How To Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams And Not Lose Money

How To Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams And Not Lose Money
Do You Want To Know How To Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams?

The best way to Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams is to be crystal clear what your area of interest, or “niche” is.

Having a clear focus on what you want to accomplish online means you are less likely to be victimized by scammers.

Therefore, once you have determined your area of focus then you’re able to build your business around your “niche”.

How to Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams By Focusing On Your Niche

Anyone looking to build a successful affiliate marketing business needs to understand the importance of what a niche is

A niche is a specialized sub-category of a product or market.

For example, Basketball is a niche, a very broad niche.

Also, in niche marketing, you would subcategorize “Basketball” into smaller less competitive niches, or sub-categories.

New York Knicks Basketball Players would be a niche market.

It’s very simple; you are basically taking a broad topic and dividing it into smaller topics.

Not doing your research when choosing a niche can be devastating to your business.

The point is this: if you’re clear about what your area of interest is you can FOCUS on that niche.

Thus, it becomes easier to build an online business around that niche, or area of interest.

When you approach online marketing from that standpoint, you are far less likely to become a victim of a marketing scam.

Similarly, focusing on ONE niche will help prevent you from hopping around from one opportunity to the next.

That’s what is known as Shiny Object Syndrome.

Also, scammers are well aware that people who are unsure of themselves are the easiest ones to take advantage of.

The Wealthy Affiliate platform goes into great detail about how to choose a “niche” and the best way to market to your audience.

How to Avoid Affiliate Marketing ScamsKnow the Warning Signs

Unfortunately, scams are constantly showing up everywhere on the internet.

Here’s the problem: the same advancements in online technology that makes our lives easier also help make the scam artists’ job easier as well.

Many of these dishonest individuals are quite competent when it comes to technology.

This can make it difficult to determine if you have found a genuinely good make-money-online opportunity or a crapload of shenanigans and malarkey!

Below are some classic warning signs you’re probably heading toward a scam:

If There’s No Contact Information, It’s a Scam

This is usually a very good sign that you have come across a scam.

If I’m a scammer, why in the world would I leave my contact information.

At best, the scammer may leave an email you can send messages to for the sake of appearing legit.

However, I can assure you the messages never get answered.

You can’t contact anyone for a refund, because you’re never getting a refund!

The interesting thing about scammers is that once they’ve milked enough desperate people out of their money, they usually shut down and create another scam product.

They usually create another fake product and start sucking money from unsuspecting wallets all over again.

Scams Usually Don’t Have Responsive Support

If an online “guru” is offering you a product that swears you’ll become a six-figure earner in 90 days or less then first check and see if the support from that site is legit.

Most, if not all, of these guys are very difficult to contact.

However, if you do get a reply, it’s usually a very vague, short comment with no substance.

Here’s a great test: send them an email.

Simply ask them a quick question in reference to their product or service then sit back and wait.

If it takes them more than 48 hours to get back to you, then there’s a 90% possibility it’s a SCAM.

I would highly recommend you run away from that so-called “opportunity” as fast as you can!

Not Replying To Your Emails – It’s Probably A SCAM

What I started doing is scrolling down to the bottom to find a “Contact Us” link.

If there was a contact email then I emailed the online “guru” asking very bluntly if there are any upsells to his or her product.

I would ask EXACTLY how much each upsell is and how many of them.

Believe it or not, this tactic usually works.

If I don’t get a reply in 48 hours, I DON’T buy it! (Frankly, 48 hours is too long for me personally)

When I get no reply at all, FORGET IT!

If You See A Lot of “Living Large” Pictures of Riches and Wealth, Look Out!

How To Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams And Not Lose Money
If There are MULTIPLE pictures of Exotic cars, beautiful women, custom homes, cash money, and screenshots of payments, LOOKOUT – It’s A SCAM!

This next one really gets under my skin.

When you get to a site and there are strategically placed pictures of very expensive automobiles and private jets, LOOK OUT!

If the website or video is showing mansions in South Florida, half-naked women in a jacuzzi sipping on champagne, hide your wallets!

WATCH OUT: Here comes the SCAM!

Scroll further down the scammer’s page and see if you find detailed information on the product itself.

Keep scrolling.

Keep going.

Do you see any actual information regarding the product and how it works for the ordinary guy?

Guess what? YOU WON’T!

