8663260949

i just got a call from you guys and my problem is i've been searching the net for an hour and i can't find a single thread about a sucessfull sale through your service. i'd hate to break it to you but, if your a reputable bussiness i'm hard pressed to believe. i'd love to use your service but until i hear or see a good comment from a happy costomer coming from somewhere other than your website or your number i will warn others away.

I followed Paul's advice regarding looking up Longwood Industries on Guidestar.org. There were 2 posts, and both were negative:

http://www.greatnonprofits.org/whitelabel/reviews/longwood-industries-inc

This is a racket run by criminals - stay away, they will rip you off.

Business Contact & ProfileBack to Top Business Name:  Longwood Industries, Inc.
Auto Marketing Systems  
Business Address:  1617 Longwood Ave.
Bedford, VA 24523
See the location on a Mapquest Map
See the location on a Google Map  
Original Business Start Date:  1/1/1975  
Type of Entity:  Corporation  
Incorporated:  1972 in VA  
Principals:  John Wilson, Manager
Renee Fisher, Director  
Phone Number:  (540) 586-1430
(800) 430-1965
(800) 821-7025
(888) 734-6931  
Email Address:  rfisher@longwoodinc.com  
BBB Accreditation:  This business is not a BBB Accredited Business  
Type of Business:  INTERNET MARKETING SERVICES
EMBROIDERY
SCREEN PRINTING  
Website Address:  http://www.longwoodinc.com
http://amsvehiclesales.com  


Products & ServicesBack to Top Longwood Industries is a 501(c)3 charity that does not solicit for donations; therefore, they have not been evaluated in relation to the BBB charity standards.

Through an agreement with Adventis, Inc. d/b/a The Big Lot, Longwood Industries offers automobile Internet-Web Advertising. Consumers report that after placing an ad in a newspaper to sell an automobile, they are contacted by Longwood Industries to place a similar ad on the internet for $195.


Business ManagementBack to Top Ms. Renee Fisher , Director


Customer Complaint History Back to Top
When considering complaint information, please take into account the business's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints.

BBB processed a total of 131 complaint(s) about this business in the last 36 months, our standard reporting period. Of the total 131 complaint(s) closed in the last 36 months, 56 were closed in the last 12 months.

These complaints concerned:

15   regarding Advertising Issues
1   regarding Advertised price not honored  
14   regarding Advertising Issues  

1   regarding Contract Disputes
1   regarding Contract Disputes  

6   regarding Customer Services Issues
6   regarding Customer Services Issues  

93   regarding Refund Or Exchange Issues
9   regarding Failure to honor promised refunds, exchanges, or credit  
12   regarding Failure to honor refund, exchange or credit policies  
72   regarding Refund Or Exchange Issues  

14   regarding Selling Practices
14   regarding Selling Practices  

2   regarding Service Issues
1   regarding Improper or inferior service  
1   regarding Service Issues

To all reading "Mike's" comments... Based on his first complaint found on 800notes.com, please note that he was never a customer.  He is basing all of his posts on the fact that he received an unsolicited phone call and/or voicemail message, and is upset about it... fair enough that he is upset about the call, but his opinions are totally unsubstantiated and not based on any other actual experience using our services.

In regard to his other post with BBB statistics, here is what I have to say (and is exactly what I have posted elsewhere)...

First, let me say that I appreciate all that the BBB does to keep consumers safe and happy.
I do feel that it's necessary here to make sure that everyone reading this understands what it means to have a complaint "RESOLVED" as all of ours have been.
Certainly, as most everyone is aware, it can mean that the company subject to the complaint screwed up and has made amends.  In our case a good example would be that someone was due a refund and it was not processed in a timely manner.  In such cases, the refund would be processed without further ado and the case is closed and marked "RESOLVED."
What most everyone is NOT AWARE of are the more prevalent cases where someone simply files a complaint (which is all the customer needs to do to put another tally in that column), but then the company proves that the customer was in the wrong and/or did not follow the terms agreed upon.  After this is proven (by way of signatures and recordings, etc.), the case is closed and also marked "RESOLVED."
Do you see the problem?  The company, although it has PROVEN and "won" its case, is still scarred with the "complaint" because it is NOT REMOVED from the company's BBB record/file.  All you see as a bystander in this scenario is another complaint that, thanks to the BBB, was "RESOLVED."  It was, however, resolved in the company's favor.

