Jeff writes, probably in the dark from under his desk, trembling in fear,

I'm working from home today and an IDT rep saw me through my ground floor window. He circled back and tapped on the window with his pen. He said "Excuse me" I looked at him, saw his IDT id tag around his neck, and said "No thank you." He stuttered slightly and said "Have a good day." Now he's trying to buzz into my building. So far no one has obliged, but is there some way to report this guy before he gains access? My apartment building is mostly old people or people who don't speak English very well, so I'm concerned about the big scam potential. If he comes by my window again I'm gonna get a picture of him for you.

A few minutes later, Jeff emailed us again. This time he was probably locked inside a cabinet, trying very hard to type quietly.

So I read some of your past articles about IDT, and called the attorney general's office. The first guy who answered said he had heard about IDT, and thanked me for calling, and said he'd transfer me to "Investigations." But when I got connected there, the woman had no idea what IDT was, and didn't really seem to care about my explanation. I even told her to go to your website. She ended up just taking my address and said she'd send a form so I could file a report. Unfortunately, there's not much to report, as I didn't let the guy give me his pitch. In hindsight maybe I should have let him in, but I have two kittens, and I read what they do to pets! [They kidnap them. -Ed.] So for now, I'm posting a note in my building lobby warning people about IDT and suggesting they visit your site for more info.

Jeff brings up a good point, which is that in NYC there are a lot of people who maybe don't speak or read English that well. In an attempt to spread the word about IDT, we've written a short Spanish version of a warning. Unfortunately, we don't know Spanish very well. Please improve upon this in the comments (maybe take out the zombie references), and we'll post a downloadable PDF warning in English and Spanish next week.

¡Peligroso!

No abiertes la puerta por zombis de IDT. [Something here like, "They will try to get your account information for ConEd, and then will switch you to a more expensive service without your permission."]

Si tu lee un IDT zombi, email detalles a escocomplaint@gmail.com, o llame 718-766-8828

You can also copy or print out this statement to get the word out.

RELATED
"New York Asks You To Report IDT Energy"
(Photo: atp_tyreseus)

• Name of the company
• Name of the company they say they represent>
• Badge number or employee name
• Date and time
• Details of what they said/did
• Send the info to escocomplaint@gmail.com or call 718-766-8828. The info will be used to introduce a resolution before City Council and to work with the New York State Department of Public Service. "We must drive IDT Energy and Midtown Promotions out of New York. They are manipulating our residents in a time already wrought with economic hardship," said Bill de Blasio in a statement, posted below.

  

...seeing an IDT guy leaving the building with "something under his jacket that he had trouble holding."

Niklas says he is working with a Brooklyn detective to track the dog. The cops released the story to the press as a police blotter item and it was published in The Brooklyn Paper. Niklas has started a Facebook group to help track the dog down. He's offering a $1200 no questions asked reward for his dog's safe return. It seems IDT Energy has found a new, lower, depth of degradation to scrape.

Help Find Milo!!! [Facebook]
A dog gone shame [The Brooklyn Paper]

....actually owns the trademarks for both DS-MAX AND Innovage.

Check the US Trademark Electronic Search System entries:

Innovage
DS-MAX
J.U.I.C.E.

An odd coincidence, considering the perverse series of emails Richard Shapero (pictured, left), Director of Nu-Life, sent in an attempt to squash our reporting and assert such distance between the present DS-MAX and Innovage/Old DS-MAX.

Nu-Life's ownership of J.U.I.C.E. is inconclusive, but readers may recall how in Brian's experience and research, Aftermax companies used "Juice," meaning, "Join Us In Creating Excitement," as a term of congratulations. — BEN POPKEN

(Photo: Profiles Of Success In Business [PDF])

PREVIOUSLY: DS-MAX Tries To Shut Down Our IDT-Energy Investigation

UPDATE: Gaby sends a final email to Richard...

Richard, I am simply not going to engage any further on this matter. Please have your lawyers contact me direct if you insist on continuing this, this conversation is getting us nowhere.

However, you should be aware that your perseverance in this matter has naturally led us to investigate your company further in order to find out exactly what all the facts are in this web of intrigue. And so it is a surprise to discover that Nu-Life is the owner of record of the the Innovage trademark:

http://tarr.uspto.gov/servlet/tarr?regser=serial&entry=78937474

We of course now feel that it is important to provide this new piece of information for our readers in order to help clarify this complicated picture. It certainly muddies the waters concerning your attempts to distance yourself and DS-Max from the actions and practices of Innovage.

Perhaps we can stop this nonsense now and all get on with better things to do in our lives. We'll move on to other stuff soon enough; but this story will run and run as long as you give us continued incentive to investigate your claims.

Regards, Gaby

[ed Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.]

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Thanks for all your feedback, it will definitely inform how we conduct our next investigation. — BEN POPKEN

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

This is part 7 of our undercover investigation into IDT Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

We met at a pizza parlor in Ft. Greene, Brooklyn. I'll refrain from details about his appearance and say only that he was wearing a T-shirt that said "Bronx" on it. He carried nothing with him, his ex-girlfriend having smashed up his PDA the night before. He seemed vulnerable because of this, but not afraid.

He told me that he had worked for Midtown in the past, and gave me some dates (which matched with his earlier statements.) He seemed pretty open to whatever I wanted to know, and had lots to say about Midtown's relationship with IDT.

"I did that. I did IDT for a while. [Midtown] will bring in marketing people, they teach you what to say, how to do it, when to do it. You go out to the territory; you go where you gotta go to get the money." He went on, covering mainly what I'd already learned. "They make you an independent contractor, they make you sign the forms. They tell you do what you gotta do."

"Did they say that? 'Do what you gotta do to make the sale?'"

He said that they are reminded repeatedly to follow the manager's instructions, but many are so desperate to make a sale, they don't care.

"So, did you see people wearing the uniforms?"

He answered in the affirmative, and mentioned having seen people in Con Ed hats and other outerwear.

"When you saw people in Con Ed stuff, where were they? Were they in the office of Midtown Promotions? Did they arrive there dressed like that?"

"No, nobody."

"So how do you know they were doing it?"

"Well, basically, once you get in the field, it's different." Vega stopped for a moment then backtracked. He started to explain how few of his co-workers were educated and wise in the ways of ethics and marketing. "They think everything they should do is for the dollar, that it doesn't matter what their company tells 'em, that it's what the individual does that counts. So, when the individual goes out in a Con Ed hat, the company just says, 'Well, we didn't train them that way.'"

I told him that I'd been with IDT for a week and that I didn't notice anything immorally deceptive, other than questionable pitches. "When you were out there," I asked, "You were just dressed professionally, with your tie, whatever. Where did other people put on their stuff? Was it on the subway...?"

"When you work with somebody else, sometimes they'd just throw on a shirt." He speculated that the workers had found or had made their own Con Ed patches and put them on some cheap blue work shirts that made them look like they were utility employees. "Or they'd go buy something that said Con Edison on it." But he said he wasn't positive how the fraudsters came about the gear, only that he certainly saw multiple employees in the field in the finished getup.

"Did anybody ever talk about it, in the office?" I mentioned several employees' names to see if it would jar any memories of wrongdoing by higher-ups.

"No, they always talked about it every day, about how we weren't supposed to do that. They could tell you in the office... but once you leave, you're an independent contractor..."

I tried a different angle. Did he know anyone specifically who knew about the fake (or real) Con Ed uniforms or wore them personally?

Unfortunately, he claimed he couldn't remember any specific names of employees who had committed fraud. Perhaps he was afraid of something at this point. He seemed to clam up for the first time in that half hour. I wondered if he was feeling protective of Midtown all of a sudden.

Look, he said, "I know there's gotta be a certain reason you're going after [Midtown], but they're a legitimate company. The only thing is... the representatives, some of them, are no good. They need to hire people who can really do the jobs and pay them a little more. But IDT is not going to pay them [enough]."

Finally, I asked, "Definitively... have you seen people you know are employees of Midtown Promotions, wearing Con Ed uniforms?"

"Sometimes. Yes."

I went to the office to confront my manager.

E: So, what's up, buddy?
B: So, Eric, I wanted to talk to you in private...
E: Yeah. You disappeared...
B: Well, there's a couple reasons why. I was sick on Friday, that is true. But... the one thing I'd like to ask you about... there are people working here that are doing things that are obviously... fraudulent.
E: Meaning...?
B: They are wearing Con Ed attire.
E: Con Ed attire?
B: Yes.
E: What're you talking about?
B: Well, actually, I'm a journalist—

His eyes bulged, but he immediately recovered and took this in slowly.

E: Uh huh.
B: And I've been investigating this for a long time now... and we've received tips that it was this company... and I met with someone who used to work here and he was willing to speak on the record, and I have a recording that...
E: ...wearing Con Ed attire?
B: They were wearing actual shirts with the words Con Edison on them.
E: Do you have... someone in here now?
B: He doesn't know, he doesn't work here anymore, so he isn't sure if those people are still working here... He said that they would leave here and that they would acquire a grey or whatever color Con Ed shirts are... and then they would have a patch made based on the logo.
E: And why would that not be brought to my attention from [before]...? Because I know that they've got their grey shirts that say IDT, the IDT laminate, the IDT card. Never heard about Con Ed, never got any complaints, never heard anything of that nature.
B: So, all this stuff about 'don't misrepresent yourself as Con Ed,' that's just from your own fears that someone will do something like this?
E: Well, when you deal with different reps, unfortunately, with different locations, you have 60, 70 reps out there... I'd love to be able to see that people do things by the book, but... when you do have complaints that come through the human resource department, you get rid of that person. You understand? People going out, using the Con Ed, Keyspan name to get a sale, that's totally wrong.
B: Would you be in trouble if IDT received complaints about employees here?
E: If I found out that that person had a Con Ed shirt on, I'd get rid of them in a heartbeat.
B: No, I mean, would Midtown be in trouble with them—
E: I don't understand what you're saying...
B: What I mean is: If someone were to get in trouble and IDT were to receive complaints, do they come down on you guys?
E: They'd call us to look into the matter... one hundred percent... because they contract us to do their marketing for them... to a hundred percent. If we have a fraudulent rep out there, we're not going to just [let them] keep going out there and signing applications. That's misleading, that's totally contradictory to everything IDT stands for. When you have two or three locations out there, and you have locations that aren't affiliated with us that are here in the city that represent for IDT, too, that we have no control over...
B: Okay. So, just to be clear, you've never heard of this... with the shirt?
E: No.
[I tell him there are articles in the Consumerist alluding to the fact that this company at this location has sent those scammers out in the field. I also mentioned that the scammers, except for the part where they replace their affiliation with the name "Con Ed," is almost the word-for-word pitch of Midtown reps. He said that if anybody used the Con Ed or Keyspan name to identify themselves, they would be immediately terminated. "If say to say," he added, "On my side, I haven't had too many issues" with employees bending or breaking the rules.]

