This post is in support of Blog Scam Awareness Day. Today was named as such in response to the experiences many bloggers have experienced in dealing with Sarasota, Florida based blog and web designer, Jessica (Bailey) Sanderson, formerly of Delicious Design Studio. It is important that our stories get out there – not just in the distant hope of getting our monies refunded, but more so to raise awareness of Jessica and other people like her, that look to exploit honest bloggers by promising quality design work and great customer service, but end up robbing people of their money.
I started this blog because I enjoy writing, and the sense of community that comes from posting my thoughts in an open forum where people can interact. What better way to connect with people from all over the world? And I picked the WordPress platform, because I love the configurability of it, and the seemingly limitless ways to customize it. In addition to thousands of free themes, there are tons of amazing and reputable designers out there who put their talents to work in creating custom themes that reflect the unique personalities of the blogosphere. It was my intention, shortly after I moved to Wordpress, to have a custom theme made by one of these designers, as I loved the idea of having something that was made just for me. After reviewing some portfolios, I decided to contact Jessica Bailey, of Sarasota, Florida. At the time, she owned her own design business, and the site for that business had some really great, eye-catching designs. There were numerous accolades on her site from happy clients; I thought that her work was awesome, and that her talents were a perfect match for what I wanted my site to look like. Had I known then what I know now, I would have had the sense to run for the hills rather than hire her – this is my story.
In March of 2009, I contacted Jessica via e-mail (the only option presented on her business’s website, whcih should have been a red flag from the start). I described what I was looking for, and generally what my blog was about. She got back to me within a day and told me that she was really happy I’d contacted her, and that she was excited to work on my blog design. She explained the process of how everything was going to work, a price quote for what I was looking for, what I could expect as far as timeframes from start to end, mock-ups, etc. I told her that was fine, and that all was a-go. Very shortly after that I received an invoice. I wanted to make sure I made it onto her (apparently rapidly filling) schedule, so I paid it immediately. I e-mailed her to confirm that she’d received the payment, which she had, and she informed me that I was on the schedule for “summer”. While I thought that was kind of a long wait for a simple blog design, and not entirely certain of the exact meaning of “summer”, I kind of chalked it up to her having a lot of clients (her designs were great, so it made sense) and left it at that.
In July, I decided to touch base with Jessica, just to see where things stood, and maybe get a clearer picture of “summer”. I didn’t recall her e-mail address off the top of my head, so I once again contacted her via the “Contact Us” form on her business’s website. Rather than getting a response from Jess, though, I got one from a gentleman I’d never heard from before. He informed me that he was the new owner of the business, and that Jess was no longer affiliated with them. He gave me her personal e-mail address and said I could reach her that way. This is when the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach started. But I still wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt, so I contact Jess’s personal e-mail. She got back to me and very breezily informed me that yes, she had in fact sold the business, and was designing under her own name. She assured me that she could work much faster this way. She also told me that I was on the schedule for the third week in August, and my design would only take about 5-7 days to complete once she started. I felt somewhat reassured at this point. I still had a nagging bit of doubt, but ignored it and once again let things be.
On September 8, I still had no design, and hadn’t had any contact from Jess since our exchange in July. I sent another e-mail, wanting to know what was up. She said that she had started on my design the week before Labor Day weekend, and would have it to me within a week or two. I was more than a little bit annoyed by this point, what with two blown deadlines, little to no communication, and nothing to show for my frustration. But, I reasoned, I had paid her, so she’ll do the work she was paid to do. I was, apparently, completely wrong. And her e-mail response on September 8 was the last I’d heard from her.
Now, it’s February 1, 2010. Nearly a year since this whole debacle began. I’ve sent her multiple e-mails, even offering to let her “off the hook” of designing my blog, if she just refunded my money. No response to that. I filed a complain with the Attorney General in Sarasota, and e-mailed her to let her know, thinking that might get a response – nothing. I e-mailed her to let her know I’d filed a complaint with both PayPal and my bank in an effort to get my money refunded ($212.50, FYI), and I got nothing back from her. I also e-mailed her to let her know that I’d contacted an attorney, again to no avail. I’ve messaged her on Facebook (her profile is private, so I couldn’t post anything on her wall) and got nothing back. I sent her a message on Twitter, where we mutually followed each other. Her response was to not only stop following me, but to block me from following her or sending her direct messages. Where before, I could potentially believe that maybe she just wasn’t getting my e-mails, I now had proof that she was actively ignoring me, as well as going out of her way to eliminate methods of contact.
