From time to time in the giant capitalist melting pot called America, you will hear about magazine subscription scams. This is when bus loads of so-called "students" roam a neighborhood selling magazine subscriptions to earn money for school. While sometimes legitimate, more often these are rip offs.
Fast forward to 2007 and through the wonders of technology, we now can get ripped off right from the comfort of our couch. Yep, rather than having to get up, answer the door, listen to the nonsense and deal with the scam, the fine folks at Zinio have teamed up with that old time favorite, Red Herring, to take your money and not deliver. Progress, I just love it.
Stay with me as the incompetence, bad use of technology, and general bad business practices will be like an 90 second MBA.
The story goes something like this:
I use Zinio to get a pile of digital magazines. Having them digital is handy for a pile of reasons. I used to get Red Herring via the service. When it came time to sign up again, I popped over to Zinio and paid my $38. Nothing to it. Well, almost. They got the money, I got no digital download. I check in with my fellow geek, Scott Pelton, and it turns out he isn't getting the magazine either.
I send an email to Zinio and get a response (within minutes) from "Billy" in customer service.
"We are not authorized to refund any Red Herring subscriptions at this time. We can fill the remainder of your subscription with another publication available at Zinio.com, if you prefer. Please let us know if any titles interest you."
They didn't have Scam Quarterly; I checked.
It gets better.
Scott sends a note to Red Herring and gets back a note from Felicia which doesn't offer a refund rather pointing out that the digital format has gone to some other method, new and improved, etc, no more Zinio. Scott then calls the subscription call center to get a refund.
Still getting better.
Scott is told it will take 3 - 4 weeks to process his $38 refund.
Right before I jumped on the flight tonight, I checked the Zinio web site. Surprise, surprise, you can STILL order Red Herring on the Zinio Web site, still not get delivery and totally not get your money back because, according to Billy, they aren't authorized to give refunds.
That cover shot? Right off the Zinio web site as of 7p on Tuesday night. Complete with hot links right to the shopping cart. [Note: At 3am, eastern time, Wednesday, STILL UP!]
Like one of those kid's contests, let us see if we can identify all the screw ups in this picture.
- Zinio is still offering Red Herring on their web site even after Red Herring is telling people no Zinio.
- Zinio is taking money, not delivering product and -according to Billy, isn't giving any of the money back.
- Zinio didn't proactively warn customers or help with whatever transition should have been in place.
- Red Herring, who has my subscription information, didn't bother to let me know.
- Red Herring didn't offer/suggest anything to Scott about moving, transferring, etc, after he wrote them.
- Red Herring had to get a phone call to get a refund started.
- Red Herring is so backwards with technology usage (and these guys track technology??) that they take a month to reverse a credit card charge when the entire process is electronic to begin with. I know Red Herring outsources the subscription services. This is no excuse. It is outrageous Red Herring gets to earn money on the float while the 'process' refunds.
- Red Herring and Zinio couldn't spend 10 minutes to actually coordinate efforts except to finger point and create pissed off customers of both companies.
The lessons you can learn are fairly obvious when the you this kind of nonsense. These two companies clearly have some serious work to do and while those efforts go on, I'll find an alternative to Red Herring but on ABZ (Anything But Zinio).
Amateur hour with these people.
Bravo, Rick!
Zinio's policies and customer service suck and the Herring should have done a better job of notifying/migrating their subscribers. We are stuck in limbo. The worst thing you can do with a new technology that tries to change consumer behaviour (like digital magazine delivery) is to drop the ball with customer service.
It doesn't matter how revolutionary the tech is .. if you rip people off then you'll lose the adoption race.
Posted by: Scott Pelton | June 13, 2007 at 05:37
Hi Rick,
I am one of those people that ordered in early May and only received one digital edition. The same version displayed on Zinio's web site as you showed.
Zinio told me to contact Red Herring. I did and Red Herring has no history of my subscription!
I am back to talking to Zinio.
I wasn't offered a refund or even alternate magazines.
We'll see what happens...
Adrian
Posted by: Adrian | June 13, 2007 at 08:59
I've had similar problems with Zinio in the past with other subscriptions and I had to compromise for some mags I didn't really want (or keep wasting time with them).
I got an email from Red Herring, and it looks like RH has gone to another ePublisher (Olive Software). Until you get Zinio straightened out, they are offering the first issue free here:
http://mag1.olivesoftware.com/am/welcome/RDH/RedHerring_0611_2007.asp
Posted by: Ed Holloway | June 13, 2007 at 14:11
can't you dispute it with your credit card company?
Posted by: Stephen Bronstein | June 13, 2007 at 15:12
Hi Stephen,
Certainly that is an option. just shouldn't have to do that.
thank you for stopping by.
Posted by: Rick Segal | June 13, 2007 at 15:17
I get a few magazines through zinio, but I don't pay for them.
And I still hate Zinio.
I can't imagine paying for the awful user experience of pretending to turn a page and having to zoom into everything I want to read.
Posted by: Zac Echola | June 13, 2007 at 22:21
I had the same bad experience with Zinio and Red Herring. I paid for a subscription and got about half of the issues that I was supposed to get. When an issue did not arrive, Red Herring would tell me to contact Zinio and Zinio would tell me to contact Red Herring or otherwise failed to help me until I gave up. Never did get half of my issues. Did not even get all of my Red Herring printed issues either. -- Corey Chambers
Posted by: Corey Chambers | July 03, 2007 at 01:21
to sign up
Posted by: haresh kalathiya | September 14, 2007 at 07:16