Certainly you have heard the phrase, "There's a sucker born every minute."  Most people mistakenly attribute the quote to P.T. Barnum, however P.T. never really made the exact statement.  The renown showman was a successful marketer and was deeply tuned-in to his customer base and would not refer to them as suckers.   Regardless of who coined the phrase, it seems to be synonymous with many folks hawking goods on the internet these days.

I was researching an article recently and was reviewing the results of a query entered into Google.  Despite the ever present "Sponsored Links," a properly constructed search phrase typically yields a wealth of information that proves invaluable on a daily basis.  Unfortunately, a poorly entered request in the search box can return a heap of data that even Sir Edmund Hillary would fear.  Recently I submitted a lazily formed statement into the deceivingly simple Google search box.  The pile of information that was quickly returned caught my attention and proved that a 21st century version of the aforementioned quote should be "There's a sucker born every search."

Although I typically ignore the ads on right hand side of the page, one caught my eye.  Yes, I know better, however with promises of making over $500,000 a year off the internet, I reflexively clicked through the ad.  The site that materialized on the screen in front of me immediately grabbed my attention.  A picture of a sincere looking everyman gazed back at me with his stories of countless internet failures until he finally arrived at a sure fire system for making money.  Right then I realized that the trap had sprung, Whaaap.  If I had been a bear in the Adirondacks it would be time to start chewing my leg off or wait for the smiling hunter to approach and end my misery.

I had arrived at the "squeeze page" and I was drinking in every word.  The everyman was pouring his tale of sorrow to me like a trusted friend, pulling me gently along the page.  My new found friend was even willing to "give away" his priceless money making secrets for a mere $79.99.  This price was only good for today though and tomorrow it would be $179.99, after all he needs to provide for his family.  What I deal!  A gift of $100 from this altruistic, gently confident advisor. 

As my eyes slid down the page I was promised a metric ton of eBooks, videos and personal advice.  My new friend was practically giving away a formula for success for a mere $79.99.  As I anxiously sought the end of page where I could eagerly fork over this pittance, another entry box caught my eye.  For the simple price of my email address (which he would never share with anyone), I would receive a free report that would start me on my path to riches.

Fortunately, about this time the voice of reason began to drown out the dulcet tones guaranteeing me a 24 hour money making machine.  The voice of reason happens to belong to a true friend or more appropriately, common sense.  You see, I have been lured by many of these scams and yes, rest assured, they are scams.  I will save you the money and take this opportunity to strike back at these thieves that hide behind the internet in relative anonymity.  Let me share a few modest nuggets of advice with you for the low, low price of a few minutes of your time.

1. The picture of the person on the page is a fake, don't trust him or her.  As authentic as they look, the houses, boats and cars probably belong to others.
2. The one-time only offer will be there tomorrow, the day after that and the day after that.  Only the date will change by an automatic script, so don't be fooled.  It's simply a tactic practiced by salespeople the world over.  They want you to buy now and feel like you are getting a deal. 
3. All the scams will promise to be one of a kind and truly unique.  Don't believe that they have unlocked the secret formula of success, that the person will be thrown off a cliff by some secret society for revealing the conversations of an inner sanctum.  These con-artists are not outcast members of the Illuminati.  They want your money, plain and simple.
4. The tons of eBooks and videos they give you will generally be poorly written and produced.  Recycled by ghost-writers and contain nothing new or earth shattering.
5. If you manage to make it through the pages of drivel it will be the basic foundation of making money, buy low - sell high.  They will instruct you to make you own eBook about something or perhaps resell products on eBay, Craigslist and other sites.
6. You will be given basic marketing advice like advertising on Google, writing articles and posting on other peoples blogs, perhaps even creating your own website to hawk your wares.
7. The internet is not an easy, anyone can do it money making machine that will fill up your PayPal account while you sleep (unless you are a con-artist yourself).  The gentle voice on the scammer's squeeze page may even tell you it's not easy, however they will guide you to success where others have failed.  Don't fall for it.
8. Once they have your email it won't be sold, at least initially.  They will use it for their own purposes, eventually selling it to some poor sap after milking it for all it's worth.
9. Any pictures or videos showing all the money that they have made are either fake, generated from their own purchases or off of poor unsuspecting people.  Anyone with photoshop or another editor can manipulate the images, please don't be naive.  If they have the technology to blur out the buyers' names, they certainly can change or add numbers.
10. The "free bonus report" is just a ploy to get your email address to sell you later.  Remember, you get what you pay for.

Please don't assume I am against buying/selling on the internet, that is not the case.  However, in this time of economic uncertainty many people, sometimes quite desperate, will throw their money away on these money making schemes.  These scams are not confined to the internet and can be found on the TV, radio and the newspaper.  The shell games have been around for years and continue to evolve to take advantage of each new media outlet as they appear.  Please don't fall prey to these swindlers, save your money.

I wish there was an easy, formulaic approach to making money.  Unless you want to be a con artist yourself, making money is a combination of good fortune and hard work.  The next time you are tempted to turn over your hard-earned money with a simple mouse click, remember "There's a sucker born every search."

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