Monday, July 15, 2013

My name is Brad, and I recently got a letter in the mail from Preston Lord Enterprises.  I initially put the letter aside as junk mail, but my mom said it sounded like a good idea, so I reread the letter.  I want to share (1) what the program is, (2) research I did about the company, and (3) the conclusion I reached about the company.

1.  Preston Lord Enterprise Program.

The letter I received says that if you will stuff envelopes for the company, you will earn $10 for every envelope the company receives.  The letter seems to say that you will send the letters directly back to the company, because Preston Lord employees can't handle the volume of envelopes to stuff.  However, you earn $10 for every person who responds to, and pays for, the offer you mail out.  You mail offers to potential customers; not directly back to the company.  I raised my eyebrow when I realized the text was misleading.

In order to sign up for the program, depending on how much mailing material you request from the company, a "one-time, refundable start-up fee" is required--anywhere from $99 to $399 dollars.

2.  Research.

After reading the letter, actually excited to make a lot of easy money with the company, I decided to get online to see if other people have had success with the program, and to find out more about the company.  My attempts to learn more about the company included (a) searching the general Internet, (b) searching YouTube, and (c) phoning the company directly.

a.  General Internet.  

I tried to find a website for Preston Lord to learn more about the company, such as what Preston Lord Enterprise offered for a product or service.  I couldn't find a website for the company; I couldn't find a wikipedia page about the website.

b.  YouTube Videos.

I also checked the YouTube reviews to see what people had to say about the company.  I found three videos about the company that seemed legitimate at all.  Two of the three movies "bashed" Preston Lord Enterprises before promoting their own services.  I did not find those videos credible.

I found one YouTube video that seemed like it might help.  It was a movie made by a user named Stanley Masterson.  Stanley advocated Preston Lord Enterprises, and even showed a check for over $1000 dollars in the video.  Stanley starts the video by saying that he has been "trialing" companies similar to Preston Lord for over 30 years, and has been sharing his findings with the public, free of charge.  I couldn't find any reviews of companies, or anything relating to Stanley Masterson's  past reviews when I did a google search; I only found lots of "Stanley Mastersons" on Google Plus, Twitter, Facebook, whitepages, etc..

Stanley Masterson, the YouTube user, only has one YouTube video posted: the review about Preston Lord Enterprises.  He ends the video by advising investigators to start by purchasing the $399 dollar plan, the largest that Preston Lord Enterprises offers.

c.  Contacting the Company Directly.

Other research aside, my concerns about Preston Lord Enterprises could be laid to rest by speaking directly with someone at the company.  I tried (i) contacting the company with the number provided in the "recruiting" letter, and (ii) to get the "second customer service number" mentioned by Stanley Masterson.

i.  Letter From the Recruiting Letter.  The number for the company was included in the letter I received.  I was searching this material out late at night, but I decided to give the number a call anyway, just to see what would happen (Stanley Masterson said the company has unmatched customer service, providing customer support at very odd times).

I called the number (1-800-446-7419) at 2 a.m. and received the following voice recording:  "Due to an unusually high volume of calls, we are only helping paying customers.  Please be sure to send your payment in quickly."  An unusual volume of callers at 2 a.m.?  I also noticed the voice on the recording sounded a lot like Stanley Masterson from the YouTube video, only because Stanley Masterson's voice is so distinct.

In order to find out more about a company I know nothing about, I need to pay money, in cash, to the company I am trying to find information about?  I raised an eyebrow.

ii.  "Second Customer Service Number."  I was still willing to give the company a chance if I could get in touch with them.  Stanley Masterson said in the YouTube video that after you join the program, a second customer service number is provided to members.  I decided I would write a message to Stanley Masterson in the comments of his video to ask for the second number for the company, just to speak with someone at the company to prove to myself that the company was real.  (I had noticed that Stanley Masterson responded a lot to questions from other YouTube users in his comments; he also comments on the other YouTube reviews in a way that makes him seem more vested in Preston Lord than a concerned community user of Preston Lord.)

