Ben W. Glass, editor at Clarislaw.com and attorney, did a nice write-up last week of the ShopToEarn situation. He thinks attorney Gerald Nehra made a boo-boo when he wrongly threatened Everyday Finance and me because of our negative reviews of Shop To Earn and Shop To Earth.

He gives a brief background on the original review at Everyday Finance and the threatening emails. Then goes on to say:

Of course, the blogosphere erupted, which is about the worst thing that could happen for Shop to Earn.

Look, it is inanely stupid to attack a critic by threatening to sue them. Because if they have discovered the fatal flaw in your product, then others have as well and you darn well better know what is going on in your prospects mind.

And they answer the objection….

The folks at Shop To Earn Who are Responding to Criticism about a perceived flaw in their product by threatening a lawsuit aren’t thinking right.. if you’ve got a good product, good testimonials and a killer guarantee, then the “white noise” of criticism shouldn’t bother you.

On the other hand, if you are a scammer, then you might be bothered that someone has discovered you.

Nicely put, Ben. Thanks for the coverage of this issue.

14 Comments

  1. Lee D 07/23/2008 at 2:30 pm - Reply

    Great work, Tracy. This is one of my hobby horses, and it’s a lesson some woud do well to learn.

    http://businessopinions.blogspot.com/2008/07/if-you-cant-take-heat-stay-off-internet.html

  2. Lou 08/16/2008 at 3:58 pm - Reply

    Why are you promoting Ashoka.org ???

    Why are you not promoting aid to the victims of Katrina?

    What about the millions of Americans who have no income due to the loss of jobs to overseas countries who cheered wildly in the streets when the Twin Towers were destroyed.

    Americans of all races, creeds, and origins did not spill their blood on the beaches of Normandy for you to have the freedom to promote aid to countries who advocate the destruction of western civilzation as we know it.

    Primerica, Mary Kay, and countless other American companies are under your attack. What have they done to you???

    Why are you only focusing on Amercian Companies??

    Are you fronting for or are part of an Islamic extremist group looking to destroy American Free Trade??

    You should be proud of yourselves here..

  3. Tracy Coenen 08/16/2008 at 4:11 pm - Reply

    Lou – I’m not quite sure what you’re ranting about here, but it sounds amusing. I write about American companies because I live and work in America. Mary Kay and Primerica are creating billions of dollars of losses for American consumers each year. That’s why I write about them.

  4. jonie 10/25/2008 at 6:25 am - Reply

    this shop to earn or shop to earth is Amway Quixtar because they were losing so much money so they had to come up with a new scam.

  5. mark 11/18/2008 at 10:56 am - Reply

    Classic, never sure why everyone is always bashing MLM’s. I have never been involved in one but I know serveral people who have and some are making a very succesful living. Shop to Earn is a very legitamte business model and as a company I think it is great. I know several people who have invested and I think it is great to see several of them making a good income. Like any other business it takes a lot of work but the business model is strong. Also to see my friends benifit when I purchase something online is a good thing.

  6. Isabel 12/03/2008 at 3:22 pm - Reply

    After joining several MLM including that of Mary Kay, I have been left saying hmmmmmmmmmmmmm. People have to keep in mind that no MLM is as easy as it seems. It works for some but not for all and you have to put in an enormous amount of time to make it work. If more people read this, they could make an educated decision to see if this is for them. THANK YOU BEN.

  7. Jennifer 01/08/2009 at 7:12 am - Reply

    I am confused by all the different posts. Is Shop to Earn, or Shop to Earth, or Ecommerce Brokers LLC a scam? So many names. Jonie said Shop to Earn is really amway. Is that confirmed anywhere? How would someone find that out?

  8. Alyssa 01/18/2009 at 10:20 am - Reply

    Shop to Earn / Shop to Earth is a legitimate business, not a scam. And for the record, whether you liked it or not, Amway is a legitimate business as well.

    For those who are so quick to knock the business model of Shop to Earn /Shop to Earth, please keep in mind that in order to make money in any business, you have to put time and effort into it.

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  9. danielle 01/23/2009 at 8:27 pm - Reply

    look its a scam. I went to a meeting about this, looking to do it until i was asking so the people that shop on our personal wedsite get a discount and what the people telling me as no but you save and you earn points and think about all the money you can make by people just useing your site.. Let me tell you if you dont know me why are u going to type my web site out than look for 1800petmeds and order.. It doesnt save the other sider a dime.. So your just going to google 1800petmeds… The only why to make money is to scam other to be a broker… Than they are to scam others… Its a evil thing i wouldnt put up 448 of my own money knowing the only way to get it back is to scam people…You have nothing to sell, unlike makeup places do the same thing yet your selling somtihing… not cheating people out of there hard ern money

  10. not able to risk it 02/27/2009 at 8:52 am - Reply

    My friend has been talking up shop to earn. I thought I’d check it out. FEAR! I would hate to talk my best friend’s, loved ones into a losing situation. I asked my friend the hard questions, and could tell she didn’t know the answers. It’s a risk she said. One I can’t afford to take, and I wouldn’t want to take it without being honest. Looks to me like a great way to lose your best friend’s, and possibly piss people off.

  11. Jackie 03/15/2009 at 3:23 pm - Reply

    My grandparents recently signed up and my grandmother is very excited about it and is very interested in signing me up for it. I thought I’d look into it more before I go to the meeting at her house this week. The thing is that I’ve done MLM stuff before and I hated it. I have no interest in doing anything related to MLM or pyramid schemes ever again. I hate the idea of having to bug my friends and family and talking them into throwing away hundreds of dollars so that I can make $20 off it and keep doing that to everyone I know and everyone they know. I just won’t do it. I tried to look up shop to earth to see what products they sell and can’t even find out until after I sign up? That smells fishy to me…

  12. Kev Bon 03/27/2009 at 8:24 am - Reply

    I just signed up two days ago. Here’s what I think. The fact that big name retail stores have agreed to network with Shop To Earth allows those said retailers to increase their network data base. Not only that, to know where the buyer is coming from (name, city and such) is a benefit to the retail stores, especially in this soft market.

    Keep in mind that the monies earned are from cash back dollars that these retail chains have agreed to reimburse the shopper through the Shop To Earth website. I think it’s a great idea.

    There are a lot of “doubting Thomases” no matter what you do in life or the business world. I wonder if someone came up with a
    I am Negative dot com website, if those same “doubting Thomases” would get on that website’s bandwagon and tout the “truths” that the website has to offer.

    If Shop To Earth is not for you then that’s fine. I don’t do deep sea fishing, scuba diving or play tennis. But I also don’t bad mouth those that do.

    Attitude is the foundation to your paths in life.

    All I know is that people trust people that they know and like. Network with those people and you won’t have any negatives.

  13. ctnla 03/28/2009 at 1:05 pm - Reply

    Hi Tracy, I just stumbled across this site while investigating some suspected scams and am interested in what you mean by this statement from above: “Mary Kay and Primerica are creating billions of dollars of losses for American consumers each year. That’s why I write about them.” I’m not a lover or hater of either of these companies but more curious if this viewpoint applies to some other companies I feel are less scrupulous. Other than being a little over-priced, I can’t see how they could create losses. Could you explain, I’m sure it’d do a lot of people good to hear this? Thanks!

  14. […] Files: How Not to Handle Criticism, STE Broker Earnings Watch, Threats Against […]

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