While I should have done it sooner, I began researching Jessica Bailey, now Jessica Sanderson (one of the last Twitter updates she posted before I was blocked from viewing her feed was that she’d married her longtime boyfriend, Conor, a tattoo artist in Sarasota). Each day that I looked, I discovered that I wasn’t the only person who’d been victimized by her – not by a long shot. I now know of at least 30 people she’s scammed, and have been in personal contact with many of them. The amounts of money she’s stolen (because this is theft) range from person to person, but are generally a couple of hundred dollars – not a huge sum when looked at individually, but quite a bit when you realize how many people have been affected.Many of these victims are also located in other countries, which means that they have little to no legal recourse. These two facts (amounts and locations of victims) could lead one to speculate that she thought this through – if you’re scamming people who have no legal right to sue in this country, and you’re taking amounts of money that would be dwarfed by the cost to legally recover anyway, it becomes all too easy to make fast money. Add in the fact that you’re nearly unreachable, and it’s a nearly perfect scam. This is a scam I’ve got a feeling she’s been looking to duplicate, too – in the time surrounding all of these issues, Jessica started a number of other ventures, and was designing under other names. Do some looking online for references to webdesigngal, patternsandpixels, thetattooedmama, and jessicalenee (to name a few) and you’ll start uncovering details that can help piece this all together.
I don’t know if I, or any of my fellow victims, will ever have money refunded. And I think I speak for a lot of us when I say that it’s mostly a matter of principle at this point, anyway. We were all taken in by someone in whom we had at least some level of trust, and that trust was exploited so shamelessly by someone who obviously doesn’t care about hurting people. I worry about the kind of example she’s setting for her young daughter, and it bothers me that she’s raising her (at least partially) with stolen money. I worry about the victims who invested money for web designs for their businesses, who subsequently lost money because Jess’s lack of work prevented them from launching their site on time (or those few who DID receive a design from her, but it turned out to be so poorly done that they had to hire someone else to fix it). The list goes on and on.
So many of us have been ripped off in various ways by Jessica Bailey, and it’s disheartening to think that she’ll never attempt to right the wrongs she’s done, or even give a damn about them. But, maybe by banding together like we are today, those of us who have a story to share about how they’ve been scammed by her can draw some attention and make her take notice, and also maybe prevent this type of thing from happening to others in the future.
I can’t believe how many people this woman scammed over! I remember back when I first started blogging so many people raved about her designs and I was TEMPTED myself but just couldn’t afford it. I’m glad I couldn’t afford it now.
I honestly can’t believe how DISHONEST some people can be. It never fails to surprise me.
Oh my. Well, I’d like to say that I’m sorry for the bad experience you had! Not everyone is like that in our profession. The thing you should know is that You never pay unless you have seen and read the CONTRACT, which the party is obligated to give you. I also don’t have a telephone because I’m from Europe, and It’s much easier to communicate via skype or e-mail… So in the future, be careful about not being the n1 client. For that kind of a design You should not wait more than a month from start to finish to be working perfectly and put online!
Best of luck in the future!
Igor –
Thanks for the comment, and for the assurance that not all designers are scammers.
I have definitely learned my lesson, although I didn’t give her any money until she sent me an e-mail outlining the terms. I do agree, though, that the fact that the only means of contacting her was e-mail should have been more of a concern for me. I suppose that the fact that I’d been in contact with her for some time previously (via Twitter) as well as the reviews I had read about her work were, initially, enough to make me feel more comfortable about it. I was, obviously, very wrong.
Thanks you again for commenting, and your well wishes. I’ll be posting updates about this whole situation as events warrant, so feel free to stop by again!
Melissa
In an effort to make resolution with any displeased clients of Jessica Bailey, I would like to open forum for conclusion on this matter with any former clients that feel their situation unresolved.
First and foremost, I apologize to anyone that was trying to get a hold of me at the mamabearjess@gmail address, as it was compromised (still looking into this legally) and I have a new address created to address any complaints or feelings of an unresolved situation pertaining to my involvement in my former design business. Although it seems timely and convenient for me, it is anything but, and I would like to extend my new email address as the first step towards evaluating concerns, complaints and resolving issues associated with my name.
To those who feel left out, ignored or victimized, this was never my intention, and to anyone that feels swept under the rug or taken advantage of, I am wishing to try to come to a mutual agreement and resolution quickly and fairly upon evaluation of your individual complaint. This email being compromised was an unfortunate event that led to many emails going unnoticed and misplaced and for that I apologize. What my intentions are, are not only to clear my name, but to come to peace with people that feel that they were done wrong. Unfortunately all concerns may not be met to expectations, and every complaint will be evaluated fairly, and cross referenced with my records and the legally binding contract each patron agreed to when signing up.
