For-hire essay company raises flags with Better Business Bureau

The Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota (BBB) is expressing ethical and practical concerns about the business model of Essaywritingcompany.com, a Minnesota online firm which offers to write research and term papers, on a for-hire basis, for high school and college students.

The company, which up until recently was headquartered in Apple Valley, maintains a website where students can solicit their services. On their website, the company claims to guarantee “A’s,” and offer a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee. However, complaints to the BBB allege the company didn’t meet deadlines, and failed to provide promised refunds in a timely manner.

“In addition to the many ethical considerations, students who hire third parties to do their work for them run the very real risk of getting expelled for submitting work that’s not their own,” said Dana Badgerow, president and CEO of the BBB. “The old adage still holds: students who cheat are not just cheating the system, they’re cheating themselves.”

The BBB recently secret-shopped this company, contracting with them to write a college-level paper. The person who performed the secret shopping on behalf of the BBB reported the company was very difficult to reach and didn’t return several phone calls. The completed essay was brought to Dan Wackman, Chair of the Journalism School and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota, for review. Wackman, who specializes in the subject matter of the essay (the ethics of advertising to children) said he would give the essay a “C” grade, far short of the “A” the company’s website guarantees. He also said the paper was not formatted to meet Modern Language Association (MLA) standards. MLA style is followed by most post-secondary schools and specifies guidelines for formatting manuscripts and using the English language in writing.

The BBB has processed four complaints against Essaywritingcompany.com in the last year. The company has responded to all of those complaints, resolving three of them by providing refunds. A fourth complaint is currently pending.

The following claims the company makes on their website are also a source of concern for the BBB and may be in violation of the BBB’s Code of Advertising:

--The company states it’s not liable if the customer doesn’t receive their essay due to a technical issue.

--The site claims all of their writers have college degrees or Ph.D’s, but does not offer substantiation of this.

--The 100 percent satisfaction guarantee isn’t explained in detail.

--The company uses customer testimonials in a manner which may be misleading.

The BBB advises students to avoid paying others to do their coursework for them and to keep the following things in mind:

Most schools have strict plagiarism policies and students found guilty of violating those policies can be expelled.

Teachers are human. If you’re behind in your school work, see if you can get an extension or consider seeking out a tutor to help get you back on track.

Remember that anything worth doing requires hard work and sacrifice. Though it might mean some late nights – and extra coffee – doing your own work will prove to be its own reward.

The mission of the Better Business Bureau is to promote, through self-regulation, the highest standards of business ethics and conduct, and to instill public confidence in responsible businesses through programs of education and action that inform, protect and assist the general public. Contact the BBB at http://www.thefirstbbb.org or 651-699-1111, toll-free at 1-800-646-6222.

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