Scammers are all about grabbing your wallet like a crazed lunatic and pimp slapping you until you part with your hard-earned money.

The really frustrating part is that the scammers know THIS WORKS!

So many people, including myself, have fallen for this garbage.

Please, don’t be pimp-slapped and separated from your hard-earned cash.

Follow these suggestions and save yourself the anger and humiliation of being DUPED!

Numerous Unsuspecting Product Up Sells Is a Possible Indication of a Scam

I hate up-sells. I really do!

This one is tricky because there are legitimate marketers that swear by product upsells.

However, just because legitimate marketers use product upsells in their funnels, doesn’t mean scammers won’t use them as well.

Here’s how it works:

You buy a product or online opportunity at what you believe to be a low price.

Then they start sending you through a “sales funnel”.

They bombard you with so-called “offers” that you are going to need to make what you JUST BOUGHT work successfully!

I have even seen sales funnels that tell you the product you just bought is pretty much worthless and outdated unless you buy the upsell.

Just when you thought the upsell is over, BAMM! There’s another upsell!

Now you need our traffic system to go with that business-in-a-box you just purchased!

I can’t tell you how many times this garbage burned a hole in my wallet.

I strongly recommend not to buy any online business opportunity product with more than ONE upsell.

Multiple upsells are a HUGE red flag to me.

Be honest with me and TELL ME UP FRONT what my entire cost is to participate…period!

Not letting a potential customer know what the ENTIRE cost is upfront is just flat out deceptive, regardless of any so-called “analytics” that supposedly prove sales funnels work.

Deception is deception, I don’t care what you call it!

Follow these suggestions and don’t get sucked into a scammers “sales funnel.”

Constantly Referring to a Money Back Guarantee is a Red Flag

If the product you’re interested in keeps referring back to the “money-backguarantee” over and over and over again, LOOK OUT!

If there is a constant mention of the money-back guarantee more than 3 times, then something may not be quite right!

You can bet your bottom dollar that what they are selling you is of very low or no quality.

If their product or opportunity was of high quality and has a great reputation in the online community they will typically not keep referring to the money-back guarantee.

Make no mistake about this as well: These scammers make it VERY DIFFICULT to actually get your money back.

As a matter of fact, most of the time you don’t get your money back.

The very nature of these charlatans is to not give a refund!

These clowns try to make it so difficult that people will just give up trying to get their money back.

Therefore STAY AWAY from any product that constantly references their “money-back guarantee” more than 3 times!

Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams – Use Wealthy Affiliate: To Learn How To Make Money Online

I have tried many programs throughout the years, and the one program that delivered for me personally is Wealthy Affiliate.

Everything I needed was right there on the Wealthy Affiliate platform.

WA made it so much easier to focus on the work of building my business.

What caused me to make the decision to become a member of Wealthy Affiliate?

The fact that I could SET UP A FREE ACCOUNT.

The owners, Kyle Loudon and Carson Lim allow you to become familiar with how the Wealthy Affiliate platform works.

For example, what I really liked was the opportunity to create 2 FREE websites using WordPress.

This was HUGE for me because up to this point I can say without a doubt I HATED WordPress.

However, thanks to Wealthy Affiliate, not only have I learned to build a website using WordPress but now I actually like it!

Additional Resources

Wealthy Affiliate Has Very Responsive Support

The other feature I really like is the Wealthy Affiliate community of online marketers.

With Site Support you can get help for any technical issues you have with your websites.

The response time is usually just a few hours, sometimes sooner.

With Live Chat, you can get answers to almost any question you have about your online business.

Some of the most successful affiliate marketers in the industry make themselves available within minutes to answer your questions!

Join Wealthy Affiliate And Avoid Affiliate Marketing Scams

There is nothing in the Wealthy Affiliate platform that takes advantage of unsuspecting people.

People are looking for a way to build an online business so they can create a life-changing income.

Wealthy Affiliate has been helping people build online businesses for over 12 years.

There are no shenanigans with Wealthy Affiliate. No malarkey, blarney, NO SCAMS!

At Wealthy Affiliate, you get 100% value for every dollar you spend. 

My sincere advice is to never commit to a product if you cannot try it out FIRST for a limited time to see if it is truly a good fit for you.

If you want more detailed information on how ordinary Wealthy Affiliate members are making extraordinary incomes, then click here to read my detailed review.

It’s my sincere hope that you can benefit from these scam warning signs so you’ll never be taken advantage of again!

