Is this extortion?

[sonny_1080]

I have a website that allows users to write reviews of businesses and residential homes.

Right now, the listings being reviewed can respond freely as long as the listing's provider has an account on the website.

I want to charge them to have an account. This means, that they would have to pay $10 a month to respond to reviews/defend themselves.

Is this extortion?

I had it like this before but I changed it when someone threatened to sue me on grounds of extortion and slander.

Obviously the $10/month would provide other value (post contact information, etc.)

Or instead of the $10/month, I can charge $10 per phone call they receive from their listing... but in order to post their contact information and respond to reviews, they have to be enrolled in automatic payments, like Google Ads.

What do you guys think?

 

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[Itizn]

It's all relative.

Money is proof you manipulated your fellow man.

 

[Johnny boy]

It's all relative.

Money is proof you manipulated your fellow man.

Lol either being sarcastic or broke loser

 

[Johnny boy]

I have a website that allows users to write reviews of businesses and residential homes.

Right now, the listings being reviewed can respond freely as long as the listing's provider has an account on the website.

I want to charge them to have an account. This means, that they would have to pay $10 a month to respond to reviews/defend themselves.

Is this extortion?

I had it like this before but I changed it when someone threatened to sue me on grounds of extortion and slander.

Obviously the $10/month would provide other value (post contact information, etc.)

Or instead of the $10/month, I can charge $10 per phone call they receive from their listing... but in order to post their contact information and respond to reviews, they have to be enrolled in automatic payments, like Google Ads.

What do you guys think?

It’s not extortion.

Make “responding to reviews” a single feature in addition to a bunch of other features that someone can upgrade to.

I get threatened to be sued every few weeks, and that’s just from cutting grass! Once you get above a few hundred customers each getting a service on a regular basis, you’ll run into all kinds of assholes. I’ve been told tons of times we are the best company, I’ve been told we are the worst company. I’ve been told that we’re the most professional. I’ve been told we’re the least professional. I’ve been told I’m going to be a future billionaire by some, a future millionaire by others, and many have told me I’ll be out of business next year.

People are nuts, don’t worry about threats from idiots.

Make a way to review customers. Make it automated and integrated with CRM’s so when a prospect comes through the system it flags them as an a**hole you don’t want to do business with. Add businesses to the network so when customers take advantage of other local businesses, everyone else finds out about it and refuses to do business with them.

 

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[GPM]

Isn't this exactly what Yelp does? Ruin your business until you pay them to make it go away or something?

 

[Hong_Kong]

I have a website that allows users to write reviews of businesses and residential homes.

Right now, the listings being reviewed can respond freely as long as the listing's provider has an account on the website.

I want to charge them to have an account. This means, that they would have to pay $10 a month to respond to reviews/defend themselves.

Is this extortion?

I had it like this before but I changed it when someone threatened to sue me on grounds of extortion and slander.

Obviously the $10/month would provide other value (post contact information, etc.)

Or instead of the $10/month, I can charge $10 per phone call they receive from their listing... but in order to post their contact information and respond to reviews, they have to be enrolled in automatic payments, like Google Ads.

What do you guys think?

So whats crazy is there are sites where this is a big business. I don't want to link a website but there is one that allows users to post really nasty things, and you need $5000 to take it down. Its totally legal based on previous US legal precedent. They determined a social media provider is not legally liable for user submitted posts / content. The only remmedy is to sue the individual poster for defamation (but not the site owner).

 

[StrikingViper69]

It’s not extortion.

Make “responding to reviews” a single feature in addition to a bunch of other features that someone can upgrade to.

I get threatened to be sued every few weeks, and that’s just from cutting grass! Once you get above a few hundred customers each getting a service on a regular basis, you’ll run into all kinds of assholes. I’ve been told tons of times we are the best company, I’ve been told we are the worst company. I’ve been told that we’re the most professional. I’ve been told we’re the least professional. I’ve been told I’m going to be a future billionaire by some, a future millionaire by others, and many have told me I’ll be out of business next year.

People are nuts, don’t worry about threats from idiots.

Make a way to review customers. Make it automated and integrated with CRM’s so when a prospect comes through the system it flags them as an a**hole you don’t want to do business with. Add businesses to the network so when customers take advantage of other local businesses, everyone else finds out about it and refuses to do business with them.

I like the idea of flagging shitty customers. You could call it "Prick Finder"

 

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[Johnny boy]

I like the idea of flagging shitty customers. You could call it "Prick Finder"

would be a giant database, would integrate with crm systems, billing systems, etc. You could have a setting that selects them as a bad customer, or automatically detects any chargebacks in your billing system, etc. It automatically updates the database and creates an alert within other company crm systems that says "customer has been flagged as a bad client" and shows the reason why, and would happen automatically so it's not wasting any time, and you can see what other people said about them.

Imagine you are using a crm for your deck building business, a person enters in their info on your website and a new lead comes through on your crm, but Shaniqua has 10 complaints against her and it says she's a terrible customer who doesn't pay and is a deadbeat. Now you'll be able to ignore her and not waste your time with a piece of shit customer, and it's all automatic. You save time and money and all from an automatic integration with your current CRM system.

With enough people using it, it would change the dynamic of consumer-company interactions. Now people have to watch how they treat companies or else they'll catch a bad review and no one will do business with them. You would have SO many less Karen's, so many less deadbeats, so many less assholes.

btw I own karenreview.com as a domain for when I can build out this idea properly lol

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I have a website that allows users to write reviews of businesses and residential homes.

Right now, the listings being reviewed can respond freely as long as the listing's provider has an account on the website.

I want to charge them to have an account. This means, that they would have to pay $10 a month to respond to reviews/defend themselves.

Is this extortion?

I had it like this before but I changed it when someone threatened to sue me on grounds of extortion and slander.

Obviously the $10/month would provide other value (post contact information, etc.)

Or instead of the $10/month, I can charge $10 per phone call they receive from their listing... but in order to post their contact information and respond to reviews, they have to be enrolled in automatic payments, like Google Ads.

What do you guys think?

I don't like it, seems very scumbaggy to me.

IMO, it meanders into the world of scumbag marketing. There are 2 camps in marketing ... ethical marketing: effective, ethical tactics and scumbag marketing: effective unethical tactics promoted by scumbag marketers, like advertising a new car price without tires, brakes, and headlamps.

 

[Black_Dragon43]

I think it’s only extortion if you yourself are posting the negative reviews. Otherwise it’s not, but it’s obvious that the affected business would think that there is some foul play and you’re just trying to make money off them.

If things were fairly done, and I was in your shoes, I’d ask them to sue me if they think it’s extortion and we’ll talk in court.

 

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