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Morelans
Member
Joined: 8 Jul 2008
Posts: 30
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 09:39
I am having Pro ASD and Negative ASD days here and I need some help PLEASE.
I wanted to get a few friends and my parents in ASD - I was hoping for them to get the 50% match but they are NOT able to make it to Miami. I had them on the conference call last week and Andy said the Rally was getting so busy that they may EXTEND the rally a few more days but never mentioned allowing US to bring our Downline money to get the match. So .. I had my parents and my friends send me the check just this week and put it in only to see 24 hours later they are now able to get the 50% match without going to Miami.
Yes I am glad they got the 25% match but now I look like a DINK for the people I told to send in money THIS WEEK as they were only allowing the 50% IF you attended in person. They send it.. ASD Changes their mind. Good selling point! NOT
I am in Georgia on the Florida border.. Most days between 12 and 4pm the ASD site is too slow to use or just fails to load at all. I talk to others I know in ASD and they can get in fine but are in Michigan or other places. WHY is the Southeast area having so many problems? Anyone else seeing these same issues?
For GODS SAKE can someone please post a valid article stating Andy met with the president and got an award! I do not want blogs or repeats of what is on the ASD site.. I need proof. This is starting to really bother me that the only people confirming the meeting is the ASD site itself!
I may have jumped in this too soon.. I am trying to sell something I am still scared may fold overnight. Granted they are having rallies way into 2009. I am hoping my parents can GENERATE some extra cash to live on.. but I do not need the headache of thinking I may have just sent their money to a black hole never to be seen again.
That Anti ASD site - all those closed or dissolved companies associated with Andy.. Please tell me that is false! Or that it is normal to see that and it is not a GIANT RED flag? If this is just the next business in the line shown there.. then this ASD only has a year or so left before it become the next in the line of DISSOLVED companies.
Ok.. today appears to be one of my Negative ASD days. Can someone please set me straight.. I would love to be the first to apologize and it would be MUCH easier to sell to others when I am proven paranoid!
Thanks
Shawn Morelan
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Morelans
Member
Joined: 8 Jul 2008
Posts: 30
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 09:41
Sorry for the double post! Not sure how it ended up here two times.
Shawn
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Morelans
Member
Joined: 8 Jul 2008
Posts: 30
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 10:01
Sorry for the double post! Not sure how it ended up here two times.
Shawn
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jillay
Member
Joined: 7 Jul 2008
Posts: 3
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 11:47
Hi Shawn,
I can't comment on most of the points in your post except for the website itself. I am up in New York and some days the response times of the server is so slow that I am having to reload/refresh and sometimes start over in order to get in. Believe me, I can relate to your frustrations.
This morning is the worst I have seen it in terms of performance and response times. Last night (10:30pm EDT) I was starting to see the performance issues creeping up.
Not sure if the servers have been sized correctly based on the shear volume of users attempting to access the site, hopefully these things will work themselves out.
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vikingfan
Member
Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 13:26
Shawn,
I had some of the same worries as you when I first joined several months ago. Have your attorney call the ASD attorney and it will give you peace of mind as far as the legality of the program, Andy's background etc. Then go to a rally and watch thousands of people line up with checks made out to ASD. I went to Vegas and Tampa and I have never seen anything like it in my life. I decided that being involved with a company that is exploding with growth and money is a good thing.
I don't think it comes without risk but at the same time what does? I feel it's very safe right now to build ad packages. I worry about two or three years down the road when it has 2 or 3 million members and and 100,000 millionaires. ASD will need the big corporate sponsorship to sustain this program but if it has millions of members that shouldn't be a problem. The big boys will be all over it.
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dillon o'shea
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alasycia
Member
Joined: 4 May 2008
Posts: 289
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 18:43
Hi Shawn
First of all we all have to remember that this is a business we are involved in and not a guaranted investments scheme.
Even though we are not permitted to even consider it like that, I think that sometimes people fall into the trap of doing so.
If you can show me a guaranteed way of making money on or offline that is permanent - apart from bank interest - I would love to know. How many people, even in "safe jobs" will be laid off this year because of the US recession and the increased price of gas? How many self employed people will shut up shop this year OFFLINE? Advertising is a safer business than some, as selling your way out of a crisis is often the only real solution and for that we have advertise.
AdSurfDaily has a large number of members who are nothing to do with the internet marketing "mini world" and who view the adverts everyday. We are a captive audience and far more attractive to advertisers than the average TE which advertises exclusively to a small market
All we can ever do is take a calculated risk that something will be for ever off or online? Online the risk increases due to the lack of regulatory controls, the anonimity of many businesses and their players and the attraction of the new crooks to this business style.
