Someones stealing my idea.

T

tempoe

New member
Nov 4, 2008
14
0
0
Well, here goes.

I had this idea for a new Free booklet full of coupons for the tourist areas around Cabarete and Sosua, possibly P.P. The coupons would be a good way to offer discounts and see how effective your advertising was. I have done other magazines for a living and did CabareteLife back in '04.

So I met some lady that wanted to work with me so I told her I wanted her to do "all the sales, get the text and logos by email and collect the money", thats it. I would do all the design, production, printing and distribution. For this I offered her 50% of all sales (a very generous amount IMO) She gladly accepted so I did her some cards and a mock-up of how the booklet would look and coupon designs and sent her out to start doing some sales. I guess the 50% made her feel like she was a partner or something and she kept on making suggestions about how to make more money (dumb ones) like "we should sell them for $5 at the airport" (but they will be free everywhere else) Or, "drive me to P.P. and go to all the appointments with me"....what? that's why I'm giving you 50%.

Anyways after her not responding to my emails for 6 days, yesterday I sent her an email saying I didn't need her help anymore. She sends me back that she is doing it on her own, after shes been showing my designs and selling ads and taking deposits. She has NO EXPERIENCE with print or design, is not a resident and has no assets or reason not to leave any time. I've live here 10 yrs and own a condo, so I'm not going anywhere soon.

Sorry for the rant, but if she comes to see you, just so you know the whole story.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Robert

Robert

Stay Frosty!
Jan 2, 1999
20,574
341
83
dr1.com
It happens and if people see it successful, they will copy it.

Selling the ad space is the hard part and the only way of doing that is being pro-active and leg work.
 
E

Expat-in-Cabarete

Bronze
Jan 17, 2009
1,622
59
48
I appreciate your posting this. I'm already off $100 for believing in an expat who came to sell me an ad in a magazine that he (and a website he claimed to own which still exists--dr-restaurants) was going to put in all condos and hotels. This was early December last year. Never heard from him again. (I'm holding on to the receipt he gave me for my $100). And we have bought aerial pics from this person before; we thought we knew who we were dealing with. Sorry about the rant, but I'm still upset about it. Now I know not to trust this woman either.
 
R

reese_in_va

New member
Feb 22, 2007
387
20
0
BE AWARE!
Ex-pats will screw you, take advantage of you, lie to you and totally use manipulation to get something from you. We see it everyday.
Many are known of this scamming, others come out of the wood work to make their hit-n-run!
I understand your frustration and your anger, but I have to say NOW the whole DR knows of your idea.
What are you thinking?
You have lived here 10 years?
You should know better..........
 
C

CFA123

Silver
May 29, 2004
3,512
413
83
i'm with you tempoe! if someone 'stole' MY idea... first thing i would do is publish the concept on a public forum for more people to see ;)

now, off to look for a publisher & do some pre-sales!
 
B

Black Dog

Bronze
May 29, 2009
1,761
154
0
If you take anyone else into your business, see a lawyer and get things in writing! Sorry you placed your trust in someone and got shafted. One of the dangers in living outside your native country is that you want to help other ex-pats and think that we should all stick together but in my experience, that's who will shaft you quickest!
Sad but true!
 
S

Spicedwine

Member
Apr 25, 2006
568
19
18
reese_in_va said:
BE AWARE!
Ex-pats will screw you, take advantage of you, lie to you and totally use manipulation to get something from you. We see it everyday.
Many are known of this scamming, others come out of the wood work to make their hit-n-run!
I understand your frustration and your anger, but I have to say NOW the whole DR knows of your idea.
What are you thinking?
You have lived here 10 years?
You should know better..........
Click to expand...

I think taring all Ex-pats as liars and thiefs is rather extreme.
The OP was posting trying to let people know of a possible scam.
Does she really need to be scolded like a child.
Perhaps a little less negative thinking and less finger pointing would be a more helpful approach IMHO.
 
frank recktenwald

frank recktenwald

Platinum
Jun 18, 2007
14,280
503
113
www.rentalmetrocountry.com
tempoe said:
Well, here goes.

I had this idea for a new Free booklet full of coupons for the tourist areas around Cabarete and Sosua, possibly P.P. The coupons would be a good way to offer discounts and see how effective your advertising was. I have done other magazines for a living and did CabareteLife back in '04.

