10-28-12

'Lesson' 1:

Anybody who has been in business long enough will have their fair share of lessons learned through Hard Knock University.  VIP is no different & after seeing our story help so many people, we decided to write it down for your benefit.

Our evolution has been both positively and negatively impacted by the mistakes we've made.  We share this tale of our missteps in hopes that you can navigate more clearly through the complex world of finance and prevent similar set-backs in your life.   

In 2007 a large real estate education organization approached one of the original founders of VIP, Matthew Pillmore, to request his participation in a national effort to provide consumers with cash flow and credit education. 

The mission was too good to pass up. During the last 6 months of working alongside the company the directors of VIP Enterprises gradually realized that we did not share the same priorities as the CEO of the other company. VIP has always believed that the core of good business requires under-promising and over-delivering. 

Sadly, the individual in charge slowly began to practice the opposite approach. The decision had an immediate impact on his clients and therefore VIP's decision was to discontinue an affiliation with his company. 

Upon recognizing the differences, VIP had no choice but to instantly draft a cease & desist which officially terminated our affiliation with his company.  

Believing he was no longer working in the interests of his clients, VIP was compelled to engage in a vigorous legal effort alongside the AG to shut down his operation. 

Most people have come to realize, the internet can be a source of both good and evil.

Shortly before we succeeded in helping the Attorney General shut down what we saw as a developing unlawful organization, we became the subject of an aggressive online investigative report written by a debt elimination competitor. 

In his blog, the author compared our services to the other company's. During his investigation, he learned of VIP's previous participation with the subject of his investigation. Therefore he unprofessionally assumed that our business ethics and values were on the same level.

After months of highly emotional online rebuttals,  the author eventually acknowledged that he saw tremendous differences in VIP's priorities, customer service, guarantee, and reputation to that of his target subject. Even after 3 years, he was unwilling to remove the portion of his report comparing our company to the other, regardless of the admitted inaccuracies. 

Listen up, because there is more to learn about creating quality partnerships. During this same period, VIP was approached by a highly respected investor from PA.  After learning about the incredible work we were doing for people, the individual saw an opportunity to invest a substantial amount of money into our rapidly expanding company.  After months of clean due diligence, we agreed to sell him 10% of the company. 

Less than 1 year later, shortly after the AG was successful forcing the other company out of business, we discovered heartbreaking news that the investor we sold 10% of our company to was being accused of investor fraud. 

We could not believe it. Here we were licking our wounds from one bad affiliation and now we're suddenly connected to another self-serving individual?!

Again, we immediately jumped into action and worked with the receivership in the case against him by writing a check to pay back the original investment in full. Thankfully he was later convicted and sent to jail where he was unable to cause further harm.

We are grateful for the lessons and the growth these experiences have provided because it has taught us to carefully choose our alliances and encourage you to do the same. It has also been a great opportunity to showcase our desire to always do the right thing even when life throws curve balls.  

The moral of this story is that you are always smart to work with people who choose to be transparent and honest. 

'Lesson' 2:

Many of the VIP coaches, mentors, members, and students are experienced real estate investors. 

Unfortunately the market crash of 2008 left many in a tail spin.  

So when does it make sense to consider options that may appear to come with negative results? 

Like so many other questions, the answer depends.  In 2009 the President of VIP Financial Education, Matthew Pillmore, was faced with the same questions.  He found himself with an apartment complex that lost nearly $180,000 in value and was just breaking even every month.

How did this happen??  At the time, investors were 'promised' a life of real estate that could only go up in value, right?  After nearly 1 year of emotional paralysis, Matthew finally requested direction from financial coaches, and the logical decision to short sale the property through the bank was swiftly made. 

Being a nationally respected credit expert made this decision very difficult at the time. However, he has benefited tremendously by the decision and credits his coaches for helping him gain clarity during a very emotional period.

His credit scores were repaired and back into the 700's within a year of selling the property and he's been able to help hundreds of people through similar experiences. 

At some point, nearly everyone is forced to make difficult financial decisions.  Our ability to teach from experience only increases the value we provide because we can help you avoid many pitfalls common with even the most difficult choices.  

We are pleased that our missteps can contribute to our education in order to provide you a trusted source of powerful financial know how. Thanks for your confidence in VIP and our proven systems.