Unethical business practices?

I was in a clothing store last night and someone randomly handed me a landmark to their clothing store. That can't be "normal" behavior.That would be like a K-mart rep running up to me in Walmart.
Should I inform the owner of the store I was in? I'm sure it's not against TOS,but I know I would be pretty miffed if someone was doing that to my customers in my store. Just on principal alone,I won't be going to this store now.

I just hit decline. But the person may have been doing you a favour. I was in a store today where everything I had seen earlier in a $1l store was priced at between 49 and 100 linden.

Up to the store owner to police their property I'd say. Anyway nothing to stop a rival standing outside and dishing out landmarks, just like people handing out flyers in the High Street.

But since you didn't like it, why not inform the owner of the store, especially if you can give them the name of the avatar so they can ban him/her and protect themselves in the future.

you could go to the store and hand out Landmarks to the competitors shop, balance things out LOL.

I was actually in a really popular,decent priced,orginal content store when this happened. I accepted it though,cause I am an idiot.:/

I'll send the owner a notecard when I get in world today.I would want to know personally.Thanks everyone.

LOL.

I agree that if you're in an 'original content' store, then someone handing out landmarks to a competitor's store would be innapropriate. But if it's in a store that sells BIAB-type stuff, and you know of somewhere that sells it cheaper...way way cheaper, then I wouldn't be adverse to that... I've seen those '19 Silks-BIAB's selling for 1200L$ in one place and seen them being given away in the next store....

Now here's a quick question - I was doing a little bit of shopping in-world yesterday, didn't speak to anyone etc... About a half-hour after I tp'd home, someone tried to give me a landmark to a jewellery store.... I checked their profile....definitely didn't know them etc. Just wondering how that person would've gotten my name to send me a landmark? I didn't know them so I just declined and sent the person a IM saying ...."how did you get my name to send me a landmark?".....the person was on-line but I got no reply... Not dreadfully upset about it, just really curious.....It's happened a few times but I always decline...

I'd say it's unethical. People who hand out fliers on High-streets have to get permission to do that kind of advertising (in the UK anyway). There are certain exceptions for things like research questionaires and the like, but if you're selling something by walking up to people then it can get you in trouble in real-life.

Besides that I consider it a form of harassment. I keep getting charities doing it. While I'm sure my money would be going to a good cause, I will do it on MY terms, not theirs. The really disgusting thing is that all they have is their direct debit forms, they don't have any information they can give you so that you can go and think about it in your own time, they try to pressure you into signing up for a direct debit from your account. I dislike that, information is fine so that I can go do it myself later.

But I digress, if someone goes into my store and hands out landmarks to customers to attract them away from business then I will take that personally and ban them. If they they want to advertise in my store then I have several places I can put advertisements, but they would be managed by me, on my terms, on my land. All they have to do is ask.

I'm a big fan of publically outting people for that crap. I'll usually shout "*NAME* Will you please stop spamming me with *Name of Store*'s Landmark!!!!??? Kthnxbuhbye!!!"

Honestly, it may be in bad taste, and you could report it if you feel it necessary...but I say just let it go.

And you never know...the person that handed you the card might be the next big thing...and might have just what you're looking for.

The person pushing out the unsolicited landmarks is a spammer.
Spammers should be reported.
Spam is ARable in RL. It should also be actioned as Abuse in SL.

I would not visit anywhere that was landmark-spammed.

Spamming a low-life pond-scum activity. It should be stamped on hard before it becomes a plague. If it's tolerated, then more people will do it. The practice 'does not scale well'

Yes it is technically soliciting and encroaching…but I don’t think [they] should be hauled-off and shot…nor do I think we should immediately judge the store in general.

I think as long as you don’t have a totally ‘absent owner’, then you shouldn’t find too much soliciting. A professional, ‘available’, owner or manager has the opportunity to warn or ban someone if they advertise in their stores or on their land. But a busy location may not be able to catch a sneaky solicitation—unless you’re getting spammed constantly at a store, I don’t think we should judge the business.

And I don’t think the patron that was solicited to should report the solicitation—just ignore them, and let the owner or manager deal with it. Not everyone soliciting is a sleazy business owner…if [they] continue to bother you, you are right to report it…but a simple notecard advertisement should not warrant ‘telling on them.’

Just my 2 $L.

if that person is giving out cards or LM's to lots of ppl... isn't that considered spamming?

Yes. I think, however, there is a difference between someone who hands out a few, and someone who has purposefully planted themselves at a competitor, simply to drop notecards or LMs.

And instead of letting it bother you, just decline the exchange, and go about your business. If you are bothered multiple times, than you can report it. But otherwise, you should let management or an owner handle it.

I think Second Life is a wonderful place...we shouldn't instantly assume the same rules and regulations apply to SL as they do in RL. I mean...isn't that what we are trying to avoid? Can't we be just a little bit nicer, a little bit more tolerant, a little bit more understanding, and think a little less linearly?

This space has been given to us not to mimic our ideals we have in RL...it's given to us as a sandbox of creation and experimentation. Let's not use the real-world as a model, I feel this is something that stifles potential and free-form thought.

I have a welcome mat in front of my store with a visitor list script in it. Not so much for the names, but to see how many people were there. However, I have thought about creating a group, and sending the people who have been there an invite...I know it's done, I'm just not personally crazy about the practice myself, but as a business owner, I understand the "why" behind it.

I'm not suggesting that SL spammers be stamped on because they are stamped on in RL.
I'm suggesting that they get stamped on because
1) Getting 'a few' unsolicited pop-ups on the screen is irritating.
2) If the practice is believed to bring in business, then more people will do it.
3) No matter if the people doing it only do it 'a little' or 'a lot', the logical result is that we will eventually be subjected to blizzards of the the stuff as more people do it more.

I am soooooo totally into not bringing the crappy bits of RL into SL.
Unsolicited advertising stuck in my face is one of those things.
Sociopathic behaviour by spiritual pygmies in pursuit of the next buck covers a whole bunch of those things.

Ya, I understand. Bottom line, and simply put, I don't think 'tattle-tailing' is necessary for a one-time solicitation. That's all I'm saying.

So what? What's the big deal? The person whose shop you were in isn't going to break because someone handed you or anyone else a landmark to a different shop. Handing out a landmark or telling someone about a different shop doesn't mean you're going to go there and if someone did, so what?

Everyone is so sensitive on everything going on around them in sl. You can't do this, you can't say that. You can't say this, you can't say that. You have to be correct, you need to say what others want to hear. This is the problem nowadays, too much complaining over anything and everything.