With AdSurfDaily we at least have far more information on and offline available to us that the vast majority of companies who operate online. They are demonstrating that their policy of integrity and transparency and legal compliance are not just empty words. How many online companies do you know who expect you to file a W9?? or even pay their own taxes?
Some of our best known "online experts" work out of offices in the back of their house (which is not in itself a bad sign) but some of our best known online programme owners also work from home with "staff" spread over several states or countries. And some of these programmes are not exactly transparent nor run by people with any real experience of the offline business world.
ASDs principal attraction for many of us has been its disassociation from this "onliine world" and that it is a bricks and mortar company that has offices, staff, and complies with normal business regulations and checks. I like the fact that one of the chief provocateurs on one forum can go there tomorrow with the AG. and that you can speak to their attorney.
With most companies running online programmes you would have difficulty locating the owners - never mind going to visit them. And in some programmes it is not even possible to find out who the owners are"! LOL
I do not understand the fuss about Andy Bowdoin's award. If the Chairman of Apple announces that he is going to receive an award - noone gets excited if they cant find the information on line the next day.
Equally, having spent many years working in corporate legal departments of multinationals and private companies - I can assure you that multiple company registrations and in various locations are the norm for the majority of the large companies. All companies try to register in areas where their own tax liabilities are the lowest. Delaware used to be the popular one in my day. And how many corporations have offshore subsidiaries or are registered offshore?
This is a very complex and specialized area of corporate legislation and an online supposed copy paste from some register is not proof of anything much at all.
It is inevitable that any company that operates online as successfully as AdSurfDaily is gong to come under attack from many people who feel threatened or are envious of its success, just as it receives favourable comments from others.
The only thing wrong with ASD from my point of view is the admin bottlecks and they are fixing this and I'll bet when the phone and fax lines are easier and the processing faster there wont be many people who even worry about skullduggery or awards!
Jenny
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alasycia
Member
Joined: 4 May 2008
Posts: 289
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 18:55
p.s. Unless you happen to be a clairvoyant with a 100% accuracy record for predictions - I wouldnt be too worried about "gut feelings" good or bad when it comes to making judgements.
I have an acquaintance who ruined a very long and successful online marketing career ,lost his good reputation qnd ended up penniless because he dropped everything in favour of one of the most disreputable mlms around on the internet at that time. Why? Because he had a "gut feeling" that it would work out LOL
Careful of those gut feelings when it comes to business - it might just be indigestion! LOL
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mountainmom5
Joined: 30 Aug 2007
Posts: 1005
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 20:50
I had posted an article earlier that I had found on all this - and my personal opinion is that if it is legit and people are actually going to be able to cash out these large amounts of money then in a year or so, it will still be there for me...
But then maybe I am missing the boat of all boats this time around..?? 
Like some of the others have said - anything you do in business has some sort of risk involved....
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westfam11
Member
Joined: 8 Aug 2007
Posts: 410
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# Posted: 9 Jul 2008 23:46
Jenny,
What a wonderful post. You definitely have a way of putting this into perspective. I have stayed away from the forum for awhile because it has just turned into an ASD bash quite a bit.
You have hit it right on about the risk. I mean my husband right now has been told that 40% of his company is going to be outsourced. So you are so right, there is no guarantee online, offline, with an employer.
The only way to get anywhere is to take risks. Anyone can stay comfortable, keep the status quo but it takes guts and determination to stick with a fast growing start up company.
I am not thrilled with the admin problems but complaining and bashing ASD does nothing to help the situation whatsoever.
Thanks again, Jenny, I totally agree with you.
Becky West
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vikingfan
Member
Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 00:16
Good post Jenny
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dillon o'shea
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omarN
Member
Joined: 15 Jun 2008
Posts: 16
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 01:26
Nice one Jenny!
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JohnB
Member
Joined: 10 Jul 2008
Posts: 1
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 01:39
I would just add that forums like this are a great place to get something off your chest, but rarely do they provide info you should accept at face value. Chances are, the thread starter here was really just looking for some encouragement and a way to get back into a "pro-ASD" mindset. If it worked, then this forum is a good thing for him at this point in his ASD "career."