E: ...I have nothing to do with what the [Midtown] offices outside of [this one] do... I have no control over that. They're independent offices... but as far as our side is concerned, we rarely hear about someone coming across as misrepresenting themselves. But when we find out about it, because they're independent and, a lot of times, they could be out there saying the wrong, doing the wrong things... I'm not gonna deny that... but it only comes back to us if someone complains to IDT...

DS-Max

Eric denied that Midtown is owned by DS-Max. He knew of DS-Max, having worked there for 16 or 17 years, but he claims that they are independent entities.

E: That's a big company... Nothing wrong with it... they do an unbelievable job [with] the concepts that they do. But we're independent, so we got nothing to do with them. I know they're in the city as well, I know they're in Long Island...
B: Do you think it's possible that they, because, the pitches are very similar, that it's possible that it's not Midtown, that it's a DS-Max affiliate that has an IDT contract?
E: No, I think they're also independent, too. I don't think DS-Max is involved with IDT at all.

He deflected some more criticism by saying Topline, out of Queens, also dos the same work for IDT.

E: Did you find any beef...?
B: The guy who used to work here— he was out with people who put on the shirt. He saw this while he was here...
E: How long ago was this?
B: ...about three months ago when I saw it... and I don't want to give too much detail that might reveal who he is, but it was sometime in the last two to six months that he left [Midtown.]
E: ...Well, we like to say that everything goes well out in the field until you bring something like this to my attention... we want to make sure there's no other guys doing that. Maybe it was a guy in the past, and there was a complaint [about something unrelated] and we had to let him go, and we never found out about the t-shirt. ...Maybe it's from another location.
B: The people that he saw were from this location.
E: Unfortunately, I can't have anything to say about that... I can't vouch for that, I've never heard of it.... I mean, I let guys go on two warnings on using [the name] Con Ed. What do you think I'd do about the t-shirt? And I pray to God that none of these guys here are affiliated with that t-shirt.
B: It's possible those people are gone...
E: [Bad] things that happen, you gotta let 'em go. Because if you don't, it makes your business look bad. I think if it was really that bad, the commission would've shut us down a long time ago. They send guys like you in, checking it out... you know, I've got nothing to hide... honestly, I know about the Consumerist, I know about the [intern] that came in, I had a feeling you were with them, I'm not playing games anymore. I'm just putting it out in the open. The more we hide games, the more you guys wanna run with things. [Could be a slipup or just a poor choice of words... but interesting nonetheless.] And you got in here firsthand, and you saw they aren't... switching the badges or whatever... I wish I had a camera on all these guys, making sure they're doing all the right things...

And later...

E: I've seen the pictures, I've seen [the intern's] write-up... and all honesty, as a business grows... expands... it's like anything... you're gonna have some people that are gonna do some wrong things in the field... you can't make everybody happy. As long as at the end of the day, we have people out there doing the right thing, I can go to sleep good... It's usually the newer guys," he said, echoing the same point Vega made, "that aren't as educated... as up-and-running with the program."

Eric went on to admit that he'd worked for "shady direct sales companies" in the past, but wouldn't name them. It is worth noting the following three things: he mentioned that he worked for DS-Max for either 16 or 17 years, claims to have a total of 16 or 17 years in sales, and that Vega does not remember him working there from just a few short months ago.

After the recorder was off, Eric described attacks on his business practices as being similar to attacks on journalists, trying to put it into perspective. "It's like if someone sued a reporter for defamation. That would suck." I wasn't clear what he meant, but I could tell what he was getting at, whether he was conscious of his deeper meaning or not.

Before I left Midtown, I went on Eric's computer to show him some of the other articles about IDT on the Consumerist's site. Sure enough, as I began typing c-o-n in the browser, consumerist.com immediately came up. It was also in the top ten most recently visited sites in his browser. He claimed not to have checked the site "in three, four months."

The truth is: guilty or not, Midtown Promotions is a shady bunch of shysters. Guilty or not, they're guilty of creating an atmosphere.

Eric would say I have no evidence linking Midtown to those guys in the Con Ed uniforms. Carl would say that must be some other company, and wash his hands of the whole thing. James would say I was harping on the negative.

But what I see is not just a systematic problem. I see a company called DS-Max that manipulates its employees, practices unsavory business methods, and makes sure everyone is obedient, for if they were to leave, they would be in debt and possibly homeless. I see devoted employees leaving such a company, and not seeing anything worth changing. I see them start Midtown Promotions, DS-Max in everything but name. Sure, we could've skipped the in-the-field work and just approached them with Vega's statements, but the real evidence backing up Vega is what I saw: the brainwashing, the unsupervised workers, the overlong days and weeks, the desperation to make just one more sale, and so forth.

Then I see IDT Energy, a rejoicing bunch of corporate opportunists based out of the magical Newark, New Jersey, hearing the news that Con Ed has been deregulated, and deciding to hire an unknown company called Midtown Promotions (or Figueroa Marketing, depending on whether or not you read the plaque on Eric's wall or the directory outside the office door.) I see IDT Energy, hearing of complaints from outlets such as the Consumerist and its readers. I see them, completely oblivious to complaints about the fraudulent activities of its affiliated sales people, not even (it seems) deeming it worthy of mention to Eric or anyone else at Midtown.

Midtown Promotions, incredulous that someone would take things too far when they are already pushed to the breaking point, that the sell is so desperately driven home that the seller, too, becomes desperate. Midtown Promotions, unfazed by their own role in the event that their charges, when left to their own devices, cross the line.

Midtown Promotions, sure that it wasn't their location on West 30th that sent those disgraceful, misguided, and potentially forgivable bastards out into the field without enough pep talk about fraud to stop their wicked ways.

Midtown Promotions, DS Max, Eric, owner Chris Polke, or the whole system, may be ignorant of the goings-on, but they are guilty just the same.

I watched as James got more aggressive with each door-knock, with each hour that went by without huge sales, wondering if he would end up out in the field with a guy who brought along an extra phony Con Ed uniform, if he'd be the guy in the blue shirt who one day knocks on your door with great news... —BRIAN FAIRBANKS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

(Photo: Getty)

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

Photo: James pitches his offerings to hair salon employees in the Bronx.

This is part 6 of our undercover investigation into IDT Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

Driver: Seven dollars.
James: Six!
Me: What are you doing? I thought we were taking a bus...
Driver: Seven!
James: Okay. Everybody get in.
Me: I am not paying for this. It's all you.

Doreen and I climbed into the back and James took shotgun. The driver was charming a chubby middle-aged Hispanic woman on the sidewalk with his charming and thick Jamaican accent. After a moment, the driver reached in through the passenger window, over James, to grab his business card. James jerked back in his seat. "What are you doing?!" he yelped.

The driver, still leaning over James' lap, looked at him and said slowly and distinctly, "I am only getting this woman a business card."

It was an odd moment but the rest of the ride went well, with the driver cracking jokes about marriage and riffing on the strange fellow Jamaican in his passenger seat. I got into the act and was very self-deprecating and all started out pretty well. From the rear-view mirror, I saw the rain clouds outside reflected on the driver's thick sunglasses. Then,

Driver: Where do you want to go?
James: Some apartment buildings. Take me to some apartment buildings.
Driver: Like those?

He pointed to the projects. Uh, no, not those, please.

It was 11:30 when the meeting ended, 12:30 when we got off the subway, and 1:00 pm when James and the driver settled on a drop point in a quiet residential neighborhood, consisting mainly of small cottage houses. It was about three minutes from where we got into the van.

I could tell James was amped and determined to make the top sellers list for the day. From deciding on the definite gamble of a work-a-day town like Mt. Vernon, which seeing as how it was far from Midtown, ensured us only a few hours of actual on-the-ground, to haggling with the cab driver about price, to haggling with the cab driver about where the greatest density of large apartment buildings were in Mt. Vernon (James said he scoped the area before), it was clear James had left the morning meeting as pumped as the trainers wanted him.

Doreen was aggressive too, in her own fashion. Her deal was to never stop smiling shyly. "My baby's in the hospital," she said in her Bronx accent at one point.

"Your boyfriend's in the hospital?!" I exclaimed

"No," Doreen corrected, "My baby's in the hospital."

She was twenty, Dominican, and the mother of eight-month-old girl. She'd been working for Midtown since the girl's birth. Over a cigarette and a stroll through our first neighborhood, Doreen told me about her experiences in the field. There were some days full of sales, and some just full of trudging through puddles.

Doreen and James agreed that the rain would help our sales. "People will feel sorry for us," said Doreen. The two of them swapped war stories, of the marathons in snowstorms, nailing signature after signature; of nearly 100% success rates in torrential rain.

We reached the first row of "promising" houses. James' version of "promising" houses meant one-door cottages with yards between them. For the ground we would cover, we would only do half the doors I had hit each day in East Elmhurst/Jackson Heights.

At my first door, a short black woman in her forties answered. "Yes, can I help you?" she asked politely.
"Yeah, I'm with IDT Energy, we're the suppliers for Con Edison, " I said.
"You gonna do something about how high my bill is?" she snipped.
"Well, that's what I'm here to d—"
"You gonna do something about my lights being turned off?" I saw past her into the kitchen, clearly illuminated by an overhead light.
"That's not me, mam," I started to say, "That's Con Ed. We don't have anything to do with them. We're just their suppliers..."
She continued to vent, then closed the door in my face.

Back down on the sidewalk, James called after a young Hispanic woman who had walked by him. At first, I thought he was hitting on her, but through his Jamaican accent and what I could gather as the wind whipped his voice back to me, he was asking her to direct us to any large apartment buildings in the area. James followed after the woman.

He passed alongside a basketball/handball court, clearly a schoolyard. The Hispanic woman was about thirty feet ahead when James really began to give chase. He started asking, "Is that an apartment building? Is that an apartment building? Do you live around here?"

She responded, No, that's a school, I don't know, and No. Thirty-seconds later the now power-walking woman entered a building James had guessed housed apartments. He shook his head after her.

I was unnerved by what I saw. James, a total stranger in a group of three total strangers on a deserted and rundown block, had just chased a woman by herself down the street. James wasn't swayed by my protests, saying that Bronx girls "know how to handle themselves. These are smart girls, very smart."

I argued that had zero to do with what had just happened. Even if I assumed he was right, that she was of superior intelligence, there was no way she could have known we weren't con artists, thieves, or violent criminals intent on hurting her. I've been chased down New York streets before and in every case, despite the pursuer's protestations, I can say with some certainty that these people were liars and possibly dangerous.