My question to Stanley Masterson in the comments of his YouTube video was not only ignored, he deleted the comment.

I have not been able to get in direct contact with the company.

Conclusion.

Although I would enjoy making easy money as proposed in the letter I received from Preston Lord Enterprises, I will not be joining the program because of Stanley Masterson's involvement in the program, my inability to contact the company, and the slightly misleading text in the Preston Lord letter.

a.  Stanley Masterson's Involvement With Preston Lord.  As a recap, I believe that Stanley Masterson is involved with Preston Lord Enterprise at a higher level than a concerned community-user envelope stuffer for the following reasons:
  1. The YouTube user Stanley Masterson has only one YouTube video, the video reviewing Preston Lord.  Often if people want a sense of anonymity to something they post on YouTube, they will create a new YouTube user account to publish the anonymous material.  If Stanley Masterson has been reviewing companies similar to Preston Lord for over 30 years, he may have published other reviews about other companies on YouTube.
  2. I was not able to find any reviews of any other companies by Stanley Masterson when I google search his name.  Unless he is new to computers, his '30 years of opportunity-discovery' work has not been widely published on the largest, most available information exchange method available today--the Internet.
  3. The voice of Stanley Masterson and the voice on the audio recording at Preston Lord's 1-800-446-7419 are similar.  This is not a huge piece of evidence, but Stanley Masterson's voice is distinct, and the voice on the recording matches some of the distinctions of Stanley Masterson (deep, articulated, and slow).
  4. Despite being a 'concerned community member,' reviewing companies/opportunities for the last 30 years and freely publishing his findings for the good of the opportunity-seeking community, Stanley Masterson ignored and deleted my request for Preston Lord's second customer service number, available to paying members.  I wanted the number so I could speak with someone at the company to prove to myself the company is real.  I wonder if the second number exists.
b.  Inability to Contact the Company.  Any company interested in bringing new customers/investors on board will always put their best foot forward in the form of attractive web pages or rapid customer support response on the phone.  I could find no website for the company, and the only number I found for the company tells me I need to pay to learn any more information about the company.  If Stanley Masterson, or another paying participant from Preston Lord, would provide the "second customer service number" with "unmatched customer service," I could speak with someone at the company and lay this concern to rest.

Despite my research online, I still don't even know what Preston Lord does for business besides collect sign-up fees from potential new members like I had considered becoming.

c.  Slightly Misleading Text of the Letter.  I only raised my eyebrow when I realized you don't make money just for stuffing envelopes as the letter suggests.  You make money when people respond to the offer you mail out to people.  The dollar amounts they say you'll earn in the letter are actually much less.  I would still actually be interested in the offer with the amount of money Stanley Masterson suggests you can make, even though the amount is less than advertised.

Concluding Remarks.

Despite my research, my arguments could be refuted by providing the following:
  1. A number to contact Preston Lord Enterprises.
  2. Past reviews about other companies conducted by Stanley Masterson.
  3. A member of Preston Lord who has been successful--who can be validated by the company or otherwise.
People can be quick to call a company a "scam" or other inaccurate names when they are unfamiliar with the service or product a company offers.  I find most reviews and articles written about companies on pissedconsumer.com or the nameless other equivalents to be dross and not worth reading.  However, I am interested in verifying the credibility of the Preston Lord Enterprises based on a few staple requirements of any functioning business.  I would actually be interested in participating in the Preston Lord Enterprise offer if the company is valid, even if the actual earnings are much less than advertised in the "recruiting" letter.



