Negative Site Feedback

bulbo · 29-04-04

I received an email the other day from a gentleman who had obviously gone through the "Contact Us" page of my website.

I have since deleted the email so I cannot reproduce it here but he was basically saying:-

"What is the point of your website? Everyone uses either Kelkoo and Pricerunner anyway. All your site does is clog up the search engines with useless results. There are many other (superior) sites on the web selling the same things. Please, please, remove your site from the web, or at least, remove your entry from the Search Engines".

I have attempted to remember as much of his actual wording as possible there.

Obviously, this kind of thing does little to boost morale and I genuinely don't think my site is quite as bad as that, although being a "one man band" with no previous web-programming skills (what I know, I have learned as I have gone along over the last 13 months) I will openly admit, I cannot compete with the two websites he mentioned.

I had several replies in my head to send back to this guy but I declined to send any, believing that this guy is either:-

a) A sad nutter with nothing better to do.

b) Employed by Kelkoo or Pricerunner.

c) Running a competing website.

d) Is genuinely annoyed at the sometimes crap results being churned out by the SE's.

e) My site really might be that bad and to try and defend it pointless.

My own personal take on it is that NOT "everyone" uses Kelkoo or Pricerunner as I DO make sales via my website each month which pay a few bills (and THIS is the point of my website!).

Also, the Internet is a great tool for nobodies like me to make a legitimate living... or a bit of spending money (in my case).

I am not mugging old grannies/selling crack-cocaine/breaking into people's homes and stealing their valuables/peddling kiddie porn.

I always thought my attempt at making a living online would be fairly inoffensive.

In all honesty, my site makes me about £200 average per month in commission (according to my Excel spreadsheet). The site is now 12 months old.

Some of you are probably snickering now because £200 would represent a bad DAY for you... but when I set the site up, I always said that £200/month would be great... but obviously the more the better and having seen my site get to that level, I am eager to try to get to the next "level".

However, if my site is genuinely bringing misery to some people's online experience, it HAS caused me to question what I'm doing.

I was wondering if others on here had received bad feedback for their sites (I'm sure I'm not alone) and how do you deal with it?

By the way, this gentleman at least had the courtesy to offer his constructive criticism... I have one other "Negative Response" email which simply said "Your site sucks!".

jrisby · 29-04-04

shame you deleted it or you could have told him to stick it!

loquax · 29-04-04

Thank them for their comments and move on - no matter what you do you will not please everyone all the time.

Bad feedback comes with the territory - if you offer a service someone will complain about something - not everyone will like what you do!

Tomorrow you might get an email saying how good your site is...

Jason

FleaPit · 29-04-04

Don't worry about it mate. As the old saying goes...'You can please some of the people all of the time or all of the people some of the time, but never all of the people all of the time!'

You can't expect to compete against large corporations like Kelkoo with a payroll running into the millions. If you believe in what you are doing, keep working hard at it, learning and improving with time, then things will start to get better regardless. I would suggest that if you are making £200 per month then you are at least providing a useful service to a number of web users. People who take the time out of their lives to send emails such as this normally either have their own agenda, or are lacking in ability to enrich their own lives. As another old saying goes (geees, must be getting old myself

)... 'If you haven't got anything nice to say (or in this case constructive), then don't say anything at all'.

Chin up, stiff upper lip and all that good stuff

qwerky · 29-04-04

I've had a few of those, especially for some of my websites which at best can be described as poor design.

I think the best thing to do is to learn from them, as i doubt a competitor would go to that much length, so chances are this is what some people who use your site really think.

You could make your site different than the big players, maybe more detailed write ups etc.

My approach is alothough some sites that really are just commission only listings and i know there literally thousands of other similar/better sites, and i justify some of this to myself by creating sites that run at a loss (a small loss admitidly) to make me feel like i'm adding something to the internet.

Then when i get this type of email i think to myself at least i know im not just in it for the money.

My approach is not good for business but good for me!

Or just ignore it

Dynamoo · 29-04-04

£200 a month = £2400 a year which ain't too shabby.

I sometimes get emails from nutters and "Mr Angry" characters.. it does make me wonder why I bother putting up a contact email at all.

The bottom line is that affiliate marketing is actually dealing with the general public, and now and again some try to communicate with you. I recommend a pointy stick and some rubber gloves when dealing with the public, personally.

Mogga · 29-04-04

is it in the trash?
I only empty mine every couple of days...

bulbo · 29-04-04

Aye, it is in the trash... along with the 80+ emails/day I get telling me how to enlarge my you-know-what!!!

Thanks guys, I needed a morale booster.

FYI... and I know this is generally taboo on this site but my url is ...

www.gifthunters.co.uk

It's not THAT bad is it?

Elaine · 29-04-04

don't worry about it. I had one that simply said 'your site is crap' - and no it wasn't. As for only earning £200 per month - I should imagine most of us started off pretty low - and thought 'wow' - I'm making money out of something I enjoy.

It 's up to you were you take it - keep it as a hobby or learn and move on. I don't mind constructive criticism (well I do - but I try to rise above it and learn something) but don't let saddo individuals get under your skin.

qwerky · 29-04-04

I think the site looks very good.

But i got to admit i had a browse to the gadgets section and the listings don't look great and when i clicked on the red putty stuff it doesn't do anything?

Sorry

HeresJonny · 29-04-04

If I'd received that email I'd have replied telling him he's an idiot for using inaccurate price comparison sites that only list a small range of retailers, and then point out why yours is much better.

I have one price comparison site that only ever attracts positive feedback so it can be done ! Keep plugging away ...

Jon