Still, I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, so I just suggested moving to a different area. Doreen agreed. Referring to IDT, she said, "They've already been here." James wasn't certain the area was tapped out, and besides, he said, we had a perfectly good building in front of us. All we needed to do was find the superintendent.

After ringing a few bells in the building, we gained admittance and took to separate floors. Doreen was not supposed to be working with us and vice versa, but there was no real reason why we couldn't work together. Safety in numbers was the name of the game; Doreen was young, a new mother, and tiny. And I sure as hell wanted her to stick around— her casual determination to make a buck was a nice contrast to James' relentlessness.

A woman in the lobby told us there was an office behind her building, and that we might find the super there.

James rang the office buzzer while Doreen and I hung back. After a minute, we turned around to see two maintenance men, dressed in blue jumpers with name patches. Doreen asked them if one of them was the super, and the taller, older, bulkier one said yes. At the same time, a rotund Caucasian woman with large glasses and a loud, piercing voice opened the office door. "Can I help you?" she barked.

As soon as James identified himself as a representative of IDT Energy, she cut him off. Residents didn't take care of their own Con Ed bills, she yelled. She went on to say we weren't supposed to be on the property without consent.
"I know," James replied, "That's why we are here looking for the super."
"The super's right here," Doreen called back.
But the rotund woman would hear none of it. "There's already been people through here. And now, if you don't leave, I'm going to have to call the police."

Oh, Jesus. Here we go.

"But what about Keyspan?" I heard James say, but that was the last of it for me; I had already begun the quick walk back to the street and safety. I wasn't about to get arrested for this bullshit— it wouldn't bring me any closer to the truth and would be a gigantic pain in the ass.

"James!" I called back, trying to snap him back to reality.

On the sidewalk, Doreen told us she was going to go her own way. The incident was the last straw for this neighborhood. I immediately volunteered to accompany her. I knew hanging around James was a waste of time; he would surely have spent the whole day knocking on doors of people who already switched if we hadn't put our feet down.

James began to follow us, and after losing us along the road, where he couldn't resist knocking on more doors in the middle of our discussion, called Doreen to tell her to wait.

I began to plot my getaway. Incidentally, I could hardly breathe through my nose thanks to my allergies. It wouldn't be a lie to say I was sick, and when you factor in that I had been staying up all night trying to outline the day's work experiences, it was pretty clear I needed an early end to the day to stay sane and healthy.

A woman in a real estate office James had pitched to directed him to a street nearby that supposedly featured several large apartment buildings. On our way, we stopped in one building that had its front door and second door wide open. It was definitely questionable whether we should have been there, whether we were in fact trespassing. Nonetheless, in a building of perhaps fifteen apartments, no sales were made. While working a floor by myself, I spoke to a very excited old man who told me he'd just signed up for IDT. Shit. Another building already pillaged.

Not long after this, I tried to slip away, feigning an increased illness. James instantly whipped out his cell phone and called up Midtown's office number, then tried to push it into my hand. "Talk to Eric," he said.

"That's okay," I said hurriedly, turning away from the out-thrust phone. "Tell him I'll call him later."

I never did. Prying into people's lives, trying to get them to buy something I didn't believe in, hanging out with increasingly scary people in sketchy situations... not only was it repulsive, but I wasn't getting a damn piece of information on the core reason for conducting this sordid investigation in the first place: to determine whether IDT Energy employees were representing themselves as being from ConEd at customer's doors.

I was done working for Midtown, but I wasn't done with them. I went home to transcribe my tape recordings, and post Craigslist ads looking for people with information about Midtown Promotions and IDT-Energy.

I got one response.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

Here's his filings to date:

Day One
The Job Interview
The Day Of O
Let's Get Juiced
The Meeting
NEXT: The Meltdown

We've also gone through these posts and added in more explicit info about how some of what Brian saw at Midtown Promotions tracked parallel to complaints about offices once affiliated with DS-MAX (now known as Innovage) — alleged to have been an Amway-like sleazy multi-level -marketing operation.

Add the Undercover at IDT-Energy tag to your RSS reader and watch as the story continues to unfold before your eyes like a splayed deer in the sun. — BEN POPKEN

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

It ended up being three feet from the mouth of Johnny, a trainer with a big round head and a thick accent. He was a young Asian guy, maybe in his early thirties, with spiky hair and the manner of both a computer geek who became a Wall Street broker. He was driven but goofy.

"Today, I'm going to talk to you about a place you all know. Some of you may have worked there. It's called My-Donald's," he said. On the board, he wrote, "McDonald's." Snickering here and there came from the circle.

But before he got into whatever the hell McDonald's had to do with anything, he moved into a discussion of the day before, obviously having gotten ahead of himself. "Honorable Mention. Honorable Mentions are for people that did seventy-two dollars to ninety-nine dollars. And we mention your name, give you round of applause, say good job."

Seventy bucks before taxes is barely survival dollars in New York City...

This is part 5 of our undercover report into IDT Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

Online reports about DS-MAX had mentioned meetings being conducted in much the same fashion as what I'm describing to you here. They also used the same specific terminology.

The Honorable Mentions were called out. The dollar amounts were 84, 72, 78, 97, 75. Then the High Rollers: Vladimir, 118. "Vladimir, what worked for you yesterday?" asked the trainer.

In a strong Eastern European accent, Vladimir answered: "What worked for me—yesterday—"

"YESTERDAY," answered the chorus.

Vladimir continued, referencing a subheading of the first of the five steps: "What work for me was Keep it Simple." "Keep it Short and Simple," the trainer corrected. Then, as all the High Rollers would, he recited a piece of the Midtown sales mantra, "Today, we are going to, uh, work-a hard. And-a have-a fun."

For this, he received enthusiastic applause from the trainer, and tepid but polite applause from the others. "Have fun!" the trainer emphasized, though it seemed to bounce off people's heads, which were hanging further than normal.

The trainer moved on to the big guns. Jose brought in $130. "Jose, what worked for you yesterday?" asked the trainer.

He started, "Yesterday—"

"Yesterday," said the group, not as loudly as before.

Jose continued, "I used a lot of Short Story, that worked for me. And my goals..."

"GOALS," said the circle.

"Twenty-one," said Jose.

Then there was Remmington, one of the top sellers, a quiet but large teddy bear of a man from, I think, the Caribbean who was obviously very pleased to be there, but kept cool. He pulled in $140. "Ah, what I learned yesterday—" ("YESTERDAY") "—was keep a good attitude, having fun. What I had to do."

"Do what you have to do, very good," said Johnny.

Then there was Alexi, a friend of Remmington's, who had done $150. "Juice by you," said Johnny to that.

"Have good attitude and having fun. And my goals... keep building my team," said Alexi. Lots of applause came from the group. You could tell everyone wanted to be around the big shot, adapt his ideas, pick up on his mannerisms, and mimic his charm.

Johnny went back to the board. He said, "For those of you who are new, you hear 'juice by you,' you know, 'juice' that action or 'juice' that person, you're wondering what the heck is 'juice?' Join Us In Creating Excitement."

I stared as he began writing the words, thunderstruck by their banality. Reports had mentioned "Juice" as a phrase among DS-MAX type offices, but it was still stupefying to see it played out in real life before my eyes, and being taken so seriously.

When I came to, Johnny was back to our favorite fast food joint "What kind of business is McDonald's in?" he asked. "What's their main business?"
"Franchise?" someone offered.
"Franchise? No," said Johnny.
"French fries?" came another response, to general chuckles.
Johnny continued, "When we think of McDonald's, we think of burgers, right? Cheeseburgers. Big Mac. But anyway, it's burgers. But I think a huge part of McDonald's business is actually... realty. Why? They own a lot [of real estate], what else? They're everywhere... but every location, you look around, every [intersection], you look around, you know there must be a McDonald's around here."

He turned back to the group. "Now... for those of you who worked there... how long did it take you to learn the stations there? They have a fry station, a register... drink station. How long was the training for you guys? Twenty minutes?"

Three or four people nodded their heads.

His point was that, no matter what aspect of the McDonald's restaurant operation you wanted to learn, you could get it down in about fifteen, twenty minutes.

"Simplicity. Simplicity, that's a key here." Eventually, he got down to explain what was taking a week to get across, in the most indirect fashion imaginable: McDonald's is successful because it's simple. "Simplicity is the word I'm trying to get to you guys. Sim... pli... ci— am I doing this right?"

I told him he was spelling it correctly.

"Now, our company is really simple when it comes to getting to the point. All you have to do... stick to the system. Look at it as a tunnel." He described a tunnel as having no side entrance, no way to maneuver except to keep going toward the end to get out. "You enter this side, you get out this side." To illustrate, he drew a tunnel.

"All it takes: determination, persistence. Simple as that. All you have to do is stick with the system, beginning to the end. Take the thing, put the fries in, and wait for the beep. And take it out. Right? And let's go out today and make it happen, guys!"

Juice to that! I set out for the field, not knowing that it was to be my last day pumping doorbells for Midtown Promotions. — BRIAN FAIRBANKS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

Overview
"In the US alone there are hundreds of such offices. Such independently run corporations remove ds-max from liability."
The Marketing System
"If they are earning more than that the stroke should be adjusted so that they earn $100. If they earn less it should be similarly adjusted. They don't want the guys too rich or too poor."

Atmosphere and Psychology
"...insinuated in many offices in the business...[that] if you leave the business and do your own thing that you will languish in poverty because you will not have atmosphere to rejuvenate you..."
Phrases/Terminology
"9 to 5 schmuck = some one that has a 9 to 5 job. This person is lazy, has his life controlled by a boss, will be laid off, has no sense of goals or directions and is too secure in their poor existence to try and get a head in life."
The Meeting
"It is time to get the people going but first they must be even more hyped up."
The Opportunity
"Now the owner will start to mention growth and expansion. It will be mentioned that more locations are desperately needed to handle their clients, that more managers are needed to run them!"
New locations
"That is one benefit to retraining people off of your crew. You can bond with them and they might want to follow you to your place."
How an office works
"It sold for $20. The rep keeps $9. The owner keeps 5. The rest goes to ds-max."
Employment ads and first interviews
"This is a door to door sweatshop sales job. Turn over rate is high. You need a constant supply to survive."
How to take out a day of Observation and build a crew
"You should ask a whole bunch of questions to the day of o. Find out what he likes and dislikes. What he is motivated for or running away from? If it is an older guy — talk about management. If it is a kid talk about learning and growth. If the guy hates being in a cubicle then promote the fresh air."
The History
"Murray was living out of his car. He formed what became DS-max. "
Head office, Hubs and VP's
"You walk out of one of those meetings at the end of the day and feel inspired. You are determined to be the next VP."
The belief system and life
"They will always retrain someone — even though they may not know where they might be sleeping in a week."

