Our users still receive the same services, such as background reports and reverse phone checks. However, now you can navigate through BeenVerified a little easier, such as viewing all your reports in a drop-down box and checking out your recent activity right when you sign-in. Plus, we’ve revamped our press page as well as our team section so you can get to know us better.

Check out the screen shots below, have a little whirl of the new BeenVerified, and let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

With Google+ joining the social networking atmosphere, it gives brands another reason to deal the transparency card into their overall business model. Think about it this way: the more open you are with consumers, the more they will trust you, which could lead into more loyal relationships. Whether you’re a small mom and pop organization or a giant dating site, full transparency is never a bad thing.

So, how can brands, big and small, embrace social sharing on Google+, while at the same time providing full transparency?

Honesty is king

Being honest with your customers, whether you have a large base or a smaller hub, is the first step to complete transparency, as well as improving consumer relationships. Think of Google+ as an all-in-one social network, with the power to maintain these relationships through things like Circles, Huddles, or the simpleness of just posting company news and updates.

Let’s break this down a little bit. Say you had ran a small, organic produce shop. Google+ would be yet another way to provide complete transparency on things like company values and organizational structures. Add your customers to specific Circles so you can keep track of groups like regulars, investors, or vendors (you’ll be able to provide more targeted communication this way). Always post important details, like new products, cool press placements, and company shake-ups. That way, you stay transparent, while your customer stays informed.

Interact in time of crisis

Say that same organic produce shop is facing a huge outbreak of E. coli to its products. What do you do? Remain private about the whole thing and expect customers to just find out on their own? Probably not. Complete transparency in this space is not only encouraged, it’s pretty much a requirement since your reputation, as well as your customer’s health, is on the line. Although this is an extreme example, the theme is the same in any crisis: interaction and communication is key.

This is where social sharing on sites like Google+ increases your organizations transparency. Post a statement, record a video, start a discussion, and above all, answer questions. Start a Huddle if need be. Further, act quickly when you share socially. There could always be another party willing to spin the story.

Make your customers feel important

What’s the one gripe many consumers have about big brands? That they are just a number or a statistic. When it comes down to it, there’s no real connection there besides consumer to product contact. Sites like Google+ give brands the power to make the customer feel important, which could lead to more mutually beneficial relationships.

So, your produce shop could perform weekly Huddle sessions with interested customers, start conversations after you ask questions, give away discounted products, ask for opinions on company matters, etc. Basically, you should make consumers feel involved in the creation of your brand or product. By doing so, you humanize your brand and achieve transparency, which is something many of us are trying to get out of our favorite company’s in the first place.

What do you think? Do you use social sites like Google+ to improve customer relationships? How?

Heather Huhman is the Community Advisor for BeenVerified. BeenVerified’s mission is to make public records easy, accessible, and affordable for everyone. Connect with Heather and BeenVerified on Facebook and Twitter.  ​

What is Google’s Good to Know campaign?

In short, Google’s Good to Know Campaign is all about education. The campaign offers users easy to understand tips on maintaining online security and privacy, as well as how to stay safe while using Google services and the Internet in general. The base of the campaign is to teach even non-technical users the basics of cyber-security, so they’re less likely to become victims of online scams, account hijacking, or other forms of fraud.

According to Google, Good to Know is broken down into four main categories: Stay safe online, Your data on the Web, Your data on Google, and Manage your data. The first two services deal with more general information, as well how how it applies to Google. The last two pertain almost solely to Google services.
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Why did Google decide to launch the campaign?

The campaign coincided with Google’s release of “Search, plus Your World.” The new feature includes links to your Google+ network as part of your search results. For example, lets say you search “Hotels in Thailand.” Traditionally, Google would spit back the usual search results like a link to Tripadvisor. The new feature will also include results from anyone in your Google+ network, like a photo of your friend’s honeymoon in Thailand.

Like any new feature, the initial feedback runs the gamut of opinions, ranging from “This is awesome” to “Google is invading my privacy and I don’t like it!” As Google evolves from start-up success story to global behemoth, users are inevitably going to question their intentions, practices, and policies. The Good to Know campaign is Google’s latest effort to offer transparency by educating people on what they are doing.

BeenVerified knows the feeling

Regardless of the range of reactions, one thing is inevitably clear: People want ​​to know what information is out there about them, where it comes from, and how it works. When BeenVerified started offering public records, we also thought people wanted to know where this information comes from and how it works. Since the beginning, we’ve been committed to educating people about public records and we look forward to continue working toward educating and providing transparency into public records.

