Update News for November 2021
Update News for November 2021
Here is a quick run-down on what you will find in this bulletin:
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Final Order and Permanent Injunction October 20, 2021
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Term4Sale – Zip Code Listing Warranty
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Term4Sale BUMP WEEK – November 1, 2021
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Zip Code List FROZEN Until
January 10, 2022 -
Zip Code Renewals Must Be Paid By
January 7, 2022 -
We Continue to Develop
and Test The New CQS.EXE -
Our Current Programming Plans for 2020 and 2021
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These topics will be dealt with in more detail throughout this bulletin.
It has been a long and arduous road since April 8, 2015 when I first discovered that David Rutstein (aka David Gordon) was using the Compulife quoting system on thousands of NAAIP agent websites without a license or permission. On October 20, 2021 Magistrate Judge Bruce E. Reinhart issued a Final Order and Permanent Injunction which I have now place at the website:
The final judgement is the first link on the webpage. I quote the most important elements following that link.
The warranty that Compulife provides is that for every 3 zip code listings that you have, you can expect ONE legitimate email contact through the system per year (we don’t count tests and duplicates; spouses and partners are NOT considered duplicates). If you didn’t get that one for three contact then those 3 zip codes will be free listings for the following year and the warranty will carry over to that following year as if you had paid the full normal fee.
If you think that may be the case for you, do NOT pay your term4sale invoice until the last week of December.
NOTE: Term4sale Zip Code invoices for “additional zip codes” will be sent on or about November 15, 2021; you have until January 7, 2022 to pay that invoice.
In that last week of December (between Christmas and New Year) call us and we will review your email contacts with you, and compare that to the number of zip codes that you had in 2021. If you came up short, we will issue the appropriate credit and reduce your invoice. If you pay that reduced amount you will keep ALL the zip codes you were invoiced for in mid-November.
How is the credit calculated (if you qualify)?
EXAMPLE: You have 14 zip codes, three local and 11 that you purchased. For 14 zip codes we expect: 14/3 = 5 contacts (4.67 rounded up). Let’s assume that you had only 3 email contacts (note: we do not count duplicate or BOGUS contacts) On November 15th, we would have invoiced you $198 (11 X $18) for 2021 renewal. However, you really only got the activity we would have expected for 9 total zip codes, which would have been 3 local zip codes, and 6 additionally purchased zip codes. Therefore, we will credit your invoice DOWN to $108 (6 X $18) and give you the same 14 zip codes for 2021. In other words, you will have 5 of those 11 paid zip codes for free.
IMPORTANT: There are NO REFUNDS. What we do is reduce the renewal cost for the SAME zip codes for the following year. After January 10th you can add zip codes (and pay for those) or you can swap your zip codes for other zip codes.
This guarantee is designed to act as a way to retroactively balance out the cost of zip codes listings that have not produced. Sometimes, particularly for those with smaller numbers of zip codes, or with zip codes in poorly populated areas, the results are not as good. We understand that and our warranty is designed to moderate the cost when results are disappointing.
And, if you are a card player, you know that sometimes you run hot and sometimes you run cold. We’re glad when you run hot, and will try to help if you get cold decked.
Term4Sale BUMP WEEK begins November 1, 2021 at 12 noon Eastern Time.
Here’s a quick summary:
Bump week allows subscribers to improve their LOCAL term4sale zip code listings. “LOCAL” means an area within a 20 mile radius of where you are physically located. You can use your LOCAL zip codes (3 maximum for personal use PC subscribers, and 6 maximum for standard license subscribers) to force out (BUMP) subscribers in a zip code where they are using an additional zip code to be listed.
Bump week comes ONLY once a year, during the first week of November.
If you have previously bumped your zip codes to better zip codes there is NOTHING you need to do.
If you don’t have term4sale zip codes, this is the best time to purchase local zip codes, otherwise there is NOTHING you need to do.
Once again, bumping starts on November 1, 2021 at 12 noon Eastern Time. Give us a call anytime after that, or anytime during that week, to review your zip codes and see if we can improve the local zip codes you currently have.