— BEN POPKEN

AN EXPLANATION OF DSMAX, CYDCOR AND GRANTON MARKETING [DS-MAX The Aftermath]
RELATED: Consumerist's undercover investigation into IDT Energy

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

This is part 4 of our undercover report into IDT-Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

2. An independent contractor agreement that states I will not be reimbursed for fuel, transportation, or any other expenses, am, "not acting and other capacity for us. We will not deduct or pay income tax, unemployment insurance, government plan, employer health tax or similar amounts. YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH MIDTOWN PROMOTIONS, DOES NOT QUALIFY YOU FOR MINIMUM WAGE, WORKERS COMPENSATION OR UNEMPLYOMENT."3. A "Covenant Not to Compete," stipulating that I can't call the customers myself or work for a competitor. I'm also not allowed to solicit any employees to quit.This also asks me to recognize that breaching this contract will, "cause irreparable harm to [Midtown] and that damages alone would not be adequate remedy." I shudder to think. "Therefore the Independent Contractor of part 5 shall be entitle to an injunction restraining to Independent Contractor for the commission of such breach." Correct us if we're wrong, but we're pretty sure spelling errors invalidate the clauses they're found in. That is, if they spell injunction as "incunction," they never obtain an injunction.

4. "Complice with the Law"
"You must comply with all federal, state, and local laws and licensing requirements." "You will not represent yourself in any way as being an employee or contractor representing the perspective client with whom you are soliciting for." The rest of the page contained similar language forbidding fraud and/or forgery.I also filled out a W-9 and was given a commission schedule to sign. Note under OVERRIDE SCHEDULE - LEADER. Leaders get paid 25 cents for every application by sales grunts working under them that leads to a paying customer. Assistant Managers got 50 cents. This type of commission structure suggest that Midtown Promotions is a multi-level-marketing (MLM) company. Typically, most people at the bottom level of a MLM scheme lose money.After I completed the paperwork, Eric asked a sheepish James to walk me down the Hallway of Motivation, as I dubbed it. It's lined with posters with inspirational messages, like a quote from a historical figure, another from "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," and the rest from who knows, fortune cookies and popsicle sticks. I tuned most of it out.

We were supposed to arrive at the meeting at 10, but nothing got underway until 10:30. Listening to my tape recorder, the room was a jumble of incoherent conversation, which I found even more indecipherable in person.

We all stood around in a circle of, what I counted as twenty-eight people. Chalkboards sat on opposite walls. Then a guy in an expensive suit came in and walked straight to the far chalkboard, causing the circle to expand.

"Hey guys!" shouted Jameson.
"HEY, WHAT?"
"Now, that's what I like to hear in the morning. How's everybody doin' this morning?!"
"GOOD," they shouted, in unison, in harmony, like soldiers. I felt like the one kid in class mouthing the words to "under God" in the pledge of Allegiance.

Jameson was there to go over what Midtown considers the most important part of the process: the Five Steps, a sales-closing concept that was word-for-word the same as what ex-DS-MAX employees referred to online, and in an interview with The Consumerist. They went like this: 1) Introduction 2) Short Story 3) Presentation 4) Close 5) Rehash.

While discussing the first few steps, I caught Jameson saying this about the customer's cancellation rights:

"Basically you're making sure that they know that you're not from Con Edison, that you're from IDT-Energy. That's one of the main things to make sure that we're doing, >misleading the customers."

Perhaps a Freudian slip?

Johnny continued, "All right? 90 percent of the complaints are when they think we're from Con Edison. Wear the nametags out in the open and tell them numerous Times that we're from IDT-Energy. People hear what they wanna hear— people think when you say, 'Find us that bill' that you're from Con Edison."

Then the meeting broke up with a cry of "Juice!" People milled around. David, one of the top salesman, a young guy sporting a pencil-thin goatee and with a Bluetooth earphone glued to his ear, overheard James saying I'd "done well" on my first day. David looked at me, nodded, and said, "Juice by you."

I asked Carl what David meant.

"Juice is, like... that's where it's at." Seeing my blank stare, he elaborated, "It's a compliment. It's like, that's good news."

Hardly a silver-tongued pitch, but it seemed to work five out of ten times. When it failed, it was mainly because the customer didn't speak enough English.

I practiced the pitch all day with Carl, finally taking on my own doors around 3:30. That I stopped asking questions seemed to give him more confidence in my abilities. Actually, it was because I realized he couldn't, or wouldn't, help me get any closer to verifying The Consumerist reader's complaints about fake ConEd salesmen.

I stepped into an Allstate Insurance office in East Elmhurst around four pm, trying to get an appointment with the owner. Business contracts are worth more commission. The owner was "in a meeting... till the end of the day." The other employees stood up and then sat right back down, keeping an eyeball on us. They can smell we're shysters, I wanted to mutter to Carl, they recognize their own scent.

Leaving there, I saw a woman in the second-floor apartment looking out at us through a part in the curtains. She appeared to be wearing only a bra. "Don't look now," I said, "But we have our first admirer of the day."

Carl turned to see the curtain swiftly close "Want to go knock?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Hell yeah," I said, glad for any opportunity to crack the monotony.

We entered her building through the open doors. We made our way to her second floor door, which was also open. The woman from the window was practically waiting in the doorway when we rang. She had a thick and disproportionate face, too long and large for her body, and voluminous breasts falling out of her thin white nightgown.

"Oh no, I don't pay my bill, the landlord sees to that," she purred through a wry smile

I felt Carl's grin at my back. I decided to end the pitch and get out of there. She didn't close the door until we were long gone, looking after us. Heading up the street, we saw a hand holding her upstairs curtain open.

Not long after that, I made my first sale, to a single mom I could not help but ask if she was eighteen. "Eighteen?! I'm twenty-eight!" The poor dear, I hope they lose your paperwork.

From there, I became increasingly uncomfortable with the prospect of actually making any sales. What if I ruin their lives by jacking up their energy bills?

I never a saw a single person flip over the contract and read the fine print in the terms and conditions. If they did, they might have noticed this part:Under "Rates" it says that IDT-Energy guarantees a price 7% lower than ConEd's for the first two months, but after that your price goes to a variable rate. So for the first two months customers think they're getting great savings, and then you start paying based on whatever best deal IDT finagles on the wholesale energy market.

Carl made sure all our customers initialed every point on the "Customer Acknowledgment of Agreement and Notice of Cancellation Rights," but I wondered whether all Midtown Promotion's reps were so diligent. Or if the non-English speakers really understood the form they were signing.

I had to keep telling myself that they were free to make their own decisions. But sometimes things are not that clear-cut. Maybe they were confused and thought, due to their poor English, that I was from ConEd, that ConEd was reducing their bill. That we were answering their prayers.

It was very difficult, at the end of the day, to morally justify what I was doing. I wondered whether going undercover was doing more harm than good. Could I justify possibly screwing one person, just to help others from getting screwed? — BRIAN FAIRBANKS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

"I've had complaints from residents, as well as small businesses, who have unwittingly switched to a different energy provider and seen their bills go through the roof," said City Councilman John Liu (D-Queens).

One Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, IDT customer - a bartender who gave her name as Carmel - said her electric bill jumped from $40 to $70, and she is anxious to cancel.

"I'm never at home enough to use that much electricity," she insisted.

"It's a very volatile commodity," Wanounou [IDT Energy's chief operating officer] said. "There are times we have been more expensive than the local utility. There are countless months where we can show you we are substantially cheaper."

Gerry Norlander of the Public Utility Law Project, a consumer group, said, "There's no evidence that we've seen that customers who switch save any significant amount of money over time, and there are plenty of stories of abuses."

DOOR-TO-DOOR POWER DEALS JOLTING BUYERS [NY POST]
RELATED:
IDT Energy Starts At 7% Discount, Switches To Variable After 2 Months
Consumerist's Undercover IDT-Energy Investigation

The contract says,

The price for electricity and natural gas sold under this Agreement for the first 2 months of service is offered at a 7% discount to the LDC [in this case, ConEd]. After the first 2 months of service, service is offered at the Variable Price...

Variable Price: The variable price for all electricity and natural gas sold under this Agreement and based upon electricity and natural gas market pricing, transportation, or transmission, and other market and business price related factors.

Click here for the full contract.

PREVIOUSLY:
Consumerist Undercover At IDT Energy: The Day Of O
Consumerist Undercover At IDT Energy: The Job Interview
The Consumerist Goes Undercover At IDT Energy: Day One
The Consumerist Goes Undercover At IDT Energy

I was in it for real on Day Two, no turning back now. Day Two, also known as the Day of O, short for Day of Observation in DS-Max (now known as Innovage) companies, is a field-test that no one has been known to fail. DS-Max, it has been said, will take anybody. So far, Midtown Promotion's methodology for handling new recruits seemed to be tracking parallel to what I've read are the standard practices and procedures for DS-MAX type businesses.

Eric called me into his office to quickly run down the day. "You are going to be with these two gentleman, okay?" he said, sitting down in his leather chair. He indicated Carl, a manager-to-be, and James, an employee on his third day. Carl was in his late forties, in a nice grey button-down shirt and red and blue-striped tie. James was in a suit and green tie to match the lime-green strap around his neck that held his IDT-Energy badge. He was in his late twenties, a suave and good-looking Jamaican immigrant with a wry smile that seemed to say, "Don't worry, I will get what I want."

This is part 3 of our undercover report into IDT Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

Eric barely had time for a handshake before barreling past me, flipping eagerly through a stack of papers. I sat back down in reception, waiting for the morning meeting to clear out, really wishing I could shove my tape recorder under that conference room door. I wondered if, behind those doors, employees were pledging allegiance to Midtown Promotions, or chanting "juice." Maybe they were even being given clean ConEd shirts to replace yesterday's.

Also waiting outside were five other prospects, chewing their nails and texting up a storm. My friend with the headband from yesterday wasn't there,; all of these young employees-to-be were in business casual wear, which means my attire the day before was the right choice. What I couldn't figure out was why we were wearing ties when, pretty soon, they'd surely be slipping us some shirts with ConEd patches.

The only thing I could hear over the ringing of the receptionist's phone was a smattering of applause emanating from the meeting room once every few minutes. I rose from my seat and walked to the conference room doors, hoping to peek through the crack between them. Soon, about twenty-five people spilled out of what I could see was a large, furniture-free room with a blackboard. The last employee out closed the door behind him and gave me a puzzled look.

"What was all that clapping?" I asked James later that day.

"That was the managers, the head people, giving us all the energy we needed for the day. And we were going over yesterday, seeing what was working for everyone." After a moment of thought, he added, "It's easy to lose the momentum... so that keeps the momentum going, too... keeps you focused." In researching DS-MAX online, former employees had referenced something that sounded similar to this, called "Atmosphere."

