"The guy has had Better Business Bureau Complaints"

I recently had a prospective new student from a large corporation tell me that their purchasing department had some issues approving the training (a whopping $300 order) because my business is "not an actual company and the guy has had Better Business complaints against him."

As far as complaints go, yes, I've had some complaints. every business generates complaints. It's how you respond to and deal with those complaints that's important. The vast majority of complaints I'm able to handle directly with the customer. If someone's not happy, I do my best to make them happy. However, once in a while someone decides they want to complain directly to their credit card company or, in this case, the BBB, instead.

One thing I would like to say up front about the BBB is that a lot of people are under the misconception that it is a governmental agency since it has the word "bureau" in the name. The Better Business Bureau is not part of the government. They are a private business themselves. They are not some official place to file complaints about businesses. They charge businesses a fee to become accredited members. I should know - I was one back in the 90s. The benefit is that they will help work with you to resolve customer complaints, and you can use their BBB logo in your advertising. I was a member for a few years until I realized that the membership wasn't worth the investment... for me. I'm not saying they don't benefit other businesses, but it just wasn't worth the cost for my fledgling business at the time.

In any case, if you look for me on the BBB website, you'll find that there are two (2) separate BBB profiles for my business because I have a DBA and an LLC. Both have an A+ rating.

• Amicron Computing (DBA)
• Computer Learning Zone (LLC)

There are zero complaints on the DBA profile.

There is only one complaint showing up on the LLC profile from the past 3 years, and it's from Jan 2022 which is from a customer who signed up for a membership, forgot about it, never canceled, and then demanded a full refund. This guy demanded a year's-worth of charges refunded, which is unfair and completely unacceptable.

You can't call up Netflix and say, "uh, yeah, I haven't watched shows on your service for the past year because I forgot about it, so, uh, I want a refund." I refunded him the previous 60 days worth of charges, which is more than fair (and the extent of my liability under the law). People seriously don't see the charges coming through every month on their credit card statements? I check mine daily. 

The BBB only keeps complaints for 3 years. I've had a few more over the past 20+ years, but they've all been responded to. In my early years of 599cd, I did generate more than a few complaints from people who didn't get their CDs shipped as fast as they wanted them. I put it right on the order form: "you can download your courses immediately, but please allow 6 to 8 weeks for CD shipments." People don't read, however. They'd complain after a week that they didn't receive their CD, and I'd politely explain to them that we usually ship orders once a week, so it's usually a week or 2 until they will get it - even though I put on the website "6 to 8 weeks." So that was the number one complaint until I stopped shipping CDs altogether a few years back.

Today, the number one complaint is from people who forget about signing up for memberships. Most people catch it within a month or two because they notice it on their credit card statement. And if someone comes to me and says, politely, "sorry, I forgot about this," then I have no problems refunding their money. But when someone waits six months or a year and then has an attitude with me as if it's my fault that they signed up for something and forgot about it - and didn't bother checking their credit card statements, then I'm less likely to be so kind.

I very much believe that you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar, and I'm sorry, but the customer is not always right. Be nice and polite to me, and you'll be treated with the same respect. Come at me with an attitude, and I'll give it right back.

As far as being "not an actual company," I beg to differ. I have been in business since 1994. I filed my first DBA in Buffalo, New York, and I moved to Cape Coral, Florida in 2013. As of 2022, my current website (599cd.com) has been online for 20 years. My YouTube channel is 16 years old.

Am I a sole proprietor? Yep. I'm a one-man-band. I don't have any employees. But I also don't need any. I produce my own videos, maintain my own website, and I respond to customer emails myself as well - usually by the next business day. This makes me as much a real company as any out there. I've dealt with Fortune 500 companies that have taken weeks to respond to simple emails from me. So... You decide what's better.

I am fortunate to have a wonderful group of volunteer helpers on my website (the moderators and forum admin, Alex) to help me answer customer questions in the Forums. My website certainly wouldn't be as popular as it is without their help - but they're not employees.

Bottom line is: You're not going to find someone with better credentials to teach you Microsoft Access. I've been teaching Access for almost 30 years. I am a published author, and a three-time Microsoft MVP. If your purchasing department still isn't satisfied with that, then, well, I'm sorry but I can't help you. You'll have to find training elsewhere.

Live long, and prosper.

RR