My experience with this company started off well enough, but I soon felt they operate in ways I don't agree with. Whether it's general disorganization or willingness to deceive, I'm not sure. This review covers my experience as a reader, a contractor, and my opinion on their handling of business clients. Buckle up for a lengthy, but comprehensive, review. I like reading local papers and, when I saw they were looking for weekly delivery help, I applied with the intention of also asking about writing & editing work. This paper's mostly ads, with some event coverage and occasional article sprinkled in. Grammar errors and articles cut off with no conclusion made me think things were done in a hurry. As a writer/editor who also does some e-business & marketing consulting, I thought I could help them boost readability on top of circulation. I found the ladies, including the owner, very friendly. Before I could ask about writing/editing, I was being talked into a sales position. They're expanding into Ross County and was excited that I'm local. I have social anxiety (sometimes severe) and was very upfront about it; I even avoid the phone most of the time. I've never been much for sales but needed a way to make the low-pay route more feasible, so I listened. They said some of them also have S.A. but still make very large commission checks. I was told I could do things how I was most comfortable and possibly do it from home (since I live so far from the office and am used to working remotely). The owner even said she could see me in a more 'corporate' capacity with them, though she didn't really elaborate on how she meant it. I felt I finally found the sweet spot I'd been looking for: a position (local/regional, with remote work possible) where they acknowledged my condition, instead of it being a barrier, and I could put my professional experience to work to help build their success organically. It sounded ideal and I was stoked. However, the reality started showing itself during my second interview. The manager, who wasn't there for my first interview, made an immediate point of contradicting some of what even the owner told me (she said "I make all the decisions around here, not my mom") but added salespeople get a laptop to work with. It wasn't as originally described but, despite the contradictions, still sounded OK. I came in that day already jazzed about the idea of being able to help a small business closer to home build itself (as opposed to those I typically work with, located in other states and countries) and thought I'd go for it anyway. The job turned out to be primarily high-volume telemarketing, with "buffering" the details to gain a sale being encouraged - one of the things I hate most about sales are the tactics often used. Building the new territory in a way I was comfortable with was actually not an option, despite what I'd been told. The requirements set out hindered, rather than assisted, my ability to build anything. The laptop was a loaner belonging to the manager's son and wasn't even charged, delaying my start. I overheard the ladies talking about me in the manager's office, going from nice to catty in no time flat. I felt duped, insulted, and set up to fail. That was Day One. I went home that afternoon intending to keep trying, still feeling that I was in a good position to help build circulation, readability, and sales if really given the chance. Despite the bait-and-switch, I was going to ignore the cattiness, bring my own laptop to the office, and prove I was good for the company. That is, until I went to send info to a lead who wanted it via email (after work, since the loaner laptop froze) and realized the product they wanted me to sell my local businesses on didn't deliver what they'd be paying for. The 10-week ad was going into a monthly paper, so they'd be paying for 10 spots but only getting, what, two? I'd been so focused on building a list of places to contact (quickly, to meet the pressure for volume) that I missed the product details, which doesn't happen to me under normal work conditions. I pride myself on integrity and was simply done by then, disgusted. When I mentioned it to the manager, she didn't even comment on it, saying only she was sorry I'm uncomfortable with telemarketing (as if she didn't know). As stated before, I don't know if they purposely mislead clients or are just so disorganized and high on sales, they missed it too. Either way, it's unfortunate. I've lost my taste for even reading the Messenger. As for recommending it to any businesses looking to advertise, I'd strongly suggest they ask as many questions as it takes to be satisfied that they're getting what they pay for. read more