Check out: Our Data

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What do you think? How do you feel about Google’s Good to Know Campaign?

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What is ZocDoc? 

Before we get into, let’s briefly discuss what ZocDoc is. According to their website, “ZocDoc is a free service that allows patients to book Doctor appointments online.” TechCrunch writes, “Zocdoc seeks to expedite the process of locating care by displaying physicians in your area who are available for immediate and long-term appointments.”

In other words, a ZocDoc user can search for health care providers based on specialty, location, and the type of insurance they accept. Based on this search, a user can see the profiles of health care providers that meet their criteria, learn a little about their practice, and read patient reviews.

Most importantly (and impressively), ZocDoc allows users to view and easily book an appointment right from the application. This is no small feat, as health care providers must adopt ZocDoc’s platform in order for this to be possible.

How they did it

As Mr. Massoumi articulates in the interview, ZocDoc’s mission is a no brainer. Nothing’s changed about how we interact with health care providers over the last 20 years, even though technology has changed almost every other part of life. However, implementing the disruption effectively is no easy task, but identifying ways we can improve the system is.

Let’s take a look back to see how ZocDoc got to where they are today:

Step 1: Scour the Internet and collect every piece of information you can find about  healthcare providers as quickly as possible – Anyone know a good scraper?

Step 2: Make a beautiufl and easy to use application around that data- for example the ability to rate and review

Step 3: Launch at TechCrunch Disrupt by yelling “Yelp for Doctors.”

Step 4: Let the good times roll as the calls from TechCrunch’s editorial team come rolling in.

This seems like the obvious path of success, right? Wrong! Instead, ZocDoc did what all great businesses do: They ignored the countless people who said it would be impossible to scale a business based on signing up local healthcare providers, one professional at a time, one market at a time. The difference between paying someone a few thousand bucks to scrape versus ​convincing the stubborn doctor to adopt their booking software turns out to make all the ​​difference in the world.​

And the part about reviews…

ZocDoc realized that health care provider reviews left by patients who we know had an actual appointment would add tremendous value to their overall service. By limiting reviews to users who completed an appointment through ZocDoc, it inhibits their ability to collect a large amount of content. It also happens to increase the value of an individual review exponentially. So, three verified ZocDoc reviews are worth far more than 100 reviews left on a site like HealthGrades, which doesn’t operate this way.

ZocDoc’s insistence that healthcare providers allow their users to book appointments online ensures that all the reviews will only be from users who recently completed an actual appointment. The booking system provides the ever-allusive “containment” for the transaction.

Guess what?  The next time I need to find a doctor, I am going to ZocDoc. Remember, this is someone who gives his wife grief over pouring over Yelp reviews when deciding to try a new restaurant. Plus, my best friend is a doctor and goes out of his way to provide healthcare advice whenever I need it. But, does he really know of a good podiatrist in my neighborhood who takes my crappy insurance anyway? Probably not, but ZocDoc does.

What do you guys think? Would you use ZocDoc? Why or why not?

I love my wife very much, but like most couples, there are certain characteristics that make me feel like we are the subject of a certain Paula Abdul hit single from her debut album “Forever Your Girl.” One prime example is our feelings toward “user reviews.” Jessica will automatically read all the reviews before making any decision, ranging from restaurant choice, selecting an exterminator, to selecting a hotel. While she can be somewhat discerning about individual reviews, ultimately they have a direct impact on her actions.

I, for the most part, could care less about user reviews. Parts of the reason are natural personality traits and the other has to do with the process of leaving a review itself. My wife asked why “I care a lot about Airbnb reviews” while I “refuse to even look at a Yelp review.” Well, the real reason is simple: not all reviews are created equal. Let’s break this down a little bit:

It’s all in the transaction

The biggest difference between reviews is whether or not the ability to leave one is based on a known transaction. This means anyone can leave a review of a restaurant on Yelp. There is no way to know if the reviewer has actually eaten there. The “known” transaction is missing.

On the other hand, sites like Airbnb do it right. The only way one can leave a review is after an actual rental takes place. In fact, the platform was built to ensure this. A guest makes a reservation, guest rents place, host is paid, guest checks out. Only after these actions take place can the host and guest review one another. This makes all the difference in the world.

Case Study 1: Seamless

Jessica and I love Seamless. BeenVerified admires Seamless. Almost everyone I know happily uses it because, well, it’s awesome.  When it comes to reviews, they’re almost there. Here is what I mean.