After the meeting let out, Carl, James, and I headed off to Elmhurst, Queens, so they could sell and I could learn. As we went down the stairs into the 34th St. station, something began to dawn on me. All three of us were still. wearing ties and slacks. Nobody seemed to be carrying a bag that could fit ConEd uniforms.

I asked, "Hey, so... a couple months ago... some guy came to my door and he was in a ConEd uniform selling IDT. How come we're not doing that?"

Carl's eyebrows went up over the rim of his sunglasses. "That's something different," he said.

"Were you here when they were doing that?"

"I started in October."

"It was only a few weeks ago," I said, "They wanted to switch me to IDT. When I came in today, I fully expected everyone to be wearing Con Ed uniforms."

Carl pointed to his dress shirt and snazzy tie. "I wear this every day."

I got the sense Carl was being straight with me; he really didn't have a clue what I was talking about. Still, I pressed the issue. All he would say further was, "Isn't that illegal?"

On the V train, Carl broke down the commission structure. He said it was $6 or $7 per application, up to $20 for businesses, with good people scoring 13-20 applications per day, which worked out to something around $600 a week. I wondered to myself how much the not-so "good people" got, before taxes, for their sixty hours.

Meanwhile, James peppered me with questions about what I wanted to do with my life, where I grew up, where I lived, etc. I wasn't sure whether he simply took a relentless interest in me, or whether he just wanted to practice his already well-developed conversational skills. This tactic sounded similar to what one former DS-MAX manager described about dealing with new recruits on "The Day of O:"

"...Find out what he likes and dislikes. What he is motivated for or running away from? If it is an older guy — talk about management. If it is a kid talk about learning and growth. If the guy hates being in a cubicle then promote the fresh air. If she likes international business talk about how many country's ds-max is in."

We arrived in Jackson Heights and hopped a bus into Elmhurst, arriving at our first house at 11:30. Carl picked this area, around 81st St. and Northern Blvd. He said he'd been "doing well" with it on Monday and Tuesday.

For most of the day, Carl knocked and stood at the door, while we stood off to the side. Carl didn't want us to look overwhelming. He figured more people would open the door if they thought it was one-on-one. For the first ten minutes, we got no answer for any of our knocks. Carl mentioned how do most of our sales after school lets out. Two two minutes later, he hit the proverbial jackpot: a landlord who owned lots of New York property and paid his tenants' electric and gas bills.

He was Colombian, in his late sixties, thin, and balding. The landlord seemed perpetually stressed by how little money he was making. "The market is slow, so I don't buy," he muttered. Carl ignored the chatter just— he was buried under the paperwork, writing down account and phone numbers, addresses for each service location and separate billing location. It took him about three minutes for each application, and with two applications for every property (one for electric and one for gas), he had filled out a total of fourteen forms. By the end of it, the poor guy was covered in sweat.

Carl's engrossment gave me a chance to give him a good look-over. A middle-aged black man with very short hair and a striking demeanor, he could be your bodyguard, if only he looked threatening and dangerous. He sweat constantly. "Don't mind me," he said sheepishly early on, "I sweat when it's two degrees below zero. I used to work in an ice-cream freezer; it was twenty-five below every day. My whole uniform would come out soaking wet." With his suit, sunglasses, binder full of forms, and a small towel always drying off his forehead, Carl could've been a 1960's aluminum siding salesman.

"I pay so much money," said the landlord, "I pay seven thousand dollars a year..." Carl interjected, "That's why I'm here. To save you money." The landlord continued, "They say to me when I call, I have to pay. [Otherwise,] call Bush. I'm not kidding." In the last two months', at one house, he was billed nearly $1,100. "I don't cry about it, I don't cry about the bills. I've had twelve surgeries in my body..."Most of the rest of the day's sales were was less eventful:

• A woman who said, "My roommate pays the bill and we haven't opened the new one yet."
"Do you have an older copy of the bill? We can use that."
"No, she keeps all the records."
"Are you sure? Can you call her?"
"I can call her." Then, a few moments later, "Yeah, she's not— uh, I can't reach her, so..." No sale.

• "Uh huh. Uh huh. Uh huh. Interesting."
"Do you live here?"
"No. I'm just the painter." No sale.

• "Hello, good afternoon—"
"She not here."
"She? Who's she? You don't even know who we're here to see." No sale.

• "Hi, good afternoon, sir. My name is Carl and this is James and Brian, and we're from IDT-Energy. (Pause) Is there anyone in the house that speaks English? (Pause) All right, you have a good day, sir. (Pause) "We get a lot of cancellations from Chinese people," Carl mused, "They're the biggest cancellation rate."

Most of the day's sales were with non-English speakers. Since Carl spoke Spanish and I had forgotten most of mine, their conversations were lost on me. "Does anyone in the house speak English?" was our constant calling card. Often, a child acted as translator for immigrant parents. The kids came to the door, homework and pencil in hand, and explained the savings program back to the adult. The parent usually signed, giving the papers hesitantly back to Carl, and, by the end of the day, James, who started to take more initiative at the door.

At one point, James called up to a child in a second-story window who wanted to know why we were looking for his parents. James looked at Carl for help. "Should I say the same pitch? Should I say IDT or Con Ed?"

"Do the same as you would if they were at the door. Make sure you say ConEd. They hear ConEd, they'll come down," said Carl. That house is where James made his first sale.

At another house, James commanded, "Just get your bill, we'll be right here." "Oh, oh, okay," said the Chinese woman, flustered by James's unvarnished attempts at a hard sale.. Returning to the door, the woman seemed more relaxed. "We use very little, but we pay a lot. You IDT? Not Con Edison?"

"Con Edison got deregulated in 1997, so they can't make energy," Carl explained, sweetly. "Now, we're the suppliers, we supply energy. See here, on your bill? Where it says when you 'go to a new supplier to reduce your charges and lower your taxes?' Okay?" The Chinese woman nodded.

As Carol was about to get into discussing Keyspan, everyone but the woman watched as the front door swung toward us with a gust. It closed, and locked.

She didn't have her keys. Of course, just then, it started to rain. Carl and I cast a chagrined look at each other.

James offered the woman his umbrella to keep while she stood in the doorway, waiting for her son to come home from work. It could be an hour or more, she speculated. Her next-door neighbors came out of their house to bring in their kids.

Carl said, "Why not go inside with them? You want me to see if they can help you?"

The woman nodded vaguely, not looking at us.

"You can't ask your neighbor?" asked Carl again.

She hemmed and hawed. James and Carl asked her neighbors' permission to let the woman in. Warily, they said yes. Suddenly, the Chinese woman began sneezing non-stop for at least five minutes straight. "It's allergies," I told her neighbors.

When we left her, the woman stood under the doorway, almost walking in place, and not looking in our direction. Her neighbors shrugged, went into their house, and closed the door.Right: IDT-Energy's Terms and Conditions. Click to enlarge.

We hardly rested all day long. Lunch lasted 10 minutes, including pizza, on me, and a bathroom break. I spotted James, though he never got me back, even after cashing his paycheck at a check-cashing place later that week.

Back on the streets, James took the lead while I hung back to chat with Carl. It was apparent James had done the math after moving up from "clearance," a sales job that involved wheeling junky toys and gadgets around in boxes to local businesses. This caught my attention, as online reports mentioned how DS-MAX-type businesses often focused on selling small items n the street, in parking lots, and to small businesses.

Indeed, according to DS-MAX's trademark application, their goods and/or services include:

Mops; bakeware; bath sets, namely sets containing two or more of garbage cans, tissue covers, toothbrush holders and soap dishes; bottle openers; bowls; bowl sets, chopper boards, namely kitchen boards for chopping vegetables and the like; canteens; car seat coolers namely food coolers used inside a vehicle; car dusters, namely dusters to remove dust from vehicles; comb sets; cups; cutting boards; freezer boxes, namely plastic containers for food; frying pans; hair brushes; graters, namely cheese graters; garbage baskets; household dusters; kitchen graters, namely cheese graters; kitchen scrubbers, namely pot scrubbing pads; ovenware; plates; plastic bowls; poultry cooking sets, namely turkey basters and turkey sewing needles; rubber brooms; scouring pads; shower caddies; serving spoons; soup ladles; spoon sets; tea sets; vacuum bottles; travel mugs; utensils for barbecues, namely, forks, tongs, turners; insect traps; portable beverage cooler; non-precious metal candle holders and candle holder sets; non-electric cooking pans; household containers for food; hand-operated kitchen tools, namely egg beaters, whisks, rolling pins, spatulas, turners; fitted picnic baskets; plastic food, coffee and teas canisters; portable blenders, namely hand-operated blenders for mixing beverages and liquid food; salad tongs; scrubbing brushes; empty soap bottles; tea strainers, wine strainers, cooking strainers; household spatulas, household spatula sets; teapots made of non-precious metal; brushes for cleaning vegetables art boards, namely boards used for drawing, painting or creating art; art sets, namely sets containing two or more of crayons, paint, coloured pen sets, pens and paper; atlases; photo albums; bibles; boxed stationery; calendars; crayons; crayon and paint sets; diaries; dictionaries; encyclopedias; erasers; flash cards; eraser sets; greeting cards; markers; juice books, namely cookbooks containing recipes relating to juices; memo pads; lunch bags; pens; pen sets; pencil cases; pencil sharpeners; note cards; office diaries; paper boxes, namely gift boxes; personal organizers; phone indexes; puzzle books; recipe books; stacking boxes, namely storage boxes for storing paper; stationery boxes; staplers; calligraphy kits comprised of calligraphy pens and paper; compasses for drawing or drafting; desk stands and holders for pens, pencils, and ink; empty designer gift bags made of fabric or paper; paperclips and letter clips; desktop organizers, organizers for personal use, organizers for stationery use; document portfolios, stationery-type portfolios; paper mail pouches, paper pouches for packaging; stationery sets comprised of stationery paper and pens and envelopes; answering machines; batteries; battery chargers; battery converters; binoculars; boom boxes, namely mini, portable stereo sets; calculators; camcorders; cameras; CD-Rom cases; CD players; cordless phones; electronic organizers; emergency lights; fire extinguishers; fridge magnets; headphones; magnifying glasses; mouse pads; pre-recorded CD-ROM's containing music and games; FM radios with scanning tuners; radios; radio speakers; telephones; televisions; emergency auto kits comprised of a hand held spotlight and battery charger; dog alarms, namely alarms for ensuring canine pets do not leave their containment area; electronic game programs; cassette recorders, car cassette players; personal cassette player with a radio, personal CD player with a radio; computer game cassettes, computer game software, computer game discs; magnifying lenses; pre-recorded CD-ROM's not containing software; pre-recorded videos, namely movies and instructional materials; video game software; thermal forks, namely barbeque forks with a temperature indicator IC 008; US 023 028 044; G and S— beard trimmers; cutlery; cutlery sets; flatware; hair clippers; cutters, namely box cutters; eyelash curlers; driver tools, namely hand-held screw drivers; hair removers, namely razors; hand tools, namely non-motorized tools, namely screw drivers, pliers, wrenches, files and rasps; knife sets; knives; kitchen knives; pliers; pocket knives; pizza slicers; razors; slicers for slicing fruits and vegetables; scissors; scissors sets; socket sets; travel kits, namely manicure sets; can openers; manicure sets; nasal clippers, namely clippers to trim nose hairs; pedicure sets; non-electric peelers, namely tools to peel the skins from fruits and vegetables; hand-operated food processors; hand-operated ratchet sets; hand-operated screwdrivers and screwdriver sets; non-electric shavers, air hockey games; backgammon sets; baseballs; bean bags; black jack games; board games; card games; chess sets; dart games; dolls; doll houses; catchers, namely fishing lures; handheld unit for playing electronic games; magic sets; jigsaw puzzles; paper and model playing kits, namely toys of all types made of paper and paper model toys such as trucks and airplanes; pinball games; plush toys; poker games; puppets; toy racing cars; stamp sets, namely sets of toy rubber stamps for making impressions; soccer balls; rolling hoops, namely toys comprising hoops that can be rolled; three-dimensional puzzles; squirters, namely toy water pistols; toys, namely, water guns, wind-up toys, plush toys, dolls, cars and trucks; walky talkies, namely toy communication devices; toy building blocks; card games, board games, battery-powered computer game with LCD screen which features animation and sounds effects, travel card games, travel board games, travel hand-held computer games; inflatable beach balls; and handheld units for playing video games.

