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Link Promotions has stolen $195. They called me some time ago and told that if I will not update my Google account, it will be closed down. They asked me to pay this $195 and then my account will be opened again. I did what they asked as they spoke very convincingly. It is fraud.
I do agree with your assessment of this enterprise. I suggest that you go on to Scambook and add your complaint to the others listed there. It would seem that Link Promotions are now compensating disgruntled victims!
Don't get involved with this company, they cold called me in November 2012 saying they were a dedicated team of search engine professionals who could boost the amount of traffic and customers generated from our online advertising i.e. an existing website by selecting key phrases from the website and link building using a Managed Google Local Business Listing, etc etc. I won't go on about everything they promised, but it was supposed to include regular reports and updates which show your websites new search engine position. I paid them £99 for this and their special promotion was to extend the service for 2 years.
After not having heard from Link Promotions for some months I tried emailing and phone calls but received no replies and was unable to get through on the number I was given.
Then mysteriously 5 months later I was called by the same salesman Joshua Wallsworth who was trying to sell me the same product again, and seemed to have no record or recollection that he had already conned me out of £99.
He sounded not at all concerned but said he would look into it, and call me back, which he never did, I tried phoning back on the same number but it just reverts to an answer-phone.
He sounded entirely convincing but is just another con-artist. Joshua if you are reading this do yourself a favour and get a proper job. They jail people for fraud you know.
Utter scam. They tried to con my Mum saying that she had already paid last year and needed to renew her SEO service.
I have just discovered that they have by various means and my lack of diligence taken nearly £1k off me in dribs and drabs over a 2 year period. They appear to do nothing for what they charge. They retain card details and go on charging you and charging you and in addition call as well to tell you, that you owe more money because the renewal period has come round again! They call on an untraceable number and never pick the phone up when the number on their site is called. No feedback statistics are ever produced and so far as I can see they do NOTHING for the money. BEWARE.
I'm sure it is a scam. A guy called Ross has been pestering my Husband saying he paid last year and if he doesn't renew his company's listing will drop the order on Google. Now my husband is pretty sure he knows the reason why he had to cancel a credit card last year because of spurious payments being taken from it. This time after my husbands insistence they even produced an invoice with head office address, company number and vat registration number, whether any of these are valid I have no idea. DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR CREDIT CARD NUMBER
Now had a telephone call from Dave at Link Promotions and said I would review my comment.
Yes it is a valid Company number ( not that I said it wasn't before) and cannot prove it was this company that took spurious payments from our credit card.
BUT
Their sales tactics are abominable and had to resort to these measures to stop them pestering us. I still suspect that they originally told my husband or his staff that it was a renewal when it wasn't.
Still don't believe that their "services" actually make any difference to our positioning on Google Search and
Still stand by my advice not to give anyone your credit card details unless you yourself have initiated the contact.
PS
There was also a suggestion that some previous comments were made by disgruntled ex-employees and that this website is also a Scam. I have no idea whether either of these things are true or not, I will let the reader make their own judgement
The Directors have been under investigation for from the past a Mr Nicolas Connor & a Mr Liam Brindle. Trading Standards have investigated so that tells you something. Also the person named as Ross is a young man working from his bedroom on a 50% split on the sale.
i have reported them to blackburn trading standards when i told them this they threatened me ! they deny that they have had trading standards investigate them but i have been told they have, they were asked for telephone conversation recordings which they say they make when you complain to them but it seems they dont have them to pass to trading standards they ring perporting to be from google maps and tell you that your listing will dissapear if you dont renew . any one scammed report them to trading standards PLEASE !
I have just made a payment of £240 after being phoned by James Mathews who said my account had come round for renewal.
He said he was from Linkpromotions.net and was an authorised Google reseller and I would receive a pin number in the post along with a hard copy of a manual which would allow me to manage my website links and listings and keywords. After reading the above am I likely to see any of this?
Looks like i, ve been ripped off too. Same story, promised to put me back on 1st page and send an invoice that didnt arrive so looks like my £120 is gone forever so now I will not be dealing with anyone about Google over the phone.
