The product and the company shouldn't suffer because of this as long as they make sure to distance themselves from their PR person and I hope most people will realize that Paul is not the creator of the controller. If this is a good product that helps people to gain better control over their games this whole drama might even turn out to actually be good publicity after all.
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admanbunionize your workplaceSeattle, WARegistered Userregular
The product and the company shouldn't suffer because of this as long as they make sure to distance themselves from their PR person and I hope most people will realize that Paul is not the creator of the controller. If this is a good product that helps people to gain better control over their games this whole drama might even turn out to actually be good publicity after all.
The danger is that the company needs to distance themselves real fast. The internet moves quickly and also has a very short attention span.
I didn't realise for quite a while that he was only the PR, not the creator. They really do need to speak out publicly against him and tell us the guy no longer represents them.
The product and the company shouldn't suffer because of this as long as they make sure to distance themselves from their PR person and I hope most people will realize that Paul is not the creator of the controller. If this is a good product that helps people to gain better control over their games this whole drama might even turn out to actually be good publicity after all.
I'm hoping that Mike reads this.
This is a good invention, created for a good purpose, that would fit right in with Child's Play by enabling sick/disabled people to play video games.
It doesn't deserve to be tanked because some PR guy screwed the pooch on customer relations.
C&Ping the text from servers that are likely getting Wanged something hard.
Marketing and public relations is an area that takes a lot of skill. After all, your job consists primarily of interacting with with customers and news outlets. These are the two groups of people that you want to make a good impression on, as they will no doubt have an influence on the sales of whatever wares you’re peddling. Of these groups, I will always believe that the customers should be treated best of all, because they’re the ones spending their hard-earned money on your product.
If you’re looking for an example of how not to treat a paying customer, you might have a look at this correspondence published over at Penny Arcade. Here’s an excerpt from the email exchange between a customer who pre-ordered the PS3 Avenger, and someone from Ocean Marketing, who represents N-Control:
You just got told bitch … welcome to the real internet check kotaku in 2 weeks when they are reviewing free PS3 Avengers we send them as well as G4 and all the other majors hell yeah , don’t forget to check Amazon, gamestop.com, play n trade , Myers , Frys and a ton of other local stores coming your way you think you speak for billions son your just a kid you speak for yourself no one cares what you think that’s why were growing and moving 20-50 thousand controllers a month. We do value our customers but sometimes we get children like you we just have to put you in the corner with your im stupid hat on. See you at CES , E3 , Pax East ….? Oh wait you have to ask mom and pa dukes your not an industry professional and you have no money on snap you just got told.
I don’t care who you are, what you do, or who you know. This is not how you talk to someone, especially when that person has given you money for goods (that you’ve not yet delivered). Now, it could be that this was simply a fabrication to smear Ocean Marketing, but Mike Krahulik (better known as Gabe from Penny Arcade) sent a follow-up email to the same person, and after a few emails, received this charming tidbit, which confirms that this guy is just as cheerful as the previous messages made him out to be:
Your sites amateur at best my son could put together a better site than yours and you run PAX ?? Wow , Ill put my marketing team on a smear campaign of you and your site and your emails , I have about 125 dedicated people to run PR , Blogs , Articles , Videos you have no clue who I am . Thanks again
Reading through these only makes me wonder how this person got into the line of work that they did. This is not how you treat customers, and making threats toward someone who is a rather large figure in the gaming community (also known as your target audience) is just a bad idea.
After emailing my contact at N-Control, I got a phone call from Paul, who turned out to be the person sending these emails. We spoke for around fifteen minutes or so, and he assured me that despite the negative press, he’s been contacted by several companies, who have asked him to represent them. Paul also expressed confidence that this would simply blow over in a week or two.
He also told me that he’s received a lot of emails from customers, who were similarly upset about not receiving their product before Christmas. Apparently the only thing special about Dave was that he caught him at a bad time, and got under his skin. Of course, that still doesn’t excuse the way he treated a paying customer. Even if customer service isn’t your primary job (which is apparently the case, according to Paul), you still should treat the people trying to give you money with respect.
When I brought up the posts on Reddit that discussed the emails, and the backlash that was visible there, he more or less shrugged it off. He seemed annoyed by the amount of friend requests he’d received on Facebook, since someone managed to find him. He credited that to the fact that his information was posted at the bottom of the Penny Arcade piece, and said that he’d be talking to his lawyers about that later today. What’s more, he said that his job isn’t really to deal with individual customers like Dave, but rather to strike deals with companies like GameStop and BestBuy. Those companies are buying his wares, so he “doesn’t care about anyone else.” Why? Because as long as his products are on store shelves, people will buy them.
