34 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
34 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Scam This...Scam That...

by GeorgR.
29 replies
P.P.S This is the lowest price that XYZ will EVER be offered at so you need to act fast as I will have to raise the price VERY SOON... Also, make sure you don't miss out on my special bonus! Remember, the first 200, 150, 100, 67 people to sign up will receive priority access to the very best XYZ offers as members of my XYZ Network's VIP list. DON'T MISS OUT!
This is just a random example, we all know those kinds of sales letters. Oh wow...act fast because it's a very limited offer..etc..etc... NO SCAM....but it really starts to annoy me. Makes me wonder about how true any other statements in regards to the product are.

Then: If you go on the big CPA sites liek Neverblue, Copeac, Younameit. The biggest earners yielding the highest profits are ****, Colon Cleanse...the usual.

No..you might know this already, but MOST of those offers are borderline scam/criminal. Excuse my english, but i just need to say it.

I have several sites where i promote the big runners here, **** xyz, XYZ cleanse....and i got emails by people who confirmed what i read about those products already:

People get the product(s) from China and usually have a HELL of a time sending them back or reaching anyone in customer service. They get billed huge amounts on their CC each month, thinking they got a "free trial".....but of course they cannot enjoy a "free trial" because they cannot reach any person at that company. SCAM, SCAM, SCAM

I also have the impression that most/all of the ****, colon cleanse are actually from the same few companies. Those sites/names get a bad reputation in time..and then they just relaunch the same colon cleanse or **** pwder under a new design/different name. **** X powder becomes Power **** Y..etc..etc...and then same spiel starts anew.

Sometimes i have a hard time with this, and especially with the colon cleanse/**** stuff i feel really bad promoting this. Ironically, those are the "best selling" products.....so basically the big networks actively promote such schemes even...

Your thoughts?
#scam #thisscam
  • Profile picture of the author tjcal
    If you feel bad promoting something then don't promote it and find something you feel good about promoting..

    OK?
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1002577].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author megaresp
    I think you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. Cheap crap sold cheap to gullible people. Such efforts tar the entire industry, yet there is apparently nothing anybody can do about it.
    Signature

    66 ways to get links (and traffic) to your site.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1002594].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kelly Verge
    I won't promote anything I don't believe in.

    Period.

    The P.S. example is just a weak attempt at scarcity. I ignore it.
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1002599].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author sparrow
    I have been hearing a lot lately from people promoting these products and have to agree with George many individuals are experiencing the same issues.

    I don't know about you tjcal but I like to be able to look at myself each day and hope to benefit others many of these products are only setup to scam others and if this does not slow down the powers to be are going to put measures against this and we will no longer be able to market as freely as we do anymore

    Ed
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1002601].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author LilBlackDress
    I like **** berry and started a site for it. This was when I was new to affiliate marketing. I signed up to sell it with one of the companies mentioned above. Then while doing research for an article I found out about the bogus credit card charges etc. Happily I found out before I sold any. Of course I should have researched it more to begin with but I was very new and had no idea that people would rip others off like that. Its disgraceful.

    As soon as I saw that, I went looking for another **** berry product. Now I have one on my site that is a one time charge, 60 day refund and its a reasonable charge. And the **** berry is excellent quality.

    I would not be able to sleep at night knowing I was promoting something that was ripping off people. You have to treat the consumer like you want to be treated.

    I dont care how much money I could have made.....its a disgrace to sell products like that. Selling it encourages the blood sucking companies that are ripping off consumers.

    On a side note the affiliate company wrote me and said they were discontinuing me because I hadn't sold anything through them. I wrote and told them their product was ripping off consumers. They still carry it.

    Stephen there are some legitimate trial offers out there...but you need to verify that before selling them. In addition to checking online, I call the company and see if I can get an actual person and what kind of response I get. With many bogus offers you cant get through to anyone or they hang up on you etc. Also the trial starts on the day the order was placed...not good.
    Signature

    Pen Name + 8 eBooks + social media sites 4 SALE - PM me (evergreen beauty niche)

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1002635].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author LilBlackDress
    That may be so...but some things are DEFINITELY SCAMS
    and bogus credit card charges are one of them.

