Guidelines: Obstacles in the Way of Buying into a ScamCreating a few simple rules or guidelines to follow could easily mean the difference between keeping your money and losing it to something useless. If you find yourself constantly submitting to your buying impulses, it may be beneficial to put a few checks on yourself. Next time you feel the urge the click on that PURCHASE button, stop and do the following 4 simple steps. Be critical of a pitch pageRead a pitch completely, top to bottom. Examine and think about each and every claim a website makes.Does the site support its claims? How vague is the information? Is it clear what the product/opportunity is and how it works? Is it clear what you'll be doing? Do you know how you'll be paid? If you're investing in a business opportunity or money making product, you should definitely know a great deal about what it is and what it has to offer. Never purchase anything on your first visit to a websiteThis is a practical guideline for a number of reasons. For starters, it neutralizes the immediate impulse buy. After taking a some time to distance yourself from the supposedly HOT item or opportunity, you may find your enthusiasm for the offer has decreased, leaving you more objective.Furthermore, leaving a pitch page without purchasing gives you the opportunity to implement rule number three... Research the productMore often than not, this can be the longest and hardest step. Depending upon how long the product has been on the market, objective, critical information may or may not be available.Of course, you won't know that until you begin researching. So, with that in mind, here are a few good starts for beginning an investigation... Hit the search engines. This is the easiest and broadest type of research. BE CAREFUL THOUGH, you must be cautious about the search results. Don't be taken by false reviews. It is best to find pages with thorough reviews or complaints – the more details, the better. Check forum posts. I guarantee you are not the first person to view a particular pitch page. Other people might have already begun asking questions about a product or its claims to fellow forum members. Likewise, people who have been scammed by a certain product or company often post their complaints in forum threads as warnings to potential buyers or as responses to others' inquiries. Again, the more detailed the information in a forum post, the better. For more information on using forums and few forums worth using,
check out the Investigative Resources Page.
Generally, these complaints are more detailed than those on forums as well. For more information on Consumer Report sites and some examples, check out the Investigative Resources Page. Listen to your conscienceYour intuitions may be correct. If something on a pitch page doesn't sit well with you, you definitely shouldn't be buying.As simple as this guideline sounds, many people still ignore their gut instincts. Don't be one of those people Imagine the worst case scenarioIt's easy to think of all the good things a product or service might bring to our lives, but make sure you consider the possible negative outcomes as well.Will the purchase price hurt you? What if the product/opportunity fails, can you afford to be out that money? Will you have to invest more after the initial purchase, and what if you lose that money as well? Nobody likes to think about the negatives, but sometimes we should. It's not about being pessimistic, it's about being realistic. Consider ALL possibilities before buying anything - good and bad. If you follow these simple guidelines, you immediately curb initial buying impulses upon arriving at a site, and you will also decrease your overall susceptibility to product scams. There are, of course, other tips and tricks to pick up on throughout this website, but these will provide a solid foundation. Return from Guidelines to Scam 101
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