In the end, he conceded that it would be a good idea to send Dave an apology, and even hook him up with a couple of free Avengers as a gesture of good faith. After all, the guy just wanted his Avenger, and got some nasty emails for his trouble. While that’s good news for Dave, something tells me that he still won’t be getting a booth at PAX, or winning back the hearts of everyone who read the original emails.
Update: We have gotten a copy of the apology email sent to Dave, from Paul at Ocean Marketing. As you can see, it has a very different tone from the originals, and better grammar and spelling (for the most part):
Hey Dave,
I just wanted to apologize for the way our emails progressed from beginning to end , You caught me on an extremely bad day and I had been dealing with 100’s and hundreds of emails trying to explain the situation to everyone on where the product was and you just pushed me a little too much and I should have just apologized and tried to explain things better. Also I had a really bad day losing a friend to an overdose and the stress of my newborn baby and the Holiday ,missing my family and just stressing on getting product out to everyone and why it was held up in customs wore me out.
I am deeply sorry for any disrespect , aggravation or lack of information on the delivery date. We knew when product was leaving china and we were trying to adhere to a strict deadline but due to port issues and air freight issues. The units are domestic now and awaiting pick up at customs . So we missed the 17th deadline and I apologize for that but it was out of my control and besides me no one else was helping me handle the situation so imagine the weight on my shoulders.
I’m not asking for any sympathy just for some understanding and forgiveness , I’m human just like everyone else and made a mistake. I underestimated you and its cost me a lot of trouble thousands of spam emails , a lot of personal bashing , and internet spam and trouble and just overall stress with my wife and newborn. I ask that you please accept my apology as a peace offering I will refund your money and give you your 2 units/Avengers free of charge please help me to get some of this negativity removed or at least my personal name although its already all over the internet and the calls and emails will not stop but any help will be appreciated especially with penny arcade as Mike and edit his own website I owe him an apology too which I will write next.
see317 on
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jackalFuck Yes. That is an orderly anal warehouse.Registered Userregular
There is no fucking way that response was written by him. The spelling is way too good.
There is no fucking way that response was written by him. The spelling is way too good.
Maybe his wife and newborn helped out?
In the spirit of postchristmas I am willing to let this end now, I hope Paul has put his big boy hat on and learned his lesson.
Whether it was written by him or not, the apology rings hollow. The poor responses from Paul went on for too long to chalk it up to just being a bad day. I agree that the producer of the product shouldn't suffer for this, but I have zero sympathy for Paul. What we're seeing is the kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and tried to call daddy's bluff about getting spanked, and then realizing that getting spanked would be getting off light and now is trying like crazy to mitigate the damage from being such a shithead.
December 27, 2011 at 12:08 pm
The Business Director for N-Control (the company that makes the Avenger) has released two statements on the issue on Twitter:
- I think they will name it the “Christoforo” similar to being “Munsoned” from #Kingpin
- no official statement yet. All “I” can say is that “I” apologize to anyone who has been treated poorly by him. More to come soon
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The GeekOh-Two Crew, OmeganautRegistered User, ClubPAregular
Whether it was written by him or not, the apology rings hollow. The poor responses from Paul went on for too long to chalk it up to just being a bad day. I agree that the producer of the product shouldn't suffer for this, but I have zero sympathy for Paul. What we're seeing is the kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and tried to call daddy's bluff about getting spanked, and then realizing that getting spanked would be getting off light and now is trying like crazy to mitigate the damage from being such a shithead.
Indeed. Telling the guy who runs PAX that you're gonna get into his own convention whether he likes it or not because you've got money and connections is not something you do if you're just having a bad day.
BLM - ACAB
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LibrarianThe face of liberal fascismRegistered Userregular
edited December 2011
To contradict my last post, he also pulled the same stunt on another customer earlier this year and other customers on amazon also complained about poor support. I don't know how many of his friends died of an overdose this year, but his apology definitely doesn't feel sincere. I just feel a bit sorry for the N-Control guys.
The product and the company shouldn't suffer because of this as long as they make sure to distance themselves from their PR person and I hope most people will realize that Paul is not the creator of the controller. If this is a good product that helps people to gain better control over their games this whole drama might even turn out to actually be good publicity after all.
The danger is that the company needs to distance themselves real fast. The internet moves quickly and also has a very short attention span.
I got it because I work for the company as its Marketing , PR , Sales and Representative . How about you ? your bending the x in ways its not supposed to be bent horrible review. Go to kotaku , Gizmodo for an accurate review
I screwed up and jeopardized the reputation of the company I represent, risked the financial security of my family, and caused a lot of people grief that they didn't deserve. Here's how I'm going to fix it...
