You don't join any scheme that you've been invited to by an unsolicited email, do you? Especially if it comes from a Gmail address (or Hotmail, or any free email), you shouldn't trust a word of it, no matter how genuine it may sound. In fact, you should assume that such emails are all make-money-online scams in the first instance.
Automated messages can be simply ignored and deleted but messages that they send you personally can waste a lot of your time. I receive them daily via social media and, for the thousandth time, the minute they start "Try this system! Money's just pouring into my account every hour like crazy!" - here we go, another make-money online scam.
Respectable Network Marketers
Anyone could be a network marketer. You could be one today. Join a scheme that pays you a referral commission and contact absolutely everyone that you could reach on the internet. All you need is a thick-skinned, assertive personality. Tell them that currently, you're unable to stop the money pouring into your account every minute, and if they want to be a millionaire they should copy what you do. Totally blitz them out. You are an instant network marketer, and also a scammer.
Successful and respectable network marketers know who to target, know the communication manner, know some realistic figures to present, and most importantly they can actually answer your questions. "Where does all the money come from?" To which they don't reply "Look. Over $60,000 into your Paypal account every single day. How amazing is that!"
"You'll Earn 5-Figures Today!"
Network Marketer (NM): Hi Ray! Thanks for the connection, how are you?
Ray: I'm fine, how about you?
NM: Awesome! How's your day going?
Ray: Going very well, thanks.
NM: Where do you live?
Ray: (Check my profile for God's sake) London UK. I see you're from Chicago?
NM: That's right. What time is it there?..........
...."So how's your business going?"....."What do you to?"....."Busy day?".....
NM: I need to tell you about this business that everyone's going crazy about, earning up to $3,000 an hour non-stop.
Ray: No thanks, but thanks!
NM: Why?
NM: Take a look anyway. Here's the link. http://.....
NM: Ray, are you there?
NM: How are you doing Ray?
They never back down. Often the only way is to be rude to get rid of them. "Why I'm not interested is not your business. No means no." will finally shut them up and that'll be the end. They don't care and simply go find someone else.
But it's worse when they're a little more tactful - being friendly over a few days, or even weeks. We would chat about life. Family, hobbies, governments, cultural differences... Then just as you begin to think they may be genuinely nice, they drop a bombshell. "Have you heard about this program that pays you like crazy?"
When Can You Pay Me Please?
People like you and I know there's no such thing as 'join today and the money will start pouring in like crazy'. Nothing in life works that easy for you. It takes an awful time and effort to get what you want, we know that.
And if they're so uncontrollably rich, they should be spending time on their yacht, not on Facebook chat. Employ someone else to message me.
I have witnessed hundreds (literally) of get-rich-quick-dreamers in the past, they genuinely seem to believe there is a way to receive money online like a winning lottery prize. One of my subscribers approached me recently -she had previously been a victim of a few "Make Money Online Scams", she wanted to start making money seriously by blogging. So I told her what she needed to do first. To which she replied, "So wen can u pay me pls". She wasn't joking - she thought I was some kind of an agent who would pay her for learning how to start a blog.
I explained to her it wasn't the case and it was never the way it should work. That was the end and she never came back to me. I was disappointed - if she never learns, she'll continue to be the perfect "make money online scams" target.
Money Laundering
Another girl who contacted me had lost $300 to a scammer. The scammer approached her on Facebook, told her to invest $300 now and she'd receive $600 in return in 4 weeks time. Because of some 'technical complication', the scammer requested her to pay someone else via Western Union. So she did. Of course the scammer got the money and disappeared.
She came to ask me for advice, but unfortunately the only advice I could give was to (1) contact the Western Union immediately and (2) call the police. She was worried the police in her country may not act, but that's not the point. Money laundering is a crime set out by the international law, therefore it needs to be reported to the authority. She desperately wanted to hear my opinion, as to whether she was able to recover the money or not. I told her that my honest opinion was "very unlikely", but also told her it was just my opinion as a blogger, not a lawyer.
The moral of the story is;
- Always make a purchase on credit card. Never send money via Western Union, i.e. transferring money to someone voluntarily.
- If you've been scammed, understandably you're panicked. But make sure to take action; contact the authority at least!
Make Money Online Scams
Don't get swayed by the network marketers' shock-approach; remember what I said earlier on. If they're earning money "like crazy", they should be keeping it to themselves. Not contacting you on a free chat, hoping to make a couple of hundred of dollars. Never trust them easily.
(Real Time) Affiliate Income Report Last Month
October 2024: $8,550.00
Hey Ray, thanks for the advice on make money online scams. I’ve been in contact with a few. So true what you say. One said to me I could earn thousands while I’m asleep, every night. I quickly Googled the name and a referral commission was $20 per referral. When I pointed that out and asked the guy why he wanted me to join to make extra $20, he said it wasn’t the money. He’s no longer interested in making money, but he wants me (stranger) to be rich? It doesn’t make sense or whatsoever!
Sorry to hear about the girl who lost $300 to the scammer. I agree with you, no chance she’ll get the money back. Maybe she knew it too but wanted to talk about it to you because it’s pretty embarrassing to tell friends or family.
Hi Zak, how’re you doing? Thanks for your comment. I must emphasise again that I have a great respect for successful network marketers. What I meant by ‘anyone can become a network marketer’ is the barrier of entry is extremely low with zero cost, so the competition is extremely high and a lot of new (?) marketers seem to grab an opportunity to scam.
Yes the girl who’s been scammed, as you say, probably wanted my opinion just to keep her sanity. Thanks again Zak for stopping by.