I have paid this company £240.00 They rang to say I signed up with them in 2012 to promote placement on the front page of google and if I did not renew I would be removed. I was given assurance it would serve until 2017 and I received, after chasing, a receipt in writing to this effect. Since, I have had several phone calls asking me for further money. Today one assuring me I had not paid anything at all. and that my listing on google map and on the front page was being withheld until I pay a further £199.00. When I refused, I received a further phone call and said I had found their receipt The caller Dave rang off and when I dialled 1471 the caller name withheld. I followed up by phoning the company and was told that I was on a renewal list and would be removed from it. Either this is a very badly run Organization or it is a scam. My placement on google hasn't changed from where it has been sitting for the past eight years so I suspect they have done nothing other than take my money.
I strongly suggest that you post your complaint on Scambook. I did this and eventually received my money back.
I'm a manager here at Link Promotions. We pride ourselves on our service and are always on hand to help out any of our customers with any problems, complaints or anything pertaining to their account online with us. We have an extremely large client base, 99% of which are very happy with the service provided to them. For the other 1% we will be happy to resolve any issues you may have directly over the phone or by email. You can contact us on [protected], 9am til 4pm Mon-Fri, or alternatively send us an email on sales@linkpromotions.net leaving your contact information and a short description of your query.
Adam Hughes works at Link is a complete scam artist! Hopefully this place shall be shut down soon
I was telephoned on Monday but I couldn't speak to them & they called me back on Tuesday. When I asked who the company was I was told they were a Google Engage company authorised to work on behalf of Google. They explained that over the past few years I have subscribed to their services & I was up for renewal but if I didn't renew I would loose my rankings on Google & fall down the pages. I am not a genius with regard to the interent & finally agreed to pay £ 199:00 plus VAT to protect my web site & it's Google rankings. When I rec'd my receipted invoice it was from Link Promotions. At last (& too late) I had a name to investigate which is how I came across all these people who aren't happy, it seems like I have joined a massive club but I do intend to take this matter further.
I too have been the victim of this company. I have paid them for so called listings on Google pages and maps for my business. Although I have always been a little suspicious, as they phoned too often and were very persistent, I always received an invoice and receipt so thought they were legitimate. Until 1 week when ago when I got a call from someone called John from Link Promotions, saying that unfortunately they had not been able to place my business on the front page of Google due to competion from other web companies and I was due a refund. Although I did question this, and now admit I was stupid to believe it, I gave my account No. for the refund. But it niggled with me and I took steps to make sure nothing could be taken from my account. Just as well, for within 24 hours someone had tried to take over 2 thousand pounds from this account. Details now with Bank Fraud dept. I would urge anyone who gets a phone call from Link Promotions to put the phone down, they are a persistent but obviously criminals.
Liam Brindle Director
Paul Coote
i have done my research believe me, these are criminals who will be caught by karma
they have raked in altogether £450 in the last year off my family business. They are disgusting and need to question themselves throughly instead of conning everyone and themselves that they actually provide a servie
I would just like to again refer people to me earlier comment. If you have any issue please take it up with us directly. We are available 9am til 4pm Mon-Fri on [protected] or you can email us on sales@linkpromotions.net.
anonymous899 - if you have a complaint please call us or leave a number we can get you on, what is the point in leaving a complaint and putting your name as anonymous? it will never get resolved, please get in touch if it is a real complaint.
100% SCAM, telephone phone threat to take from my previously used bank card, claim they have the right! I insisted that I did not need their services but would not listen.
Do not trust this company. all said here is as happened to me. They approached me saying would I like to renew a service they gave me in 2012. One I had never had, but convinced me I needed their Google map to get on the front page of Google, I paid and got a receipt for £250.00 to last three years up to 2017 and have since have been pestered for further money and services, I was extremely angry when several months ago I had my credit card statement and found they had helped themselves to £250.00 unauthorised money by me, having retained my card number and details. After threatening to approach my card company, and report it to trading standards I did get them to return the money however I want nothing more to do with them. A chap called Ross phoned me again this afternoon. I wish I had never dealt with them in the first place they are a nightmare, I have always had a place on the front page of Google. They had nothing to do with getting me there only pretend they have so it seems.. An utter scam
Link Promotions is a scam SEO company, apparently offering SEO services and based in Lancashire. It seems a few people have been caught out by their underhanded sales tactics. I created a small website for my mother for her B&B business, and they seem to target this kind of company. They cold called her and pretended that she had already paid for their services 2 years ago. When she said that she had no recollection of this and how did she pay, they said she paid using a Mastercard, which of course they made up, but she had one and so was taken in. They certainly never did any work on her website as I never gave anyone access to the site HTML code. Apparently they were very convincing on the phone. Luckily she told them she would need to check with her IT support company (me), and then said would it be today, and I advised her not to go anywhere near it. I contacted the company and asked them for a copy invoice, needless to say that was the last I heard from them.
