QVC has flawed logic…
…among other problems.
QVC has sued a blogger, Donn Edwards for posting what it considers to be defamatory posts around the ethics of their business practice. In short, QVC lures people to presentations with the promise of a prize (car, holiday, whatever). When you go to pick up your prize, you have to sit through a presentation, and are then sold some sort of timeshare.
It’s scraping the bottom of the barrel when it comes to ethics, and it sucks.
QVC is suing for over R450,000 because they claim that as a result of reading Edwards’ blog, the following happened:
- 59 people refused to attend the presentation. Since QVC has a conversion rate of 15% at R6,000 (each) profit, this works out to a loss of R 54,000.00
- 15 members refused to pay their management fees, amounting to a further R52,500 loss.
So, let’s see…..
One lonesome blog, that is mostly focused on writing about computer security, and whose audience is probably least likely to be talked into a QVC sale anyway, has cost QVC R106,000 pure profit.
So what do they do? They go and sue the blogger. And what do the rest of us do? We write and comment about it. More blogs write. Newspapers pick up the story. It gets bigger…and bigger…and BIGGER.
Oops.
Also, keep in mind that the QVC loss came despite the fact that Edwards removed his posts. How will these losses escalate for posts that are not removed? And are indexed by Google? For ever. And, umm, ….ever.
It’s actually kind of funny.
I consider this a learning curve for QVC: they are listening to what ppl are saying online, and how their brand reputation is likely to suffer. A painful lesson, but one that lessons can be learnt from.
If they’re are going to read this, then, so they should cut to the chase and look up “Dell Hell” and a myriad of case studies, online reputation management etc.
So QVC, you’re going to go through the pain anyway. Accept it. Start learning from it by dropping the suit and putting out a press release to that effect. Consider it a “presentation” with “locking in” goodwill instead of fees.
Hi Eve, great post (and great blog!). I’ve blogged about it too at http://missus-emm.com/blog////index.php/2008/11/30/dodgy-timeshare-sales-companies-sink-eve?blog=6
It’s incredible how most corporates still don’t understand the internet in the 21st century. QVC even has social networking buttons on their website. I suppose it’s useful for those wanting to complain on HelloPeter can add a link to the site on FB :-) Even without the internet the mind boggles. Have these guys just not figured that even if they have 15% who sign up what about the other 85% who where irritated and pissed of with being hoodwinked and humiliated, while having their evening ruined and time wasted?? Surely they will warn all their friends and eventually this whole marketing tactic will grind to a halt. Now add to that the internet, press, radio and the networking factor multiplies the effect even more. Good luck QVC. I think you gonna need a vacation.
[...] distributed network attack that left QVC spinning. Then, instead of QVC attempting to silence what Eve Dmochowska called ‘One lonesome blog, that is mostly focused on writing about computer security, and whose audience [...]
[...] distributed network attack that left QVC spinning. Then, instead of QVC attempting to silence what Eve Dmochowska called ‘One lonesome blog, that is mostly focused on writing about computer security, and whose audience [...]
[...] distributed network attack that left QVC spinning. Then, instead of QVC attempting to silence what Eve Dmochowska called ‘One lonesome blog, that is mostly focused on writing about computer security, and whose audience [...]