    Bogus offers are a disgrace and put a bad name on affiliate marketing.

    Nothing anyone can say justifies putting poor quality, bogus offers out there knowing they rip off the consumer ....no matter how much money you will make. It is a disgrace.

    Dont get me fired up on this
    Signature

    Pen Name + 8 eBooks + social media sites 4 SALE - PM me (evergreen beauty niche)

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1002685].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author dsmpublishing
    Even though the majority of us are sick to death of these lines in the sales letter/email there are a few that would fall for it and it those that they make the money from. I have seen these messages for years and it must work because otherwise they would have learnt from it and changed their sales chitchat.

    kind regards


    sam
    X
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1003095].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author JonathanBoettcher
    What about the other side - all the PPC marketers advertising "{Insert Clickbank Product Name} Scam?

    Then they direct link to the offer page. Or, their landing page has nothing to do with their suggestion that the product is a scam.

    I'd like to see some data on a split test or something for this type of campaign, because I just can't see how framing your potential lead with "scam" on their minds, then sending them through to an order page - I just can't see how that converts well.
    Signature

    Discover My Effective Backlinking Strategies...

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1003476].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Troy_Phillips
    When I first promote one of my own products I will usually set a number to sell at the introductory price .

    The difference is if I say only 100 for $xx.xx then at 100 the price goes up.

    Marketers should say what they mean and mean what they say . Contrary to popular opinion a lot of us do .

    That is like the counter scripts that a lot of people are using . I go back and check a lot of those and they always start counting again. Those marketers don't get my business.

    if I go back to the page and it is gone ... they may have lost that sell but when they run something else I want ... I buy from them.
    Signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1003589].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author slashman
    I know what you mean. I was promoting colon cleansing and wrinkle creams for a long time.

    The companies that were scams went out of business and the companies that really offered high quality products stuck around.

    Every time a bad company went under I had to replace it...what a waste of time. This meant that I had to find a new product, replace all links, review this new product, and so forth and so on... No to mention the fact that search engines were sending traffic to pages I had to destroy.

    It's a good lesson... Choose your affiliates wisely.

    Thanks,

    George
    Signature

    I'm a cool guy.

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1003598].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author amitcor
      George, I feel you. You read my mind, i was about to post my feelings about CPA and i saw what you wrote.

      I finally make money through affiliate/cpa and i think money got me blinded. i'm not sure what to do. i haven't got any complains yet but that doesn't mean people are not getting screwed up. I really don't know what to do, i already invested so much time money and effort into the site.

      I wouldn't like to think some one is getting hurt because of me. but really how can we tell whoch offers are legit?

      my feeling is if they pay 30-35$ per lead and you only pay shipping - then they must make money from something and that something is screwing people up.

      on the other side who am i to be the judge? i mean shouldn't the CPA companies that make such a selection choosing the affiliates check better the companies on their site?

      really lost here.



      PR: wait... I: wait... L: wait... LD: wait... I: wait...wait... Rank: wait... Traffic: wait... Price: wait... C: wait...
      [IMG]chrome://seoquake/content/skin/close.gif[/IMG]
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1003941].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author AffiliateMax
        Originally Posted by amitcor View Post

        I wouldn't like to think some one is getting hurt because of me. but really how can we tell whoch offers are legit?
        Google the name of the offer/product. Google the name of the offer/product plus the word complaints or scam or fraud etc. Look at the landing page - see how clear they make the ongoing charges. Read the terms and conditions. Phone the customer number or send an email and see how quickly someone answers. Look at what claims they make for the product /service - eg: there is no proof that **** helps you lose weight; Adwords is not just "using simple typing skills to fill in online forms" etc, so any offer using wording like that is misleading at the very least. Look up the company on the BBB website to see the level of complaints. Have those complaints been resolved to the customers satisfaction or did the company not even bother to reply?

