University Sports Publications - School District Publishing - Medical Publishing - Municipal Publishing scam, false advertising, steve farkas Elmont New York

I worked at USP and its numerous DBA's for a while until I realized the programs in which the advertising I was selling often did not exist. Yes, it is a horrible work environment, but that is not illegal. Their sales tactics are illegal...and they need to be stopped!

After I realized it was a scam, which after 6 months of working there or so becomes obvious and no secret within the office, I quit and reported them to the FBI and my state's department of charities (one of their common sales practices is to strongly imply, but never specifically say, that advertising dollars go to benefit a specific school, hospital, military base, etc). Both the FBI and other government agencies have files on this company, but until more former employees and/or advertisers that were scammed speak out and tell their stories to these agencies, the case could drag on forever. No matter what office you worked in or what DBA scammed you, you need to speak out.

The authorities do not use this site as evidence, so you must contact them directly. All these agencies share information, so it isn't as important which agency you report them too, as long as you get your story out. JUST TELL THE TRUTH!!

Do a good deed - help shut this scam down. The longer they are in business, the more businesses will be scammed out of money they probably cannot afford to lose in this economy (but USP will tell them they cannot afford NOT to place ads in their imaginary publications or they will risk upsetting the decision makers at the institutions these small contractors and businesses do business at!)

I took a job with USP after having been laid off from a job in advertising. Before taking the job though & after having gone through the interview process (although I wouldn't really qualify their version of an interview a process) I looked the company up on the internet as we all do. The first site I found was this one! Even after reading all the comments posted here, I still went ahead and took the job. I should have listened to my inner instincts but given the current state of the economy I thought a job's a job. Boy was I wrong.

I could go through the way this company works but many of the other comments explain that I already. I am writing to warn others who are considering taking a job with USP. DO NOT work for them. The nice base salary seems like it will be worth whatever the job is, its not. My first day on the job, our supervisor screamed at one of the employees in front of everyone. This is not ethical business practice. You do not berate employees, let alone in front of the entire office. Also their office is disgusting. You want to seem like a legitimate place, update the office equipment circa 1998.

I don't even believe the comments from satisfied advertisers, I imagine that these must be current employees upset with what is currently posted here.

I could go on for days about this place but really just want to ge the point across to others thinking of working there, its not worth it. After a few weeks there, I had to leave, it became unbearable.  Listen to the things said on this site from other ex employees, their comments all are legitamite, so please be careful.

I worked for NSP, a dba of USP in Atlanta for close to two months at the end of 2009.  They had recently opened an office in Atlanta, and I was one of six people that were the first group hired and trained.  The training process consisted of reading a scripted sales pitch over and over, as well as reading scripted rebuttals and learning to use their list of "Name Drops."  After three days of this, we were put on the phones and to work.  However, our supervisor was in the middle of the room and would listen to all of our calls, and if he heard us make a mistake in the pitch, or not complete the "three step process" of a rebuttal, he would yell at us while we were on the phone.  The yelling never stopped, and he was also extremely rude and abusive to all of us (he called one of the guys working there a "f---ing retard").  Moreover, we were only allowed to stick to the scripted sales pitch and rebuttals, and when customers had legitimate questions about distribution, or ROI, we never had any answers for them.  I personally found this form of selling humiliating, and felt degraded by the management and company everyday I worked there.  I don't know much about their relationships with their clients - if you can even say they have relationships, we were discouraged from making more than one call, and to not form rapports with customers.  But I can tell you that this company treats their employees like garbage, and I can only assume they would treat their clients the same way.  I would never, ever recommend to anyone that they advertise or do business with USP or any of its affiliates.

USP had the talent to instill a sense of "hopelessness and worthlessness" among their employees. I've never worked in a company before or after that had no value for ethical practices and professionalism. Their owners and management screamed and used threat tactics to motivate their employees. Their work environment was filthy and literally resembled that of an episode of the show "Hoarders" with their main character being their OCD creepy owner Mitch. That poor soul needed a saving or a referral to an inpatient hospital for the mentally insane. Nonetheless aside from their Master-slave work practices, their scams were notorious. The management team covered for one another other since they had to protect their 6 figure salaries. It's really a shame that people like these scum bags get a free pass to be abusive while making millions of dollars. Thank God I left before I developed some form of PTSD because now I know, there is no rock bottom like USP.  

