Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net and Stuart Miles
Dear WAHFAQ,
How can you immediately tell when a Work At home opportunity is a scam, before providing your personal information?
The first thing you have to do is figure out if you’re looking at an actual “opportunity” or a work at home “job.” There’s a difference. Opportunities mean you run your own business, you’ll have to put up capital, develop a marketing plan, etc. “Jobs” mean you work for someone else, just at home in your fuzzy bunny slippers.
Many people get these confused and lump them all together. Then they get frustrated because they’re asked to put money into a business when they’re expecting a job. They end up thinking all work at home jobs are scams simply because they’re asked to put time, effort, and money into a business. Avon is not a scam. Tupperware is not a scam. But they sure as heck aren’t jobs!
So, once you’ve figured out what you’re actually looking at, and have set your expectations accordingly, you can further decipher whether something is a scam or not.
Read through Evaluating a Home Business Opportunity to figure out if an opportunity is right for you. After following those steps, you’ll be fairly confident whether a business opportunity is a scam or not.
Now, in your question, if you actually meant “How do you know if a work at home JOB is legitimate before providing your personal information?” (Again, people get these confused, so I just want to cover the bases!) basically you just need to play detective. In The Work at Home Training Program, all of Part I (the first 90 or so pages) details the information you need to determine whether something is a scam. It’s impossible for me to condense that information all into one article, but I do have a handy acronym to help guide you:
S: Scrutinize the Source
C: Check for Affiliate Links and Fees
R: Research the heck out of every detail
A: Ask for more information
M: Mouse over images and links
You’ll notice that in point “A”: ask for more information, I actually am not against contacting a company to find out more. At this point, you should have a few different emails you can use, and you can get a free phone number from Google voice. If you have questions about a company, there is no harm in asking them for more information, but use your dummy accounts! Legitimate businesses will put their contact info out there and will be happy to answer all of your questions. Scammers will not.
Think about all the extra money you could make by being a mystery shopper, starting your own business, or working from home for a legitimate company. Take control of your income and check out our LEARN page for a list of classes, books, and more!
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