        Originally Posted by amitcor View Post

        my feeling is if they pay 30-35$ per lead and you only pay shipping - then they must make money from something and that something is screwing people up.
        Pretty much. If they were upfront about the ongoing charges, any additional charges you were signed up for were also made clear, the product was of good quality at a competitive price, the trial period was of a reasonable enough length to receive and evaluate the product and cancellation was a quick and hassle free process - then no way they would be able to pay those rates upfront for every lead.

        If it's a product with ongoing monthly shipments there's nothing wrong with that IF that is made very clear to the customer and what's being offered is of good quality and value for money - not some **** pills (with only a tiny percentage of ****) bulk bought from China at $1 each and sold to the consumer for $89 with the fact that there are ongoing monthly shipments (and therefore charges) buried deep within the terms and conditions (along with additional sign-ups to other products or services). Either the customer is unaware of the ongoing shipments and charges becasue they are so hard to find; or if they are aware but decide not to continue and try to cancel them, they then find out that this is almost impossible to do. (Eg: emails unanswered, no online cancellation possible, call centre unavailable or customer put on hold for ever, trial period starts from date of order not receipt so product arrives after the trial period is over, etc)

        If the company was an ethical one with a good value offer for the customer then why not offer affiliates a share of ongoing (recurring) revenue from the monthly purchases, rather than an upfront payout for the initial lead. If the company and product are of sufficient quality that they retain a reasonable proportion of their customers then this would represent a better proposition for their customers and their affiliates.

        Some of the offers are not only screwing their customers, they are screwing the affiliates too - most of the cpa bizop offers are just a lead generation mechanism for an upsell to overpriced and poor quality 'coaching' which is taking advantage of people's lack of knowledge about running a business online - this 'coaching' costs anything from $5000 to $20,000 and the cpa affiliate who generated the initial lead gets nothing from the upsell.

        Originally Posted by amitcor View Post

        i mean shouldn't the CPA companies that make such a selection choosing the affiliates check better the companies on their site?
        They should do. But clearly they don't.

        So therefore it's up to you to due some due diligence - saying "the network said it was okay" or "I am just the affiliate" is not going to be much of a defence. Being an affiliate does not somehow magically exempt you from the the law!
        Signature
        UK Affiliate Programs : Recommended UK affiliate programs and networks.
        Kiva.org : Support an entrepreneur and change lives!
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1004158].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author amitcor
          Originally Posted by AffiliateMax View Post

          Google the name of the offer/product. Google the name of the offer/product plus the word complaints or scam or fraud etc. Look at the landing page - see how clear they make the ongoing charges. Read the terms and conditions. Phone the customer number and see how quickly someone answers. Look at what claims they make for the product - there is no proof that **** help you lose weight; Adwords is not just "using simple typing skills to fill in online forms" etc



          Pretty much. If they were upfront about the ongoing charges, any additional charges you were signed up for were also made clear, the product was of good quality at a competitive price, the trial period was of a reasonable enough length to receive and evaluate the product and cancellation was a quick and hassle free process - then no way they would be able to pay those rates for every lead.



          They should do. But clearly they don't.


          I just spent an hour googling for my offers with a combination of scam words and it is realy hard to find anything. the internet is becoming 1 big scam. 10 first sites i visited we're affiliated in some way.
          I even found a "doctors review site" that was sending to a CPA offer.

          I'm now going through offers trying to find some that have a clear phone number, and an easy to cancel policy. I'll also make sure in my site that if people want to cancel they should make sure it is within the trial period.