Hmm, seeing some conflicting info here. I think theres a little bit of this type of thing at any company. Ethical procedures here by USP? Maybe, maybe not. However, as a previous customer I can say I was dealt with fairly, why I was and some were possibly not, is a question I dont think can be answered. Hopefully this company will continue to work with advertisers fairly (or start to) and pay up when accountable regarding departed employee commissions. Business Ethics 101. If they are practicing these procedures unlawfully, its only a matter of time. Eventually, it will be the downfall of the company. But like I said, none, all, or some of the negetivety may be false. Who knows, but to all the advertisers out there, be careful, dont be foolish and if they can help your over/under in your business give them a chance. Be cautious with any company like this. I hope to use this company in the future at the same result as last year.

Thanks guys,

Mr. John

I enjoyed my time here for a couple reasons. First I had my ad(s) seen in multiple publications and it reached thwe audience I wanted to target for my products. They have a variety of publications that a company can use to target certain genders/ag groups/areas etc etc. Secondly, Its really encouraging to have my company next to some pretty large worldwide company ads. It makes my life easier and brings in clients/customers to my business. I hope to find more target audiences and find which new publication could be best for any new products in the future.

John

I've seen one poster already comment on the added business in the medical field when using these guys. My situatuion was a little different. I was part of an already established practice. We had a loyal customer base that has continued over the past decade and really have had no trouble staying afloat. We had never taken out ads before (high qulaity ads anyway) and decided to see how far we could push our already concrete practice.

Long story short, we have used USP loyally in many different publications and have extended our specialized services outside the state in doing so. Its really helped us get our name out there, not just locally, but statewide and beyond. Its been a mutual success and we plan to keep seeing our names in all type of publications.

Thanks,

Alex

I was searching for the USP website and came across them here. I got to say that Im now questioning my continued business with them. However, doing business with them before I did see some feedback from my ads. Although pricey, the ads seemed to boost my sells in my contracting business. I put ads in various municpal books from my general area. I'm not sure if they were directly responsible but I saw immediate boosts in my overall contracting numbers. Im seeing mixed reviews but unbiasly I can say that so far, nothing but good has come from these guys. For me anyways...

Frank S

As an ex-employee, I can sympathy toward the post about having a sick feeling in the morning, having to go to that hell hole of a workplace. USP felt like being in a prison for 9 hours a day. Many employees are treated like indentured servants or cattle ready for slaughter. You would hear management bad mouth or heavily criticize other employees on a daily basis, demeaning at best. They managed with a full on Divide and Conquer approach and relished the fact that they were so disliked by many employees. They would time you when you went to lunch.  Felt like Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke... "Yes, sir, lunch break boss?" Yassa, Massa, could I take pee break boss?"... There are people that work there that legitimitely do well and make money but also have a massive brainwashed mentality about the place and management. It was the oddest and most vile year I've ever spent in my life. I could not imagine a worse working environment or worse people to work for. I did the pro yearbook stuff, I didn't do the college game day so not familiar with the business practice side of that but heard many stories. These "satisfied customer" responses recently posted coincidentally all have the same wording in praising USP or PSP or whatever's quality of service.  Seems fishy to me.

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies. I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it prodcues and the exposure that has been gained for my company. Never have I felt misled or decieved. All of the reps that we have dealt wtih have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies. I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it prodcues and the exposure that has been gained for my company. Never have I felt misled or decieved. All of the reps that we have dealt wtih have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.

DK

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies.

I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it prodcues and the exposure that has been gained for my company.

Never have I felt misled or decieved. All of the reps that we have dealt wtih have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us

Mike H.

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies.

I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it prodcues and the exposure that has been gained for my company. Never have I felt misled or decieved.

All of the reps that we have dealt wtih have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies. I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it prodcues and the exposure that has been gained for my company. Never have I felt misled or decieved.

All of the reps that we have dealt wtih have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.

B.G.

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies. I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it produces and the exposure that has been gained for my company.

Never have I felt misled or deceived. All of the reps that we have dealt with have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.

Totally Disagree with Poster! I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies. I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it produces and the exposure that has been gained for my company. Never have I felt misled or deceived. All of the reps that we have dealt with have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.

1. Yes that was the same Steve that was in the Youtube Video.

2. "Totally Disagree with Poster!" and "Satisfied Advertiser" both suspiciously appear to be written by USP's staff.

