Live data from Hacker News

Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

vintank.com

21–30 of 42 posts

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#21
"We really believed in them and made a rare mistake betting on their horse. The net net is that we picked a 'dog.'"

The real mistake was betting on game mechanics without understanding the underlying psychological principles. The vast majority of 'game mechanics' startups are con artists, and without understanding the academic research on motivational psychology you're just giving your money away.

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#23
post #19
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be fair to the Scavngr folks, inexperienced self-flattering wankers that they are, I don't think it would've made any difference whom these people chose as a technology provider as it is evident that Vintank lacks the basic clarity required to a) identify and understand current or future trends in the market and b) they can't even keep a fucking blog afloat, a pretty basic task that should've been learned after a…

Wow, you don't know us at all. Thanks for your responses although they lacked in any understanding or research. If you had dug deeper you might have noticed that we have all been successful and we are both a work tank and a think tank. We have one of the most prestigious clients lists of any digital agency and a PROVEN track record for success. To answer your statement: A - We have led the industry for years as an in…

Call and position yourself however you'd like. You're a social media consultant in an industry experiencing 25% growth over the past decade. You're riding the coattails of an artificially segmented industry that produces a drug that has sold itself with little to no branding for thousands of years and whose major players are trying to grab as much market share as they can before people tire of snooty enoteca employees and they stop overpaying for labels they know nothing about. Anyone can be successful when people are throwing money at you, Paul.

And yet you fail to understand a basic point:

Scvngr isn't playing their little games any more because there's no money in it.

And you don't understand the technology industry. One look at Scvngr's about page would've clued you in.

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#24
post #9

Getting a server error when I hit the page, so pasting the text of the article below: One of our jobs is to find technologies that will help the wine industry succeed. We often look outside the wine industry to find incredible solutions that help wineries in any way possible. Through extensive research, analysis, and lots of white board sessions we try to surface the technologies that seem most helpful. Fortunately w…

If these were really "promises", they'd be in writing, no? Why is this being handled in a blog post, and not in a lawsuit for breach of contract? Something seems to be rotten in Napa Valley...

I routinely work with vendors who make non-contractual promises, where the only recourse is damage to their reputation and the probable loss of me as a client if they break them.

Not everything needs to be a contract or a lawsuit. Sometimes it's fine to take a man at his word, and then simply tell him to walk away if his word is no good.

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Scvngr, not Scavngr.

I couldn't even be arsed to spell it the way they want. That's my level of enthusiasm for them. It's branding failure on their part as I live down the street from their office and see their ridiculous vinyl-wrapped Cayenne all the time. On another note, it occurs to me that the complaint levied against Scvngr, albeit illegitimate, is quite common. Normals couldn't be expected to understand what exactly it is they're…

It does seem a little pot calling the kettle black. From VinTank's about us page - They created "entirely new set of optics for the industry. This would build a framework for understanding the possibilities created when wine and technology collide"

Wait, what?

They built an optical table? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_table

More likely they typed up reams of drivel like the above that they sell to wineries

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#26
post #2

Slightly offtopic to the article, but is it just me or does anyone else think the wine culture and an iPhone app + game mechanics just don't go well together? I mean, the people that enjoy wine seem to be, well, just enjoying it without needing any additional incentive to have more of it? "Sample five wines and you get X points with a 'Wine taster' badge!". Just doesn't sound quite right does it ?

Actually it does, it sounds like you have't spent a weekend in the Sonoma or Napa Valley area (I don't mean this disparagingly).

A large part of what you do is drive around a large countryside tasting wines at various family owned and operated winery tasting rooms, interspersed with tasty meals. Many of the best wineries are way off the beaten track and there are many wineries who only sell their wine at their tasting rooms so getting traffic into them is crucial.

Something like what scvnger provides would be a great way for those who don't know the area to find some of those off the beaten track gems.

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I couldn't even be arsed to spell it the way they want. That's my level of enthusiasm for them. It's branding failure on their part as I live down the street from their office and see their ridiculous vinyl-wrapped Cayenne all the time. On another note, it occurs to me that the complaint levied against Scvngr, albeit illegitimate, is quite common. Normals couldn't be expected to understand what exactly it is they're…

It does seem a little pot calling the kettle black. From VinTank's about us page - They created "entirely new set of optics for the industry. This would build a framework for understanding the possibilities created when wine and technology collide" Wait, what? They built an optical table? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optical_table More likely they typed up reams of drivel like the above that they sell to wineries

Yeah, but typing is work, even if it's drivel. And changing the logo on your blog? Well that's creating different companies, apparently.

The problem with SMDB's is that they actually believe that what they're doing has an impact not just on the segment they're repping that morning, but in the technology as a whole. But god forbid you should ask them for any deliverables or whoa, metrics. That's when they shut up and become resentful. Like my barber does when I scold him for sharing out loud that he's part of the fashion industry. He's not; he's a fucking barber just like Paul is a booze promoter on par with the girls who walk around half naked giving out free samples or schwag, usually from that shit brand you never want to drink. Except he uses optics or something.

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#29
post #24
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If these were really "promises", they'd be in writing, no? Why is this being handled in a blog post, and not in a lawsuit for breach of contract? Something seems to be rotten in Napa Valley...

I routinely work with vendors who make non-contractual promises, where the only recourse is damage to their reputation and the probable loss of me as a client if they break them. Not everything needs to be a contract or a lawsuit. Sometimes it's fine to take a man at his word, and then simply tell him to walk away if his word is no good.

IAAL, and I do agree with you that contracts are overkill in many cases. However, if you are complaining publicly about another business breaking promises, I think it reflects poorly on you that you didn't get those promises in writing. That's what contracts are for, after all. You don't see Fortune 50 companies griping about shady suppliers on their blogs for a reason...

Re: Scathing review of Scvngr by burned customer

#30
post #22

Was vintank a customer? Were they paying for any services? Edit: the blog comments feel like Astroturf. Edit 2: submitter looks like a sock puppet account.

Abe Froman here. I'm no puppet. I've had this account for a while and had never heard of these guys before I saw this post (I don't even drink wine). With all of the hyperbole and big money around companies like scvgr I thoughtit was interesting to hear theother side
Post reply on HN