Tips for avoiding small or home business scams
Starting a small or home business has definitely become an attractive alternative for people across the world. This type of business is especially attractive to parents. As gas prices go up, and jobs get harder to come by the need and desire to stay home increases. There is no other business opportunity than starting your own business that allows you the freedom of working at home, raising a family, creating your own hours, and earning income at the same time. Before you invest in any type of small or "home" business you need to take some precautionary steps in researching what is legit, and what isn't. Unfortunately there are many "work from home" or "own your business" companies out there that will take advantage of you and scam you out of your well earned money. So how can you avoid those small or home business scams?
Let's first look at some of the home businesses that are not what they seem to be.
- Craft Assembly. I've seen ads like this all over the place! They encourage you to pay money and help them assemble toys, dolls, or some sort of craft project, and best of all you can do it from the comfort of your own home. Here's the catch, you just have to pay a small fee for their "starter kit" which includes everything you need to get going. Then when you receive the kit, you spend hours assembling, building, sewing, etc.; send it into the company but are told that it doesn't meet their specifications. Trust me, I actually tried this and wasted many hours until I finally realized that it was impossible to meet their specifications. They are making money of selling their starter kits, not from the product you are supposedly making for them.
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- Envelope Stuffing. For a low price ($50-$60) you can become one of their "highly paid" email processors. What you're basically doing is getting instructions on how to send out spam; much like the same ad you likely responded to. They usually offer a lot of money, for little work. There's no such thing! If it sounds too good to be true, then it is. Another variation of this is for you to be paid $1 or $2 for each envelope you stuff. You send in the money, and you're guaranteed a certain number of envelopes to stuff. What you will receive is a short instruction book, and flyers that you are suppose to place around town with yet another work from home scheme. When someone sees the flyers, they send you $2 and you mail another flyer out to them. Smart, but somewhat illegal.
- Medical Billing. This is a much more expensive scam which may make some people believe that is must be legitimate. You will usually pay upwards of $500-$1000 for "everything you need to process medical bills at home." What you don't know is that most medical clinics process claims and bills on their own, or hire firms to do them. But not to worry; you're suppose to get a full refund if it doesn't work. Well, if you figure out how to get that money back, let the rest of us know how to do it too! Chances are you'll never see that money again.
- Typing at home. After sending in your one time fee, you receive information on how to place home typist ads in places for other people to find, again much like the one you first responded to. You are basically becoming one of those scammers.
These are just a few of the business scams out there today. Now that you sort of know what they look like and how they work, here are some tips in helping you avoid small or home business scams.
- Never pay company money for a chance to work for them. When you apply for and get job outside of the home nobody ever asks you to pay them a "one time fee." It's the same with small or home businesses.
- Research the business. Always research the company by asking for references of people they have worked with or people who are working for them. Get specific information such as phone numbers, addresses, etc. Usually if they are a legitimate small or home business, they will give these to you without hesitation. It's also worth your while to check the Better Business Bureau.
- Use your Credit Card. I know it sounds crazy, but if you buy a starter kit, or make some sort of investment relating to a small or home based business and end up being scammed, you can dispute charges that have been made with your credit card company.
- Don't reply to spam. This is how a majority of scammers get the word out. If that's how it came, delete it and move on.
Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, then it is. I hope these tips for avoiding small and home business scams help you in your endeavor for pursuing your own dreams.