Anyway, James made a lot of money in clearance and, after a few signatures for IDT-Energy, could see there weren't enough hours in the week to make the same in his new position. James didn't complain, but he kept asking Carl about how often Carl works and if Saturday is a bigger day than, say, Wednesday.

As the rain and vicious wind continued, we ducked into a large apartment building. We hit a series of doors where the maid or the kids were the only people around, then later made one or two sales in James's name. About midway through, a very tall man in his late fifties swung open his door and bellowed, "What do you want? Hurry, hurry, what do you want?"

Carl gave his entire pitch in one incredible run-on sentence, but the old man just yelled at him to go away. Later, the old man interrupted us as we were selling to someone down the hall from him. "I despise ConEd and Entergy," he yelled, mistaking us for a rival ESCO.

Back at HQ, I had to fill out a quiz on the five steps of sales. I had no idea how I would memorize those five steps and all their multiple subheadings and very precise, vague language. Nonetheless, I gave Carl a nice write-up on the questionnaire that asked things like, "Based on what you observed, what did you enjoy the most?" Then I moved on to the actual quiz, which thankfully was more or less "open book."

The questions, none of which I had trouble finding the crowd-pleasing answer to, included: What did I enjoy the least? What good working habits would make you more successful? Why is it important not to let the "no's" bother you? etc.

After that, I was ushered into Eric's office for my "second interview." His blond hair was neatly combed and goatee perfectly trimmed. Despite working 70+ hours a week, he always looked like it was ten am, had had eight hours of sleep, and his coffee had just kicked in.

7:20pm: Eric's office

Eric: Hey! How are you, sir? Welcome. Have a seat!

Brian: Sure.

Eric (referring to the piles of neatly stacked IDT-Energy apps): Don't mind the mess in the office. So, you were out there today. Questions, sir, any questions?
Brian: Uh... nothing that I... Carl was pretty helpful, I probably bombarded him in the first hour, but after that it was learn-by-doing.
Eric: Very good. Right, and as you understand as far as what you've seen today... Carl... it's part of his responsibility that he's normally doing "twenties."
[e.d. As in, number of applications per day.]
Eric went on to describe for me "just how much can be made" by multiplying Carl's totals with the number of other hard workers, 5-6 days a week, times three offices, times 52. I couldn't keep track of the numbers made it sounded like a lot of money.

Eric: Now, are we currently looking [for] long-term career people for sales? No. Don't get me wrong, some people like it, enjoy it, make good money with it. Um, but the aspiration side of it, we are looking to expand it. Currently, the owner has six locations on the Eastern seaboard. We're looking to grow it further, but the only way to grow it further is internally... we are looking to promote from within. So, we are looking for people who want to learn the system. I know some people come in for just summer schooling... so we're fine with that. Is that something that's of interest to you, Brian?

Was he already beginning to tenderize me for "The Opportunity," where the office encourages the low-level worker to worker up to a leadership position and eventually open your own office that takes part in fulfilling the contracts the "spawning" office gets?

Brian (reflecting back Eric's excitement): Yeah! Yeah!
Eric: And if I were to accept you, would you be able to start immediately?
Brian: Yep.
Eric: And no other questions before I wrap up? I know it's been a long day for you, I know it has been for me...

The only I could think of was, yeah, where are you hiding the ConEd uniforms? Instead, I just shook my head and got the hell out of there.

I had hit the pavement for ten hours, with no fake Con Ed outfits to show for it.

But what about James asking Carl whether he should say IDT-Energy or ConEd? That sat uneasily in my stomach, along with how we were successfully targeting non-English speakers, frequently through their children.

My body ached. I could hardly stand up. My shoes stunk, my feet stunk. My hair was a mess. I had unnatural cravings for boxes of sugar-drenched energy bars. I couldn't get any sleep. I didn't want to do it. I don't want to do it. I will not do it. I have to do it.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

Even if you're making $600 a week, that breaks down to less than minimum wage once you factor in spending half the day selling, and then rest in hype meetings and hanging out with other the other MLM heads from the "office."

Why then do the grunts keep toiling? They're told that if they prove themselves and start bringing in more recruits, one day they'll move up to manager and someday be allowed to open their own office, and victimize a whole new batch of suckers.

Unlike a straight pyramid scheme, MLM is a smart virus. It keeps the host alive enough to continue drawing blood and replenish itself. — BEN POPKEN

[Image via Discover Vancouver]

steve-o: i was looking for a summer job and wanted to get into marketing, i was answering a classified ad
benpopken: where was this? and what year?
steve-o: in Maryland, 2003 or 4
steve-o: These guys were a subsidiary of DS/Max, I forget the name they used
steve-o: the beauty of it, they said, is that you could really work your way up in the organization
steve-o: So I interviewed there, then they let me know that they don't accept many people but I had succeeded and should come in the next day
steve-o: on my way out I saw the chanting but didn't think much of it
benpopken: what were they chanting?
steve-o: I wish I remembered the exact phrasing. They said it was Latin, it wasn't
steve-o: it was just complete nonsense
steve-o: it was a call and response, I learned it on my third day but I forgot pretty quickly
steve-o: It did, however, succeed in getting you psyched up for the day
steve-o: So anyway I come in the next day and it looked like pretty much everyone that had interviewed the day before was there
steve-o: I went with my 'trainer' Nick, who would be showing me the ropes while I earned little over minimum wage until I bought my own inventory. He told me I wasn't supposed to sell while training, but we all know we want what we can't have, so I told him I was sure I could do it well, and started selling his product for him
steve-o: We were going to corner stores and parking lots in the poorer areas around Silver Spring. We would approach people and tell them about the amazing products that we had
steve-o: Steak knives and some toy were my first products, great combination there
steve-o: it dawned on me pretty quickly that this wasn't marketing but being a sleazy salesman, but I was too excited to really let that sink in
benpopken: Were they Cutco knives?
steve-o: ha - no they weren't, although i did have friends that were selling cutco
steve-o: thats leaching off friends and family
steve-o: this was going to complete strangers
steve-o: End of day, went back, they made a big show about who had sold the most inventory, then they chanted some more. I tried to follow along
steve-o: So I go home, but before I do Nick tells me everyone is going out for pizza later, would i like to come along.
steve-o: about half an hour after i get home Nick comes by to pick me up (as per our agreement)
steve-o: and we all spent the next few hours shooting the shit at a pizza parlor. I would have had beer but I was under 21 at the time
steve-o: so they tried to keep you around all the DSMax people so you wouldnt realize you arent doing anything else
steve-o: So my third day (second on the job) was more of the same stuff. Most people really didn't appreciate us essentially door to door selling, without the doors
steve-o: went to different poor areas and tried to sell more schlock, I found I was pretty good at convincing people to buy crap
steve-o: they had a 5-step selling process, let me see if i can remember it
steve-o: Introduction is your name
steve-o: Short Story, where you're from, what you're doing there
steve-o: Presentation, you show them the product and tell them how great it is. It was key to get it in the customer's hands
steve-o: once it was in their hands, people consider it closer to theirs.
steve-o: Close, you get the money
steve-o: and then Rehash, you offer the NEXT product
steve-o: the most important thing to do was close first, and THEN rehash, don't offer another product before you have the money from the first
steve-o: otherwise people could change their minds
benpopken: so when did it start losing its luster?
steve-o: once i realized I wasn't seeing any of my friends, and was wandering around trying to sell crap to people who didn't really want it or could barely afford it
steve-o: Anytime someone said "Hey Guys!" you were supposed to respond with a loud "Hey What?!" kind of like a camp cheer
steve-o: so I talked about my job with my dad who wasn't too keen on it either, it was inconvenient, and i never got to see my friends. I ended up taking a job as a Host at the Dave and Buster's restaurant.
steve-o: wow, memories
steve-o: there were four impulse factors
steve-o: FIGS - Fear of Loss, Indifference, Greed and Sense of Urgency
steve-o: We're offering a great deal, but we won't be there in 10 minutes, you don't want to lose out on it.
benpopken: So you were to try to instill FIGS in your prospects?
steve-o: exactly
steve-o: through the five steps
steve-o: I got quizzed on these at my interview btw. they gave me a sheet and had me learn it for an hour before I even spoke to anyone
steve-o: so that's DS/Max. We passed by people selling deals for AT&T that worked for the same company, same rules, etc
steve-o: im sure whoever's selling IDT et al are using the same "time tested techniques"
benpopken: Did you ever see any of those people say that they worked for those clients directly, instead of identifying themselves as working for another company?
steve-o: I only passed by them, we stopped and had a quick chat because my manager/supervisor guy knew one of the women that was selling to the businesses
steve-o: They're salesmen over there (that was 90% of their work force) - they know how to sell you on the concept of a special team that you're joining
steve-o: and you sign up and follow because they make it exciting and fun.
benpopken: Did they tell you anything about benefits for signing up more employees?
steve-o: it was so long ago, there might have been.
benpopken: What happened when you went to quit?
steve-o: i called in to quit
steve-o: they laid the biggest guilt trip on me
steve-o: talked about how much promise I'd showed, and that they had thought I was better than this
benpopken: I think everyone with an interest in sales ends up working for places like that once in their life.
benpopken: But then they slowly peel back the onion and you realize its rotten.
steve-o: except for the people that completely buy into it
steve-o: the guys that i met there were the epitome of salesmen
steve-o: the 'regional managers' and essential owners of the company were 26, 27
steve-o: worked their way up the pyramid to have their own mini-pyramid beneath
steve-o: HA! On completing the reading of the Job Interview saga from Brian, that line is exactly what they gave me!
steve-o: about the slots, only two being left, i seemed like a great guy, etc
benpopken: Yeah, it's weird how they all have the same strategies
steve-o: because its all from the same manual
benpopken: Each office spawns more offices
benpopken: because up and coming managers who build teams are encouraged to start their own office
benpopken: and they run them the same way as they were trained
benpopken: (is what I've read)
steve-o: honestly, I read a book called "Coercion" by Douglas Rushkoff, and it discussed cults at one point. Point for point it was exactly the same as my experience with "B2B marketing."

