How Critical Thinking Can Help You Avoid Scams

Let’s be honest. Honest opportunities in online business are getting harder to find. The Internet is a sea of ​​manipulative advertising that targets deep desires that most of us have. We want something for nothing, even if that opportunity doesn’t really exist. We want to make money overnight while sitting on the couch in our pajamas. We want thousands of dollars to appear in our bank account at the touch of a button. Honestly, it just doesn’t happen that way.

Even if people are honest, advertising itself is a form of manipulation that biases our perspective. Scams are everywhere. Perhaps the secret we need most is a way to figure out what is a scam and what is a genuine opportunity. Using critical thinking skills will allow you to assess an opportunity and reduce the risk of being scammed.

First, let me define what I consider a ‘genuine opportunity’. I believe that what you get out of life, you must first put into it. From experience, nothing comes from doing nothing. You have to put in time, planning, strategy and effort and even money if you expect to be successful in your business, whatever it may be. So I define a ‘genuine opportunity’ as one that gives you a basic business idea (perhaps a product or service) that you can take and apply your time, planning, strategy, effort and money to make money. The amount of money you earn depends on how much time, planning, strategy, effort and money you put into it. It also depends on the value of the product or service offered. If you have a bad product or service that no one wants or needs, no one will buy it.

The many scams that circulate on the Internet take into account that you want something for nothing, so they advertise their opportunity as such. Many of these business opportunities are simply selling you with false promises. Some don’t even have a product or service that you can promote. They lack that essential basic business idea.

Another sign of a scam is what resources and supports are or are not given. Some of these opportunities offer training on how to use their ‘system’. The scam opportunity, or source, will provide resources to those who are affiliated and promote them so that you can earn the income from the source affiliate. Actually, honest programs do this too. However, the difference is the value of the resource. Can these resources really help you? Are there better ones available that weren’t offered because the source isn’t affiliated with them? Does the source offer extensive informative education that you can learn from, or is it just targeted advertising in disguise?

Another item to check is who is offering the business opportunity. Do some research on who owns the business. Are they an expert or someone self-proclaimed? If you can find reviews or information about them from another objective party, then that’s a good sign. If all you find are the owner’s own proclamations about how great his business opportunity is, I’d do a little more research before handing over my money.

When evaluating an opportunity, look at the evidence offered that it is a viable business opportunity and whether that evidence is verifiable. Many scams offer rows and rows of ‘testimonials’. Look closer. Are testimonials tracked by “Mary from Detroit, Michigan” or by “Dick Weaver, www.dickswebsite.com?” Mary from Detroit will never be traced. You can easily and quickly go to Dick’s website. If it is legitimate, you will be able to contact them by email or even a phone call. Given the choice between opportunities, the one that provides verifiable testimonials is the safest option.

Finally, does the opportunity come with a guarantee and what is the quality of that guarantee? Do you have full access and at least a 30 day unconditional money back promise? Take the time to check out the Better Business Bureau online for more information. Unfortunately, most companies are not members of the BBB, so this is not always a fruitful search. However, if they are on the list, you can feel much more secure doing business with them, as long as they have a positive standing. In addition to your guarantee, which I always like to keep a copy of for reference, pay with Paypal or credit card. This just gives you a bit more security and can possibly help you get your money back in case you need to exercise the money back guarantee.

When evaluating a new business opportunity, critical thinking skills can help you evaluate what is presented in more detail. See if the advertising is based on vague and ambiguous claims, or solid and verifiable information. A real opportunity gives you a valuable product or service that you can promote with your time, effort and money. How much and how well you promote your business will determine how successful it is.