          BTW AFFILIATE MAX - one of your signature links is broken


          PR: wait... I: wait... L: wait... LD: wait... I: wait...wait... Rank: wait... Traffic: wait... Price: wait... C: wait...
          [IMG]chrome://seoquake/content/skin/close.gif[/IMG]
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1005667].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author AffiliateMax
            Originally Posted by amitcor View Post

            I just spent an hour googling for my offers with a combination of scam words and it is realy hard to find anything. the internet is becoming 1 big scam. 10 first sites i visited we're affiliated in some way.
            I even found a "doctors review site" that was sending to a CPA offer.
            Yes, that is a problem. Many affiliates also use words like scam, warning, or review to 'get the click' but then have nothing but praise for the product (which in all likelihood they have not even tried!). I even saw one affiliate offering an 'official review' (whatever that is suppossed to mean!) who admitted they had never tried the product as the offer was not available in their country, but nevertheless they were "sure the product is great". No idea how they could come to that conclusion - perhaps what they really meant was "the commission payout on this product sure is great!".

            Any product with a lot of complaints should show up on the first page of google on a site like complaintsboard.com or another non-affiliate site like forums or blogs. Of course if it's a new product then if there are any complaints they will take time to appear. But otherwise it should not take more than 10 minutes to do a quick search for complaints and find out if there are any major issues (after all most companies get some complaints, but when there are pages and pages of them clearly something is up).
            Signature
            UK Affiliate Programs : Recommended UK affiliate programs and networks.
            Kiva.org : Support an entrepreneur and change lives!
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1005762].message }}
            • Profile picture of the author TheNightOwl
              Originally Posted by AffiliateMax View Post

              perhaps what they really meant was "the commission payout on this product sure is great!"
              LOL! Gee, whiz... surely no one would do that kind of thing???? :rolleyes:
              Signature
              {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1008903].message }}
            • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
              Banned
              [DELETED]
              {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1009041].message }}
              • Profile picture of the author dealxrated
                Originally Posted by alexa_s View Post

                Many vendors are also commissioning large numbers of articles with their product or company name and "scam" as keywords, in the knowledge that those will be many prospective customers' search-terms, too, so they can ensure the first page SERPs are dominated by only favourable reports.
                Yes I agree with you, just have to run more specific queries in google.

                On a side note they **** out the forum name in my last post kinda silly. If I put a dot com at the end I could see that but not just for the name.
                {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1009093].message }}
                • Profile picture of the author ExRat
                  Hi Dealxrated,

                  On a side note they **** out the forum name in my last post kinda silly. If I put a dot com at the end I could see that but not just for the name.
                  From what I have seen here (and there), there are very good reasons for that decision - it's automated, I believe. Perhaps if you stick around a bit longer you'll have more understanding about why, and less inclination to pass judgement on things that you obviously don't understand.

                  Those of us who are 'well read' know exactly where and what you're talking about, no worries.
                  Signature


                  Roger Davis
                  {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1009230].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author BurgerBoy
    If you want your colon cleaned out it's real simple to do.

    Eat about a dozen dried prunes and drink a 12oz glass of prune juice.

    It will not be long until you will have your colon cleaned out and unable to even leave the toilet for a while.
    Signature
    Collectible Dolls Shop, Nursing Scrubs Shop, Best Shopping Center, Sports Memorabilia Deals
    Eat More Beans - America Needs The Gas.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1004577].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author TheNightOwl
    @OP George (two Georges in this thread)

    There seems to be two things going on in your post:

    1. copywriting lies
    2. scam products

    dsmpublishing makes a really valid point about the efficacy of certain things (like scarcity - fake or otherwise), but this doesn't mean it's necessarily true. It may be that people are just copying something because they assume it to be true. There's only one clear answer: test it.

    But... that then leads on to the second point. If you're expressly not okay with fake scarcity (or any of the other crapola you read on salesletters), why would you even test it? Surely, you'd just not do it!

    To Hell with whether it makes you more money. You'd just not do it... right? :confused:

    I also agree wholeheartedly with Troy_Phillips.

    And this thing about not even bothering to test something shonky leads us onto...

    Point #2

    A number of people have already pointed out that if you think the product is a scam, then you shouldn't promote it.

    AffiliateMax's post is worth re-reading in my opinion.

