Celebrate Bah, Humbug Day! Complain and Kvetch Online

Today, December 21st, is the official “Humbug Day” AKA “Bah, Humbug Day” named after everyone’s favorite crotchety Christmas character, Ebenezer Scrooge. The holiday, invented by Ruth and Thomas Roy of Wellcat Holidays, “allows everyone preparing for Christmas to vent their frustrations. Twelve humbugs allowed.”

If you’re like me, this day arrives not a moment too soon. Crowded airports, highways and malls; endless radio play of “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer;” holiday related paraphernalia ’round every corner, and dwindling cash reserves make me grumpy.

So in honor of this Humbug Day 2007, I thought I’d go online and engage in some rant catharsis. Not surprisingly, the Web is full of places to complain. Rants about products, companies, the government, neighbors, friends, classmates, and pets - no topic is off limits, anyone can have a say, and everyone can broadcast that opinion to the world. The range and content of these sites are broad and far-reaching from low-humor to consumer watchdog.

Complaint sites speak to a larger trend of consumers speaking out and voicing their opinions, which got me thinking about some recent Deloitte stats I saw regarding online product reviews and other consumer generated content (CGC). The study found that almost two-thirds (62 percent) of consumers read consumer-written product reviews on the Internet. Of these, more than eight in 10 (82 percent) say their purchase decisions have been directly influenced by the reviews.

As more and more retailers employ feedback forms, review forms, ratings, etc., the voice of the larger consumer audience will become a more prominent influence in the buying process. To that end, both the positive and the negative user generated content will potentially have a big impact on companies, their products, and their brands.

One of the best watchdog site’s these days is Consumerist.com. Consumerist, whose tagline reads “Shoppers Bite Back,” gathers news stories about product recalls and other consumer related concerns and allows readers to comment and discuss these articles. The site also features articles designed to raise awareness about advertising and sales techniques that they consider aggressive, invasive, and/or annoying.

Some sample story headlines include:

• As Cigna Insurance Waffles on Liver Transplant Girl Dies
• Dillard’s Boots Disabled Iraq War Vet And His Service Dog, Too

Retailers definitely need to watch their backs when it comes to Consumerist articles, which have great search engine rankings due to their blog format. For instance, at the time it was published, one Circuit City ex-employee’s “tell-all” about what he called the “shady operations” of the company was listed on the first page of Google for the term “Circuit City,” just a few links away from the corporate website. This is where user content, corporations, and search engines clash. It’s interesting to see how the Web can significantly impact a company’s brand. This is obviously Consumerist’s modus operandi with their attention grabbing headlines and good for them for giving corporations another reason to consider changing their business practices.

Another site I checked out was that old standby, the Better Business Bureau. This is definitely not your grandfather’s BBB anymore. The national website allows you to browse to your city’s BBB and do research on companies, file complaints, and access many consumer and business owner resources.

One interesting bit of information on the BBB site is the annual “Complaint and Inquiry Statistics” report. These reports detail the number of complaints received by industry for the US and Canada. For instance, in 2006 the telephone services and supplies industry received 28,791 complaints, 91% of which they settled. Choreographers are doing well with only one complaint filed in 2006 and that complaint was resolved. Unfortunately the BBB doesn’t publish the complaints of consumers, but since the BBB is somewhat more legitimate, they’re still your best bet if you want to come to a mature resolution with a company.

However, if you’re just interested in slinging it, may I introduce you to ConsumerAffairs.com.

ConsumerAffairs allows users to post complaints about companies in a variety of industries and service sectors. The site also includes consumer news and product recalls like Consumerist, but the real meat of the site is the complaints. Organized by industry and by company, the complaints can offer hours of cathartic reading, or provide a good resource for checking out a company before you buy. Check out the latest complaint about Earthlink from “Jenny” of Simi Valley, CA.

(12/16/07) I signed up for Earthlink internet service, but canceled 5 minutes after I ordered it. They assured me it would not be shipped nor would I be charged. A week later it arrived and I was charged. I called and they promised me a refund and a shipping label to send it back. I did get my money back but no label ever came. I called several times, it still never came. Then I was charged again. It has now been 2 months and 15 phone calls. Every time they say they will send a shipping label and refund my $99, but they never do.

Finally, and here’s where the corporations really need to be concerned, there’s a niche of complaint sites that go right for the jugular. These so-called “flaming” or “anti-company” sites target the company itself in a no holds barred assault. Like Consumerist, these sites often have great search engine results for the company’s name and as such, they provide what only the Internet search results page can provide - both the good and the bad, the argument and the counterargument all just a few clicks away from each other.

Untied.com - Site against United Airlines
See the Google rankings for the search term “united airlines”

Pay Pal Sucks
Check out the Yahoo results for the search term “paypal”

Wake Up Wal-Mart and Wal-Mart Blows
Check out the MSN results for search term “walmart”

Google Sux

(noticing a website title trend here…?)

If you’re interested in more of these corporate hate sites, Forbes does a great yearly write up of the Top 10 Corporate Hate Sites.

Complaining in the digital age is a whole different ballgame. On the Web, users wield a lot more power with their content. A complaint site showing up alongside a corporate site on search engine pages can definitely impact a company’s brand image. In a future tip, Web Ad.vantage will be writing about negative SEO (Search Engine Optimization), online reputation management and what companies are doing to try to avoid sharing search engine rankings with sites that are definitely NOT on their side.

Well I hope you’ve spent a productive Humbug Day at the office reading through complaint sites and waiting for your ½ day to be over. To all those out there who have an axe to grind and a bone to pick, Happy Holidays to all and to all a good night!

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