3. If you read the script they use to sign up contractors, you will see there are no clear lies.... But every line was intended to be misleading.

4. They have been sued by M.S. Wholesale Plumbing Inc., in January 2008, for misleading them into purchasing an advertisement in the ATU game program.

5. USP has never lost a wage claim because:

The sales people are never given any sales report on paper, so it is difficult for them to prove monies owed to them in court.

When USP is sued, they will drag you through the legal system to make it as costly and difficult for the person to follow through....  Most will give up.   It has taken most former employees over two years to get to the point where it can be presented in front of the legal system.... Then, at the last minute USP will settle and make sure the person signs a "Non Disclosure" clause.

5. USP have withheld commission checks in order as hostage to force employees to sign a Non-Compete Clause.  Signing the NCC will effectively prevent the person to stay in the sports/advertising industry if they leave the company.

In addition:

1. They have been known to bribe decision makers at companies with pre-paid credit cards.  They have caused scandals at reputable companies, such as L'Oreal. Many of USP's customers who have accepted they bribes have been fired over years.

2. They actively run interference with competing companies by.

a. Calling their competitor pretending to be the customer.  Such as calling the competitor's accounts payable asking for a copy of the invoice, or calling the competitor's production department saying the sale has been cancelled.

b. Calling their competitor's customers pretending to be the competitor.

c. Calling employees of their competitor pretending to be Human Resources or IT asking for email and voicemail passwords.

Examples of USP's tortious interference with their competitors business relationships can be detailed  in

Court of Appeals of Texas, Austin

Amalgamated Acme Affiliates, Inc & University Sports Publications

v.

Perry Minton and Dean Allen Associates, LTD

No. 09-00-00101-CV

Ok, the original poster is taking this way too seriously, not being able to sleep, the "department drops and name drops were all lies" That's just not true. The fact of the matter is we represented ourselves as working for the College/ school district, but nothing in our wording said we explicitly worked for them. If a business owner doesn't have enough common sense to ask questions like " do you work FOR the University" or "where do the proceeds go" that is not USP's fault. If whoever we pitched asked if we worked for the University, we responded honestly, that we worked for the Publisher but had a contract with the School. This was the complete truth. Also, a lot of companies advertise just because they see their business card in the publication. I can definetly understand why a bussiness in College Park MD would want their bussiness card in the basketball program etc.
In terms of people not getting paid, it is true that if you leave before your paycheck is given to you, you won't get paid. Usp has been sued dozens of times for this and lost, but they don't care, for everyone that follows thru with going after them their are 10 that don't. Now you might find it curious that their were never more than 1 or 2 black employees in the midtown office at any time. Or that I heard the owner's wife use ethnic slurs... or that it's not totally unheard of to be cursed at/yelled at in front of everyone.
In my opinion they did shady stuff but abt 95% of it was legal, and prob wasn't so different than stuff that went on at other boiler room type companies.

Btw I worked at Usp from 2004-2006

I would have to agree that the marketing practices of this company are highly questionable. They seriously misrepresent themselves. Luckily I did not fall for their pitch but I am sure people do all the time.

I would have to agree that the marketing practices of this company are highly questionable. They seriously misrepresent themselves. Luckily I did not fall for their pitch but I am sure people do all the time.

I left USP in 2004 after working there for about a year and happened to come across this site when a friend of mine sent me a link to another report. I had a feeling I would find some complaints on University Sports Publications and all their shady DBA's, and sure enough...

Whoever wrote this post definitely worked there, and apparently they didn't change their sales pitch a bit. I also felt terrible about working there, but the money was good and I needed it, so I toughed it out as long as I could. I actually got sick to my stomach many mornings at the thought of going into the office.

When I left, I was owed approximately $2400, and never saw it. I called dozens of times and was told that the check was in the mail, eventually given some BS story about the fact that since I took a few days off that I was paid for, that I wasn't entitled to it. I did file a report with the New York State Dept of Labor, but never followed up and just lost the $$.

I will definitely second the fact that from the top down this company is a bunch of scam artists & thieves... if there's anything I can do to help with retribution please be in touch... I would be happy to see these shady scum bags fall!