Sources:


Stanley Masterson’s YouTube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1GntVPAsPk


The two, less-credible YouTube videos:



21 comments:

  1. I did everything you did also, after viewing Stanley Masterson's long video. I couldn't find anything on Stanley himself. Yet he said he's been a consumer advocate since 1983. Yet has never posted anything about his reviews to products. Very weird. I also googled him, and only saw the you tube posting, the 1 youtube posting to be exact. I even recognized that the voices were very similar between Stanley's and the voice recording, all before i read your blog here. I don't know if anything is credible when it comes to this company. O think Stanley owns this company, and made the video because he knew that people will look into it. I received the second letter with the only $99.00 option. I'm afraid and don't have money to just throw away. I need to be able to speak to someone from the company as well before I send my money in.

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  2. I also received this letter and was actually considering scraping together the money. I am a 56 year old disabled and widowed woman. A hundred dollars is not easy to come by these days. I very much appreciate your review. I would still like to find something legitimate I can do from home. If you find a company like this, please post. I believe for now I am going to avoid Preston Lord Enterprises. Thank you.

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  3. I am glad you were very thorough with your research of this company Brad. That probably saved me some money. I also am an elder and disabled and need another way to earn some extra money. I am starting to get desperate, and that will lead to a mistake. If you do find something that is legit, please send me something at bigchub42@yahoo.com Thank you very much Brad.

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  4. Looks like Preston Lord EEnterprises is preying on the unfortunate with this scam! I too am disabled and was looking for a way to supplement my measly disability check! Glad I found d all of this information. They won't be getting any of my money!

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  5. This company was banned from doing business in NJ yet they still are WOW.
    The link below will explain everything:
    http://www.bbb.org/new-jersey/business-reviews/work-at-home-companies/maxwell-gates-enterprises-in-mendham-nj-90102557

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  6. Well I have to say I was taken. I recently lost my only means of money (unemployment) at the end of December. I filed bankruptcy last year and have been forced to short sale my home. I had a garage sale to get the money together $299 and bought a money order. I mailed it out the day after MLK Day. I have yet to hear from Preston Lord Enterprise. I am so ticked off because I have no money and recently had my electricity cut off.. I not sure how or if we can file a suit against this CROOK... I am sorry I even sent my only money . i was in such a vulnerable state and how it all sounded so good. .

    If anyone knows of a way to catch this freakin crook please advise.

    JMC

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  8. People that have been ripped off should try tp post on Stan's video. He may take it down but maybe someone will learn thr truth before he can act.

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  9. After reading your post, I decided to watch Stanley's video and while watching it I called the toll free number that was on the letter. Sure enough same voice.

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  10. thank you for saving me money you did a great service

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  11. Thank you so very much for your research and the time to post it on the internet. They always say "if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably isn't" really applies to this "opportunity". You have hopefully saved thousands of people from losing money.

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  12. Thank you for your post. I would hope that no matter how desperate people are they would ALWAYS investigate a company and be 100% positive that it is not a scam before sending money! It is so true.....IF IT SOUNDES TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE......THAN IT IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!

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    1. OOPS! I should have proofread my comnent before posting......I meant. SOUNDS.........not........SOUNDES.....LOL

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  13. I did the same search and chould not fine any thing about this company so i diged a little bit deeper and found Brad post thank u for sharing your post

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  14. Oh my goodness!! This wicked evil man scheming people for their money is will pay for his lying and wrong doing!! I am so glad I read your message; of truth!! You saved me from losing $199!! Thank you thank you!! God bless you!!

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  15. OMG! I almost fell for it and i had feeling it was all kind of shady!
    and finally my dad warned me straight up saying "CAREFUL, THIS IS A
    SCAM"!
    After a careful research i did for myself too,i have finally realized
    the company is a phony business.
    And this really is an eye opener to all folks out there looking to
    earn money from home online.
    If you are really serious in earning money from home online then you
    should check out this company that I'm earning about $2000 to $5000
    commission from them.
    Trust me this business unlike "Preston Lord Enterprise is free to sign
    up on and is 100% legitimate! and best part about it is you get paid
    daily into your PayPal account and there is no special skills
    required to start,all you need is a computer and an internet and just
    follow 4 simple steps along the way when signing up and boom! you are
    good to go and you will be amazed and thrilled of how great it pays.
    Just click on this link right below!!
    http://instantpaydaynetwork.com/dennis.entsie

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  16. Folks- Instantpaydaynetwork is a scam also. The best way to make $2 to $5 thousand per month is to get a marketable skill and go out and get a job or open a business

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  17. You know it doesn't even make sense with the two different numbers either. Why do you get another number to call when you get in, if the number you get in the get in the paper is supposedly for you when you do get in the business? There's definitely no logic there.

