If you’ve been looking for a way to earn a living working online for a while now then you’ve probably been taken advantage of by multiple people or websites at some point along the way and are looking for ways to avoid scams online before you lose more money starting another scam program.
I’ve been there as well.
Each time hoping it was different and the person on the other side of the screen could actually help me make money.
Unfortunately, that’s not the reality of most products or programs online claiming that they have the secret to getting rich fast.
When the majority of people trying to make money online usually end up getting scammed out of hundreds or thousands of dollars, finding a legitimate way to earn a living online might seem impossible.
It’s critical that you do your research first in order to find out if the product or service you are looking to purchase can really help you or if it’s just trying to scam you. It is my goal to help you sort through the nonsense and not only make money online but actually earn a living working online.
While avoiding scams at all costs!
So what can you be aware of to start avoiding scams today?
1. Claims of Getting Rich with No Effort
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned while trying to find a legitimate way to earn money working online it’s that no one is going to magically make loads of cash fall into your lap without you lifting a finger.
It’s just not going to happen.
If you are going to find success in anything it is going to take a lot of hard work and determination – and I don’t say that lightly. If what a website is offering seems like a dream, it probably is. Ask any successful person who made it on their own if it was easy and they will all tell you the same thing – nothing is gained without hard work.
2. No Contact Info or Email Only
Too many times have I not paid attention to a website’s customer support before I already spent the money. I would often find that what was promised before I paid was not the same as what was happening on the other side and any attempt to get my money back would result in empty email responses and no one to call.
3. Video Sales Pitches
You’ve seen these before. A blank white screen that has a video playing in the middle with a narrator talking you through a flashy power point presentation that won’t let you scroll to the end of the video where “the secret will be revealed”. Here’s the secret – it’s a scam.
4. Money Back Guarantees
If a company has to always tell me that they will give me my money back if I don’t like the product then that tells me one of two things.
- The product is terrible but the hassle of actually going through the process to get my money back is usually not worth it – or see point 2 above where there’s no one to call even if I wanted to.
- The company doesn’t get paid for the sale until a certain period of time which is why you commonly see 30 and 60 day guarantees.
5. Constantly Upselling
One of the most recent scams that I was thankfully able to avoid advertised being able to make as much money as I wanted if I just followed their training videos each day for 14 days, step-by-step. The third step of that video? Pay $400 in order for the next 11 days to make any sense. After the 14th day? Pay another $400 in order to get the next level of training.
That’s why my #1 recommendation for building your business online is Wealthy Affiliate – if you decide to become a premium member, you are a premium member for life and have access to every new training and service the site offers.
When sites are constantly trying to get you to spend hundreds of dollars for their ‘newest product’ – get out of there!
6. Cross Promotions
This is common for a lot of the social media platforms today like Facebook and Instagram. If you see a product that is being advertised by a “guru” of a similar product, they most likely are cross promoting each other’s products with no intention of ever using the product themselves.
I will continue to update this site with online money making scams as well as legitimate ways you can earn a living working online and start living life on your terms.
Next up: How to Target an Audience Online
