ComplaintsforSurefire Local

• Initial Complaint

  04/25/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We signed up with this company and were charged $848 on April 3, 2023 to have them provide us a marketing platform as well as marketing services. While we have access to the marketing platform it isn't fully functional because they have not done their job of implementation. We have had various email and phone communications with our account manager yet nothing has been done. On April 24 we asked the to terminate the service and issue a refund and all wanted to do is to continue discussing how they can address our concerns. At this this point there is nothing else to discuss as they simply have not rendered the services that was agreed. When attempting to cancel the account manager stated we were under contract. However there was no written contract nor terms of use policy issued and under normal contract law if one party breaches a contract there is grounds for termination. In this case regardless that the agreement or contract was verbal they have breached it which from our perspective gives us grounds to terminate. We have repeatability asked them to terminate and issue us the refund of $848 yet nothing has been done. We have conducted some investigation into this company and it seems what we are experiencing has been experienced by other customers. This company needs to stop it's deceitful sales practices and held responsible for charging for a service and never providing it.

  

  Business response

  05/26/2023

  ****************** signed up for a 12 month subscription plan, started his new customer onboarding without any issues, but then began creating hurdles that were outside of our control which delayed his implementation timeline. As part of our customer re-engagement discussion with ******************, we agreed to refund his initial payment for his first month. Our team then met with ****************** on May 9th and 10th, resolving all of **. ******** complaints and concerns. ****************** is still an active customer and we have a path forward thatll set the stage for an ongoing relationship between Surefire Local and ******* ****************.
  

  Customer response

  06/13/2023

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  The statements made by the company are incorrect. We had signed up for a 3 month verbal agreement and doesn't constitute a contract per say. The main issue here is there was a material breach of contract/agreement and an unauthorized charge to the credit card was made. On 4 May, 2023 we advised the company of this via email letting them we began legal action. It was only on May 9 or 10 that we spoke again and we provided them an opportunity to ratify the situation. However until now they have failed to provide all the services they agreed to. This was ongoing since April and on 23 April 2023 we sent them an email asking to terminate the service. Therefore we still maintain they have breached the agreement which is grounds for immediate termination of the service and any financial liability on our end.

  Although they claim we remain customers we have not used the platform since the issues began and the only reason they maintain we are customers is because they won't termite service. We are seeking refunds of all charges, not only the 1st month as well as the release of any financial liability for monthly subscription costs.
  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************
  

  

  Business response

  06/21/2023

  We are actively working with ****************** and his team to come to a financial arrangement regarding a refund as they have decided to move on from Surefire Local. There was a lot of miscommunication and missed deadlines early on that unfortunately set the stage for unrealistic expectations and timelines. Some misses were admittedly of our own doing. 
  
  However, our software subscription plans are a lot like gym memberships. You cannot get full access to equipment, classes, spas, etc. until you submit the required paperwork and then a gym membership is only as effective as the work you put in. In our case, the services included in ********************** subscription were delayed due to our inability to get integrations/connections made in what the customer felt was a reasonable amount of time. Instead of working with us, ****************** and his team were unwilling to accept our standard timeline for new customer onboarding and decided to charge everything back instead of engaging with us. 
  
  We wish ****************** & his team the best moving forward. We still gladly welcome any opportunity to make things right with the customer. If you are the customer reading this reply, and you feel we did not adequately address your issues - please contact us immediately to discuss. Please email us at ****************************** Thank you.

  

  Business response

  07/05/2023

  We agreed to provide the full refund requested by ****************** and ******* ***************, however, since their company charged back the payment, there was no way for us to process the refund. We have included documentation showing the entire transaction history with Surefire Local and ******* **************** as reference.

  Also, despite our best efforts to resolve the matter amicably, we were left with no choice but to initiate the process of sending ******* ****************. to collections. This decision was made following their continued failure to fulfill their financial obligations and engage our team, even after we provided an initial refund per their request.

  We want to emphasize that sending a customer to collections is always a last resort for us. We value our relationships with our customers and strive to find mutually beneficial solutions. However, when attempts to rectify the situation through communication and offering a refund were met with non-payment for subsequent months, we were left with no alternative.

• Initial Complaint

  04/06/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I was solicited by this company called Surefirelocal.com to managed our social media incuding ***************** etc and managing all of our SEO needs in one easy plan. They sold me a 90 day contract with the right to cancel at any time I felt they were not performing the service I thought they described and I had purchased. Well, they could not access our ************************* and created a new ********, losing our existing ******** page along with the 4800 likes on that page with and ****** account. These actions further muddy the internet searches for our customers and have made it hard to find us. I cancelled this service within 4 weeks of them unsuccessfully gaining access to our social media platforms as they had promised before I signed up with them. After filing a claim with our credit card company the manager for SUREFIRE LOCAL called me and rudely told me he now sees where we officially cancelled in writing on Feb 23 (our credit card company contacted him) and that he will now allow me to cancel with a pro-rated refund. As of yet, no refund from them and we still claim they owe us a refund of almost $2000.This is an unscrupulous company and even worse the management comes across as a bully.

  

  Business response

  05/10/2023

  ******************** signed up for a 12 month subscription plan, including a fully-optimized website and social media management as he has stated in his complaint. Our team went above and beyond while working with ********************, but unfortunately he was unable to live up to his side of the relationship. Only as a last resort did we have to create new social media profiles when it became evident ******************** would be unable to provide the necessary login credentials and it was beginning to impede the progress of our new customer onboarding team. We are in communication with ******************** actively working towards a resolution thatll benefit both companies and set the stage for an ongoing relationship between Surefire Local and **************.

