From Liberty's website: "we will not be undersold" [sic] 6/9/06 resaleworld.com
Liberty support email: "We do not list all fee's [sic] on our website. 4/27/06, Renee Milam, Sales Consultant
We apologize. It is not our desire to engage in tactics employed by Brian Wilson of Consignpro but on the other hand we've heard many complaints about his marketing methods, poor service, dishonesty and attitude. We suspect that the hundreds of sales we have made since early 2002 creates significant financial strain on all our competitors. He chooses to attempt to discredit us while employing deceptive practices intended to attract attention away from desperately-high prices.
The following are simply his own words taken from his website(s) which portray his willful intent to deceive:
"Our goal... provide... an affordable price" 6/9/06 consignpro.com
"We have the lowest price." 6/9/06 consignpro.com/consign.htm
"We realize that store owners love a great deal. To help out, we've put together four packages* that provide special savings." (Deceiving users as to total and relative cost is not 'helping out'. It's exploitation no matter how it is 'packaged'.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/package.htm
"The prices shown are inclusive of any other offer or discount you may have seen and do not include shipping charges." (Special savings? Why not drop the shipping charges?) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/package.htm
"I developed ConsignPro for my mom's resale shop..." (This pretty much defines the lack of 'business stature' for this 'company'.) Excerpt from a 6/14/06 spam email to several shop owners
"We are committed to bringing consignment store owners excellent software at a reasonable price." ($5,235 in 10 years is far from 'reasonable'.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/faq.htm
"The ConsignPro software system won't break your bank. Our software is priced competitively and provides you great value for your money. We admit, you can buy cheaper software but you often get what you pay for." (This vendor clearly demonstrates that exorbitant cost does not assure good service or a good product.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/consign.htm
"..we're head-and-shoulders above the competition when it comes to value for your money!" ...the program has become the fastest selling program on the market for resale software! (Unsubstantiated self promotion contradicted by users and ex-users)
6/9/06 consignpro.com/features.htm, consignpro.com
"Their [Liberty's] cost for a single user license is $995 (taken from their website). Based on published prices for single user licenses, this is the most expensive in this business." (He chides Liberty for high costs!) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/compare.htm
"...have over 1200 happy customers..." (And many unhappy current and ex-users)
6/9/06 consignpro.com/features.htm
"Our team of support professionals..." (Last count there were 3 people involved in Consignpro - more exaggeration) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/demo.htm
"If we are unable to answer your call immediately, please leave a message." (A 'team of professionals' but no one to answer the phone? They screen calls. Potential buyers get a quick response. Calls for support wait a day or two. Calls for support on the toll-free number are not returned.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/support.htm
"last year we updated our software 6 times - more than any other competitor." (Ours was updated 9 times.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
"Some of our competitors charge up to $100 per HOUR!" for support. (No vendor charges this!) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
"For the price, no product that I know of has as many features as ConsignPro."
6/9/06 consignpro.com/faq.htm
"How much are additional copies (network licenses)?" (He avoids answering his own question because his networking licenses are expensive, $295 each.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
"Some vendors have special database license charges you'll incur for either a single workstation or networked setup, ask about these up front or be surprised later." (Good advice and well applied to himself. We don't know of any 'special database license'.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
"Version Updates... FREE w/Plan" (Updates aren't free if something else must be purchased to get them. No payment. No updates.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/price-list.htm
"This fee is paid by the "buyer" but not passed on to the consignor. None of our consignor reports reflect this "surcharge" so the appearance (to the consignor) is that they are receiving the correct split percentage." (He encourages shop owners to hide the true sales price of consignor items.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/itpays.htm
"[His software} will pay for itself... This is especially true if you've hired an employee..." (Software cost is represented as only $895 [sic] and employees are not paid $20/hour. There is no representation of the TOTAL cost of $5,235 in 10 years. According to his (self-serving) assumptions, the $895 software expense will be recovered in a week.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/itpays.htm
"If priced appropriately...software company makes a reasonable profit." (Profit is a reflection of effective marketing, customer satisfaction and good management. Companies which are poorly managed exploit the few who are deceived by crafty pricing games.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/why.htm
"We've taken a lot of time to compare our program to our competitors to make sure that you, our customer, receive the best value for your money." (The comparison is limited to 3 other companies (hardly thorough) and conveniently omits all software priced lower than his.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/faq.htm
"Member of NARTS... Your assurance of professionalism" (NARTS admits to not screening their applicants or investigating members' business practices and makes no such representation of 'assuring professionalism'. Membership requires a fee and is in effect paid advertising.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com
From the NARTS 'Code of Ethics': SINCERELY represent and act within one’s areas of professional competence and authority without exaggeration, distortion or concealment" [emphasis added]. NARTS Adele Meyer, 'Executive Director', 9/5/2005: "NARTS membership applicants are subject to approval by the NARTS Board of Directors. Our members must also agree to adhere to our Code of Ethics." Wilson suggests that potential software purchasers inquire of vendors if they are members of NARTS. What's the value? Meyer says membership will be terminated if a member does not adhere to the 'code'. Not only have they not reprimanded or terminated Wilson's membership, they awarded him the dubious title of 'Vendor of the Year' for 2005.
