I've started this blog as a resource for people who get scammed by CRC Advertising. The experience I'm going through right now appears to be part of a larger pattern of what I consider criminal activity. In the next several passages I hope to explain my experience with CRC, in the effort that other people be forewarned about the predatory and dishonest nature that I consider synonymous with CRC.
I first found out about CRC advertising through the Washington Post newspaper. I had recently finished an internship with the DNC and was looking for a paying, entry-level job that would provide me with good training and experience. Hopefully I could score a good reference out of the job too! After working for nothing I was impressed with the advertisement for CRC. In big bold letters at the top it said, "Sports Marketing." They offered a "management training program." The add stated that no experience was necessary, and also stated "41-43K a year." That's when my mouth really started salivating. I called up the number in the add, and talked to Chris, the owner. We chatted pleasantly for about ten minutes. He asked me if I liked sports, and I said yes. He asked me if I played sports, I said I used to play soccer and lacrosse. We scheduled an interview for the next day.
Needless to say, I was really excited, and looked forward to my interview. The interview was done by a sharp looking 23 year old named Jack. It took no longer than five minutes. It was a strange interview. He asked me maybe two questions, which I can't even remember now. All I remember is him throwing all of these pamphlets of advertisements at me with names like McDonald's, Pizza Hut, the Baltimore Orioles. Big names. I was definitely impulsed. I was thinking in my head that it would be so cool to represent companies like the Baltimore Orioles. He spent most of his time talking about how the companies he advertises for make money. He said something to the effect of, "every time you go to a baseball game there are fifteen thousand empty seats. You know how the Baltimore Orioles make there money?" I responded, through merchandise. He got more excited, "Concessions! If we can fill those seats that were normally going to be empty and each of those people buy one hot dog and a coke the Orioles will make a hundred thousand dollars more that they otherwise wouldn't normally be making."
It wasn't rocket science. I asked him about pay. This time he gave himself as the example. He said he was making 60,000 dollars a year and going to be opening up his own office, where in effect the potential to make money is unlimited. I was impressed. He went on to say that his boss makes over four hundred thousand dollars a year! Now I was like, 'please, please give me the job.' He asked me what I thought made me a good candidate and I went on to tell him how amazing his job sounded. That I would love to be making even close to 60,000 dollars a year. If he was telling the truth I'd be the best damn employee he ever had. He told me to come back the next day for a ride along. I was stoked.
I came back the next day for my ride along. The ride along was where a Team Leader takes you out into the field to show you what a day in the life of a direct advertiser is like. I came to find out that it was basically a glorified term for door to door sales. You go from door to door offering people coupon books for money. I didn't think much of it at the time. I was impressed by the fact that I could make so much money just talking to people and walking around outside all day. There was no one looking over your shoulder. No one telling you what to do. It seemed like a dream job.
I came back and ended up getting hired by CRC, or so I was led to believe. I was legally an independent contractor, though officially I was a distributor for CRC. In the first few days I signed a piece of paper that basically says I don't work for CRC. They are just a distribution company that provides merchandise for other direct distributors like myself. I would earn a percentage of each sale. It was officially 40%. I started work and did Papa Johns promotions. The pizza cards were 26 dollars a piece. Each one that I sold I would make 10 dollars. I found out eventually that I could charge whatever amount I wanted for the cards after I read the fine print on my contract with CRC. I also became suspicious when I was instructed to charge an extra fifty cents for each check and dollar for each credit card order. The extra dollar was for the credit card fee, the fifty cents I was told went towards bounced checks that I collected to protect me from owing CRC payment for the merchandise. I was told also that CRC had hired a company that takes care of bounced checks by paying CRC the moneys owed and taking responsibility of collecting payment from the person who bounced the check .
At the end of every workday I would return to CRC with my unsold merchandise and return in. We would settle up by filling out forms that took into account how many pieces I sold and what method of payment was used. Some days, as a distributor, most pieces I sold were paid for by checks or credit cards. Some days CRC would owe distributors money because there percentages were included in the credit card or check payments. It's like settling up in the restaurant business, where if you're a server and everyone pays with credit, the restaurant tips you out and pays you cash at the end of the day. The same thing happened at CRC, except because CRC wasn't a restaurant they usually didn't have enough cash on hand to pay everyone out at the end of the day. That's where the security account comes in.
The security account was a company account where as a distributor I deposited money owed to me that CRC couldn't pay me at the end of the day.
As time went on, I grew tired of working outside in the cold until eight every night. I had a couple days where I made ten dollars after freezing my ass off all day and night. The money wasn't working out and I just wasn't excited about the job anymore. I could no longer rationalize to myself what I was doing. What made matters worst was that I had also become very cynical about the job. I felt that I had been impulsed into making a decision. That CRC mislead me when they advertised as "sports marketing" not direct advertising. I also found out that I needed a permit to do the work I was doing. CRC never mentioned a permit. Two colleagues of mine ended up getting cited because they didn't have permits to do direct advertising. They went to court and lied to the judge, saying they had quit their jobs, and the judge excused them. Meanwhile people were going out every day breaking the law collecting Chris money, by impulsing old ladies and stay at home moms into paying twenty six dollars for a pizza card in the cold.
I am currently seeking money that I deposited in the security account. Some three hundred and sixty five dollars actually. When I quit I just stopped going to work. No two weeks, no phone call. I was depressed about not having a job again. I ended up calling CRC and got to talk to Chris for about five minutes. I asked him politely for money that I put into security. He told me he was angry with the way that I quit, that I could talk to him next week about getting my money back. I didn't really blame the guy. I did just stop going. I should have at least given him a phone call or something. So I called the next week on Monday. He was in a meeting. Tuesday He was in a meeting. Finally Wednesday I told his secretary Allison to tell him to mail me a check for what I had put into security. I told him to call me if he had a problem with the amount or anything. I gave her my address and phone number again in case they had deleted my information in their system. I waited several weeks nothing happened. No call, no letter. Nothing.
My mother ended up calling CRC today to get their address. I guess she didn't know they had a web site. Somehow she got through to Chris, and she asked about what happened to my money. Chris told her that there was an issue with some bounced checks.
If anyone else has had a similar experience, please add to the blog and perhaps we can offer support to one another. Maybe we'll at least prevent some people from being taken advantage of. I know of a couple other people with whom I worked with, that have had trouble getting their money. I'll try to get them to post their experiences.
I don't intend to trash the careers of everyone involved in CRC. There were lots of honest hard working people there. There boss just happens to be the complete opposite. He's about as trustworthy as a used car salesman.
