mendonipadrehab wrote:
No.
I will not be bullied by you. And ^ that post is one that I would flag for being impolite, defamatory, and harassing.
1. You disagreeing with another person's viewpoint does not make that person's expression of the viewpoint 'impolite'.
2. Defamation requires that the statement be false. None of KiltedTim's statements can be proven to be false. They can all actually be supported as true, based solely on posts you have made on this forum.
3. Harassment also does not apply. Just because you do not like the fact that someone else is willing to correct the information you provide, and make sure that those that view your posts are warned about the possibility of losing service & support from Apple is not harassment.
Let's get this down to brass tacks, so you can understand the two primary issues. Please note that this is being done from a position of wanting to help you, not to be impolite, defaming or harassing.
1. You admit that you do not inform all of your customers that your service on their iOS devices has the possibility of giving Apple a legitimate justification to refuse to provide service & support on that device in the future. Your reasoning for this is that your local Apple Retail Store has not refused OOW swaps on devices that you have serviced. However, this is contrary to the warranty as written and the policy of Apple as a whole. When asked for examples in which something contrary to your experiences has occurred, I personally gave you an example in which four (4) devices I submitted for service to Apple were rejected because of unauthorized service. And there are literally dozens of examples from other users on this forum. Whether it has happened to you personally or to one of your customers is not an indication of the possibility of it happening to anyone else. So, the easiest solution for you, since examples have been given, and are available for review on this forum from many, many other users,long before you even came here, is as follows; simply state to customers that while you do not personally expect that Apple will refuse service after you work with the device, and that has never happened yet, the language of the warranty and Apple's policies would allow them to refuse future service if they chose to do so, since you are not an official Apple-certified service center.
It's that simple. A disclaimer. Now, the only reason I can imagine why you wouldn't want to provide such a disclaimer is that it would impede your business. However, you yourself have said that you don't even want more business, that you're over-worked. So even if it did drop your business by a small percentage, wouldn't that be actually beneficial to you? Providing such a disclaimer is actually more for your protection than the customer's, even though you both benefit. Knowledge and information are good things. And since it has been demonstrated to you, but multiple people, that Apple can and has refused OOW swap in the past based upon unauthorized service, I'm simply suggesting you do the right thing.
2. You run an independent repair shop. Any time that you suggest to someone here that they should seek out an independent repair shop, the fact that there is even a remote possibility that they will end up using your service means there is a potential conflict of interest. The fact that you include your personal business website in your profile compounds and increases that possibility.
Tis is the exact wording from the forum's Terms & Conditions: "No advertising. Do not use the Site to sell or market your products to others and do not post a URL unless it directly answers a user's question. If any portion of your Submission, including any posted URL, results in any accrual of compensation or benefit to you, you must note this in your post by stating, "I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from my recommendation or link.""
Now, using the Site includes what you post on your profile. Your profile page is part of the Site. By having your business website URL listed there, and then by making recommendations to users here to seek out a third-party repair, this could clearly result in an accrual of compensation or benefit to you.
So, the simple solution is to include that wording "I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from my recommendation or link." in any post that you make that suggests a user seek third-party service. Here's a suggestion: "Because I personally operate such a third-party service, I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from my recommendation or link." Done.
It's these two things that most of us are taking issue with.
1. Not informing customers that your actions may result in Apple choosing to refuse service & support in the future on the affected device.
2. Not informing users here that by recommending they use a third-party service, you may benefit financially from that.
No one here works for Apple or is an Apple representative (other than the Community Specialists, but they only post official Apple answers in a preset template and usually leave it at that). So when we make a recommendation and that recommendation is to follow the Apple procedures, we're not possibly earning any kind of compensation. All we get is the good warm fuzzy of helming someone out, and may some points so we get more stars. Neat.
You, however, stand to make a profit by what you post here. And you refuse, categorically, to acknowledge that.
Here is a completely plausible scenario.
A) User posts that they live too far away from an Appel Store and they are a few months outside of their warranty, and the problem is the display won't brighten past about 10-20%. They've done all the troubleshooting user can do without going into the device.
B) Some recommendations are made, and yours is to seek out a reputable third-party service.
C) User is exploring around on the site, happens to click on your name, and lo & behold, there's the micro soldering mom and a link to her business website.
D) User decides to click on that link, and sends their device in to service to your business.
Completely plausible. And so, you're profiting via a form of advertising on Apple's website, in direct violation of the terms you agreed to follow.
You're an intelligent person. You know this is a perfectly plausible scenario. And you're not the first person that's come along and tried to do this.
You say that you include such information just to give credence to your recommendations. That's not how it works here. I don't post on my profile that I have 8+ years of experience with iOS devices, both personally & professionally. I don't post on my profile that I have decades of electronics experience, ranging from military radar & communication systems to personal use to managing a large section of IT for a very large corporation. I've never even mentioned what company I work for. Ever. Because I don't want people to assume that they have to follow my recommendation's just because I work for a Fortune 500 company.
You know what 'credence' actually counts here? Demonstrated experience and support to fellow users. The only way that is measured is via the point system (coupled also a bit with how long you've been around.)
While you've been a forum member for almost 2 years, you've really on been active in the last two weeks. You've earned 80 points in two weeks. Not too bad.
KiltedTim has been here for over 5 years, and has earned 50,520 points. That's a demonstrated track record of helping literally thousands of users, for zero financial compensation. In the same 2 week span, he averages 380 points.
So, who has more credibility here? KiltedTim stands to make no money whatsoever from his recommendations. You do. KiltedTim only makes recommendations that will not void a customer's warranty & service options with Apple. You do not.
How are you failing to see this?