I genuinely don't know what peoples issues are here. I too was contacted to advertise in one of their publications. At the time, I was unfamiliar with it, so, I contacted the officials at the School District I deal with. The individual at the District that I deal with spoke very highly of the publication, telling me that he and his office look forward to receiving it each year.

After hearing that, I decided it was a very worthwhile investment for our company to make. I received a copy of the Directory and am very satisfied with the both the exposure and the quality of the Publication.

1st off, to james OC, you are a fake and probably one of thse clowns trying to stop the "bleed-out" that is eventually going to happen.

2nd- i have been following this GODZILLA of rip-off companies for some time now, has anyone seen the footage on youtube? goto youtube and put in University sports publications- or has anyone seen the stuff about Harvard? lousiville, University of Hawaii? or the recent happenings with Ohio state university? these guys dont even give a 'lick" about their own employees?

I would have to think that if any of these professional teams got wind of their "unscrupulous" activities I cannot imagine any of them wanting to do businees with them ever again.

how long have these guys been doing this?? it does have the makings for a "boiler room II " opportunity.

Is Steve farkus the same Steve in the Youtube video with channell 11 and help me howard??

1st off, to james OC, you are a fake and probably one of thse clowns trying to stop the "bleed-out" that is eventually going to happen.

2nd- i have been following this GODZILLA of rip-off companies for some time now, has anyone seen the footage on youtube? goto youtube and put in University sports publications- or has anyone seen the stuff about Harvard? lousiville, University of Hawaii? or the recent happenings with Ohio state university? these guys dont even give a 'lick" about their own employees?

I would have to think that if any of these professional teams got wind of their "unscrupulous" activities I cannot imagine any of them wanting to do businees with them ever again.

how long have these guys been doing this?? it does have the makings for a "boiler room II " opportunity.

Is Steve farkus the same Steve in the Youtube video with channell 11 and help me howard??

1st off, to james OC, you are a fake and probably one of thse clowns trying to stop the "bleed-out" that is eventually going to happen.

2nd- i have been following this GODZILLA of rip-off companies for some time now, has anyone seen the footage on youtube? goto youtube and put in University sports publications- or has anyone seen the stuff about Harvard? lousiville, University of Hawaii? or the recent happenings with Ohio state university? these guys dont even give a 'lick" about their own employees?

I would have to think that if any of these professional teams got wind of their "unscrupulous" activities I cannot imagine any of them wanting to do businees with them ever again.

how long have these guys been doing this?? it does have the makings for a "boiler room II " opportunity.

Is Steve farkus the same Steve in the Youtube video with channell 11 and help me howard??

1st off, to james OC, you are a fake and probably one of thse clowns trying to stop the "bleed-out" that is eventually going to happen.

2nd- i have been following this GODZILLA of rip-off companies for some time now, has anyone seen the footage on youtube? goto youtube and put in University sports publications- or has anyone seen the stuff about Harvard? lousiville, University of Hawaii? or the recent happenings with Ohio state university? these guys dont even give a 'lick" about their own employees?

I would have to think that if any of these professional teams got wind of their "unscrupulous" activities I cannot imagine any of them wanting to do businees with them ever again.

how long have these guys been doing this?? it does have the makings for a "boiler room II " opportunity.

Is Steve farkus the same Steve in the Youtube video with channell 11 and help me howard??

My contact with School District Publishing fits the original poster's comments.

I was led to believe that the company was somehow associated with one of my clients. Only after pointed questioning did the sales rep admit that he worked for a publisher.

I was told that by advertising, I would be "showing support" for that district. The implication was that the fee I would be paying would go to the school district, which is not the case.

I was also told that all the top administrators would be reading it. When I asked for specifics (circulation, method of delivery, etc.), I could not get any.

I was given a list of advertisers who were purchasing the various ad sizes. I knew some of the advertisers, and they do not advertise with this publication.

I requested information in writing, but received nothing.

I've worked in education for over 10 years in a variety of roles, and have never heard of this publication.

The fee for a sixteenth-page ad was, I believe, $895. In publications that actually deliver what NJ School Guide purports to deliver, $895 buys at least a half page.

I am very familiar with University Sports Publications and its affiliated companies. I have advertised with University Sports Publications and have been overly satisfied with the both the publications it prodcues and the exposure that has been gained for my company.

Never have I felt misled or decieved. All of the reps that we have dealt wtih have always been polite and delivered on everything that was promised us.