I also want to say that the explosive growth is both worrying and a good sign. I worry that too many will get in without having done any due diligence, then flood customer service with ridiculous questions and nit-picking that will overwhelm the staff and prevent those of us with rare (but real) questions/concerns from receiving timely responses. I've seen that happen several times before and I really do hope ASD's powers-that-be continue being proactive to get ahead of this massive wave of new members.
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Morelans
Member
Joined: 8 Jul 2008
Posts: 30
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 08:27
As stated above.. I am not ASD bashing - if anyone hopes it will work I am one of them.
I am a member as are some of my friends and my parents. However that still does not mean there are not concerns. If I am to continue promoting this program I need to be able to answer my own questions as well as those I show it to.
No business.. online or off is a guarantee. I got that part. I never said online was any better than offline and if I did I was mistaken and I take it back.
No one hit on the other points or concerns...
The site is hard to promote when it does not come up... or does come up but will not allow you to navigate without taking 5 minutes per page load.
Why is does the website look like a 12 year old put it together.. Horrible graphics, splash sounds on each page load etc.
Why does the NEWS page go on and on and on - any site designer normally has structure and links to points - not a mile long page you need to scroll down and try to dig out what you are looking for
Why do they not spell check - even on the bank wire page they have number spelled wrong. The news page has spacing issues as well as misspelled words.
Why do the videos look like a high school production instead of a company bringing in millions of dollars?
Why would they start OTHER sites before they fix the first site unless they are trying to gather up money worldwide and then disappear? < I have been asked this more than once when explaining the slowness of the ASD site or why it will not show.
I am sorry these are concerns but in order for me to have others put in money for advertising I have to answer their questions. Maybe I am targeting the wrong people.. maybe I need to look for those who are not concerned with where their money goes or how the company appears to the public???
I give the presentation.. then people ask "Why would you expect me to put money into a company that is supposed to center around online advertising when their own site has (Insert any of the issues above here)" So I am asking for help.
As for the presidential award.. YES I think this is a big deal. If they are using that as a SELLER or proof they are above board, then they need proof plain and simple. I am sorry I do not just take in what others say as fact.. I need proof that I can use in my presentations not just that everyone IN ASD said so � so it must be true.
I have searched HI and LOW and the only documentation of ANY award given to Andy by the President comes directly from ASD or copied from their site. I am sorry.. but this is 2008, we have camera phones, digital cameras and the list goes on. So I am to believe that one of the biggest events of ASD this year has gone undocumented?? Come on please explain this.. how many have pictures of their kids first lost tooth.. first birthday... or family gatherings or just pictures of the flowers in the front yard because they looked nice. However no one has a picture of the President of ASD meeting with the President of the United States Of America. UFO's are better documented and last I heard they do not even exist!
Again I want ASD to not only thrive but to last for years to come. I am only saying that during my presentations competent people are asking me valid questions that I am not able to get answers for and the more they find the more I see what they are talking about.
Sorry if it sounds like I am bashing.. I truly want ASD to thrive and I will be attending the show this weekend in Miami to get re-charged and I hope to get some questions answered.
Thanks
Shawn
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georgeyou
Member
Joined: 10 Jul 2008
Posts: 8
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 14:46
Shawn,
I like and agree with all of your questions and I would also like to learn of those answers. I also hope that this would work out well for the long run and not just for a couple years. If you get answers please let me know.
I've also been trying to figure out where they get their other revenues. If they pay out 125% they can't just keep doing this. I'd really like it if they were getting at least 50% of their revenues from other sources than the paying members.
George
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alasycia
Member
Joined: 4 May 2008
Posts: 289
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 18:46
The main problem that starts everyone off on the "is it a high risk" mode is the technical and admin stuff.
The only think that scares me about them getting it all running fast is that we get yet another inundation of members too fast and then what?! LOL
The up and running of the site part looks as if it will be solved tonight. Hope we dont end up falling asleep and having to put in tickets for not being able to surf!! The same day please guys - according to the T0C - so I guess within 24 hours if you are one of the unlucky ones who would have to be awake at 5 am to get their surfing in today!!
I am not upset with the design - Cries of heresy will now be heard! ......LOL I quite like it - it suits my age! LOL If it gets too slick I will start thinking it is suspect LOL And I happen to LIKe the waves. I live by the sea and find it comforting. hehe.
Although I agree that the programming itself does not appear to have been improved to the level we had hoped and that is an element that they need to look at very seriously in the future.
When the La Fuente site is back up - I am hoping they keep the Fountain and get rid of the wretched bird!!