    Yes, it'd be nice for BigCompanyXYZNanny to make sure it's all safe and that I don't have to worry, but at the end of the day, I'm the one who's legally liable and morally three sheets to the wind by promoting stuff such as that which you mention.

    At least one person who has already posted in this thread either doesn't get that -- or patently chooses to ignore it as simply an annoying impediment to making as much cashola as possible. I don't imagine I'll be buying anything from that person any time soon.

    LilBlackDress's first post bear re-reading also.

    It never ceases to amaze me the way people will shaft others to make a few bucks (no, correction: It's sometimes vast sums of money) and then try to construct some kind of rational justification or "special circumstances" loophole for themselves.

    If you're promoting a program that must be ripping people off in order to turn a profit, and you are fully aware of that but choose to turn a blind eye, then you are -- by extension -- also a scammer. And you should be prosecuted to the full extent that the law permits.

    It doesn't matter how much you prettify it and rationalise it. If you're promoting stuff which has hidden recurring billing, the inability to turn off recurring billing short of going to the credit card company, could potentially mess with someone's health or mental well-being, etc. then you are **deep breath** not doing right in the world. (I elected to edit my original ending to that sentence.)

    </rant>

    TheNightOwl
    Signature
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1005622].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author funky_budha
    For people who have seen this letter several times would automatically think its a scam, but for first timers, and i think that's who they are targetting would definitely fall for it.
    Signature
    Chill Out Venture
    Gets you Out of the Box!
    Adventure based teambuilding.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1006397].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author jayguy
    There are unscrupulous people in every industry sector and unfortunately the internet is a great medium to get to the guilable. It is a shame but conduct as much research as possible. If you are thinking of promoting an affiliate product buy it yourself and check out the service etc.
    Signature
    SEO Liverpool
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1008919].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author GeorgR.
    >>
    There are unscrupulous people in every industry sector and unfortunately the internet is a great medium to get to the guilable.
    >>

    Yes, but the point is...those "unscrupulous" people/offers are the #1 promoted and hyped offers in MOST big CPA networks. And the best converting with the best EPC/earnings. Talk about colon cleanse, ****....etc.

    jay, nice site. If i make enough money i get one of those..but marbella seems to be a very expensive place. Toying with the idea to move to southern spain..and then do IM from the pool <----
    Signature
    *** Affiliate Site Quick --> The Fastest & Easiest Way to Make Affiliate Sites!<--
    -> VISIT www.1UP-SEO.com *** <- Internet Marketing, SEO Tips, Reviews & More!! ***
    *** HIGH QUALITY CONTENT CREATION +++ Manual Article Spinning (Thread Here) ***
    Content Creation, Blogging, Articles, Converting Sales Copy, Reviews, Ebooks, Rewrites
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1009026].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ExRat
    Hi Amitcor,

    I'm seeing SEO quake icons at the bottom of your posts -

    PR: wait... I: wait... L: wait... LD: wait... I: wait...wait... Rank: wait... Traffic: wait... Price: wait... C: wait...
    [IMG]chrome://seoquake/content/skin/close.gif[/IMG]
    Signature


    Roger Davis
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1009047].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author dealxrated
    I think its this thread is interesting, most of you need to have a little more faith then you do in the internet as a whole. First of all the internet isn't just gonna collapse from spam. If you pay attention you will see google is already starting to change around its algorythm to weed out the more spammy sites that do not offer solid information. The spammy sites and scammy products will never stick around too long.

    The only reason why a cpa network does business with these "scam products" is because most do not care. If you hang out at ********** forum then you will get a way better idea of affiliate marketing when it comes to cpa networks. They have the owners of ads4dough and several other top cpa networks that answer questions daily from its affiliates and that will give you alittle more insite on what kind of advertisers they pick up.

    And lastly to cover the legimitcy of most of the **** products is that they do not work that well. See if you read up on **** berry you will see that the extract form is very weak and has barley any antioxidents, which is the whole basis of the plant. The only way to keep it pure is to freeze dry it and extract the berry that way.

    Hope that helps
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1009079].message }}

Trending Topics