“Your former classmates are trying to contact you! Upgrade now to see their messages!” You’ve received Classmates.com spam and endured their irritating yearbook ads.
While most consider the “classmates are trying to contact you” message a marketing trick, Anthony Michaels of San Diego, CA took Classmates.com at their word and paid $15 for an upgrade only to discover that—surprise!—none of his former classmates were trying to reach him.
Michaels realized he probably wasn’t alone and hired an attorney to pursue a class action lawsuit. The suit alleges intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, negligence, fraudulent concealment, and violation of California business and professions code.
Here’s the summons and complaint:
Classmates.com’s reputation was already poor: The Better Business Bureau and consumeraffairs.org have been logging consumer complaints against the company for years.
Classmates is innocent until proven guilty, but in the court of public opinion no trial is needed. Their ubiquitous advertising and questionable email marketing tactics have made them an easy target—and have earned them a place in the Responsible Marketing Hall of Shame.
So, what do you think if Classmates.com?
Ever been duped by them?
Can they redeem themselves?
Scroll down to share your thoughts.
A little irony: While researching this topic, countless sites that featured this story had advertising on them from—you guessed it—Classmates.com. Here’s one:
Source (including summons and complaint): Wired.com
