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Better Business Bureau Discriminates Against Online Companies

searchrank.com — The BBBOnLine Reliability Program is a program the BBB offers its members in which they can place a seal on their web site indicating they are a BBB member. The problem is that it requires its own fees in addition to what a company pays to be a BBB member and as such, discriminates against businesses who solely conduct business online.

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  • greggorio, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4Very uplifting and long overdue post about the business practice of the Better Business Bureau. Perhaps, they need their own BBB review.
    • nigh7dagger, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2How ironic!

      Of course, it is a little bit understandable that if someone rips you off online, it would be harder to track them down.
    • mrfish, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11) The only reason people become part of the BBB is to gain instant credibility.
      2) To become a bad business on the BBB you must have at least 1 complaint against you and then not resolved it. So the worst offenders are the ones with many unhappy complaints.
      3) BBBmembers can still be bad businesses and treat their customers poorly and have a good rating if they always answer complaints and tell the BBB "Oh well we did everything we could to satisfy the customer but they remained unhappy"

      So my point is that the BBB is pointless.
  • pleeker, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2The BBB is obviously a needed institution and generally does good stuff, but I agree that this doesn't seem right.
  • Zasxer, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I can understand BBB's point.. They've got administration costs. After studying into BBBonline program I'm not as sure that it offers the credibility that it's supposed.

    It's nice to have the BBB banner on your site, however, it doesn't hold alot of water if somebody complains from a few states away.
    People only check BBB if they're really pissed off.
    • squarepeground, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Credibility is their only asset, so maybe they'd better rethink that
  • WMRBrandy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+0You raise some very good points here.......as you always do!
  • torched, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I would think higher fees and stricter guidelines would be better for online businesses. If a foot locker store rips you off at least you can go get in thier face about the problem by making a quick drive. In the online world where any scammer can buy hosting for $2 per month and a free copy of oscommerce it makes sense to have a different set of rules.
  • IceZZ, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2The BBB does absolutely NOTHING about complaints aside from let the business reply with a letter that denies everything. It is a crock. What good is it if you can't put a complaint on file to warn people?
    • Egoist, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Its purpose is to keep a record of dispute resolution. Every company that ever existed will have a customer complaint at one point or another, but complaints aren't what you should be looking for when researching a company. How those companies resolve those complaints is what's important. That's what the BBB keeps records of.
  • jlebrech, on 10/12/2007, -4/+1digg me down
  • coldskool, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1I didn't have a very good experience with the BBB when I was a member, they just seemed like another business thats in the business to make money. They didn't seem at all like a company who is looking out for the well being of other businesses... all they wanted were my membership dues and they hounded me for them for months. I wouldn't suggest joining, other than to say you have.
    • yunus, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1They are in the business of making money, all companies are. There also not there to look out for the well being of other businesses. Taken from their website
      "The BBB's value to the business community is based on our neutrality. The purpose of the BBB system is not to act as an advocate for businesses or consumers, but to act as a mutually trusted intermediary to resolve disputes, to facilitate communication, and to provide information on ethical business practices. Businesses have supported the BBB for over 80 years because an ethical marketplace is in everyone's best interest. "

      And why didnt you pay your dues on time?
    • coldskool, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"And why didnt you pay your dues on time?"

      Because the BBB is a waste of money.
  • Dpack1, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Yeah... someone should report the Better Business Bureau to the erm... Better Business Bureau... Wait...
  • psyjoniz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1perhaps we need more than one BBB style company to generate a little bit of motivation to improve? and maybe a different pricing structure?

    back on topic though, the policy seems flawed and in need of review. the world is changing, BBB, maybe you need to roll with a few of them, too.
  • eastbiz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0BBB system is broken. You cannot even say on our website that we are members of BBB. Our membership came for renewal and our website was audited. We were told that we cannot use “We are member of BBB” on our website? Why? It doesn’t make any sense to me.

    http://www.incparadise.com/news/2006/10/30/why-we-are-dropping-bbb-membership/
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