Mongoose Atlantic

Revdex.com:At this time, I have not been contacted by Mongoose Atlantic regarding complaint ID [redacted].They don't really have to contact me. They just need to stop threatening to send this to collections and to not send to...

collections.Sincerely,
[redacted]

Review: Back in early 2014, [redacted] of Mongoose Atlantic pitched to us a "Unique Promotional Opportunity for April Issue!" of Healthy Living Magazine. The package was for a full page ad plus some very compelling extras. Included in the offer was the following (here's the email):

From: [redacted]]

Sent: Monday, February **, 2014 11:50 AM

To: [redacted]

Subject: Healthy Living Magazine- Unique Promotional Opportunity for April Issue!

Hi [redacted],

It was great speaking to you just now! As discussed please see the information below and attached regarding the exciting invitation to be a part of the April issue of Healthy Living Magazine.

As part of an ongoing effort to ensure our audience has access to the best brands and services to fit their healthy lifestyle, we are offering you the following opportunity:

-Enhanced (occasionally premium) advertisement placement.

-Editorial write up by one of our in house experts.

-Celebrity endorsement from Cover Celebrity and product will be featured in Celebrity Picks section.

- Product featured in the Beauty picks section (when appropriate).

-Social networking support

- Your ad with link will appear on the tablet version and on our website

- We will do an email blast for you to 25,000 subscribers to "Healthy Deals"- a highly engaged, products-aware audience who are specifically subscribing on our site to receive special offers from HL partners- twice a month- conditional upon signing 6-12 months contract.

As a reminder, Healthy Living is sold at over 28,000 stores including all major newsstands and in every [redacted] and more providing you with highly engaged readers. With a readership of 572,000, HL is a really great platform to promote your product and reach a targeted audience!

//end//

So all we got was the full page ad, not any of the other things listed. To be sure, we would not have ever advertised in Healthy Living with a branding ad or promo offer. We know well that it wouldn't give us the return we would need to justify it. The ONLY reason was to get the celebrity endorsement and editor's writeup.

While it was naive for [redacted] (the person in the email above who was lied to and took the bait) to think she could get a celebrity endorsement and editorial writeup, etc. for $5500, that doesn't justify the predatory practices.

Mongoose sent a contract for the full page ad, but it didn't include any of the extra things promised in the email, and our [redacted] signed it. [redacted] is a very honest and dear person who would not imagine that someone would do something so blatantly dishonest. It was reckless if not foolish for her to sign, but the email agreement must carry some weight...otherwise it gives people like [redacted] a wide open road to do her job of baiting and switching.

To be clear, Mongoose Atlantic (unless [redacted] was a lone rogue employee Mongoose) lied to and tricked [redacted] and [redacted], period.

To make matters worse, Mongoose has been harassing us to pay for the ad. I keep telling them to make good on the agreement and then I'll pay. They call and email every day, wanting us to settle for a lesser amount. We are not willing to do that because we got nothing out of the deal and we were blatantly lied to. Yesterday, Mongoose sent the below email threatening to send us to collections and report us to the Revdex.com. That's why I'm registering this complaint.

//start//

Hi [redacted] and [redacted],

I wanted to give you the heads up that this will be a Final notice to settle your outstanding balance with Healthy Living Magazine before we refer this case to collections. I have attached the contract that was signed by [redacted].

Healthy Living Magazine delivered and published your ad, and [redacted] didn’t pay for their services . I understand there were some issues with whatever was promised and never accomplished, but that’s why we offered to settle.

If we don’t hear back from you within seven business days, we will be referring your case to Collections Agency , adding late interest fees and collections fees, as well as reporting your company to Revdex.com.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you.

Best,

Irina Forkosh

Operations Manager

Mongoose Atlantic, Inc. on behalf of:

Healthy Living Magazine

(phone #s removed)

//end//Desired Settlement: If they could finish the job and get us a celebrity endorsement and editor's pick writeup, fantastic, but we know that will never happen because they don't have the money or authority to get that. They never did. We don't appreciate being lied to, and they deserve $0

So I suppose our desired outcome is not to give them a dime and have them leave us alone.

Consumer

Response:

At this time, I have not been contacted by Mongoose Atlantic regarding complaint ID [redacted].They don't really have to contact me. They just need to stop threatening to send this to collections and to not send to collections.Sincerely,