I am not sad to lose the In Touch venture - it was very very slick and I found recommending closing techniques and how to Trap your buyer very dated - like a company training course from the 1970s - and rather tacky. I share this programme with people, because I like to share my luck. A good "closing technique" makes me feel that I am offering something rather dubious that can only be sold with tricks and traps and is not appropriate to ASD.
And I did not enjoy the AdSense debacle one bit.
When he set up this business, I understand that Andy Bowdoin - or Thomas Anderson Bowdoin for those that are worried about the name on his birth certificate - was not aiming for the "internet marketing world". who are often more interested in their lists and their downline figures than they are in the company they work with and its product.
I just backed out of a mlm team effort programme because noone could tell me how to use the product to make money. I was told to recruit - and the answer to the question - "what benefit do I get from the programme itself, so that I can offer it to other people?" went unanswered.
I think his decision to go to market to the World Wide Web was an intelligent choice.
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iggyigette
Member
Joined: 27 May 2008
Posts: 482
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 19:21
Customer Service is Expanding Their Hours
Posted July 10, 2008
Effective July 14, 2008 Customer Service is expanding their call center hours to 7:00 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST).
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nkelly
Member
Joined: 15 Jun 2008
Posts: 107
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 19:32
Shawn, remember the law of attraction. Everything that happens to you in life (good and bad) is a projection of what you are thinking or feeling. I say this because that is difference between you and your sister. You are projecting your concerns even if its sub consciously and your sister is not. She is projecting only the positive!! If you want to be as successful as your sister you will have to let go of your concerns, imagine the money rolling in for you and your friends and start to visualize the life you have always wanted. Trust me it won't take long!!
Nick
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Nicholas
Miami, FL
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iggyigette
Member
Joined: 27 May 2008
Posts: 482
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 19:51
nkelly: imagine the money rolling in for you and your friends and start to visualize the life you have always wanted. Trust me it won't take long!!
I'm imagining the money rolling in right now...but how come I'm still broke?
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vikingfan
Member
Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 86
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# Posted: 10 Jul 2008 20:26
Iggy,
Great news about customer service. That should help. Also, I am glad they are upgrading the website. It should be lightning fast when we surf tomorrow.
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dillon o'shea
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Louminous
Member
Joined: 9 Jul 2008
Posts: 19
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 00:36
Shawn,
I feel your concerns and I also hear alot of excuses from people whether you think the site is cute or you read "The Secret"  .
Business is business and companies fail do to lack of professionalism. The site doesn't need to be flashy it simple needs to look professional and work properly with basic options that thousands of other sites on the web have. Go to any banking site even small credit unions and they don't look flashy but look professional, streamlined and interactive. If ASD looked anything like a banks site it would increase 100 times faster than it is right now and thats good for everyone. I'm not going to Miami but I live in Chicago so I plan on going to that event. So I will voice my concerns very professionally, anyone else going to the Chicago event?
If we all want this company to succeed like I do, we need to speak up and at rallies not in a whole bunch of forums to ourselves. I know you've been to a conference Iggy and I read your updates so I'm sure you could add some input about the agenda. I think we as ASD members need solutions not bs to succeed. My suggestion is to ask questions and demand viable answers at rallies not that we are working on it. Outside of the pep rallies it should have business meetings with its members. I think alot of answers that should be listed on the ASD site are found in forums, alot of tickets and phone calls are made because people are not informed which backs them up.
If enough of its members step up we may see change, from the sounds of it alot of you here and in other forums i've read have experience in the industry of websites and networking. Lets organize and make a difference not just complain amongst ourself.
I know some of you have sent suggestions that have gone unanswered.
My understanding is everyone who has a membership has to be online, being online means we have immediate access to each other. We need to contact those who manage forums like this and begin to bring them together. To hell with these conference calls thats some 1980's ish we are a online ad network lets act like it, mobilize and demand what we need to succeed.
Enough for now but I would love to hear some feedback. It can easily start here. Lets not put all the pressure on those not very experienced online. Lets help make this company a viable running machine.
Lou
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bluedog24
Member
Joined: 26 May 2008
Posts: 62
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 00:55
I couldn't agree more Lou...by the way, the site is back up and fast as lightning...with the added customer service hours, this seems like it's a step in the right direction...
In the past 2 weeks, this to me is the biggest manifested improvement and smartest thing I have seen the company do...I assume they are starting to get the picture that a lot of people are getting upset with the waiting time on the phones, cashout time, w-9's, etc.
I now hope that the accounting department will be working longer hours as well, but this is definetely a great start!