Once you log in, the first page defaults to a view called “My Order History,” which shows a list of all the places a user ordered from through the Seamless platform. The view provides intuitive quick links to things like the restaurant’s main page. It also has a link for leaving that particular restaurant a rating and review.

From this flow alone, it would appear that Seamless fits the bill for acceptable reviews.  However, I was disappointed to discover that I could just as easily leave a review for a restaurant that I never ordered from through Seamless. All I had to do was search for restaurants, click to their page and leave a review. In the words of a recently defeated Haitian Presidential Candidate, “I asked myself ‘Why Oh Why?’ ”

Ask Yourself- How Does this Service Make Money?

A simple analysis of web services will quickly reveal a strong correlation between a companies business model and review structure. Yelp’s business model is based on advertising. Therefore, their bottom line is tied to page views. For them, when it comes to maximizing revenue, quantity is the biggest factor.

On the other hand, Airbnb makes its money through booking fees. Therefore, they are invested in making their platform as strong as possible. Credible reviews are just one of many features that add to the strength of the utility they provide. The same goes for Task Rabbit, Zoc Doc and eBay.

It all comes back to public records

Jess and I are experienced hosts on Airbnb. They do allow people to get recommendations from “friends” but they are clearly marked as such. I understand that Airbnb runs into an issue for first time users, but I find those “friend reviews” worthless.  Perhaps they can limit them to verified reviews left by other Airbnb users who have already been reviewed based on a transaction. At least that way there is social pressure because someone else put their own reputation at risk.

In general, a contained transaction is not the only variable in determining the value of reviews. It is, however, the most important and presents the highest barrier to achieve. The latest and greatest startups in collaborative consumption do an amazing job of pushing the Web to a better place. However, there will always be times where the containment of a known transaction will not be present, especially when it comes to transacting at lightning speed, in real-time, and on the go. And if you’re reading this blog, I am sure you are fairly confident that this is indeed where we are going and what the next moves need to be.

What do you think? Do you value all reviews you read the same? Sound off below.

The idea of Ripoff Report is to give a voice to any consumer who felt taken advantage of by a business. A service like this comes with its own set of strengths and weaknesses, just as any business does. You can read a myriad of opinions about it all over the Web. However, the purpose of this blog post is to address the various complaints you will find on the site about BeenVerified.

As of today (January 18, 2012), BeenVerified has 25 individual complaints on Ripoff Report. As CEO of the company, this is 25 too many. When you run a company, there is no room for finger-pointing, he-said-she said, or excuses. Regardless of the specifics of individual stories, there must have been a better way to handle the situation. We will continue to learn, improve and do a better job of making sure our support staff has the right resources at their finger tips to handle any situation that may arise.

One thing Ripoff Report does not show on their site is the overall size of a particular company’s user base. You may agree that 25 complaints for a company with 100 customers is much different than 25 complaints from a company of 1 million customers. To be fair, it would be disingenuous to infer that only 25 BeenVerified users out of 1 million were unhappy about something. Internally, we use something called “the rule of 10,” meaning that for every one issue someone brings forward (be it a complaint, a compliment, a feature suggestion, a software bug) at least 10 other people experience the same thing. In this case, let’s use the rule of 100. Now we are left with 2,500 unhappy customers out of 1 million.

In conclusion, BeenVerified.com has grown tremendously over the last 4 years. Like any maturation process, we have stumbled at times and other times fallen flat on our faces. In doing so, we have learned some valuable lessons and are always trying to apply these lessons appropriately as the business grows even more. We still have some growing up to do, but hopefully not too much!

What do you think? What can we do better for you?

BeenVerified How to Buy Tickets on Craigslist from BeenVerified on Vimeo.

Nothing if you’re safe. However, that’s not always a top priority for some. The Web can be a pretty awesome place if you use it properly. It can shower us with incredible information (or useless facts), give us a gateway to meet cool people, and even help us find that coveted watch we’ve been looking for.

With any good thing, there’s bound to be some bad, it’s just inevitable. So, for the online savvy user, here are three risks to keep in mind and how you can avoid them by just using a little common sense.

Online dating

Online dating is becoming more and more common these days, and with good reason. After all, the more we drift towards a virtual society, the more online dating sites we will see. However, no matter how popular online dating is, it’s in your best interest to verify the information your potential suitor gives you.

Can you verify their claims, including where they live, their profession, if they’ve ever been married, if they own any major assets, if they’ve been in trouble with the law, etc.? By finding out this info sooner rather than later, you can not only see if they are telling the truth, but figure out if they are better (or worse) than you imagined.

