn’t work as hard as he could for me. I asked how I could make more money than five dollars so I could sell my site and make the money I was told I could get. He said I had to invest $2,674.00 to get a picture of my site on the web. I was outraged. I kept telling him that I was retired and didn’t have that kind of money. He told me that he would get it back for me when it was sold and that it was a sure thing. I reluctantly told him that I would do it as long as I would get this investment back. He told me to trust him and also told me how others had made bit bucks with him by selling their sites. So $2,674.00 was taken out of my Discover account. He was sending me a contract to sign but since I had just moved to Arkansas I told him I explained to him that I wouldn’t know where to go to have this signed and faxed back to him. He told me not to worry that he would take care of it. I never signed this contract.
I continued to write and by the end of September, 2010 I again asked for my site to be sold. Mr. Terry told me that my site was “white” and I would have to get it so it was more colorful in order for it to be really viable to sellers. I again was told it would cost $1,249 to get it to that level. My mental capacity at that time was starting to go off the bend. I wanted my money back so I had to invest more. Again I was told that this would get more bang for the buck. I never signed this new contract as I still wasn’t familiar with my new area of living so Mr. Terry said he would take care of it.
I continued to write and one day as I was trying to get one of their “Postzillas” to write about, I discovered another site that had my same picture on someone else’s site. I immediately called Website Business to inform them that I wasn’t happy with this discovery and something had to be done after all the money I had invested in this business. It took them a while to get this redone. Often times when I would try to get a hold of Michael Terry, I found it very difficult as he would not return my messages. He often told me that he would see who was calling and would not take the call as he was under so much pressure. I didn’t feel that was good business dealings with an investor who expected a return of what was being promised to me.
It became unbearable for me at times to sleep at night knowing that I had invested in something that I was told to trust and not being able to get my money back. My mental anguish was tremendous and my husband was very agitated also, telling me that I would never get anything back from this company.
In March of this year, I called Michael Terry and told him to sell my site. He told me he could get $20,000 for it and I told him to go for it. He mocked me by saying that after paying his company 12% I wouldn’t get much back. But I wanted out. He told me he knew someone who would pay that amount for my site. I said go for it. Then he got out on a loop and said if I invested $999.00 more for all the bells and whistles he could get me over $42,000. I didn’t want to do this and told him so. But with his strong sales background, he showed me a site on the web explaining how I could make this money. I was getting so tired of this I told him okay. But within twenty-four hours I called him back to tell him “No”. Michael Terry told me it was too late and that I had to find a way to get this new contract signed that he was sending me over internet. Otherwise he was done with me and I wouldn’t get anything at all. I was dumbfounded. I had to run around trying to find a way to have this contract signed and faxed back to him.
Again nothing happened with selling my domain site. He seemed to come up with all types of excuses. I thought he had a book made of excuses that he would choose to offset reasons of why I wasn’t getting my money. He kept telling me to trust him. Fool that I was I kept believing something good would happen. There were many times he would get very angry with him when I would call and ask what was going on.
In June of this year my husband found some terrible things on the web about this business and actually found out who was the new owner of this business. Mr. Kyle Winn was the owner. My husband said I needed to write to him about what was happening to me and how I wasn’t getting any money back that I invested. My website still had “white” spaces on it that were suppose to be fixed after invested the last amount of money. I wondered why that was happening when I had spent so much money and nothing was coming of this. So I proceeded to write a letter to Kyle Winn explaining my situation and all he excuses of why I wasn’t receiving my money. I told him I needed some answers and hoped he could call me to explain this matter. On June 14, 2011 I received a call from Michael Terry to inform me that they had taken my website off the web as Mr. Winn thought I had sent him a threatening letter. They were going to refund me my money. I would get it by the end of June. After the fourth of July, I called Michael Terry to find out where my check was and again heard many excuses. They had gone to a different way of paying out, some older lady had requested her money back so they had to wait on my money, Michael was often not wanting to come to work because he wasn’t being paid, and so on and so on. The last I heard from Michael Terry was on August 4, 2011 when he called me unexpectedly to tell me that I would get half of my money on the following Tuesday, but that he didn’t know when I would get the other part. Within the last two weeks I have been unable to reach anyone at Website Business. Every number I called, said they were closed and mailboxes were filled. I suspected others were calling to find out what was happening with their own accounts. This week, August 29 all phones have been busy no matter what time I call. Some of the numbers I have been calling are: 1-877-205-1720, (main office), (Personal Info Removed)(Michael Terry’s number), and 1-602-765-0424 (IGOMOGUL). This last number was the number Mr. Terry called me from to tell me that I would be getting my refund back within the next week and it was the last time I had contact with Mr. Terry.
I am asking for an investigation into this Website Business as I need to get my investments back as was promised. I can’t believe a business like this can exist and take people’s money in an unauthorized means.