— BEN POPKEN

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Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

Photo: The walls were the same color as their door, but much more faded. And ugly.

This is part 2 of our undercover report into IDT Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

Now, from what I've read, in all the ads DS-MAX put out for prospective new marketing slaves, there is always a contact person, female first name only, and the office's main phone number. This name changes at different points so they can track where prospects come from. An old high school buddy of mine, who called me when he saw the first diary in this series, confirmed this, among other DS-MAX rumors. For his protection, like everyone else you'll meet in this series, we're giving him a pseudonym.

Jonathan worked for an East Hartford, CT based DS-MAX affiliate right after 9/11. He says they screwed him over almost daily, including when he was forced to pay for his own transportation, hotel, and expenses while attending a sales conference in New Jersey.

The lecturers there really worked him over, he says, using every trick in the book to get him to fall in love with his job. On returning to Connecticut, he was out at 11pm one night when a call came from the office, ordering him to come in immediately. He had an elderly underling of his in the backseat and made a quick illegal U-turn in the ghetto of Hartford. The police took one look at this odd couple, cuffed Jonathan, threw him on the front of his car, tore up his seat upholstery, and wrote him a $400 ticket. When Jonathan quit later that night, his employer didn't reimburse him for his troubles. A several-hundred-dollar check for salary and reimbursable expenses promised to him by the company never materialized.

These were the type of people with whom I was desperately trying to get a job.

Ring, ring.
A female voice greeting me with, "Marketing!"
"Hi, good morning. Who do I speak to about getting a job in sales?" I asked.
"Hold on, please."
After ten minutes, a new voice says, "We're holding interviews today at 2:30. Can you make it?"
"Ah, yeah... sure."
"Dress professional. 115 West 30th, fifth floor, suite 500, between 6th and 7th. Bring a resume. What's your name and phone number?"
I gave them my real name and my new phone number.

The building directory listed "Figueroa Marketing" as occupying Midtown Promotion's same office space.

The office, pictured at right, reminded me of the offices in movies about conmen, which always seem to choose as their setting cheap, drab rented spaces, with hustling employees and ringing phones. Then, when the jig was about up, we see the same place, except emptied, and decaying. Midtown Promotion's office was already decaying. Dust spun between the bare, faded-green walls. It didn't matter what else was in the room, even the nice leather couches and sleek glass receptionist's desk couldn't offset the walls' hideous glare.

On the sofa across from me sat a fidgeting, endlessly jumpy twenty-something black guy in baggy clothes and a headband. I'm white, 5' 11", wear glasses, and look like I should be an assistant professor of literature. If they weren't going to hire me, it's because I didn't look as desperate and as out of it as he did.

I only waited about thirty seconds before Eric, a blond guy in his late thirties and smiling at all the right moments, his head perpetually tilted sideways, never giving you all his body language, came in and snatched up my resume, whisking me off to his office.

Eric showed me into a spacious office. At least a dozen people could crowd into the area behind the guest's chair. Everything looked new: the walls, the wood flooring, the desk, the huge bookshelf behind the desk. Ah, I thought, here's where the money goes. Why waste it in reception? If you just push a few more doorbells, crank out a few more sales, and you could be like Eric here.

Right away, Eric noted the political and cultural experience on my resume and wondered what the hell I was doing in his office. I told Eric I ran into "Jose," a guy I knew from a catering gig, on the subway the other night and he had told me to stop by if I was looking for work.

"Ah, Jose," recalled Eric with a nod. "He used to work for us in Chicago. What's he doing now?"

I almost burst out laughing. "Jose" was the cover story we concocted in case I was pressed about how I heard of Midtown Promotions. I almost missed Eric's next question. He wanted to know why I was interested in door-to-door sales, seeing as I didn't really "look like" their typical applicant.

I said, "Last year, I was in politics... and there was, of course, a petition drive... it was something nobody else on the campaign was excited about, so I guess it caught me off-guard a bit when I found that I had the knack for it and even loved it at times. Just the idea of selling people on something, of convincing them face to face..."

He interrupted me. I forgot they don't actually care about what you've done, who you are, or whether you came to the interview in bondage gear. They just need warm bodies.

Eric then offered me the vaguest company description I've ever heard. Midtown Promotions was a place that did direct marketing, door-to-door, and other kinds of sales. And that's about all he said. He never talked about pay rate, hours, or who their clients were. At one point he was rambling about "the 99 cent stores we sell to." What? Oh God... I hope I don't get hired to do that. God forbid somebody who I went with to high school is in there and sees me berating the owner for not buying more day-glo plastic umbrellas with ducks on them.

One of the strangest moments came when I realized he stumbled over the name of his own company, as in: "Well, we here at, this is, uh... Midtown...." He looked like he wanted to continue but changed his mind and just left the name as Midtown.

Throughout the interview, Eric's eyes bulged with excitement, like he couldn't wait to tell me the next part he loved about the job. And I won't say he has a permanent smile, but pretty close. He made me feel like he was the head of a big, boisterous family of salespeople.

Luckily, from what I gathered from Eric's monologue, I'll probably be working on the IDT-Energy campaign. As the interview went on, well past the standard five minute mark written about in many ex-employee testimonials, Eric gradually worked his way up to a speech I'd seen word-for-word in many an online testimonial from ex-DS-MAX interviewees: how the sales field is very competitive, they have so many applicants for so few slots...

"...and for what we're looking for, we only have five slots." Now, I thought, here comes the part where he says, I'll call you tonight and tell you whether you have a second interview tomorrow. Then he said, "And this interview really doesn't tell us much... I mean, what is a resume, really? We need to get to know you and this doesn't say anything." Suddenly, his demeanor changed. I could hear the mechanism, the gears, grinding a bit. "Like I said, we only have five slots available... and only two slots left.... wouldyouliketobeinoneofthosetwoslots?"

I did indeed.

"All right, Brian!" Eric said, jumping up to pump my hand.

I found myself already on my feet, excited and worried, wondering if maybe my vigorous handshake meant I was already getting carried away... — BRIAN FAIRBANKS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

When the Queens Tribune asked about their business practices, IDT Energy said, "This is not a scam, but it is something new to people." From reader reports, and what they saw when IDT Energy came to their door, The Consumerist knew this statement was disingenuous, and they hired me to prove it. I was instructed to get a job with a marketing group called Midtown Promotions, which is actually the company that allegedly sends out the impostors. I was going undercover...

This is part 1 of our undercover report into IDT Energy, an energy reseller in the New York area...

Between Friday night and Tuesday morning, I spent nearly all my time prying into Midtown Promotions, one of the companies contracted to get subscribers for IDT Energy. Evidence suggests that Midtown Promotions is a subsidiary of the DS-Max corporation, which itself is reputed to be a sort of international pyramid scheme operating since the late 70's. I'm overwhelmed, exuberant, and totally terrified.

[ed. In 2003, DS-MAX split into three groups, Innovage, Cydcor, and Granton Marketing. In 2006, a company called Nu-Life bought all the rights to DS-Max's name. Why? We have no idea.]

IDT Energy is one of New York's 36 energy service companies, or ESCos, following Con Edison's deregulation in 1997. The New York Times put it this way in an August 2000 story, saying that thanks to deregulation,

Con Ed was required to sell most of its power plants and customers were permitted to buy their electricity from private, unregulated companies instead of being forced to buy it from Con Ed. No matter which company supplies the electricity, however, Con Ed continues to deliver it through its wires.

So, now that Con Edison is merely your energy provider, each month your electricity price is determined by the fluctuating open market, which could mean you are paying a higher rate than if you were to sign up with a supplier, such as IDT.

The information I pieced together online made DS-MAX/Innovage affiliates look pretty awful— for the employees. The sales force earns only $6 for every signature they get. But while the sales force earns at best $600 a week for sixty hours of time on the clock, the management is clearly earning more, judging by their expensive watches and suits. There also seems to be an emphasis on employees building a "team" that works under them. According to Wikipedia,

"While DS-Max as a whole has grown quite large through the years the vast majority of distributors and managers have not achieved the high level of success that was promoted to them during the initial recruitment process. In the 20 plus years of operation the DS-Max business model has generated some tremendous success for a small group of Vice-Presidents, or as they are referred to now, National Consultants, but the question of how many have found success in DS-Max compared to the number who have attempted to achieve success can only be answered by analyzing accurate and detailed records of these organizations and their affiliates. This type of public financial disclosure is almost impossible to obtain because each individual office is privately owned and thus they are not required to disclose this information."

The tales turn twisted in online forums like DS-Max - the Aftermath. I read stories from ex-employees telling about six-day weeks at ten or more hours a day for a miserly commission and no possibility of serious advancement. There are allegations of brainwashing, all-day training sessions designed to erase thoughts of self-worth or of quitting. What was I getting into?

Still, there's more. I'm reading stories about brothers and sisters not seen since their hiring, lost to an organization demanding endless hours and offering below minimum wage. Bankrupt college grads paying their own way on road trips undertaken with those same leaders. Training sessions designed to mind-rape the susceptible go-getter looking for a big break. DS-MAX took over, took all, and left their employees nothing, former workers allege. As one ex-DS-MAX victim tells it on Wolfram.org: "When I finished with DS-max I had $80 in my pocket, was $16,000 in debt, had a repossed [sic] car and not a place to stay. This was after four years of dedidation [sic] to the business." And that was from someone in management, the vaunted position sales slaves are promised if they bring aboard enough other sales slaves.

Monday was a sleepless night. There were just too many questions: Is it really true that DS-MAX, which reputedly influenced the business practices of Midtown Promotions, practiced subtle forms of mind control on their employees, and kept them so busy they don't even see loved ones, or even call? And how might door-to-door salesmen for IDT-Energy get away with wearing Con-Ed uniforms when they don't work for Con Ed? Would management be aware of this? Is Midtown Promotions even the right company to focus on?

I took a step back. Forgot that I was working for the Consumerist. To go undercover, one goes beyond Method Acting. When De Niro assumes the role of a bloated boxer, he gains weight and acts like a roughhousing bastard for a few weeks. But, he experiences little actual risk. We don't know what kind of people might have been behind DS-MAX, or run Midtown.

I created new e-mail accounts, and phone numbers. I didn't change my resume, except to leave out that part where I worked with Billionaires For Bush, a satiric street theater troupe. It's always fun to do these things when it doesn't matter if someone finds out who these crazy e-mails are coming from. Undercover, any slip could blow the entire operation.

Nonetheless, I knew I would wake up Tuesday morning and that there would be no turning back. Once I was hired, I would have to see this through to the end. — BRIAN FAIRBANKS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Day One
2. The Job Interview
3. The Day Of O
4. Let's Get Juiced
5. The Meeting
6. The Meltdown
7. The Confession

Note: No definitive ties have been established between Midtown Promotions and DS-MAX/Innovage.

August 1, 2006: "the IDT sales rep. told him to sign up or else he will be fined"
October 09, 2006: "Look out for a man and an African-American woman sporting a ConEd binder..."
November 27, 2006 : "On my block they were buzzing people and saying "We are from the electric company there is a problem with your bill."
December 04, 2006: "A couple of months ago my 15 year old son opened the door to a man claiming to be a conEd representative. The man convinced him that we could get a much better deal if he signs some papers, never mentioning anything about switching to another power supplier. I now got my bill with $100 in service fees."
December 21, 2006: "Yesterday, a salesman from IDTenergy knocked on our door. He lied and said he was from ConEdison and he said there was a problem with our electric bill."
February 08, 2007: "Today a representative of IDT Energy came to my door (we do not allow canvassing in the building), presented herself as a Con Edison employee, (her EXACT words were "I'm with Con Ed")..."

So, we sent a writer to work for Midtown Promotions, one of the door-to-door companies that gets subscribers for IDT Energy. Unlike last time, this one got successfully hired. Now that he's done working for them, we'll unveil his diary entries and the results of his first-person investigation.

Fire up the popcorn and subscribe to the investigations tag. — BEN POPKEN

Chris Polke, CEO, quickly emerged. We went back to his office as he complained about the freezing weather. A second interview was needed for several reasons: to talk up the company, walk us through their procedures, and authorize a background check.

As he talked, we took another opportunity to look around. Adorning his shelf were three binders marked "AT&T," "Verizon," and "Ad Book," next to more binders marked "Figueroa Marketing." Above were several rhinoceros models. There was also a picture of Chris holding what appeared to be one of his offspring.

We were once again given the intro spiel about deregulation, and how Chris has been working to offer consumers a choice. Rather than sell his business, Chris seemed to be going out of his way to prove that he wasn't evil. He stressed that his fourteen years in business were earned by forming a bond with his customers, and that Midtown Promotions had in place extensive quality control measures. "What would happen," he asked rhetorically, "if someone had a bad experience? Would they let me sell to them again?" Keeping the customer happy is important. Midtown doesn't deceive their customers - quite the opposite. They carry badges proclaiming they are IDT representatives and placards declaring they are not from the utility company. More importantly, one of Chris' rules is "no surprises." That means the first bill the customer gets has to meet their expectations. Chris didn't elaborate how he, CEO of Midtown Promotions, ensured that the first bill would meet expectations, but did stress that customers could call anyone - IDT, their salesmen, or him to cancel anytime. If the customer is happy, Midtown gets business from the referrals that the happy customer generates.

...Which doesn't jive with the reports we've heard. People complain about shady salesmen claiming to be from ConEd. Not IDT representatives with placards declaring they're not from ConEd.

According to Chris, his customers can expect to save up to 7% off their current energy bill. Of course, that's not the average, but it can be up to 7%! ConEd even wants us to switch - why else would they offer us tax incentives for switching?

Chris explained that IDT's own procedures ensured that customers were switching out of desire, not pressure. He showed me a form that declared in big letters "Switch & Save." Customers had to sign the form, which declared all the sorts of thing you'd want a customer to declare: that they know they're talking to IDT, not their utility company; that they have three business days to cancel (requirement of state law); that the price of energy fluctuates and some bills might be higher than others; that they have not been pressured or coerced and all that good stuff.

The most common question is: "will I be leaving ConEd?" Somehow, the answer is no. See, you're not leaving your local utility; ConEd still transports your energy. You're switching suppliers. Chris wasn't sure why the form said "Switch & Save." ConEd transports the energy IDT supplies. On top of that, according to Chris, IDT is able to generate savings by buying energy when it's cheap and storing it for later.

A customer signing up for IDT through Midtown doesn't just sign a form. That would be too easy. Each switcher has to sign the "Switch & Save" confirmation form; that form lists the customers contact information, which is used by Chris' "quality control unit." Each customer gets a call from the "quality control unit" to ensure that they actually want to switch, and to answer any questions that might remain. Once they're confirmed, they get a welcome letter from IDT and a goodbye note from ConEd.

Great, so we don't really scam people. We're honest salespeople trying to make a living. But before we could be hired and sent out to observe, Midtown needed to make sure they weren't being scammed. They needed to check our background. Once we were verified as clean, they would bring us back for formal training. We asked if there was anything we could review in the meantime - policies or sales materials to study? Everything in the training, it turns out, is on the Public Services Commission website. They weren't sure when they could have us back. 90% of their representatives work on the IDT account, and for some reason, IDT has ordered them to freeze all hiring. Chris thought it was because they were coming close to hitting their ceiling, which isn't, he stressed, a sales quota.

We took the background check form and went back to the waiting room to fill it out. We handed the form to the receptionist and noticed that the stack of papers on her desk were forms marked "Switch & Save." We thanked the quality control unit and left...

We never did get a call back... let's just say we made a mistake on the application... We'll get it right next time though...

Previously:
Your Questions About Our Interview With IDT Energy's Scammy Marketing Firm Answered
Consumerist's Job Interview With IDT Energy's Scammy Marketing Firm

• Q:...Is this a pyramid scheme or a multi-level marketing scheme? What's the difference?

A: In pyramid schemes, everyone loses but the guys at the top. Multi-level marketing schemes spread the wealth more equitably. The people at the bottom work according to the law of averages, which says if you knock on 100 doors, at least 5 people will say yes. From that, management adjusts your commission so you can earn something of a living...

• Q:...did you notice any of that "upper-level management" other than this guy [Chris Polke] in question? Any offices for such?

A:Yes. In addition to Chris' office, there was another office occupied by someone in "upper-level management." He too, conducted interviews. There was a third room we only caught a glimpse of, but it was large space with a whiteboard.

• Q:...Did they mention anything about salary, or hours?

A: Didn't anyone tell you not to ask about salary during the first interview? Where are your manners? They spoke about both. The hours are Monday through Saturday 10am-8pm. The salary works out to about $100 per day.

Previously: Consumerist's Job Interview With IDT Energy's Scammy Marketing Firm

Their headquarters aren't impressive. The security desk is unmanned. The elevator to the fifth floor opens onto an unkept hallway with a yellow door labeled 500 and 500a, next to a sign reading "Figueroa Marketing." The reception area was staffed by two women. We announced ourselves. We said we were there for an interview after reading an ad in the paper. They gave us a form to complete. It asked for the usual.

Everything, save the lies, was the truth...

Interestingly, they didn't ask about our education. We returned the form.

We sat on their faux-leather couch and watched two or three people walk through the corridor off from the reception area. They seemed to be walking too fast, darting into nearby rooms. We were convinced they were checking Consumerist.com. Like the old ladies watching Chris Rock, we dialed 9-1, and were just waiting for something to happen. Instead, they summoned us.

We were introduced to Christopher Polke, CEO. About 6'2", Chris had a pockmarked face that wasn't helped by his black suit and tie-less white collar shirt. He led us into his office, down a hallway covered with cheesy motivational posters. Attitude, quality, and a nice print of the Brooklyn Bridge at the end. Chris' large office was much more respectable than his wardrobe. Two leather chairs faced a wood desk sporting a flat panel monitor and a voice recorder. Behind the desk, past Chris' chair was a bulletin board with a piece of paper reading "Department of Labor."

The interview was short and to the point. He asked about our work experience. We told him we sold electronics for Radio Shack while in school. We emphasized the person-to-person nature of the job and stressed that we enjoyed working with people in a collaborative environment. He asked if we knew what deregulation was. We said no. It turns out deregulation affects utilities!

Until a few years ago (cue ominous music,) ConEd generated AND transported electricity. "Like a monopoly," we offered. But thanks to d-e-r-e-g-u-l-a-t-i-o-n, consumers now have a choice. Midtown Promotions (didn't the door say Figueroa Marketing?) works on behalf of IDT to offer consumers that choice. ConEd still delivers the energy, but consumers can now choose to have it generated by IDT. It's not like Radio Shack, where the consumers would come to us - we go to them, but after that, it's the same person-to-person sales we knew and loved.

We asked about career paths, since we're in this for the long-term. Within three to four weeks, we can build a team of our own, and if we work hard, within nine months we could be upper-level management. Chris asked if we like working as part of a team. Hardball question, but we thought "yes" was the right answer. It turned out teams are important. They're not just looking for people who can sell, they're looking for people who can lead, people who work well with others. But they can't really see what we can do in a three to five minute interview. Oh no, that would be rash. Instead, they (might) bring us back to work with one of Chris' associates for a day of evaluation, or day of observation. We'd spend one day, one-on-one, learning the ropes and seeing what we're capable of.

We told Chris this all sounded great. But Chris wasn't sold. The competition is pretty fierce. He couldn't guarantee that we would get the job, but said he'd be in touch later in the evening. We await with baited breath...

Next: The second interview...

Previous IDT Energy posts

T.O.P Marketing, Bronx, New York and Midtown Promotions New York , NY. Note Midtown's hiring process in this page from Rip Off Report. Based on the following comment in Rip Off Report, it's possible that Midtown Promotions is a DS-MAX affiliate, a shady cabal of multi-level direct marketing companies.

On one of the walls is poster of a rhino. And the poster explains the quality of a rhino. I saw this poster when i first came there and didnt think much of it. But looking at it closer, just the other day, there is the DS-max insignia on the lower hand the poster.

This adds an interesting wrinkle to our intern insertion quest. To get hired to work for IDT, you would probably want to go through one of these companies. One could probably dig up more companies by scanning the help wanted section and reading between the lines on some of those "introductory sales jobs."

But how do we know if they're currently running an IDT campaign? — BEN POPKEN

Previously:
Oh, We See, IDT Outsources Their Door To Door Sales!
Help Consumerist Get A Job With IDT Energy