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HenroidMexican kicked from Immigration ThreadCentrism is Racism :3Registered Userregular
Digging around to find out about this guy's roid raging is starting to step into an uncomfortable realm. Everything about his shitty antics related to business, though, that's fair game.
for those of you wondering how this guy got into PR: his replies tell you all you need to know. they all talk about who he knows. he got this job because he knew a guy.
i would conservatively estimate that 50% of humanity consists of arrogant, functionally illiterate morons like this guy who skate by through luck and connections and most of that 50% never get called out like this.
even when he gets fired from this job he's going to be able to score another one with one of his other buddies, probably in a less internet-savvy business than controllers where his potential employer won't care about google results (or know enough to google in the first place).
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amateurhourOne day I'll be professionalhourThe woods somewhere in TennesseeRegistered Userregular
People are spending way too much time on someone who deserves almost no attention.
Are you telling me to stop following your Twitter? 8->
Trust in the attention span of the internet, Jasconius. It'll be done with after today.
Seriously... Avenger Controllers will drop this company, the company will likely go under since it seems to be just this one dude (if he actually has a staff I feel bad for them as some of them will probably be out of a job unless they're his workout buddies or something) and he'll have some new startup off the ground within three months.
Whether it was written by him or not, the apology rings hollow. The poor responses from Paul went on for too long to chalk it up to just being a bad day. I agree that the producer of the product shouldn't suffer for this, but I have zero sympathy for Paul. What we're seeing is the kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and tried to call daddy's bluff about getting spanked, and then realizing that getting spanked would be getting off light and now is trying like crazy to mitigate the damage from being such a shithead.
It's not even totally that because going by that article, he's still insistent that it doesn't matter and brags that new clients have approached him for PR representation, which has to be an absolute lie. The dude's got to be a compulsive liar.
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Lord_SnotЖиву за выходныеAmerican ValhallaRegistered Userregular
for those of you wondering how this guy got into PR: his replies tell you all you need to know. they all talk about who he knows. he got this job because he knew a guy.
i would conservatively estimate that 50% of humanity consists of arrogant, functionally illiterate morons like this guy who skate by through luck and connections and most of that 50% never get called out like this.
even when he gets fired from this job he's going to be able to score another one with one of his other buddies, probably in a less internet-savvy business than controllers where his potential employer won't care about google results (or know enough to google in the first place).
Well, that's the thing in life. Stepping into success, or getting a job, can often depend on who you know. But when you let those people down, expect them to disassociate from you big time. "I know this guy!" "Yeah? He says he doesn't know you."
He can talk about new offers and shit, but they're probably yanking his chain. As a listener of the Howard Stern Show, trust me, people set up elaborate shit like that all the time.
People are spending way too much time on someone who deserves almost no attention.
Are you telling me to stop following your Twitter? 8->
Trust in the attention span of the internet, Jasconius. It'll be done with after today.
Seriously... Avenger Controllers will drop this company, the company will likely go under since it seems to be just this one dude (if he actually has a staff I feel bad for them as some of them will probably be out of a job unless they're his workout buddies or something) and he'll have some new startup off the ground within three months.
Will the marketing company go under?
I'd wager the Avenger Controller has gotten noticed by more people since this e-mail chain was originally posted then they have in the past 3 months.
Yes, it's negative attention, but it's gotten the controller into the public mind (for a while). Before this, I had seen the controller once on G4, thought it was bizarre then promptly forgot about it. Now though, it's blown up. I doubt I'd ever buy one, but at least I know what it is and the story behind it's creation. And that's how you pull PR success out of a customer service failure. At the cost of some sleep, a twitter account and an e-mail account he's brought the product back into the gaming public consciousness just as it's likely to be arriving in stores. Sure, he's been disavowed by the actual company and he'll be a pariah online for a month (if that), but this is, hands down, a check in his win column. The worst that's going to happen is that next time he tries to get a marketing contract the Avenger incident is going to be referenced, and he'll be able to say "Yeah, I looked like an ass, but look how they sold after that...".
When Paul meets a woman he likes he probably busts into her kitchen, yells "I'M DOING THIS BECAUSE YOU SHOULD DATE ME BECAUSE I'M AWESOME AND YOU ARE AN UGLY LADY AND SHOULD BE GLAD THAT I'M SHOWING YOU ANY ATTENTION," and then pisses all over her counters and poops in her crisper drawer.
Whoa, what? This guy is stealing my moves. Now I hate him too.
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Dusdais ashamed of this postSLC, UTRegistered Userregular
I wonder how long before someone opens a Cafe Press store with such a wonderful quote. I would buy a t-shirt.
