IBD’s MarketSurge: A Comedy of Billing Errors – Backed by Dow Jones.
I signed up for a 6-week trial of MarketSurge for $49.95. Surprisingly, they actually delayed charging my credit card, even though I was almost begging them to charge me. Just 3 days later (and still no payment), they cut off my access completely.
They came back with an apology, reactivated my access, and suddenly charged me $185.94, more than triple the advertised amount. I pointed out the error → more apologies → full refund.
Then the real chaos began:
They asked me to try again, but the system marked me as "trial period already used" and blocked me. They offered (as a let's say reimbursement for the annoyance) a 3-month trial plan that was 39% higher than what was publicly advertised. Meanwhile, they have been sending me promotional emails during July 4th with even better deals than all of the above. None of which I was able to take advantage of due to a system error.
Although it was entirely their fault (and they admitted it in writing), they eventually stopped responding altogether, even after I reported the issue to Dow Jones corporate communications.
And to this day?
Their marketing department continues to send(automated) promotional emails as if nothing had happened.
Honestly, I have never seen such chaos. Even a 5-person startup wouldn't be this bad at billing and onboarding customers, let alone a "premium" platform backed by Dow Jones that charges $150 a month.
I have since used on to other tools (like Motley Fool and Tickeron) that are both cheaper and absolutely professional.
Just be careful: If something goes wrong with MarketSurge, you're on your own - no matter if you're paying $150 a month.
PS: All of the above is backed by written email communication.