"offices in Miami and New York" (Office is in N. Jersey but 'New York' sounds more impressive.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com
"We send you to our wholesale tag vendor for the lowest possible prices..." (FormPlus is the provider. They do not have "lowest possible prices" and it is not disclosed that Consignpro gets a kickback on every sale.) 6/9/06 vhsoftware.com/top10.htm
"Visual Horizons Software has teamed up with industry-leader X-Charge... credit card processing..." (Not disclosed that Consignpro gets a kickback on every sale.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/ccard.htm
"The demo program is 100% functional..." "The evaluation copy is 100% complete..."(A half truth - The demo is limited to 25 consignors and 50 inventory items.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/demo.htm, consignpro.com/consign.htm, consignpro.com/faq.htm
In 2006 price was increased from $895 to $995. Hardware prices were increased. New fees were added for printer support ($40) and database fixes ($69). 6/9/06 consignpro.com/demo.htm
"All information on this (comparison) page was gathered from individual company websites as of April 1st, 2005" (Over one year later outdated information is not updated because the older information suits his purpose.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/compare.htm
"Myth: Our software is expensive. Fact: Software prices range from $695 to $1,110 (for programs with similar feature sets) . We're competitively priced at $895. (Avoids mentioning the cost of add-on fees which bring the cost to $9,139 over 10 years) 9/23/05 consignpro.com/compare.htm
"Since 2002, we've converted over 20 former Liberty customers to ConsignPro due, primarily, to customer service issues. Essentially, these customers would have rather re-invested in new software ($$$) than continue doing business with ResaleWorld - quite a statement." 9/23/05 consignpro.com/compare.htm
In an email from Liberty 4/22/06: "We do have a conversion routine for the Consign Pro software." (Looks like so many Consignpro users have switched to Liberty that they designed a special program for converting from Consignpro.)
"Database crashes (Error 3343 - Unrecognized database format) unfortunately occur from time to time..." (Our feedback is a bit stronger. Crashes are a common occurrence with Consignpro which uses an inferior Access database.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/demo.htm
One ex-Consignpro user reports that while her PC was connected to the Internet, after an altercation with Wilson, her information was erased. Does Consignpro have access to your computer? If so, did they disclose it? Ask for your permission?
Many of the reasons given for converting to Consignpro are the same reasons why people leave Consignpro: 6/14/06 consignpro.com/convert.htm
- My current software crashes alot [sic]. (So does Consignpro.)
- My current software inconsistently records transactions. (So does Consignpro.)
- My calls to tech support are never returned. (Consignpro users paraphrased: "You have to leave a message. If it is a sales inquiry they call back within a few hours. If it is a support matter it can be 24 to 48 hours before they call back."
- Their technical support is too expensive!! (So is Consignpro's.)
- Support for my software is going away or doesn't exist. (Where will Consignpro be in a year or two?)
- Their tech support team is rude and arrogant. (So is Wilson.)
- I'm tired of losing data and restoring old database files. (Consignpro devotes an entire page to restoring their lost data. consignpro.com/crash.htm)
- I'm tired of hearing that my computer is the problem.
- I'm tired of giving them money. (As if converting to Consignpro is going to stop this. One ex-Consignpro user: "We've had Consignpro for almost 2 years and have put over $5,000 into it. Enough is enough!"