So I met some lady that wanted to work with me so I told her I wanted her to do "all the sales, get the text and logos by email and collect the money", thats it. I would do all the design, production, printing and distribution. For this I offered her 50% of all sales (a very generous amount IMO) She gladly accepted so I did her some cards and a mock-up of how the booklet would look and coupon designs and sent her out to start doing some sales. I guess the 50% made her feel like she was a partner or something and she kept on making suggestions about how to make more money (dumb ones) like "we should sell them for $5 at the airport" (but they will be free everywhere else) Or, "drive me to P.P. and go to all the appointments with me"....what? that's why I'm giving you 50%.

Anyways after her not responding to my emails for 6 days, yesterday I sent her an email saying I didn't need her help anymore. She sends me back that she is doing it on her own, after shes been showing my designs and selling ads and taking deposits. She has NO EXPERIENCE with print or design, is not a resident and has no assets or reason not to leave any time. I've live here 10 yrs and own a condo, so I'm not going anywhere soon.

Sorry for the rant, but if she comes to see you, just so you know the whole story.
Click to expand...

The way it sounds is that this is a business that one person can do so why would you not start it up yourself? Instead you left the most important part (sales) of the biz being set up by somebody you hardly know!!
Off course it will be taken away from you.
You want to set up a business you have to do the work, it's logical!!
It's a dog eat dog world!!! Hope you woke up an smelled the coffee;)
 
F

FireGuy

Rest in peace Amigo!
Aug 21, 2002
2,516
74
0
70
www.polaris-fs.com
Spicedwine said:
I think taring all Ex-pats as liars and thiefs is rather extreme.
The OP was posting trying to let people know of a possible scam.
Does she really need to be scolded like a child.
Perhaps a little less negative thinking and less finger pointing would be a more helpful approach IMHO.
Click to expand...

On the subject of "a little less negative thinking" perhaps you could cut reese_in_va some slack too.

I believe the word 'some' as in " 'Some' Ex-pats will screw you " is implied by the use later on of the word "many" in "Many are known of this scamming, others come out of the wood work to make their hit-n-run!" I don't believe it was meant as a 100% inclusive term.

That's just how I read it (with "a little less negative thinking" - LOL) and of course i reserve the right to be wrong.

I find people, in general, not you specifically, are way too eager to jump on a poster for failing to exclude some of a group and thereby use a generalization without stating it as such. Generalizations exist because they tend to be true (at least in the eyes of the one using the generalization) of a group, but not of 100% of that group.

As for the scolding; there I tend to be with you, FWIW.

Gregg
 
Robert

Robert

Stay Frosty!
Jan 2, 1999
20,574
341
83
dr1.com
reese_in_va said:
I understand your frustration and your anger, but I have to say NOW the whole DR knows of your idea.
What are you thinking?
You have lived here 10 years?
You should know better..........
Click to expand...

This is not a new idea, it has been done before in various forms all over the country.

We offer coupons the dr1guide Santo Domingo that is given out free in most of the major hotels.
 
R

reese_in_va

New member
Feb 22, 2007
387
20
0
I would like to make it clear that my post did not say "all" ex-pats.
I am not against foreigners, even though they WILL screw you over.
I am not against Dominicans, even though they WILL screw you over.
Personally, I find it "more appauling" that a foreigner will screw over another foreigner, rather than a Dominican doing the screwing over.
For a foreigner screwing over another foreigner, in my experience, is usually worse than a Dominican screwing over a foreigner. This is usually because there is more at stake.
No more getting screwed over by this foreigner from another foreigner, NO WAY!
(and it didn't take me 10 years to figure that one out!)
 
T

tempoe

New member
Nov 4, 2008
14
0
0
I guess i was just trying to help her out as she has a 12 yr old daughter who I felt sorry for. Anyways, I 'll do my best to make it work on my own, even if I just break even. Spite can be a great motivator.

Thanks for the comments, I'm a n00b, its a great forum!
 
B

Black Dog

Bronze
May 29, 2009
1,761
154
0
tempoe said:
I guess i was just trying to help her out as she has a 12 yr old daughter who I felt sorry for. Anyways, I 'll do my best to make it work on my own, even if I just break even. Spite can be a great motivator.

Thanks for the comments, I'm a n00b, its a great forum!
Click to expand...

PM me when you get going, I have a lot of contacts and should be able to link you up with some advertisers!

Good luck!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom