Original Message:
Re: Membership requirements for potential renters ($9.99 fee) (by Randy C.):
I guess I can try to clear up a couple of misconceptions here. We actually have data that you don't have.
First, 40% of the people that are PAYING for membership on RedWeek.com do not own a timeshare. They are here to buy or rent from the owners. Those that own timeshares are also renters and buyers, of course.
Secondly, we measure the number of inquiries sent to our posting members. Our posting members receive more email inquiries than the most popular "free to contact" site... over three times as many. So, it's wrong to assume that our posting members aren't getting results.
Third... yes... "tire-kicking" and fraud are less likely on our site. Most crooks are pretty lazy. They'll go where they can make free contacts too. If they pay to access members on our site they must use a credit card or a check, giving RedWeek a traceable link back to them. We did once shut down one member that used a stolen credit card within a couple of days of the purchased membership. And we contacted those that he emailed to warn them of the potential trouble. Can we catch all scams? No. But our paying members make up a much better community to work with than the free-for-all approach. We are concerned with fraud and even invented the Vacation Escrow provided now by a top-rated escrow company, First American Title.
We have regular posting members who have used us for years. Some are professionals. Some are creating small businesses in a growing "cottage industry" of people buying resale timeshares and renting them out for a profit. They don't waste their money. They use RedWeek.com. In some cases, they use us exclusively after trying all other sites.
Having been in eCommerce for over a decade now I've heard from plenty of people who are convinced they know a better way for me to do business. Most often this better way means giving them something for free.
Finally, the last person that made an especially persistent complaint about our business model is one of the small businessmen. He recently left us in a huff because we wouldn't change to the BETTER model... the one everyone else uses. Last month he quietly returned and posted over a dozen properties on RedWeek.com. We're happy to have him back. We're happy to be of service to this community of owners and travelers.
The forums have been provided as a new service to you all. We have more coming... much more.
Randy Conrads President RedWeek.com