Purchasing products from people or companies you don’t know

The beauty about the Internet is that we can find things that are almost impossible to get in a real store, either because the product is rare, extremely popular, or totally unique. That is why the Web has attracted so many, but also duped a great majority as well. See, when you purchase a product from someone or a company, you’re putting your trust in them. However, there needs to a base for that trust.

Figuring out if you can trust the organization or individual that you’re purchasing from can be as easy as doing a Google search, to reading reviews, to conducting background searches. Doing all three provides you with the most complete picture and only then should you place your trust, and ​of course money, in the hands of the dealer.

​Selling your stuff

On the flip side, selling your stuff online can be a just as big of a risk as buying. There are tons of factors to consider, particularly what platform you use, who you sell your stuff to, and how transactions are going to pan out.

For example, say you wanted to sell your flatscreen TV. You get a couple offers from some people, one in particular who seems pretty eager. You could just let them come to your house if that’s OK with you. But, for the rest of us, it’s easier to do some thorough research on the person before you bring them into their lives. Even if you’re armed with only a phone number and a name, you can conduct a reverse phone background check, which can verify not only their name, but can also allow you to perform deeper searches.

Bottom line with leading an online life: You don’t have to be paranoid about the people you meet or interact with online, that’s not the point. The real point is to be smart and to go with your gut based on your own personal research. That way, you can you make a sound decision because you’ve assessed any potential issues.

What are some other online risks we need to keep in mind? How can we avoid them?

Heather Huhman is the Community Advisor for BeenVerified and a regular contributor to a number of blogs including the PersonalBrandingBlog and USNews. Connect with Heather and BeenVerified on Facebook and Twitter.

Like any savvy professional, Janet used her LinkedIn profile to leverage her Harvard Business School network by connecting with other alumni, students, and faculty. Can you blame her? In fact, within one week, Janet connected with 14 other LinkedIn profiles associated with Harvard.

What is “Peer-Based Verification?”

The fact that several of Janet’s LinkedIn “connections” were also Harvard alum ensures the authenticity of her profile, right? That logic is what we’re calling “peer-based verification.” LinkedIn is one of hundreds of social sites that at least in part, rely on peer-to-peer based verification to ensure the integrity of its network.

Take other sites like Facebook or Twitter. If you were on these popular social networks, see someone you knew through a friend, it would add that layer of authenticity, or at least give you some kind of peace of mind, right? In short, having that mental check box through some kind of verification adds trust.

The problem with “Peer-Based Verification”

So, now that we’ve filled you in on the savvy Janet Jones, here’s a little kicker for you: I’m the real CMO of BeenVerified, not Janet Jones. I couldn’t get into Harvard, but I did attend Indiana University. (Go Hoosiers!)

Janet Jones doesn’t exist. In fact, Janet Jones was once the star of BeenVerified’s marketing efforts until LinkedIn pulled her profile. After reading our initial blog post about “peer based verification” back in 2008, LinkedIn decided to remove the profile (without contacting the owner of the profile…us).

I guess telling the world that you created a fake LinkedIn profile makes it an easy case for the people in charge with dealing with monitoring the site. But, this made me wonder what would have happened if we never said anything? While we’ll never know, my guess is that Janet would be alive and kicking, networking through LinkedIn to her heart’s content.

Here’s the thing. BeenVerified loves LinkedIn. It’s an amazing resource and we’re definitely not singling them out. After all, it’s just as easy to create fake information and build a reputation on LinkedIn as it is on ANY website. In fact, our entire team benefits from LinkedIn’s terrific service. Furthermore, we know LinkedIn does more than just rely on their “peer-based verifications” to protect their community. What we’re trying to point is that while there are many strengths, there are obviously weaknesses in many current social practices.

We also understand that there are many cases where “peer-based verification” provides enough authority to facilitate communication. Say you have a friend on Facebook and while browsing their profile, you notice they are chatting with the CEO of your dream company. This sort of verification (after discussing with your friend, of course), provides that mental ”OK” you need, vs. not knowing the person at all.

When it comes down to it, it really depends on the individual use case. However, as you can see, there are certain situations where peer-based verification simply falls short. This is where the need for third-party verification is pretty vital. For you to actually know Janet Jones or even me, you probably need more than a ”mutual connection” box. You need legitimate and substantial proof that people are who they say they are.

In the case of Janet, we obviously prove that additional services are needed and better solutions are vital because we’re only going to get more social. So, chose your sides. Do you want to be a Janet or do you want to be a Danny? (Hint: the second is way cooler.)