Asking for WSO's for free

Well...

Just wait until you don't give it to them for free and then start getting PM's from others that bought your stuff and commented in the thread that they are getting PM'S from people to "share" the product

I used to throw some freebies out there through PM, then found out that 2 people that i gave freebies to were posting the stuff on share sites so, that kind of jaded me as far as that goes.

There was a WSO a while ago that actually taught people that they could get free WSO's by offering to do reviews for the sellers. The best way to stop it is to just tell them...

"I don't have to give the product away for free to get a good review"

You probably won't hear from them again after that

The worst is when you deny someone a free review copy, and then they go ahead and purchase it just so they can leave a bad review on purpose!

Has it happened before? Oh yes. Unscrupulous!

The people who want WSOs for free are the same as people who hit up the warez sites to get products for free.

They're absolutely never going to use them, because they didn't have to make any type of commitment (mental, or monetary). Therefore, like Louise was saying, they're not going to get any where anyways.

In my opinion, when you give people something for free they're not getting as much out of it.

But free, can also mean commitment to read your emails (mailing list) or perform a certain action (JV). But ignoring the value you've put on it, will make them place no value on it either.

The solution is easy

Report them.

Submit a ticket to the helpdesk with the
username and copy of the message you
received and they'll be dealt with.

John

People trying to get information for free, are like squirrels collecting nuts. The difference is that winter never comes for them.

Not to be different or anything but you have to admit, they was taught "get a review copy for free" when the forum allows people to post "hey review my product for free in exchange for a testimonial" ...

I mean come on people see these threads so what do you expect a newbie to do. I would disagree that they are from warez just because they ask. This is not right to put everyone in that category, maybe some just seen those threads giving away free copies for review and they figured they would ask some about a product that did interest them.

I have reviewed products on here for people .. but I have never once asked for a review copy. Normally they PM me and ask if I will review, when I have tme I do and if I do not have time I explain why I can not review it.

If you really want to get rid of the problem I would suggest not to allow people to post in the main forum saying "get a review copy for free" ...

Just my nickles worth ...

James

Maybe they really don't have the money to afford it?

EDIT but that still doesn't mean you should give it for free

Personally, I think that asking outright for a free WSO is just plain rude. I can understand why sellers can be put off by such requests, with good reason! Putting together a great WSO involves hard work and a lot of time.

If I saw a WSO that might be helpful to me, I would buy it. I really have no business requesting a review copy. That's dishonest AND rude.

It's true that they might not be able to afford it, but this is a business. If you ran a restaurant, you wouldn't go to Wolf appliances and go 'hey, give me a 12 burner stove, I'll talk about it a lot in my restaurant'. It's frustrating if you're just starting out to not be able to afford things, but it's not fair to hit the bottom line of other's just because yours isn't up. Not speaking about anyone specific, by the way.

I wouldn't mind if people ask me for review copies, but then I would want to see that they genuinly need it and that they can't afford it otherwise. But you definately get some people who will take the hand when you offer them the pinky. So I guess it is not very good practice overall.

In fairness, there really are a lot of people these days who truly can't afford it. That doesn't mean they wouldn't gladly buy it if they could, they just can't.

I'm not saying you should give those people a copy of your WSO for free. You have no way of knowing who really can't afford it and who just wants something for free. I'm just saying that it's a little rude to automatically assume that they don't see the value in your offer. Obviously they must see some value or they wouldn't bother asking for it.

I don't give out free stuff to people asking for it in exchange for reviews. I might give a review copy of a product to someone claiming to want to promote it, but I'd want a list of half a dozen pre-sell or review sites they have for products in the same niche. That quiets 99% of them. The asking for review copies on this forum is all a big scam--just one of many.

Another is the development of mini-cartels of deviants who post crap one liners to develop a presence and start running WSOs with wild, wild earnings claims. Then, 5-6 of their buddies start posting glowing testimonials telling how great the product is. All of these guys have less than a dozen posts and I'm not so sure they aren't the same person writing comments for their own WSO under different user names.

Still, there are little mini-cartels of weenies who try to manipulate things here to their advantage just as they do on other forums and platforms. On Squidoo you can find the same thing. People with horrible lenses used as pre-sell pages post good star ratings and comments on their buddies lenses and the gesture is reciprocated. Just a handful of five star ratings and a dozen comments will have a dramatic effect on the ratings.

All I can say is that all of this stuff grinds on me. Good people pay the price for black hat tricks that these deviants play.

Re-read my above post.

If it's a rant, then it's a rant, I haven't responded to a request of this nature before and I don't have any desire to in the future. I might send them to this thread, but the fact remains I'm seeing a pattern to this, and if others are seeing the same pattern then due diligence is needed.

Thanks much for the comment Paul. After I posted it I wondered if I sounded too harsh, but they do grind on me.

And, I don't want to sound like I'm in a "mini-weenie cartel" with Paul, we've never met. But I will tell you this:

I downloaded Paul's Need To Know document from the link on his sig file a few days ago. And here's the problem with it. That PDF file is worth twenty times what the average WSO is worth here. But very, very few newbs will get it, read it, and practice what he preaches. Why? Too many beginners grobble up only WSOs that claim to guarantee x number of dollars in 3 days with virtually no work.

Paul shows exactly how to build a solid business--that's entirely different than making a quick $100 profit. Making money online isn't a matter of learning the flavor-of-the-month secret tactic someone is whoring out here, it's a matter of laying a sound foundation for a business capable of sustained growth. Almost always that involves WORK and a lot of it.

--Mike

Buying implies committment and this isn't what you will get when someone gets your WSO for free.

However, the other side is that if someone specifically offers review copies, you can still get people who are just wanting to get someone for free, without even considering leaving some type of comment.

It's just how it goes I guess.

Kevin

I suggest you just ignore these people. Well, not completely... you should mark them down somewhere... that's the only way you can spot them on other threads. The sooner people realize that reputation is important around here the sooner they will stop with this.

When I see a "freebie seeker" on another thread I know to take their post with a grain of salt. The same is true of a lot of things around here. I have quite a list of people I care to not interact with. With such a large community you have to be vigilant with stuff like this

I don't have a fresh WSO up so I haven't had any freebie seekers lately - but I have been offered many review copies lately - maybe it is something in the air

How would you feel if someone offered to barter a skill they had for one of your products?

So... People outsource their sales letter with proof now???????
What on earth is this world coming to. I missed that one

If I get pm'd or emailed for a review anything I politely reply. review copy? I wasn't aware I developed one of those where did you see it

There is a huge difference from someone asking me Hey I would like your product but have 0 cash and I believe this could help me I would be willing to design something write an article etc but I just don't have the cash. My response: here ya go no worries I hope it helps. of course if it happened all the time I would have to can that to. asking outright for an already listed wso for a review copy is like walking into the retail sore and saying I want that tv over there the one on display can you let me take it home and review it.
Ridiculous
-WD

Good response Dennis I like that test "what is the name of the restaurant" Good job
we always have to be willing to help we never know when we ourselves will need it. I appreciate that comment.
-WD

That is neat Dennis a lot of folks are not honest when wanting but that is very neat it happened that way.
-WD