7
Surefire Signs of a *Virtual Violation and 5 ways to
Avoid it
By
Lisa Manyon
As
a small business owner you know the importance of
marketing and investing in your businesses. This means
attending workshops, trainings, conferences and maybe
even entering business competitions or contests that can
increase publicity. The intent is to further your
business by networking with likeminded individuals while
gleaning wisdom from tried and true gurus. Oftentimes,
we find such events online. Unfortunately, not all
things are what they seem. Perhaps you’ve been told not
to believe everything you hear and only half of what you
read. I can personally attest this is a good rule of
thumb based on recent occurrences.
Embarrassingly, I was duped by a great idea gone awry. I
found a business competition and conference that seemed
like an ideal platform, online. Allegedly, catering to
small and micro home-based businesses with less than ten
employees, the event promised an impressive lineup of
judges and speakers including nationally known marketing
experts and gurus.
The event included a competition for cash prizes in
several categories including Entrepreneur of the Year,
Best New Product, Most Creative Product and more. With a
reputable major sponsor, I was sure the event would be
topnotch. Plus, over 130 entrepreneurs had entered the
competition. I paid a reasonable fee to attend the
event, made travel plans and arrived in Las Vegas,
Nevada only to discover the event had been cancelled. No
one had notified me. As it’s said “what happens in
Vegas, stays in Vegas” In this instance, I just have to
share.
Feeling rather foolish and quite burned, I set out to
find out what happened. Although I had exchanged e-mail
with the organizer just weeks earlier when he confirmed
I could add an additional guest to the awards banquet
and that he looked forward to seeing me in Vegas, the
event had been cancelled PRIOR to our correspondence and
I was not notified.
When I connected with the promotions company, I
discovered they had severed ties with the organizer
because of “contractual difficulties”. Apparently the
event had been cancelled for over a month.
When I returned home, I quickly e-mailed all of the
entrants and people advertised as speakers and/or
judges. With the responses from those e-mails, I found
more issues like the well known marketing guru who was
being promoted on-line as the keynote speaker was never
contracted for the event, two of the judges didn’t know
they were involved and some of the speakers who were
booked received notice of cancellation only days prior
to the event and others no notice at all.
Sometimes misery does love company. I felt bad so many
people had been misled but strangely better that I
wasn’t the only one. Challenges help us grow and it
appears that with the help of my attorney, I’ll get full
reimbursement for travel and expenses. Plus, I’ve
learned how to avoid future *virtual violations. I’ve
also made some really great connections with dynamic
people who are just as disappointed about the mishap.
Throughout all of this I wanted to bring something
positive from the experience. So, here are some tips to
help you avoid being virtually violated on the internet.
7
Surefire Signs of a *Virtual Violation
1)
Change in Venue ~The event is rescheduled more than
once. Be sure to check the website frequently after
you’ve booked a conference. If the site indicates there
has been a change in date, do some digging to find out
why.
2)
Bonus Perks ~ Perks that are promised are not received
or “members only” login access or links are not active
or accessible
3)
Evasive Answers ~ Questions are not answered directly or
simply not addressed at all.
4)
Poor Communication ~ Any communication that is not clear
and concise and leaves any doubt in your mind should
serve as a red flag.
5)
Dishonest Communication ~ Featuring a photo of a well
known speaker and advertising they will be at the event
when there are no contracts in place is clearly not
right.
6)
Information not updated or posted in a timely manner ~
Missed deadlines to post new information or progresses
are sure signs something is amiss.
7)
Event Cancelled and not all involved are notified ~ If
an event is cancelled, everyone involved should be
notified. Unfortunately, if you aren’t notified, you
won’t know till after the fact. Hopefully the first six
tips can help you avoid such a travesty.
I
promised 7 Surefire Signs and I’m including a bonus as
an extra precautionary measure.
8)
If
you feel something is “OFF” trust your instinct and
investigate. You can never underestimate your gut
feelings. Unfortunately, I chalked my trepidation up to
being nervous about stretching my comfort zone.
I
won’t make that mistake again and to help you avoid
similar situations here are five tips to avoid a
*virtual violation.
5
Ways to Avoid *Virtual Violation
1)
To
verify Keynote speakers are actually booked, check the
keynote’s website and access the appearance file.
2)
Request a headcount of other registrants and request
testimonials from
people who have been involved in past events.
3)
Do
an internet search to check credibility using “Google”
and the Better Business Bureau to get background
information.
4)
Call the facility where the event is being held to
confirm before you travel.
5)
Make sure all registration fees are 100% refundable if
the event is cancelled or unsatisfactory or at the very
least make sure refund policies are clearly posted on
the event website.
Suffering from a *virtual violation is disheartening. We
as entrepreneurs assume that others entrepreneurs will
operate ethically and deliver what they promise. As
noted previously, not all things are what they seem.
However, we have the power to avoid *virtual violations
and I hope this information helps you avoid similar
situations. If for some reason you too are duped, try to
make the best of it. At the very least, I’ve learned
that I’m not alone in my disappointment and I’ve made
some great new connections. Most importantly, I know
that I need to be more cautious, ask more questions and
not take everything at face value.
*Virtual Violation – A virtual violation is a dishonest
and misleading representation on the internet. This term
was coined by Lisa Manyon after traveling to Las Vegas
for an event that was cancelled and misrepresented
online.
This article may be reproduced in it’s entirety with the
following inclusion: Lisa Manyon is a writer and
consultant specializing in POWERFULLY communicating
business messages to get results. Her work has been
featured by the National Association of Women Writers.
Manyon created a series of marketing training seminars
for the Idaho Small Business Development Center and
touts over 15 years of marketing, advertising,
non-profit and writing experience. To learn more visit
www.writeoncreative.com Write On ~ Creative Writing
Services, LLC. ©
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