Seriously, though. If the controller company can get ahead of this, come out against Paul and get an upswelling of public opinion as people view the designer as "just a poor, overwhelmed guy who designed something for disabled kids," they'll be able to make bank. I don't sincerely think they planned it, but this would be an amazingly brilliant promotional campaign if that's how it plays out.
Posts
if he really does have a newborn, i feel vaguely bad for the kid and hope he doesn't end up homeless or something because his dad screwed the pooch
The product and the company shouldn't suffer because of this as long as they make sure to distance themselves from their PR person and I hope most people will realize that Paul is not the creator of the controller. If this is a good product that helps people to gain better control over their games this whole drama might even turn out to actually be good publicity after all.
The danger is that the company needs to distance themselves real fast. The internet moves quickly and also has a very short attention span.
http://gamerfront.net/2011/12/ocean-marketing-a-study-on-how-to-destroy-your-reputation-with-just-a-few-emails/15199
This is a good invention, created for a good purpose, that would fit right in with Child's Play by enabling sick/disabled people to play video games.
It doesn't deserve to be tanked because some PR guy screwed the pooch on customer relations.
C&Ping the text from servers that are likely getting Wanged something hard.
Maybe his wife and newborn helped out?
In the spirit of postchristmas I am willing to let this end now, I hope Paul has put his big boy hat on and learned his lesson.
December 27, 2011 at 12:08 pm
The Business Director for N-Control (the company that makes the Avenger) has released two statements on the issue on Twitter:
- I think they will name it the “Christoforo” similar to being “Munsoned” from #Kingpin
- no official statement yet. All “I” can say is that “I” apologize to anyone who has been treated poorly by him. More to come soon
Indeed. Telling the guy who runs PAX that you're gonna get into his own convention whether he likes it or not because you've got money and connections is not something you do if you're just having a bad day.
Expendable talked to the guy who invented The Avenger.
source:
The review isn't even really negative. It was more like, "Meh, not for me, but I can see why someone would like it."
I feel bad for the company that actually makes these now.
Are you telling me to stop following your Twitter? 8->
Trust in the attention span of the internet, Jasconius. It'll be done with after today.
i would conservatively estimate that 50% of humanity consists of arrogant, functionally illiterate morons like this guy who skate by through luck and connections and most of that 50% never get called out like this.
even when he gets fired from this job he's going to be able to score another one with one of his other buddies, probably in a less internet-savvy business than controllers where his potential employer won't care about google results (or know enough to google in the first place).
Seriously... Avenger Controllers will drop this company, the company will likely go under since it seems to be just this one dude (if he actually has a staff I feel bad for them as some of them will probably be out of a job unless they're his workout buddies or something) and he'll have some new startup off the ground within three months.
It's not even totally that because going by that article, he's still insistent that it doesn't matter and brags that new clients have approached him for PR representation, which has to be an absolute lie. The dude's got to be a compulsive liar.
This has made my day. Holeee shit.
Typing up an email and a blog post on it now.
Blog
Twitter
Well, that's the thing in life. Stepping into success, or getting a job, can often depend on who you know. But when you let those people down, expect them to disassociate from you big time. "I know this guy!" "Yeah? He says he doesn't know you."
He can talk about new offers and shit, but they're probably yanking his chain. As a listener of the Howard Stern Show, trust me, people set up elaborate shit like that all the time.
I'd wager the Avenger Controller has gotten noticed by more people since this e-mail chain was originally posted then they have in the past 3 months.
Yes, it's negative attention, but it's gotten the controller into the public mind (for a while). Before this, I had seen the controller once on G4, thought it was bizarre then promptly forgot about it. Now though, it's blown up. I doubt I'd ever buy one, but at least I know what it is and the story behind it's creation. And that's how you pull PR success out of a customer service failure. At the cost of some sleep, a twitter account and an e-mail account he's brought the product back into the gaming public consciousness just as it's likely to be arriving in stores. Sure, he's been disavowed by the actual company and he'll be a pariah online for a month (if that), but this is, hands down, a check in his win column. The worst that's going to happen is that next time he tries to get a marketing contract the Avenger incident is going to be referenced, and he'll be able to say "Yeah, I looked like an ass, but look how they sold after that...".
what is this I don't even
Origin: Galedrid - Nintendo: Galedrid/3222-6858-1045
Blizzard: Galedrid#1367 - FFXIV: Galedrid Kingshand
http://www.amazon.com/tag/i wwebsite as on the internet?ref_=tag_top_cust_itdp_t&store=1
...Maybe I should do that.
update on the "cut paul" story... Paul did spoof someone else's e-mail to reply to a journalist this morning.
This dude just can't stop digging that hole
Oops, disregard that.
This is the very best part of this whole debacle. At this point, could he maintain even the slightest shred of dignity?