Home Based Business Scams......How to Spot and Avoid Them.
Home Based Business scams are, unfortunately, very common in fact the great majority of advertised schemes are dishonest. Sharks are circling in these waters, beware. The American Association of Home Based Businesses say that "very few of the advertised opportunities are genuine" and they are right. We have listed some of the more common small business scams below, the thing to remember at all times is this - if it looks to good to be true - then it is. Envelope Stuffing No company is going to pay money to individuals to put material into envelopes. There is absolutely no need to do so. There are machines which will envelope documents at the rate of 12,000 per minute at a tiny cost per item. The advert for this particular home based business scam may read "$2 per envelope and up to 1,000 pre-addressed envelopes a week sent to you addressed and post paid". When you respond to an advert like this you will undoubtedly be asked to send money upfront, maybe $20 maybe more. You may never hear from the advertiser again, if you do you will receive a couple of sheets of instructions telling you to use exactly the same advert on flyers and in local newspaper ads. The people who respond will be asked to send a stamped addressed envelope and enclose $2. You will then send them a copy of your ad and suggest that they do what you did (this is when you do the 'envelope stuffing! This scam has been in existence since the 1930's and it is hard to believe that people still fall for it but they do.Craft Assembly Home assembly jobs are frequently advertised but are all (as far as I can establish) home based business scams. If you respond to an advert for this kind of work, you will be asked for a payment, perhaps as a deposit for materials to be assembled or for 'training' or both. You may well receive a 'kit' or two to assemble and return. You will find that the company is dissatisfied with your work and you will never hear from them again.Lists of Opportunities Some websites offer lists of opportunities and details of how to contact those who will, or might offer you work. You will be asked to pay (what a suprise) for a list of companies that pay for online surveys or reviews, assembly work, envelope stuffing etc. Now some of the listed opportunities such as online surveys may be legitimate BUT you do not need to pay for lists. The information they provide at a price is freely available on the internet. Don't pay for lists of opportunities they are just another work from home scam.Data Entry/Typing at Home Many people, especially stay at home moms and the retired, want data entry or typing work to do at home. Demand far outstrips supply for this type of work and the 'sharks' out there are aware of this fact. Take a look at the following link for some useful information data entry scamsThe E-Mail Processing Scam This is a twist on the above home based business scam. The advert will say something along the lines of "e-mail processors required, $25 per e-mail processed. Full manual and details for $25". Now what happens is that for your $25, you are advised to make exactly the same offer to people on forums on the net. So you do get $25 for processing every e-mail from some poor sap that you cheat!
The 'Just Call This Number' Scam A great opportunity is advertised and all you have to do, in order to obtain further details, is to call a PREMIUM priced phone number. This is yet another home based business scam. If you ring the number, you will be involved in a very long conversation when the person at the other end will pretend to complete a very long questionnaire. The call is costing you a great deal of money. There is NO opportunity, they are scamming you by profiting from the cost of the call.The Medical Billing Scam You pay perhaps $500 for "full training, software and a list of potential clients" to set up a Medical Billing Business from home. You will receive some software and a manual and a list of local medical practioners and clinics. You are very unlikely to find any clients. There are experienced, specialist medical billing companies who do this work and large practices often have their own staff who do their billing work. The individuals who do this work are familiar with medical terminology and billing conventions. What doctor in his right mind is going to provide confidential data to a total stranger who has no experience whatever in doing this work?'My Secrets of Online Success' Scam The ad goes along these lines. "I didn't know what to do I was in such a bad financial state and then I discovered this easy way of making money online and I am going to share my secrets with you. You just follow my system and you cannot fail to make money". You will be offered an e-book setting out the 'system'. The e-book will either just tell you to do what the advertiser does or will give you some basic information on how to set up a website which is available free online. The 'secret' is that he/she is prepared to cheat needy people out of their hard-earned money and suggests that you do the same.Are There Any Genuine Opportunities? Yes there ways of earning an income from home that are not home based business scams but they all require time and effort on your part. If you are prepared to learn, work hard and don't expect cheques to start turning up next week, then take a look at the link below. It's not for everyone but MOST people can actually derive a long term income from this genuine opportunity
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