How to Evaluate Get Paid Programs
Here at GetPaidBootCamp.com, I am responsible for evaluating programs that claim they can get you paid. There are some legitimate offers out there. But here are also a lot of scams. So how do I go through the evaluation process and what do I look for in a program?
I use the following checklist to help determine the viability of a sales page:
- The Sales Page
- Other Peoples' Experience with the Program
- Is There a Money Back Guarantee?
- They're Charging Me For What!?
- Federal Trade Commission Complaints
- Seller's Reputation
- Accessibility of Seller
Evaluation Check #1 - The Sales Page
When looking at the sales page, the first thing I do is scroll down to the section that contains the buy button. Does it display the price of the program along with the buy button? If it doesn't then I try to look for the price on or near the button. If I still can't find it that raises a big red flag for me. This doesn't necessarily mean it is a scam but it is one of the signs that it could be.
People should not hesitate to show the price. What are they hiding when they do?
If they do show the price, is it in line with what the product offers? This takes a little practice and experience to determine value of a product. You have to really analyze what is being said in the features/benefits.
Evaluation Check #2 - Find Others Who Have Experienced the Program Being Evaluated
It's fairly easy to find people who have experienced an online program - just look online. Seems obvious, but you'd be surprise how many people overlook doing this.
Search online with the program in question. Try without quotes and then with quotes. For example, suppose there is a program (fictitious) called The YouTube Bank. You would search as follows:
YouTube Bank
The YouTube Bank
"YouTube Bank"
"The YouTube Bank"
If this program is not a good one, you will find people who are critical of it.
Evaluation Check #3 - Do They Offer a Money-Back Guarantee?
Most vendors should be willing to offer a money back guarantee on the product being offered. Most customers won't take them up on it (unless the product is horrendous). Along these same lines, see if you can find out the refund rate of the product. Companies like JVZoo.com make this information available to their affiliates. So you could become a JVZoo affiliate to see this information yourself and see if the product you are evaluating has a high refund rate. If it does, move on.
Caveat: Not all companies that don't offer money-back guarantees are scams. Technically, they should offer them if the program is good. After all, they should be willing to back it up. But, do make sure you understand before you sign up whether they offer this option.
Evaluation Check #4 - Should They Even Be Charging Money in the First Place?
Several programs that I have seen should not even be charging in the first place. These are typically work at home positions where what you are paying for is a list of those programs. Any program that I am evaluating where they are offering you a job should not charge you for that information.
More often than not, this is simply a list of programs they found doing a simple Google search that you can perform yourself. They'll charge you a premium because the did the "research for you". In the sales page, they will state how this information is hard-to-find.
A great example of this is the "getting paid to stuff envelope" scam. With this scam, the way you get paid is to convince others (friends and family, etc.) to buy into the same stuffing envelope jobs. Imagine how popular you will be when your friends and family find out you sold them a hoax.
Evaluation Check #5 - Check Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for Complaints
A scam is often going to get the attention of the FTC as they have a form on their website to fill out for complaints. They will often publish information about the scam on their website (http://ftc.gov). The envelope stuffing scam mentioned earlier is on the FTC's website as something that should likely be avoided.
Evaluation Check #6 - Seller's Reputation
Sellers that put out bad products are going to receive bad reviews from purchasers. Therefore, it should be relatively easy for you to search for the particular seller's name online and find out what kind of trail they are leaving with respect to products they have sold before. Of course, this doesn't preclude them from selling under a new name. And if they do that, the will be unknown as a seller and this should raise a red flag.
Evaluation Check #7 - Seller's Accessibility
Does the seller make his/her email available to you? Phone number? If so, give them a call and have a list of questions for them. Did they answer right away or get back to you in a reasonable amount of time? If not, it's probably a good idea to move on.
Along these same lines, what is the quality of the email that is provided? Does it match the business name? Legitimate sellers protect their brand.
Pay with PayPal
PayPal protects purchasers. You have 45 days to file a complaint with them. Sellers do not like to have these complaints filed as it ruins their reputation. But if you find a program that is not up to par and you are not getting anywhere with a seller, then it could be worth it to file a complaint. You should however, try to rectify with the seller before taking this step as it can look bad for them if they get too many complaints. With many sellers, it is simply an honest mistake and they will be willing to work with you.
Other Items to Look For
Common sense will be your best friend when evaluating get paid opportunities. There is an old adage that states, if it's sounds too good to be true it probably is. Trust your gut. There is always that underlying feeling that something just doesn't seem right...
One marketing ploy to be on the lookout for is the concept of scarcity. Programs will tell you that you have to buy within the next couple of hours or days, or you won't get the sale price. This too, does not make it a scam. Most sellers play this game.
They probably will raise the price if you don't take advantage during the offer period. But, here's how to treat this. Suppose you aren't convinced regarding a particular get-paid program. You are being pressured to buy or you'll lose the discount. First, find out how much the regular price is. If it isn't significantly more money, then don't worry so much about the discount. After all, if the program is worthy of your attention, you should be able to make much more with the program than the measly discount offered.
See if this product or service has been offered in the past. You can use the search parameters in google to find this information.