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  18. Cool, I am glad this helped some people. I am sorry you got taken Help!jmc, but if you were "going to get taken," someone else could have taken you for a lot more. I am glad you didn't get taken for more, so it was a relatively low cost of learning, if you were going to have to learn on something. I'm sorry that happened, though, it doesn't make it less annoying or okay that someone scammed you, and let's just call it what it is--I used language in the article that was factual instead of just outright saying "this is a scam", but it's a scam.

    I like what someone said in the replies, learn a skill and get a job. I have a recommendation for someone looking for something, and it is not a rewaord-for-nothing scheme like Dennis Entsie (likely another fake alias of the person who went by Stanley Masterson for this entire Preston Lord Enterprises ordeal) listed, it would be learn to program computers, and then take freelance projects from the internet.

    Google "Udemy Rob Percival iOS Developer Course" or "Udemy Rob Percival Android" to learn how to program Apple applications for iPhones or iPads, or Android products respectively.

    I am not associated, affiliated, nor receive any benefits or kickbacks from any of those places if you were to spend the $10 and sign up for a course--I'm not providing any links or anything so there is no way I could "get credit for it" anyway, but I signed up for the iOS (Apple) course, and it is awesome. He includes an e-book on how to start making money off of freelance sites, doing projects that people list on freelance websites, and it is a high-quality course. Try that out. You can do that from home, and it is fun even if you don't do it to earn money with it. However, it is a marketable skill if you are going to learn programming.

    You could learn any kind of programming if there is another type of programming besides phone apps that interests you, but you could still use the idea of doing freelance projects no matter what type of programming it is--some types of programming are just more univerally marketable than others which is why I listed these two courses out. Try it out, everything is in video format, and if you are able to watch a video and follow instructions that are shown to you in a video, step-by-step, it is a really satisfying and fun thing to learn how to do. Even if you don't consider yourself a computer person, the lessons start supposing that you do not know anything about programming computers whatsoever. You need a mac computer to program Apple apps, so don't do the Apple course unless you have a mac computer to program on, but if you have access to a mac computer, you can program Apple or Android applications. If you have a Windows computer, you would make the Android apps, which is awesome. If you have a mac computer, I would choose the course that matches with the type of smart phone you have so that you can test and have your apps on your normal phone with you, it's really a cool thing to see your apps on your phone that you use for everything else. Good luck, hopefully this article gets no more traffic because the scam has withered like a weed--the last comment makes me hopeful. Hopefully everyone is doing well. A little community brought together by some crafty guy who tried stealing our money.

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    1. It was a nice surprise to get an email today asking if I would like to stay subscribed to this blog, and I just came to look at the article because I like that I did this, and lo and behold, people have replied! I am glad that this helped some of you, hopefully no one else gets taken by the same thing, but knowing the nature of this kind of garbage, the company has probably been doing the same thing under ten different names by now, or has moved onto another scheme like the "totally legitimate" offer, like they "all are" the Dennis Entsie listed. It smelled fishy before you even shared the details of the offer if (1) you are sharing it in response to an article like this, and (2) the name of the website is totally get-rich-quick-y. Also, the fact that you found this blog post makes me think it is probably Stanley Masterson's true identity keeping his finger on the pulse of community perception of your scam. Whatever the case may be, and although I have not looked into your offer whatsoever, this is not the place for an offer like that

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