How Not to Run a Book Club

Back in September, I wrote about joining the Scientific American Book Club. I got my introductory package and paid for it (cancelled check and all) and have even started reading the books (well, one of the five at least). And I waited for the other order that I placed that day to be shipped. It never was.

So I e-mail the company asking about it. And they tell me that maybe my account information wasn’t pushed to their website. Um, well then PUSH it there, morons, I think. But no, they can’t seem to do this. Instead, they want me to e-mail them my e-mail address and password AND the answer to my “hint” question. WHAT? Nearly every online company that one deals with says NEVER send your password through e-mail. And that they’ll NEVER ask for it by mail. Boy that gives ME a lot of confidence in this company.

Oh yeah, and if I’m interested in receiving that order, I need to e-mail them all of the relevant info- including my address. Sheesh! Talk about an incompetent company. I would think that, before you become an online business, you figure out how to make all this shit work before you go live. I’m really rather peeved with them. Perhaps it would be best if they just cancelled my club membership. (Not that they will – I mean, they’ll want my money, no question about that.)

The good news is that they do NOT have my credit card number. And you know, I’m certainly never gonna trust them with it!

5 thoughts on “How Not to Run a Book Club

  1. Are you sure someone didn’t like, intercept your email and then spoof. Call Scientific American and check. If it is them, yell at them. 🙂

    1. What, you think they have a phone number? (I was sooooo spoiled with QPBC, I tell ya… No other book club could live up to their standards.)

  2. Is this the club where you get all the identical-sized hardbacks with white covers about various scientific topics? I was in that one for a few years. Never had any problem when I joined, either. But that was >5 years ago, and it wasn’t online. I was reasonably happy with the books, and with the service, but I quit because it was getting too expensive. That business about your password and hint question does sound suspicious. You could reply, and tell them that your password is go_away_asshole, and that your hint question is “do you honestly think I’d tell you my password?”

    1. Is this the club where you get all the identical-sized hardbacks with white covers about various scientific topics? I was in that one for a few years. No, the books look much like their bookstore counterparts. I believe this is a fairly new club (which is evidenced by their website which doesn’t work right, yet). I did send them my e-mail & password because there’s not a whole lot they can do with them. Didn’t send them the answer to the hint question cuz I don’t remember what the hint question was!

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