Every situation is unique to the client, and not everyone will be able to walk away feeling like the resolution was what they had in mind. However, in lieu of agreed upon contracts, I am willing to listen to complaints and hopefully come to a mutually acceptable agreement that might even surpass your expectations.
Unfortunately I have been painted as something I am not, and many of you feel I painted myself into that corner myself, for that, I again, apologize. Not all clients were able to financially continue with projects, agree upon minor details and some just became disenchanted with the entire process after the fact. Deposits were in place to hold a spot in the design que, pay for any preparation and thought, and to ensure the seriousness of a client. Deciding a month later that they no longer wanted to wait on the waiting list is not grounds for a refund any more than the insinuation of threats against my well being or the safety of my family, extended and otherwise, is for lack of enchantment with this entire process.
For some clients, a few projects that were lost in the mix have already been refunded, some partially, some entirely. Unfortunately their information has been, and will continue to be kept confidential, despite continuation of slander and denial of such.
I am willing to work with all clients who signed up before the transfer of the business to the new owner and would like for you to send your complaints to my new email and add any exchange of emails relating to your situation we may have shared to ensure I have read them to begin with.
I know that some people are going to be unhappy with my work, despite the numerous clients that were more than pleased. Bad news travels a lot faster than good news and each specific situation is unique to the client. Some may truly have been lost in the mix, some may be unhappy with small aspects of design, and others might be upset that they didnt fully understand the contract before agreeing to it and have used the public forum of the internet to harrass me into doing what their wishes are. I will respond to complaints accordingly, and expect our exchanges will be posted, and hopefully with a feeling of resolve.
I intend on making what’s right, right. If you feel you are owed a blog, a re-do, a refund, partial, entirely please email me at momtattooed@gmail.com
Jessica –
Thank you for coming forward to make things right and for wanting to open the lines of communication. In the interest of honest dialogue, I wanted to pose some questions to you. I would very much appreciate it if you would take a few moments to answer them. These are not meant to be defensive questions, but they are questions that I (and many others) have been asking for a long time and I think, given what we’ve been through, we deserve to know these things.
1. When was your e-mail account hacked?
2. Why didn’t you make an effort to contact your clients and let them know that the reason for the delays rather than just ignoring them?
3. Why didn’t you inform your clients that you were selling your business, rather than letting them find out on their own?
4. Why, when I contacted you on Twitter in regards to my design, rather than explaining what happened, did you ignore, and then completely block me?
5. Why did you ignore the messages I sent you on Facebook?
6. Why would you think that anyone would give you their home address for a refund after all of this? We all paid you via PayPal, and that’s how we should be refunded.
7. If only “some” of your clients’ designs or emails got lost in the shuffle, why is it that so many of us haven’t received any communication from you at all in response to messages we’ve sent? You’d think that some of our messages would’ve gotten to you.
8. Why, if all of this is the result of your e-mail account getting hacked, are there people who’ve had the same issues going back even further than this current group of us?
9. If your husband only heard about all of these problems in the past couple of days (as he implied in his e-mail to me), how did he get the e-mail address he used to contact me, when it is not published anywhere and was removed from this blog 2 weeks ago?
I’m not trying to discredit you or question your sincerity in making this right. But there are a lot of inconsistencies in how all of this went down, and now that you have the forum to set things straight, it would be greatly appreciated if you would do so.
I look forward to hearing back from you.
I’m just curious if you’ve had any sort of resolution regarding this whole fiasco? She got me, too, hook, line, and sinker.
Someone claiming to be Jessica posted over at the Delicious Design Studio–NOT blog claiming her email had been hacked, yadda yadda yadda, but she’d be happy to refund those clients who ’slipped through the cracks’ if only they’d email her at this new address. That was almost a month ago, and of course, I’ve not heard anything back. Not that I expected to–it’s been over a year since I’ve gotten an email from her–but still. Seems to me if she spent as much time honoring her contracts as she did defending the verbiage in them, she wouldn’t be in this mess.
I’ll tell you exactly what she did with your money: she just bought a new car, house and loaded up her new house with new furniture from IKEA!!! And her husband just recently opened up his own tattoo shop.
It’s a shame that she did this to people.
Wendy,
Unfortunately, I was aware of most of this. It makes me sick.
I don’t suppose you’re still in contact with her? And is she living in Florida, or is she back in TN? I’ve gotten some conflicting info.
Thanks!
Melissa