So this is a warning for anyone who has been contacted by this company, do not use their services, if you do need SEO, do some research and find a reputable company. You can see a few people on this site who have paid and never received anything in return:
Link Promotions — It is fraud. and also http://www.scambook.com/company/view/73599/Link-Promotions
The reason I am posting this is because they aren’t just sending out spam emails trying to get business, they are actively calling people up and sound very convincing, trying to get money and offering nothing in return. This is probably fraud, and some people have been taken in by this.
The company in question is below. We were contacted by a James White, which I am sure is not his real name!
James White jw@linkpromotions.net
Link Promotions Ltd
www.linkpromotions.net
Tel: [protected]
Direct Number for Me: [protected]
Company Number: [protected]
VAT Number. [protected]
Link Promotions Ltd.
Office 1, 32 Percival Street Mill
Darwen, Lancashire
BB3 1HB
Company Number: [protected]
VAT Number. [protected]
Tel: [protected]
Email: sales@linkpromotions.net
From
Here is a copy of the email that they sent, the funny thing is that they tell you to beware of scamming companies!
Subject: Link Promotions Search Services
Hello,
Further to our earlier conversation here is a detailed description of the services we will provide for you this year, our contact details can be found at the end of this email.
We are a dedicated team of search engine professionals, our sole aim to boost the amount of traffic and customers you generate from your online advertising.
With almost half of the world’s population having access to the internet and almost 90% of those potential clients finding websites through search engines it is more important than ever to optimize your website to be found easily by anyone, anywhere. There are over 23 billion web pages all in competition for the top search positions and if you are serious about your business then search engine marketing should be the top of your priorities when it comes to your website.
Services We Will Be Providing This Year
· Managed Google Local Business listing (maps always appear on the first page of the search engine results)
· Unlimited Keywords
· Pictures on the account advertisements
· Unlimited Description
· More information pages
· Targeted key phrases designed for SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
· Google Maps service including directions
· Email Links
· Website Links and Back Links
· Landline and Mobile numbers submitted to local business results
· Keyword submissions to all major search engines and crawlers (Google, Yahoo, Bing, Metacrawler, Alltheweb, Ask, Overture)
· Specific Google Optimisation
· SEO boosting service
You’ll also have unlimited key words and phrases tailored to your business, which we submitted to all major search engines. (Google, Yahoo, Bing, Ask)
The price of our services, the search engine listing and submission service this year, will be £149.99 +VAT. That will cover you for a full 24 month period in total.
Furthermore we are aware that a lot of people have been receiving calls recently in regards to similar services we offer; but then turn out to be fraudulent companies scamming innocent people. As a precautionary measure all payments are taken using our dedicated secure online payment server which accepts all major credit and debit cards. After the payment has been taken, you will receive a transaction receipt straight from Barclay’s to your email address, followed by a hard copy invoice in the post from us.
We also send out VAT registered receipts, so if you’re VAT registered then you can claim that back at the end of the year!
Kind Regards
James White jw@linkpromotions.net
Link Promotions Ltd
www.linkpromotions.net
Tel: [protected]
Direct Number for Me: [protected]
Company Number: [protected]
VAT Number. [protected]
Opening Hours
Monday – Friday 9:00 – 16:00
it all rubish if your web site is built with jkey word then the web provider do the back links link promotions cannot access this if they have not done your web site. they link you to thier web page and as far as i can find out this is what you are paying for, i reported them tio blackburn trading standards, they have threatened me as well now report thme they need closing down .
Hi I to have been coned over 1 year they have managed to take out about 2 thousand pounds from my account...
They phoned me about 1 year ago same as the rest promice you that you will be on the first page of google etc, , , what a load of rubbish, , The other day I phoned my bank when I realised that they had taken out all that money with out my consent ( the only one I consented to was the first one) The bank has put the money back in my account and have taken it up with said company and said company have phoned me to tell me that I consented to the payment so I, m fighting them at this moment any sugestings ?
repoer payment to your bank as unrecognised also repoert them to blackburn trading standards, they have also threatened me !
I have been contacted today by ROSS at Link Promotions - he will ensure listing remains for 30 months for £180. HE tells me that if we do not subscribe the large red dot with our name on Google maps would disappear and we would end up with just a small red dot with no name attached to it...Is this true?