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alasycia
Member
Joined: 4 May 2008
Posts: 289
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 06:15
Louminous
I for one applaud your post! We desparately a place to put our suggestions where they will be taken seriously
"I know some of you have sent suggestions that have gone unanswered"
The Alert Pay debacle is a case in point. This is a very important payment option for international members and US members in rural america.
I hope that when you are in Chicago you are able to ask the questions you wish to.
The vast majority of us want this company to succeed and for them to overcome these tremendous bottlenecks in administration.
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iggyigette
Member
Joined: 27 May 2008
Posts: 482
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 09:24
alasycia: The Alert Pay debacle is a case in point. This is a very important payment option for international members and US members in rural america.
The Alert Pay question was brought up last week in the Q&A Session:
The Question was Why Alert Pay was being removed as an Option...the answer was similar to that of Direct Deposits being removed...there was not enough information on either the Direct Deposit Or Alert Pay to allow ASD to Identify the person Purchasing the Ad Packages (and they couldn't rely on waiting for a Fax from the ASD Member)
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alasycia
Member
Joined: 4 May 2008
Posts: 289
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 09:48
Iggy - you have a PM!!
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asdabq
Member
Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 32
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 12:21
Everyone here seems to have similar concerns and issues.
I'll tell you the reason I joined was for pure "speculation" as far as making money is concerned. Yes, I will earn 50% without any referrals over the period, ~125 days.
For me, getting my site advertised in itself is worth a great deal and I see very little comment on that. I do have adsense on my site, so that is an additional bonus to get additional traffic from ASD. I've experienced quite a bit of traffic from ASD and am very pleased and feel I am actually getting some value from ASD based on that alone.
My biggest beef is the daily challenge to simply log on. I read a previous post here that the site is fast. Today alone, took 1.5 hours just to be able to log on. I'm surfing as I write since each page load is taking several minutes to a half hour.
This page loading is my only complaint worthy of mention. The dated look of the site and the fact that I have to scroll down to enter my password for login is ridiculous page design.
It must be hard to sell this to others when you give them a web address, only to find that it will not load. I'm sure prospects don't have a half hour to devote simply to gain more information.
Granted, this is probably not the place to air gripes, yet if I gripe to ASD through a ticket, it poses the threat of having my account closed! That's a considerable theat when there is no recourse. They say you broke the rules, they have all your money, end of story! I guess this forum fills the void.
So enjoy the ride, hopefully you are offering a site you advertise that has value to others, that's the real value of ASD in my opinion. I have seen many sites that I enjoyed reading and their offerings. Once I get past the first five of the day, the rest are kind of fun to view!
I live in the Southwest and every day is a challenge to log on and surf. Anytime of day. While they are expanding considerably, it still does seem like it's visiting a busy "shared hosting" site that they pay $3.95 a month for. There are simply no excuses for a busy site. You are either there for your customers or your not. Any hosting company could have this sorted out within a few hours, providing additional resources for demand. Why ASD doesn't do this is beyond me.
I would absolutely love to see this company grow & prosper and be able to show prospects but their technical side needs to improve TODAY.
tom
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iggyigette
Member
Joined: 27 May 2008
Posts: 482
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 12:29
abq must stand for albuquerque!
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asdabq
Member
Joined: 18 Jun 2008
Posts: 32
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 12:40
Iggy,
Correct you are mate!
BTW, yours and Andrewhs post's are my favorite reads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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iggyigette
Member
Joined: 27 May 2008
Posts: 482
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 12:59
I have a few tenants in ABQ! SouthWest side.
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Louminous
Member
Joined: 9 Jul 2008
Posts: 19
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 14:28
So Iggy, you seemed very well informed and have listened to the conference calls and seem to have gotten responses. I just joined last week and haven't had an opportunity yet, are they very receptive to questions, are questions dealing more with basic answers you can find online or do they give you specifics as to why they are having the problem they are having. Sorry, but growth is not a proper answer... Simply things like why haven't I been able to get on the site all day it keeps crashing... what did they actually do for 5 hours yesterday while the site was down, do they even plan to give this 90's looking site a face lift and when.
Thanks for any help...
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iggyigette
Member
Joined: 27 May 2008
Posts: 482
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# Posted: 11 Jul 2008 14:54
Louminous:
In the WebRoom Schedule:
http://www.freewebs.com/dawnstowers/webroomschedule.htm
There are Q&A Sessions - an hour long each time, where you can ask Questions and receive answers...even if the answer is "I don't know" you'll get an answer.
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