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I Hope This Isn't A Scam...

by Rachel Incoll
14 replies
Every now & then if someone's download/access details have been blocked by a spam filter, or they're having trouble downloading one of my ebooks I get an email like this. In fact I got one yesterday.

They'll ask their question (where are the download details, why am I getting this error mesage etc.), then sign it off with 'I hope this isn't a scam'.

Think about it logically for a minute...what is the point????

A scammer wouldn't care if they wrote it. It wouldn't make them change their mind or method of operating their scam website & suddenly send through their access details or help them with their download problem.

If the person running the site is honest, they will get a reply regardless of whether they write 'I hope this isn't a scam'...& by writing that (effectively suggesting that they think you might be a scammer) they may well annoy (slightly) the perfectly honest person who's running the site.

So, in summary, that comment won't affect a genuine scammer & may come across as a bit offensive to an honest person...so why say it?

Cheers

Rachel
#hope #scam
  • Profile picture of the author Jose Delgado
    So, in summary, that comment won't affect a genuine scammer & may come across as a bit offensive to an honest person...so why say it?
    Because they got an error message and they think they won't get what they purchased.
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  • Profile picture of the author Emailrevealer
    Originally Posted by Rachel Incoll View Post

    Every now & then if someone's download/access details have been blocked by a spam filter, or they're having trouble downloading one of my ebooks I get an email like this. In fact I got one yesterday.

    They'll ask their question (where are the download details, why am I getting this error mesage etc.), then sign it off with 'I hope this isn't a scam'.

    Think about it logically for a minute...what is the point????

    A scammer wouldn't care if they wrote it. It wouldn't make them change their mind or method of operating their scam website & suddenly send through their access details or help them with their download problem.

    If the person running the site is honest, they will get a reply regardless of whether they write 'I hope this isn't a scam'...& by writing that (effectively suggesting that they think you might be a scammer) they may well annoy (slightly) the perfectly honest person who's running the site.

    So, in summary, that comment won't affect a genuine scammer & may come across as a bit offensive to an honest person...so why say it?

    Cheers

    Rachel
    I get that alot. Many of the clients that hire me are victims of some kind of fraud or betrayal in the first place.
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    • Profile picture of the author mmurtha
      Originally Posted by Emailrevealer View Post

      I get that alot. Many of the clients that hire me are victims of some kind of fraud or betrayal in the first place.
      I agree with you, they have been, and are still a bit leary about buying digital stuff mostle.


      Mary
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  • Profile picture of the author lindajess
    This is an interresting question...I think that people are so afraid of being scammed that they are constantly being paraniod about it. With all of the businesses online, some honest some not so honest, it's hard to know which is good and which is bad. The fact of the matter is that everyone is afraid of being scammed.
    In saying that, yeah, it may make an honest person a little angry, but in all likelyhood, that person has probably been scammed before and are afraid of being scammed again. So while this is annoying, we are living in a world where everyone is being scammed. Try to be a bit more understanding when it comes to this.

    Just because you are honest doesn't mean everyone is.
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    • Profile picture of the author lindajess
      Ugh, I totally just realized how rude that sounded...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound rude there...
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      • Profile picture of the author HarveyJ
        Banned
        [DELETED]
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        • Profile picture of the author TeamGlobal
          The last 2 instances where I received a "I hope this is not a scam" email were from people who seemed to know at the outset that they were going to request a refund so that they could get the product for free. The "I hope this is not a scam" email" came shortly before they filed a dispute with Paypal...which they did not win. I suppose they felt that if they repeated the word "scam" enough within a Paypal dispute that Paypal would fall for their illconceived scheme.

          As some of you have pointed out some customers may approach challenges they have with the product order and delivery process by using the word "scam" because unfortunately they have been taken advantage of before.

          I can see where the "I hope this is not a scam" approach would irritate some honest merchants. Some would feel as if their integrity was being questioned and that's no fun for anyone.

          All The Best,


          Tony
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          • Profile picture of the author Jelasco
            I get emails like those, too. It's pretty dumb on their part, if they want help, to make accusations like that.
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            • Profile picture of the author Dennis Cheesman
              I got an email from a customer before that was referred by his cousin, which was his partner, ok, the IP address was blocked from another customer and it so happens he had the same IP address so he was blocked as well.

              He sent me an email immediately and then one after the other for about 2 hours until I got home to reply to his email..

              Non the less I was a sorry piece of you know what and a scammer

              I replied and sorted it out, but you know how bad I wanted to refund and just be done with this person

              Dennis
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              • Profile picture of the author zuberr
                I'm thinking it plays with the psychology of the mind here
                to get a fast priority response from the merchant.

                The merchant is honest and gets an email like this and he
                starts thinking this buyer might think my product is a scam
                and spread the word around so I must reply him quickly...

                Get what I'm trying to say?
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                [START TODAY] A Simple Method I Developed Back In 2007 To Build A Real Evergreen Business Online (And It Still Works In 2016)
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                • Profile picture of the author Harvey Segal
                  Rachel,

                  I get spam accusations like yours even offering my
                  FREE book where I don't even request any sign-up.

                  Harvey
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                  • Profile picture of the author zuberr
                    One more thing Rachel. In any business, whether online or offline, where you are dealing with people, you have to remember not everyone has a "friendly" nature. Some people are gonna be rude no matter what. You must take it lightly, don't expect to be loved by all your customers.
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                    • Profile picture of the author vitalgirl
                      I've had this a few times too - people just react emotionally and type/press send before they think. At first I got indignant/annoyed, then realized it had nothing to do with me, it was just their fear/bad day/previous bad experiences.

                      Funnily enough, reactions like that have happened even when a person had a problem that was answered on the download page - they just didn't read it properly! Life can teach you patience in funny ways sometimes :-)

                      Dennis, I had someone send me a message within an hour or so after first sending it, then another, and another etc - they lived in the US, i live in Australia - big time zone difference. And I had my address on the sales page. Yet they were jumping to all sorts of conclusions about my customer service etc when I didn't reply straight away.

                      It's all pretty funny after the fact :-)

                      Rebecca
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                  • Profile picture of the author Jelasco
                    Originally Posted by Harvey.Segal View Post

                    Rachel,

                    I get spam accusations like yours even offering my
                    FREE book where I don't even request any sign-up.

                    Harvey
                    Harvey, is that just your way of scamming people to NOT get on your list?
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                    • Profile picture of the author sparrow
                      you can't please everyone

                      hope for the best when dealing with people and do the best you can to help them.

                      Ed
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