"Data conversion is a flat $200. Most store owners see this as a minimal cost compared to the hundreds of hours it would take to re-enter the consignor and active inventory into the ConsignPro system." (Hiding/justifying high prices for services includes comparing the cost to a 'worse case' and avoiding mention that competitors convert for free, as we do.)
6/14/06 consignpro.com/convert.htm
"List: $199, Ours: $95" (Same thing here - comparing his price to worse case and omitting mention of shipping fees which are tacked on at the end of the ordering process.)
6/9/06 consignpro.com/demo.htm
"...your startup cost is $895... tech support is FREE for 3 months... only $100 / year after that!" (There are many suggestions throughout the website that this is the only cost or total cost of owning Consignpro while trumpeting 'FREE!' 6/14/06 consignpro.com/convert.htm
"FREE!" (This term is repeatedly abused throughout the website, applying to things are NOT free (updates), that are temporary (support without fees) or are typically free and/or of little/no value ("free online message board"). The intent of course is to give the impression of providing value where none or little exists.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/demo.htm
"meta name="Keywords"...free" (This is an attempt to get the search engines to associate the word 'free' with Consignpro with the hope that search phrases containing the word 'free' will present the website in search results.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/index.html, consign.htm
"Try our demo, risk free, on our FREE demo webpage [sic]!" (Even risk and web pages are free at Consignpro!) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/newstore.htm
"Our website (like our software) is simply the most complete in the business." (Laughable) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/consign.htm
"Visual Horizons Software added more new features to ConsignPro last year than our competitors did combined!" (unsubstantiated and highly doubtful - There are very few 'new features' in the list on this page. Most changes are minor adjustments and fixes but 'new features' sounds more impressive.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/r_notes.htm
"...there are very few software packages which serve the unique needs of the [consignment] business." (There are several with similar features and all much lower in total cost.) 6/14/06 consignpro.com/faq.htm
"View our complete pricing list for more info!" (The list is not complete. These fees are purposely omitted: database repair $60, printer support $40, demo CD $20, hardware shipping charges ~5%.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/pricelist.htm
"In the spirit of total disclosure, we present all our fees and charges below. Here are some of the fees that you may encounter when using our software." (All fees are not listed.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/pricelist.htm
"Our complete pricing list is always readily available..." (Available yes. Complete? No.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
"We've created a database of our customers so that you can contact [sic] via phone or e-mail." (Consignpro imposes upon their users to help them sell software.)
6/9/06 consignpro.com/support.htm
"We have been selling ConsignPro since 1996..." (It is suggested that 'past performance is a guarantee of future success' - a claim that is totally prohibited in the securities industry, simply because regulators know that future conditions will definitely be different than the past. Today there is stronger competition, lower prices, better programs. No doubt it was easier to turn a profit selling consignment software circa 1996.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
"...this is our only business" (This should make you run. Sales are down. Consignpro is raising prices in a price-cutting environment, deceiving potential buyers, soliciting their customers to help them sell, slandering their competition and finally, hanging their financial future on one 'business'.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/top10.htm
Consignpro suggests shoppers ask software vendors, "My current software company went out of business, will you?" (Good question. Paraphrasing Wilson's response: "Well, we've been in business, plan on staying in business and we're a member of NARTs. Reassuring.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/convert.htm
"Visit our new online community and post messages about your experience with our software..." (His message board was on his site. There were so many complaints about his software that he removed it. He recently wanted to find fault with our refusal to release our customer's email addresses then on second thought, decided he better reinstate his message board.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/support.htm
"We mail out notices when support money is due..." (And no doubt feeling quite smug about having trapped so many people into paying endless fees to use your program.)
6/9/06 consignpro.com/support.htm
"Our technical support phone number is 305.535.0959 Tech support calls received on our 888 sales phone number will not be returned." (You would think that the vendor with the highest prices would provide a toll-free support number. Here again users are being asked to subsidize Consignpro's bottom line.) 6/9/06 consignpro.com/faq2.htm
"...unscrupulous marketing companies" (Throughout his website Wilson points his arrogant finger accusing others of being unscrupulous. In forums, on his website, in email and phone communications, he carries out his own brand of unscrupulous tactics, attempting to come across as the good guy warning perceived would-be victims of the very atrocities he commits. After this lengthy list of examples, his true colors should be flying high.)
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