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By Jane Louise
"Make over $10,000 per month online with our business!" "Tested business opportunities online, guaranteed income!" "The others are all scams, but we are the only guaranteed business opportunity online!" "You can have all your dreams come true with our online business!" "We do 95-100% of the work!"
Heard any of these lines before? I'm sure you have, and if you have tried any of them you will realise that a very high proportion of them simply can't deliver what they promised. Lies, scams and frauds are everywhere.
So how do you tell if something is a genuine opportunity in an online business and not a scam?
If you look at these online business sites, you will notice that they are geared to sell their product quickly - to get the customer to feel like there is no time to waste, they will miss out (possibly on the best opportunity of their lives), and the time to act is NOW. They imply that you are not looking after your family, that you would be stupid to ignore their comments, along with many other cajoling techniques. They push, they pull - until they hit your buttons.
The other thing that most have in common is that they don't actually let you know what it is that you have to do until after you have given them your credit card details and signed on the dotted line to give them tens, hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
They also often don't have legitimate contact details (if any are there at all).
So that's the general look of an online business scam.
Genuine opportunities, however, are slightly different. They will give you a full understanding of what it is that you are signing up for, all the costs you can expect to pay (both up front and any monthly fees), and they are happy to give their contact details.
Genuine online businesses often give away a valuable free bonus that is part of their business system. They may also have reviews in reputable magazines (if they refer you to a review, instead of clicking on their link, do a new search for the magazine and search their archives). Good online business programs also offer training and support. Good online business programs realise the importance of helping you succeed and will do what they can to help you get there.
Be aware that you need to be prepared to do some actual hard work, and that the return may take a while to come in. This is what happens in business both on and offline. If you haven't done something like this before, there could be a steep learning curve ahead of you. That isn't to say it will be impossible, but you may find you struggle occasionally. (That will be where your online business steps in with their training and support!)
The most important point to keep in mind, which I mentioned above, is to ensure you have a full understanding of what it is you are signing up for.
(Another small tip I would give is to take a moment to stand up, move around and let your excitement settle slightly, to give yourself an opportunity to think rationally!)
The next is to then do an independent online search for this online business, with the word 'review' after the name of the business (be sure to get any other names they trade under), and another search with the word 'scam'. (With these reviews just ensure that the writer is not writing solely to redirect you to their own online business!)
One thing that can turn people off is 'opt-in' mail lists. However, this is a genuine business technique. These are used to find genuine customers who are interested in their products and to filter out spam. It is simple enough to click on the 'unsubscribe' button should you need to.
Of course many legitimate sites use some hard-sell techniques that may fall into the above description. If you are still unsure, leave the idea to sit in your head for a while before making any decisions. If you are attuned to listening to your 'gut feelings', now is a good time to listen hard!
Essentially you need to keep your eyes wide open, and follow your head rather than your heart.
Finally, only spend what you can afford. If you still find you've bought into a scam, it won't be the end of the world, and you can chalk it up to experience. Remember in these cases that you are only trying to do the best for yourself and your family, and there is no shame in that!
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