I HOPE EVERYONE WILL READ THIS AND EDUCATE THEMSELVES REGARDING SUCH STATISTICS.

Again, look at the information provided here.  You are talking about a company that has been in business for well over 30 years and providing this service for about 10.  The number of complaints resolved, no matter how you interpret them, is minimal.  To date, over 500,000 people have entrusted us to help sell their vehicles all over the U.S. and Canada.  Satisfying all who come to us is extremely important, albeit unfortunately impossible.  But we'll continue to do our best to do so.

James, thank you for your post here.  Assuming you are the same James that also posted on 800notes.com on the same day, I wanted to re-post here the reply I posted there.  So as I mentioned there...
...this is a great question and while I can understand how it can prompt skepticism, there are more reasons that this can and will occur other than assuming a business is trying to remain anonymous.  In our case, Longwood Industries uses multiple lines to directly reach multiple departments of their business.  There are a number of them used for the Auto Marketing aspect of the organization alone.
Secondly, it is not always the business's fault.  It can often happen due to issues that your local phone service provider is having.

John, you're right.  You probably will not find positive posts and testimonials anywhere other than our sites.  Maybe people can change, but it's just not human nature to take the time to post something positive.  We prefer to be skeptical and feel like we're helping expose the bad guys.  Hopefully my attempts are not in vain as I will continue to separate my company from the real bad guys that are, unfortunately, out there.

Hey Paul, good to see you here too.  Why not explain how you use the fake 501c3 charity designation to get around do not call laws.  Criminal, really.

Certainly.  Longwood Industries is a 501c3 non-profit organization.  This status makes us exempt from Do-Not-Call regulations, of which we are abundantly aware.  Having said that, we also maintain an INTERNAL Do-Not-Call list.  If you do not want to be contacted further about services we have to help you sell your vehicle, please call and provide the phone numbers you wish for us to put on our internal DNC list.  If you would like, you may also provide it here (not recommended) and I will confirm that your number has been added.

I should also recommend researching 501c3 non-profit status. The fact that we can provide and charge for services doesn't make us a for-profit business.

Longwood is registered 501c3, but AMS (the telemarketer) isn't.  Yet, AMS does the cold calling using Longwood shell - pretty dishonest.

Mike, have you not yet read that Longwood IS Auto Marketing Systems?  AMS is a registered "Doing Business As" name (a DBA, for short).  The name was chosen to MORE CLEARLY identify this branch of our services.  So we're using... ourselves?  And that's dishonest?  Are you not familiar with DBAs?  I answered another question about DBAs on the other site if you wish to check it out.  Again, they are not two separate companies.

If you are a charity and I use you, can I have a tax receipt?

If you are making a donation, Yes.  If you are paying for a service, No.

So the calls you are making posing as a charity do not qualify for tax receipts?  Brutal!

Consider an analogy you may be more familiar with: Do you get tax receipts for all those boxes of Girl Scout cookies you eat?  No, because they're selling you goods/products/services.  Or have those little "brownies" been taking us for a ride this whole time?  :-)

But the Girl Guides are a real charity.

Wait a minute... Girl Guides?  You mean they have TWO names?!  And that doesn't make THEM sneaky and dishonest?!  :-)

Yes, Paul.  You illegally solicit people who have posted on Craigslist, Kijiji, and Auto Trader, to name a few, when it is SPECIFICALLY STATED NOT to contact the poster of the ad about other services or goods.  Also, you solicit cell phone numbers, which is a violation of FTC laws.  How much do they pay you to run around the internet cleaning up the mess they make?  