January 10, 2022
Immediately following bump week, the zip code list will be FROZEN meaning there will be no opportunity to add, remove or exchange zip codes until January 10, 2022. This will prepare us for the invoices that will be sent out to renew additional zip codes for 2022.
There are NO CHANGES to pricing from last year.
Once you receive your additional zip code invoice for 2022, you can pay in 2021 if you want to expense the advertising in that year, or you have up until January 7, 2022 to make your payment which allows you to expense the advertising in 2022.
January 7, 2022
Nothing compels you to renew your additional zip code listings and you will continue to be listed in those zip codes until January 7, 2022 in the event that you elect not to pay those renewals.
IMPORTANT: If your payment has not been received by the end of business on January 7, 2022, the additional listings that you have will LAPSE and be made available to other subscribers at noon on January 10, 2022.
If you believe that you did not get sufficient email contacts (as per the warranty) and that we will need to make a warranty adjustment to your invoice, do not pay your invoice until the last week of December. I would encourage you to contact us on December 28th and we will review your total number of email contacts and weigh that against the number of zip codes that you have, and the number of contacts that you are entitled to. If you are short, we will determine the credit that we need to make against your invoice for 2022.
Our programmer has been working to remove a programming component from our software called “Delphi”. Delphi is a programming tool that generates the screen and menus that you see in Compulife. It has been part of our Windows software since the time we first rolled out Windows software. It is also one of the reasons that our software “looks” dated and old fashioned. While current subscribers worry much more about function than appearance, newer software prospects tend to put a lot of emphasis on how it looks. That’s going to be changing with the new software, and while we are at it, we are retooling some of the menus to make them easier for new customers. Existing customers will NOT like the new menus at first but we are convinced that you will like them once you get used to them.
The first goal was to convert the program “as is” to get rid of Delphi. That work is coming to an end. I was actually surprised how much the converted screens looks like the old screen created by Delphi. The Delphi to C++ converter that Chris our programmer has been using has done an amazing job. Having said that, a good tool in the wrong hands does not work well but in this case we have a tool in great hands and Chris is doing outstanding work. As the English would say, “I’m chuffed”.
There are remaining bugs and portions of code left to convert and Chris continues to work on that. Once we think it is working as it should, he will begin changing the Red Menu, Client Entry Screen and the subordinate Red Menu “options” and “Manage Product Database. He will also be moving some of the Red Menu options to the Enter Client screen so that the OLD Red Menu becomes much simpler than it is now.
If that sounds confusing, it won’t be as confusing once you see it. Further, the current comparison windows, single product display, Pick 12 and Analysis screens will have NO changes initially. Once again, I am amazed at how much those screens without Delphi look and work just as they did with Delphi. I am very pleased; that’s American/Canadian for I’m chuffed.
Once this work is completed we will roll out the new CQS.EXE which you will be able to use while still having access to your current GOWIN.EXE. We want you to have the option of either program as we then direct our attention to the new “data structure” and overhaul of our database technology. Once we start rolling out the new data files, those new data files will be what the new CQS.EXE uses. The existing data files will continue to work with the old GOWIN.EXE.
As we have promised, you will have both old and new on your computer for a few months (after the job is done) to ensure that everyone is happy with the new software and that our internet engine customers have updated and are using the new data files. Once that is all settled we will then retire the existing windows software and old data files.
And finally, once that happens some big changes can then begin to happen. The new data structure will allow us to quickly abandon many old limitations which will simplify our system. Following that we will incorporate new features and functions that will help us to dramatically improve our product.
The following is the current order for new work that we will be doing in 2021:
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- Introduction of New PC Version: CQS.EXE
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- Overhaul Of Current Product Data Files
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- Introduction of Compulife Basic Plus (with Pick 12)
Anyone with questions about any of these upcoming projects can call Bob Barney to discuss:
Please don’t email me essay questions, just call. If I’m not in, email me your phone number, I’ll call you.
These planned objectives will easily consume our programming time during 2021. The good news is that once the product data files have been converted, and we have introduced the new CQS.EXE, and upgraded our internet engine to use the new data files, Compulife will be turning it’s full attention to our web based, Compulife Basic software. The long term goal is to have a web based product that does everything our PC based software does.
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