Name was NEIL actually: not ROSS
Liam Mather? Rang my partner on 29/04/2016 and offered services from his company called: Link Promotions. He was paid for advertising and listing on google, google map, bing map, apple map etc £150.00. I received an invoice and receipt so thought they were legitimate. Then on the 17th June, 2016, Liam rang again wanted more money to renew the contact and add in more services. He had our bank details already and took another £240.00. When I rand him today 22nd June, 2016, I asked him to refund the £240.00 as he had billed/invoiced us twice for the same services. He refused! I said that I didn't want to use his services and wanted a refund, he said I could have one because I had entered into a contact, business to business and this is binding!
i reported the payment to my bank it was refunded although they have disputed this and called me a liar, repoert them to blackburn trading standards . they also threatend to rubbish my business told me as i was lying they could too
Today's phone number [protected]. The names they give are all fake so pointless listing them. They all sound like the same person to me anyway! They (he) are very persistent, turning rude, aggressive and abusive when you refuse to pay for non-existent services. Be warned, they/he do not give up for years on end - or until they/he go to Jail. I imagine, the perpetrator has just got out and is starting up his old "round" of victim numbers, judging by today's call. On every occasion, you should report the calls to TPS for unwanted sales calls and action fraud for attempted fraud. The more you report this scam, the more likely the authorities will act to stop it in future.
I WAS VERBALLY THREATENED DURING A TELEPHONE CONVERSATION, THREATENING TO REPORT MY BUUISNESS TO TRADING STANDARDS AS I WAS A LIAR AND SO HE COULD LIE TOO. REPOERT THEM TO BLACKBURN TRADING STANDARDS THEY NEED SHUTTING DOWN
I've been scammed again, some guy calling himself Thomas phoned and said my google account needed up dated, and as I run a guest house in the highlands and I like to look after my website and ratings etc, he already had my details from 2years ago and when I told them then, never to call me again, (as I knew they were scam merchants ), they phoned me 2years later under a false name name and I didn't realise until they emailed me, that it was links promotion.I immediately called them back, asking for my money back, but I received a horrible guy, saying it was to late and it had already gone through, and he then slammed the the phone down.i tried to call back, but the phone rang out...something need to be done with this scam, how on earth to they get away with it..I've been onto trading standards and they are now investigating ...I'm not hold my breath!
everyone has similar story but they denied they had ever led me to believe i was dealing with google maps, and then i was threatened by them during a phone conversation that they would rubbish my business and report me to trading standards BEWARE THEY NEED CLOSING DOWN REPORT THEM TO BLACKBURN TRADING STANDARDS THE MORE REPORTS THEY GET THE BETTER
Total scam, they conned me into believing they were Google maps I wouldn't touch them with a barge poll, please be warned, the sooner they are shut down the better. They are unscrupulous crooks and I hope the law and karma deal with them.
REPOERT THEM TO BLACKBURN TRADING STANDARDS THE MORE THAT DO THE SOONER THEY CAN BE REMOVED AND NOT SCAM ANY MORE PEOPLE PASS THIS ON
These people are doing the rounds again. They called and said that I needed to pay £199 + VAT to keep my Google listing with map detail. Luckily I never pay any online advertising straight away and always check online for scammers for anything like this. I must give them credit for persistence, as they called us back at 9am this morning to pay the "outstanding amount", but my wife said to speak to me later. Thank goodness I spotted this forum first. Here is what they are sending to people to try and scare them. Hope they get closed down soon! BEWARE!
Michael Alton
18 Apr (1 day ago)
Hello Alison,
Following our recent conversation please find an image of your Google map below.
As discussed we can remove the links to the directory sites and keep the link for your website to direct traffic to your website apose to others.
Here are the main keyword positions your map currently holds;
Guest Accommodation in Harrogate - Page 1 Google map position G out of about 523, 000 results
Bed and Breakfast in Harrogate - Page 1 Google map position G out of about 548, 000 results
Guest house in Harrogate - Page 1 Google map position J out of about 479, 000 results
You can click the links above to view your position for yourself or you can even type the above keywords into Google.