Your "website" has nothing more than a phone number on it.  No business details, no email address, nothing.  Not even a business license number.  If that doesn't scream shady, I don't know what does.  What does ASM have to hide?

It is not the customer's responsibility to inform you that your services are not wanted.  We DO NOT have to let you know which vehicle is ours so you can contact your clients and let them know it's not for sale.  That is YOUR responsibility, not ours.  Perhaps you need to do some better programming for your PHP farming to include more information in your database about particular vehicles and phone numbers that you pull from other websites.  

It's one thing to be proactive about your business, and another to solicit illegally.  What do you have to say about the BBB being a "mob", and falsifying information so that you will pay dues as posted on another website, by you?  I will gladly give the link here for all to read, if you wish.

Also, why do you hide your number as unavailable when you call?  Is this in the hopes that people will answer the phone, instead of seeing an 866 number aka telemarketer, and answer instead of not? That in itself is also a shady business practice, again hiding information from the consumer.  At least all other telemarketers that call display their number, giving the consumer a chance to answer or not.  Also, if I'm not mistaken, this also violates FTC laws, because telemarketers MUST display their information vai Caller ID when they contact consumers.  Paul, your company is looking worse and worse all the time.  How many other laws are being broken here?  If you had nothing to hide, why do you hide your caller ID number and not provide any business information on your website?  That right there is two red flags to any consumer.  So, I sign up for your services, but the only contact information for ASM is a phone number?  That is NOT very reassuring.


The bottom line is this:  If you were a reputable business with nothing to hide, and doing nothing wrong, there would be far fewer BBB complaints and no need for your position, Paul. Rest assured, I will be filing complaints with the proper authorities on these matters.  Your business and advertising practices are in violation of at least 3 Federal laws that I know of, and I'm not even a lawyer!!

Regardless of your 501c3 status, it is STILL against FTC regulations to call cell phones.  It is vividly apparent that your company does not take the time to verify whether it is a cell phone or not.

So tell me Paul, if you have 501c3 status, how does this apply to charging people to sell their cars for them?  Which part of the 501c3 are you?

501(c)(3) exemptions apply to corporations, and any community chest, fund, or foundation, organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, educational purposes, to foster national or international amateur sports competition, or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals.

Hmmm....none of that looks like what you actually do.  It would seem to me that Longwood is a front for ASM, to make you exempt from the DNC.  I think it may also be time for some contact with the IRS, if for nothing else than to have this explained how your business falls under a charity. Because according to what I've just read, selling peoples car for a fee DOES NOT meet any of those categories. You aren't a public charity, NOR are you a private foundation.  Very interesting indeed. Or are you reporting your income from selling cars as a "charitable" activity?  

Regardless of which name you use, whether it's a DBA or not,  you are registered as a 501c3 company. So wait, you have two different company names, and use one company as a front, then have the customers contact your OTHER company that isn't registered as 501c3?  Or IS it?  Why is this information omitted from the ASM website?  What's the REAL story, Paul, because you certainly are running circles around here. Who do you think you are fooling here, Paul?  If I were you, I would start deleting all that you have posted around here, because you are digging yourself a mighty deep hole, my friend.  What you are doing is immoral, to say the least. I will hold off on the illegal part until I contact the IRS or legal help.  Companies like yours should not be allowed to be in business.

In response to your GuideStar.org comment about Longwood industries, I see that you a non-profit organization that specializes in REHABILITATIVE AND THERAPEUTIC TRAINING FOR THE MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED.  Ok?  What does this have to do with soliciting people to sell their cars? Nothing.

Interestingly enough, the only reviews on that website are complaints as well.  Hmmm....I'm seeing an interesting pattern here.  Everywhere I go, there are nothing but complaints.  No one, NO ONE, has anything good to say about your company, all 4 of them?  It would appear it is time for some changes to be made to these corporations.