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July 09, 2007

Google "Forging" of Two "Testimonials" Attributes Statement to Wrong Guy...Can You Be Hurt By The Implications?

If you put John Edwards and Forge Consulting into your Google search engine box you will find a search result that falsely implies that now Presidential candidate John Edwards said "working with FORGE Consulting is beneficial to everyone involved". If he did wouldn't it be something that FORGE Consulting would want to state directly?

It is interesting how the Google search algorithm "forges" a purported statement which FORGE Consulting attributes to David Bikofsky (one time President of the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys) to NOW PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE JOHN EDWARDS! The only reason Google is able to do this is the way FORGE Consulting has constructed its testimonial web page. One wonders what prior knowledge FORGE Consulting had in its placement of "testimonials" on its web page.

Either way the search result is misleading in that it falsely implies that John Edwards actually said that "working with FORGE Consulting is beneficial to all parties involved". If a statement is false and misleading and, as a result, consumer relies on that false and misleading statement in either his/her initial interest decision OR the actual decision to buy, to the potential detriment of the consumer and competitors of the consultant/seller, how fair is that?

This is is of course separate and apart from the John Edwards Forge Consulting question which this blog has been discussing for 105 days plus, since March.

This post should be a warning to those giving "testimonials" that you should know up front how you will be quoted, where you will be quoted and in what context you will be quoted.  It may even make sense to put a time limit on the use of your name. Federal regulations in certain industries prohibit the use of testimonials. Furthermore, some state insurance statutes require that the use of testimonial represent the current opinion of the person whose testimonial is used. Why get caught up in a mess like this?

Caveat Testimonium!

Posted at 01:09 PM in False Advertising Re Creating, Buying or Selling Structured Settlements, Settlement Advertising Wall of Shame, Settlement Planning Ethics, Structured Settlement Brokers, Structured Settlement Credentials, Structured Settlements and Politics |

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Guide to Structured Settlements 2023

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    Ways You Can Structure Your Settlement Payments. With a structured settlement you can have more than one type of payment in a single contract. Different types of structured settlement payments can be customized and combined to meet your needs on a stand-alone basis, or in conjunction with other financial products. Diversify your structured settlement, if you wish, by funding with more than one annuity issuer, with treasury funded structured settlements, index linked structured settlement payments and market based structured .
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  • What Are Structured Settlement Annuities?
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  • History of Structured Settlements
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Qualified Settlement Funds

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  • STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS 4REAL® Blog Is a Popular Source of Structured Settlement News and Information, Settlement Planning News, Tax Deferral and Deferred Income Planning Solutions,
    with a stable readership that seeks credible structured settlement information and/or opinion about topical issues related to settlement planning, targeted to lawyers, injured persons and their family members, guardians, survivors, judges, magistrates, special masters, mediators, administrators, trust companies, insurance company executives and adjusters, financial advisers settlement professionals, financial professionals, insurance regulators, government leaders, federal and state law enforcement, buyers and sellers of structured settlement payment rights, the news media and other interested parties. 4structures.com LLC established the structured settlement blog in 2005 and for over 17 years it has been a leading source for critical commentary. The John Darer authored blog has been among the most prolific, regularly providing fresh structured settlement, settlement planning, litigation recovery management content and commentary. John Darer®, CLU ChFC MSSC CeFT® RSP CLTC, President of Stamford, CT based 4structures.com, LLC, is an experienced New York City area structured settlement expert, structured settlement broker, Certified Financial Transitionist, and Registered Settlement Planner. In his capacity as a investigative journalist and commentator, and professionally, John Darer passionately believes that shining the light on a business practice is both healthy and newsworthy. It is in the best interest of tort victims, their families and their legal advisers, that the settlement planning discussion involve those that are properly trained in the topic, properly informed on the topic and, with respect to structured settlements, properly licensed and/or appointed). It has significant instructional and deterrent value to other practitioners and firms as well as those who may be caught in the cross hairs. WHAT YOU GET here is the straight stuff with a touch of irreverence and humor. We hope you enjoy and find the content to be helpful. Subscribe to the structured settlement blog feed, or a specific category feed through your blog reader, or through the Feedburner icon on this page. Followers of JDDarer™ on Twitter may also receive select content. If you would like to speak with John he can be reached at (888)325-8640 Thank you for reading! Last updated October 10, 2022

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Structured Settlement Best Practices Corner

  • New York Insurance Advertising law requires the full name of the Insurer to be listed along with the city and state of the principal office. Stating that you represent these fine companies using Insurance company logos without the preceding information are also illegal
  • When it comes to settlement documents it is the ultimate responsibility of the lawyers or claims adjusters who receive input concerning the structured settlement aspects of the documents to actually read the entire document, exercise independent thought and advise their clients properly
  • Be aware that financial advisors use of testimonials is prohibited or restricted
  • Most states require that Testimonials represent the CURRENT opinion of the person who made the testimonial. Be prepared to back it up.
  • Number of States That Prohibit Payment of QSF expenses by licensed agents and brokers
    5 Survey not yet complete.

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