public forums - the good, the bad, the ugly

[JPC-Greg]

So its no mystery that we have a great community here. And Ive never hid behind anything or shy away from public postings, even ones not in this forum. This can have some great benfits, I get to know some people on a personal level, of course the branding benefit, and people can put a name or personality to the company.

Unfortunately it isnt without its ugly side either. Our reputation among clients and the internet at large is nothing short of stellar <-- I love to use, and over use that term! In a certain public forum, cough w, cough ht , cough, we have been eating quantities of crud in the last mont or so. The really unfortunate issue with this is that it all stems from just 2-3 users which are double back posting on each others threads, followed by heaps of competitors thread bumping while posting what they are construing as helpful post, and paid forum posters (yes this is a web service) of seemingly anonymous posters that back, recommend, or further create false and further damaging messages on these threads. The end result, 2 straight months of thread bumpings and to the public the appearance that we are some evil bad company. It also makes the less educated think, on no, this is the end of that host , better jump ship.

These host jumpers are not going to ever stick with one host and are of little concern. Its the educated long term clients that end up suffering when this happens. The degrading and deplorable acts of other hosts and clients that beleive support is done by 3rd party public forums is really a sickness to the hosting industry. Like all large muscle bound hosts we easily over come these negative acts and rarely if ever even notice a decline in sales for them. But what they do is affect our staff, morale, and that sirs does nothing for anyone on the web. Its all too easy these days to think that you can hide behind your monitor and type what you want. Has the world forgot that there are human beings that are meant to read your comments? Its my wish that one day the gutter of the internet becomes a little more civilized and online merchants get at least the same respect you would show to a clerk working at your local best buy.

[Ron]

Apparently you have never been a retail clerk...

Reputation is everything; do whatever it takes to maintain yours, including legal action.
The operator of the forum is protected, but not the posters.

[the_ancient]

stems from just 2-3 users .

[Vin DSL]

I might as well complete the thought...

• Ronnie (the good)
• The Ancient (the bad)
• VinDSL (the ugly)

LoL!

Anyway, I know what you're saying, Chief, but don't let it get you down. Personally, I love it when ppl treat me bad. That's why I encourage it. However, that's just me...

Tell your staff to remember, bad attention is better than no attention at all!

Maybe it's time for me to go have some fun on WHT...

[lokki]

Whew... just in time not to make Vin's list! Or does that make me the whistle?

hmm...

A major social problem with the internet is mingling at all levels. This generally sorts itself out, like a crowd of people with nowhere to go will self-segregate. But on large forums, it gets written down and preserved for lots of fresh eyes.

This leads to certain legal implications. 'Libel' is a good word to toss about with attourneys. So is unfair competition, especially when it is misleading and intended to do harm.

Perhaps WHT will see a couple of new avatars...

[Galen]

You mentioning the paid anonymous posters reminds me of an entry at another host's blog that I read not long ago. Sort of an expose of how those "Web hosting review" sites really operate. Not gonna post it, since they're a competing company, but I'm sure some of you know the blog I'm referring to.

The basic gist of it is that all of those "hosting review" sites are nothing of the sort. They pimp out the company that PAYS them to be pimped out. Basically, any "top 10" webhost list on any of those sites is just a list of the top 10 people who paid the most money to be advertised as "the best" on that site.

I suspect WHT may just be guilty of the same shady behavior.

[JPC-Greg]

Whew... just in time not to make Vin's list! Or does that make me the whistle?
.

screw vins list

i mean screw vin


wait , um, err...


i mean, ... huh ?

j/k vin

[JPC-Greg]

ya most review sites are fake , they are google ad generating, paid hosting sites. Ie top affiliate payouts or even paid advertisers get prompted on whats just a page designed to make the guys money. not a real review.

Also webhosts own a lot of the review sites out there, all fake. Theres only a handful of true unbiased review sites that dont base results on advertising from hosts.

[Pawel Kowalski]

These people suffer I-A-S or Internet A-hole Syndrome. I wouldn't put too much effort in to worrying about what they think, that's exactly what they want you to do.

[lokki]

...I came to JagPC via a review site...

;}

Actually, that's not entirely true. I saw a comparison on another host's site, one of those "look how cool we are compared to other hosts". I then checked each of the referenced sites independently, and I think JPC was running some kind of special which blew the competitor's deals out of the water. Cuts both ways, huh?

Anyway, I moved here from a rather large discount hosting company that had outstanding reliability, but no help to speak of. Everything was in a knowledgebase, help file, PDF, or a link to external resources. Any email I sent got an autoresponse generated from keywords in the body of my message. The only time I got a real person was when I cancelled... they called me to offer a one-month-free deal if I renewed with them. Woo-freaking-hoo.

[Rob]

don't listen the the posts people make on WHT i certainly don't. I vary realy go on WHT anyway and when i do half the stuff is about people badmouthing companies saying how crap they are when in fact they view the company as crap because they did something to get terminated or didn't follow rules etc etc. Jag has a good reputation in most eyes its just a few people saying its not. The most commonly used term to judge a bad hosting company is a Kiddie Host lol i love seeing people having rants on WHT about so called Kiddie Hosts when in fact they are being ran by adults. I never believe anything i see on WHT

[Vin DSL]

screw vins list

i mean screw vin

wait , um, err...

i mean, ... huh ?

j/k vin

LoL! That's what I'm talkin' about!!!

Doesn't that feel good?

[JPC-Greg]

LoL! That's what I'm talkin' about!!!

Doesn't that feel good?

Are you still talking?

[Vin DSL]

Shut up, Dummy!

don't listen the the posts people make on WHT i certainly don't...

I dunno...

Maybe I'm atypical, but I listen to everyone. It's pretty obvious when somebody has an axe to grind, and I take their opinion[s] with a grain of salt, but I still listen. That's MY job, in real life, actually...

I digress: News programs on radio & TV have done a job pretty good of brainwashing ppl. They're lazy (or lack resources) and present you with two or three extreme perspectives on complex issues, to the left or right of the truth, and sometimes a few in the middle -- then, you're supposed to come up with your own 'truth'.

Ppl, on the whole, are pretty good at coming to their own conclusions. I think they summarily toss out the opinion[s] of trolls and ass-kissers, and come up with their own enlightened and informed opinion.

Personally, I think defending yourself against silly charges is counter-productive. It signals some sort of weakness on your part, you know? Thin-skinned intemperance is NOT a good quality, especially for someone in a 'ppl business'! Sometimes how you respond to allegations is more important than what actually took place.

Anyway, I'm rambling now, so I'll stop...

Bottom line: Screw 'em! You can't make everyone happy, Chief, but you know that...

[Frank Broughton]

Maybe it's time for me to go have some fun on WHT...

Let's go!


Greg,

Respect is so far removed from today's gotta have everything yesterday society. I worked for an independent Heavy Duty truck sales and service company for over a decade back yonder on my first job out of high school. It would have been a good career job as I progressed from driver, to parts man, to parts manager, then added service manager (11 bay garage), to purchasing manager to the last position - Controller. I loved the job - hated the enviroment. I left... because of the total lack of respect of many customers. Always in a hurry and wanted every fixed or in stock "yesterday." The stress was not worth the money.

Sure wish I could have took it and stayed. I hope all your people stay and grow with you and take it all with a grain of salt.

Spelling out the duties of sales vrs support as I mentioned in another post may help solve some of the misunderstanding some clients have with JaguarPC. What do I know though you are the CEO you must have done some things right!!!