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A Predator Stalks Punchpass

Some loyal Punchpass clients let us know that an upstart software company had emailed them with a lure of saving big bucks. Here's our response.

April 21, 2021

It really caught us off-guard.

A number of our beloved Punchpass clients reached out to us recently to let us know that an upstart software company had emailed them enticing them to save big bucks by switching to their service.

We were not thrilled to hear about this.

If you’ve ever had a new studio open up down the road & felt a knot in your stomach, you probably know exactly what I’m talking about.  Ack! They’re going to lure away my people! Will they be fancier and cooler than me?

But when we took a closer look, we realized that this was not a legit competitor. It was a copycat. They apparently liked much of the wording on our website & copied it for their own purposes ๐Ÿ˜’.  

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, we should certainly be flattered.  But the stock photos and generic backdrop gave away their true selves โ€” they liked what we were doing and were trying this gimmick to create a pale imitation of Punchpass.

They took great pains to FIND and TARGET our community after COPYING who we are. Not cool.

And how did this stalker find emails? Our hunch is that they probably did some automated data gathering using web spiders โ€” bots that crawl public sites & scrape email addresses. Dirty tricksters.

Ugh – this was spam, pure and simple (complete with misspellings and incorrect information). And it was targeted at our Punchpass community.

Our first instinct was to reach out directly to the predator and ask them why they’ve been emailing our clients. But much like answering spammy phone calls, that approach can serve as confirmation that their scheme is working.

We discussed the issue as a team and decided to address their maneuvers here in writing.

We feel their con game won’t work.

Why?

Because earning trust doesn’t happen by dangling a few dollars.

Offshore teams paying rock bottom wages โ€” and not beholden to trademark and copyright laws โ€” are certainly out there. But is this who you would trust with your business operations?

Over the years, the Punchpass team has put our heart and soul into providing the best service available, bar none. We listen, we respect you, and we respond to your questions with integrity.

Do we always get it right?  No, we don’t.  But we will try as hard as we can to earn your loyalty and trust. We need to look at ourselves in the mirror each day, and we can do that without flinching when we take the high road. This goes far beyond dollars and cents for us, as we know it does for you.

What are the things that matter to us here at Punchpass?

Integrity. Consistency. Excellence. Innovation. Quality. Focus on the product and service we provide you โ€” not aggressive sales tactics.  Focus on YOUR Success. Keep things simple and affordable.  Sincere hearts.  Core values.  Honest intentions.

And we know those things matter to you too.

We were heartened at the response we heard from clients who received that unwelcome email. They had our back.  They were eager to let us know that they were offended by the intrusion, and they wanted to tell us they’re sticking with Punchpass. (You guys rock!)

We’re here for the long haul โ€” helping you to keep your community together in good times and bad.  Thanks for being here  โ˜บ๏ธ