• Initial Complaint

  03/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I signed up for their services approximately April 2022. When going through the on boarding process, they were unable to gain super user access from my website provider. This rendered a significant portion of the contracted services unusable in discussions with my account manager, and through a subsequent follow up email terminating services. I thought this issue was resolved. Approximately six months later, a lawyer, from a group out of Texas contacted me saying that I was in breach of contract, and the total amount of the contract term was due. I explain the circumstances and sent the documentation to him and he closed the case on his end. Last week I was contacted by a collection agency out of Louisiana for the amount due again this is not a valid debt as they breached the contract by being unable to deliver the services. additionally, I formally cancelled the services and gave proper notice as they could not deliver. I’m not sure where I go from here other than file, a proactive lawsuit against them for breach of contract and harassment.

  

  Business response

  05/10/2023

  ****************** signed up for a 12 month subscription plan and found success using the software our company provides, the Surefire Local Marketing Platform. It wasnt until month 7 of his 12 month contract that we attempted to collect payment as ****************** had yet to pay a single invoice. It was then that we discovered ****************** claimed he had cancelled within his first month, however no written or verbal notice was ever received from ****************** or one of his employees. We are in communication with ****************** actively working towards a resolution that'll benefit both companies and set the stage for an ongoing relationship between Surefire Local and ******* ****.
  

• Initial Complaint

  01/17/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I first started with surefire local 2/17/2022. I requested to cancel 1/5/2023. I am disputing the credit card charge of $1,497 on 1/17/2023. Surefire local created a website for me, that they are hosting. I requested it be transferred over to me, so I can now host the website. Total amount paid to this company from 2/17/2022-1/17/2023 is $17,964. Surefire local's services of social media posts, and their marketing platform, did not nearly give me a return on my investment. I was told by my account manager *********************, that Surefire local would reach out to me to start this process of cancelling my account. That was 1/5/2023. Still no communication from Surefire local.

  

  Business response

  02/06/2023

  We closed this account out early on January 18th, 2023 as a courtesy to ************************* because he had a poor relationship with his Account Manager. ******* charged back the $1497 so there was no refund to process. The reason he was initially charged on 1/17/2023 after requesting to cancel on 1/5/2023 is because his contract included a 30-day cancellation notice so his original contract should've ended in February, 2023.

  Customer response

  02/24/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  01/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Good morning.My name is ****** ** ** ****.I am the owner of **** ********* *** ********.I am a acredited BBB member at the San Francisco, CA. area. We had a situation that we need your help to solve this problem. We hired the company Surefire Local on May of this year, the goal was to acomplish certain upgrades to our website and also to start creating a new ****** campaing. Unfortunatly after four months waiting for results..we call them to cancel the process because we did not sood any changes to our website..neither any comunication from them. We did not received any previous invoice, or any call to let us know that we.own them some money.. Even that they did not made any changes neither any progress to our website, they Are trying to collect almost $ 9,000.00 from us. There is a collector that is calling us to try to get that money from us...sadly..we do not receive any goods...any service from them...but apparently they do not care about this... Can you help me to at least place a complain again Surefirelocal? Again thanks for your help. See above

  

  Business response

  03/08/2023

  ****** signed up for a 12 month subscription plan that included a new custom-built website and access to our marketing platform, both of which he and his team have been using successfully to better their business. ****** however has only paid 1 invoice during his 12 month agreement with us, and his request to cancel came after 3 months of non-payment. This customer claims to have not received "any services or goods" from our company, but is an active customer utilizing our marketing platform and the new website we built for his company.
  

• Initial Complaint

  05/31/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  - business committed to web design and providing customer support for new software - charged $499 per month for three months - no deliveries. No website. No customer support.- no communication. - attempted to reach out and resolve several times, throughout the month of May.- still no communication and no website has been provided - was set up to work with **** and ******

  

  Business response

  06/16/2022

  Hi ***,

  We apologize again for your unfortunate experience with our team. We are appreciative of your time and are happy to have come to a resolution in the form of a refund. We also appreciate that you have given us a second chance, and we look forward to our continued partnership.

  Sincerely,

  Surefire Local

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  11/26/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  They used very deceptive sales practices to encourage me to do business with them. They said they would use my advertising account and putting my data in **** was not needed. After hearing this I agreed to do business with them and paid $2047 and signed an agreement. When it came time for them to deliver services they would not honor any of the commitments they made. Had they been truthful with me I would have never agreed to do business with them. All I want our money refunded that they have charged me for services they have not delivered.

  

  Business response

  12/08/2021

  **** sat through a demonstration of our product and picked a package that fit his budget and needs.   He wanted to have a custom deployment of our software that fits outside of the way our services are delivered.  We immediately scheduled a call (11.5) with the CRO and SVP of Customer Success to listen to his concerns and come back with options of what we could do to fit his requirements within what the capabilities of our software was.  He agreed to wait to see what concessions we could make.  We offered **** some options that gave him the full transparency of his ad campaigns he was searching; however, it did not go the full way in meeting us taking over his existing ad account.   He also refused to use the rest of our platform.  We sell software not a fully managed ad campaign service.  That was clear in our sales demo and we reiterated that again with **** when the CRO and SVP of Customer success met with ****.  **** declined those options and sent an email on 11.8  at 12:15pm stating that declined and wanted to cancel.  He followed up with an email within a few hours that he had initiated a charge back dispute with his credit card provider.   We contacted **** the next day and informed him that we would not challenge the dispute and he would get a refund through that process which is the standard resolution.  If we wanted to cancel the dispute we could offer an immediate refund and we would be happy to do that.   He indicated that he was not going to cancel his dispute.   The SureFire Local Account team was made aware to not challenge that dispute and let the refund go back through the chargeback process which is did before the end of Nov.   We addressed his concerns, made attempts to resolve them and followed through on not challenging the CC dispute in order for him to receive his refunds.  This was all thoroughly communicated to him. 

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