If you’re looking to build a lasting, consistent, profitable affiliate marketing business, then you owe it to yourself to check out the benefits of the Wealthy Affiliate platform!

Talk Soon,

Howard

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10 Comments

  1. If you asked me, any programs that show you cash from the beginning – whether it’s a photo or a snapshot of their paycheck – those are not worth looking at.

    It’s just the dangling carrot (one that I’ve fallen for far too many times) to lure you into the system, get your credit card number and never really delivers.

    Those are truly scam sites and they deserve to be shut down by the authorities.

    1. Hey Cathy!

      My favorite word to use is “shenanigans”. It’s an Irish work for “secret or dishonest activities or maneuvering”. There are so many “SCAMS” on the internet that you really have to do your due diligence these days in order not to get caught! That’s why I love Wealthy Affiliate. This is an honest platform and everything you need is within the WA membership. Thank you for the comments!

  2. There are many scams out there and avoiding them can be really difficult so I really appreciate this writing. Also I see a lot of these pictures which are basically people with expensive cars. I never thought that these can be scams and from now on I will be cautious about these too.

    1. Hey Furkan,

      The people who are the highest earners very rarely discuss how much they earn, and when they rarely do, it’s in the context of a seminar or webinar. You don’t know what kind of car they drive, and you certainly don’t know where they live. On the bottom of their websites you’ll see a business address and that’s for legal purposes.

      The honest, real marketers NEVER show screenshots of their bank or PayPal accounts. Nor do they show ridiculous stacks of money. There are the tell-tale signs of SCAMMERS!

      You are not alone, my friend. It is really hard to tell sometimes. If you see any of the “red flags” mentioned in my post, grab your wallet and stay away from it!

      I wish you much success in your affiliate business,

      Talk Soon,

      Howard

  3. Hi Howard:

    I love what you say about spotting a scam. Particularly the one we’ve all seen over and over – the guy in his fancy house with expensive cars, swimming pools and scantily clad women. It’s as if the scammer thinks that everyone wants these things. Anyway, It’s a sure sign you’re about to be swindled..

    What you say about up selling is so true. I hate it when a scammer keeps leading you down the path hoping to rope you in and then BAM!, there’s the up sell! You have put in all this work filling stuff out and opening an account only to find that your time has been wasted.

    I love how Wealthy Affiliate doesn’t do that. They are honest and straight-forward with no BS about getting- rich-quick.

    Thanks!

    1. Hey Christopher,

      Thank you for taking the time to reply. I forgot the part about the “scantily clad women” lol!

      My #1 fact about WA that I appreciate is that there are NO up sells when you sign up for a membership. Whenever I would investigate a program and if there was a up sell, I immediately would not join it. I can’t stand up sells. Just give me everything I need at one time and let me decide for myself!

      Great reply!

      Talk Soon,

      Howard

  4. Hey i really enjoyed this article, i have seen so many scams online or just dishonest people. Its crazy how these rich people will make a video showing there cars and all the money they make just to try to get people to spend money on there program, then you normally always run into up sells once you are in. Wealthy affiliate is the place to be for affiliate marketing.

    1. Hey Justin,

      A lot of people don’t know that many of these funnel sites are outright scams. Did you realize you can go on Fiverr and hire someone to create real looking PayPal and Clickbank screenshots, fake blog comments, fake, real-looking testimonials, fake video testimonials, and anything else you need to suck in the unsuspecting?

      I know because I was part of a program some years ago that taught you exactly how to do this. They are counting on people’s inexperience and gullibility to rape your wallet…

      Thank you for taking the time to comment.

      Talk Soon,

      Howard

  5. Thanks for the heads up on how to spot a scam. I have seen these signs numerous times when I am searching for things on the internet.

    Out of all the years I’ve looked, wealtjy affiliate and maybe one other one has been a totally legit site to join in the Mmo niche.

    Thanks again and I’ll be sure not to fall for scams thanks to this checklist.

    1. Hey Michael,

      The mmo (make money online) niche can be a brutal one. However, that’s why I joined Affiliate Bootcamp here at WA. It has outstanding training in this niche. Although Affiliate Bootcamp are for those who primarily promote Wealthy Affiliate, the principles can be applied to other mmo products. 

      Thank you for the kind words and I’m happy you gained some value from this post.

      Talk Soon,

      Howard

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