Feel free to look at the additional services below
Kind Regards
Michael Alton
Account Manager
Link Promotions Ltd
Tel: [protected]
i agree with all the scam comments i was approached just over a month ago by link promotions Daniel informing me he was from google and my free year on google maps had now ended and would i like to renew i asked him plenty of question he convinced me that my business would dissapear if i dId not do this, i subsequently found out from my web provider that this was an unnecessary expense . the money was taken from my bank under the heading of link promotions and i was sent correspondence emails from link promotions no reference to them being part of google maps at all.
i rang them spoke to Chris informed him i was not happy as i had been misinformed as to what i was purchasing, he promised to review the recorded telephone conversation and get back to me, he did not i contacted the bank and disputed the payment, it came under a heading so the bank told me as a subscription to a marketing company. all i can find is that my business has been listed on their web site. i have also reported them to trading standards currently;y waiting for some results. . surprisingly they rang e yesterday as the bank had disputed the payment i once agaion had the conversation with chris who called me a liar said it was all recorded i have asked for detailed information on what i have paid for we will see. in the mean time i told him i had reported to trading standards at which point he became abusive and threatened to report me ! i pointed out that i had not sold him anything to which his reply was that i could have and he could re[port me as i was a liar so he could lie as well. KEEP AWAY FROM THIS BUSINESS AND REPORT THEM TO TRADING STANDARDS THE MORE THAT DO THIS THE BETTER. BLACKBURN TRADING STANDARDS . THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU APPEARING ON FRONT PAGE OF GOOGLE !
He is still collecting victims me being one of them. He is now calling himself Alex Murry. I hate these companies that operator just inside the law enough so they continue to pull in victims. Hopefully Barclay's Fraud might be to put pressure on his card machine service provider to stop his victims being fleeced. And yes he is an excellent con man, the best, very professional.
I am dealing with this company at the moment. They are offering to remove 3rd party ads from my google maps. These ads target my clients to their sites, to direct people to their sites to check on availability at my b and b, thus meaning i have to pay commission to these online travel agents, rather than getting a direct booking. I am sitting on the fence atm on this offer from them, but i am getting a bit concerned that they are phoning me twice a day to see if i made a decision.They have also GUARANTEED to be on page 1 google.Guy i am dealing with is a Alex Murray
Feel a bit sick after reading the above, took the call myself and presumed he was from Google as he read out reviews from my customers that were supposed to have come from them. Not so as these reviews were from my ebay account that he had obviously just read from my feedback. This just cost me £200 as Google have just put me on google maps for free. I now have to change my card asap so he cant drip feed his own account with my money.
as a professional online marketing consultant i can confirm that Google maps is an incredibly useful tool to have, however it should not be costing people up too £1000 + vat a year, i can understand a company charging a small fee for management of the listing if they were actually doing this, but this is absolutely crazy.
I work for a company currently ranked 3rd in the UK based on reviews etc. I am sorry to hear that a company like this are really ruining my industry, i hope everyone is able to get sorted soon and wish you all the best,
Mike
Just had a call from Grant from Smart Media, he phoned me back in August 2019 and told me he was from Google, telling me that my account had expired, if I didn't renew my company would drop off Google front page and the Google map would disappear, as a business this could be a problem. He said it was £200 plus VAT, as I was busy I said ok, I paid, later that day I checked the account, I had paid for a year back in Jan 2019... I sent the company an Email asking to cancel the contract as it had not expired ( 14 days cooling off period), he said he would cancel it and refund the money, this they never done. Today 06/01/20 when he phoned, I mentioned renewing back in August, he claimed to have no knowledge of this payment! I checked my Bank statement and I had paid them, it was taken by their other company Link Promotions, exactly what do they do for the £240 they take, probably nothing... Any legitimate company would not claim to be from Google if they were not? I also told him any bona fide company would know when your account was due? like most people who have complained, when they call, they tell you they are from Google... clearly they are not... DO NOT TRUST THIS COMPANY! We have been scammed once, no more. Beware!
Has anyone dealt with "Brandon" from Link? I spoke to him this morning and said that Smart Media Solutions was looking £150 plus VAT for the same, however on researching it seems link and smart media are one of the same. He claims that there is no involvement and that if i ask smart for my google password and they cant give me it then i should hang up the phone. I have now emailed smart solutions to ask what they have to say about it all
Just been scammed by this company too just had £240 as a so say renewal taken from my card upon asking for a contract of sales and an invoice which needless to say has not materialised I spoke to a James Matthews it seems so have other people now.
Really angry that these people still seem to be getting away with it after so many people I have now seen complaining.
Just lost £150 + vat from this crazy scammers. so sad it happened to me. I taught it was from Google as they said to but unfortunately I realised after making the payment.