Author Archive for David Gates

Avoiding Internet Scams When Searching For A Job

by David Gates

Looking online for a job where you can work from home typically brings about the same results: You search for a job you feel you qualify to do. In a matter of seconds, a long list of links comes up. The problem? Most of the results are obvious scams.

Scams have changed over the years as scammers have come to realize that most people could see straight through their obvious schemes. As the years have passed, scams have begun to look more and more like legitimate jobs that you would want to have.

You will know it is a scam after you receive a quick reply since the scammers cannot afford to waste any time. How will you know? Because you will receive an offer to complete little or no work in exchange for an incredible amount of money. It will look nothing like the job you originally applied for.

So what can you, the intelligent job searcher do? The answers are simple.

The first thing you can do is to email the company and ask about the job opening before you send in your resume. You will once again be able to tell the difference from their response. If you do decide to send in your resume first, make sure you delete any personal information such as your contact numbers, address, etc.

The only information that has to be on your first resume is an email address and your name. If you are applying to an actual company for a real job opening, they will be able to tell if you are qualified by your job history and other information without needing to know your personal contact information until they are ready to hire you.

If you have seen the obvious scams that can be found everywhere, you might wonder how people can fall for them. Do they really believe they will be paid a hundred times what they originally hoped for and only have to do half of the work? Such blatant lies make it hard to believe that these scams actually work.

An obvious scam is one in which you are told that if you pay this much money, you will make this much money. If you have to pay someone money to make money, you know you are being tricked. Even if you see an official website for a company or it seems completely legal, do not let your guard down for even a minute.

Last, but not least, remember the old adage: If it sounds too great to be true, it most likely is. Common sense tells you that there is no such thing as free money. Working from home means you will still have to work to earn an income. It is up to you as you search for a job to make sure a scam does trick you into wasting time, money, and energy.

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Stay At Home Moms Make Money On Ebay

by David Gates

When walking around flea markets, I overheard people bragging about making so many thousands and thousands of dollars on eBay. I thought, Yeah, sure. Well, I found myself back in college and unemployed and suddenly the flexibility of online selling came back into my mind. Like me, you may have browsed the sales items on eBay and even made a few bids. It is like a big, revolving door of used and collectible items of any description. There are even Buy it now! listings which are often new items. Like me, you may not have realized that eBay business is legitimate and an excellent way to get your own products or inventions in front of the eBay public.

It’s not difficult to get started and most importantly (the question that most everyone wants to ask), it really is a legitimate, profitable work at home business. Really! There are no worries about fly-by-night companies, up-front ‘required investments’ or secret information you have to buy to succeed.

The last thing a stay at home parent wants to do is to get scammed and there are many people around who are happy to separate you from your hard earned money. There are some business which are a valuable resource. There are thousands of these types of references you can find on a search, but most are not going to give you the best advice. Reselling junk, while a great way to get your feet wet, are not very profitable. The best and most profitable businesses will be revealed in a minute. Read on.

Whatever your living conditions or space considerations, you can make it work. All that is really required is a computer, something to sell and the motivation and knowledge to get you started. You can work from a house, an apartment or out of a rented garage.

There are several ways to get started with an eBay home business. If you have some things laying around or stored in the garage, jump on eBay and get started right away. The registration and posting an item is intuitive and goes through quickly. The website at eBay is instructive and all you need to do is read it. Just follow the directions. It is simple and straightforward. Within a half hour you will be listing items and reaping the benefits.

As you get more familiar with eBay you will find that there are tips and options available on eBay for making the most of your listing, such as finding the value of your item. You can see what the average selling price has been and the quantity that has been sold. Good clear photos are also important and there are tips for maximizing that part of your listing. For example: well lit, and simple backgrounds. There is also advise about things like shipping costs in order not to scare off bidders with excessive shipping.

If figuring things out for yourself isn’t your forte, there are manuals, DVDs, even other websites and blogs that can help get you started. The best part about getting a little outside training on eBay is that you learn ways to make money that you never thought of before. Did you know that you can sell \”information only\” items on eBay? Items like downloadable manuals and books, software, different kinds of lists, etc. This kind of selling requires no shipping, no inventory, no waiting to see who won, and you can do it over and over againautomatically. Whenever someone wins an auction, you simply point them to where they download the information you provide and the money just keeps showing up in your paypal account. Then eBay starts another auction for you automatically, for the same item. It’s downloadable information, so you can sell it over and over again. It realy is one of the most amazing ways of making money on eBay! You need to learn more about this kind of eBay business before you start though.

This is a great way to get you started and familiar with eBay: sell a few small things first. Gather up some stuff from your attic, closets, garage, barn, storage locker, anywhere and then put them on the auction. This does two things: it gets you started making a few bucks and gets you comfortable with the process. After that, you can branch out into other products, maybe the information-only type of product or even one of the other new unconventional eBay selling methods. This works. Buying and reselling items you know can be profitable. You can develop a relationship with a manufacturer or importer and just drop ship product. This means you get the order and they ship it out. You do not touch the product you just reap profits. You can also buy wholesale items for your personal use at great discounts. Do you really want to be at home and bored, or even worse, bored and broke? An eBay business can solve this for you same time!

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Home Business Credit Card Scams: Beware

by David Gates

The number of home business opportunities (aka scams) that were bombarded with today is astoundingespecially given the state of our economy. Unfortunately, I became a victim to one myself since I lost my job several months ago and was feeling the pressure of not having a regular paycheck. Ive since decided to investigate the legitimacy of these jobs as theyre listed on so many job listings.

Most jobs that can be performed at home involved data entry to taking orders through your home phone line for other companies. The opportunity looks great, promises lots of money, and many even back up their claims with a guarantee. Thats what convinced me; if I wasnt satisfied Id simply get my money back.

I spent days researching several ones. I focused one those that did not sell just the software to show you how to make money at home. But actually stated that I was working for them and all I had to do was go to their website and pull data to enter into forms. Sounded easy enough.

I picked one that guaranteed 100% money back, and, of course the \”special offer\” of a discount to the first one hundred people applying. The website promotion and what actually was delievered were night and day. As soon as I hit apply and entered my credit card information, I discovered I was duped. I had become a victim of a home business opportunity scam.

My job was to promote credit cards on a website that I was to enter into hundreds of search engines and through other online media. I hadnt been told that before, nor had I been told I had to apply for several credit cards and that only after I was approved for them would I get paid $20 for each of them. Even that turned out to be elusive since I had to earn $500 first.

There was also another excuse for why I couldnt yet get paid. I couldnt reach anyone at the company in person. I could only go through email where I usually got a preprogrammed response. It was impossible to get any real answers.

I asked for the money-back guarantee multiple times. The only way I even reached them was through a phone number listed on my credit card bill (in Australia) and of course those calls werent returned either. I ended up filing a complaint through my credit card issuer and Im still waiting for it to be resolved.

I am utterly humiliated to have fallen for such a con. I am college educated with several degrees. Desperation will cloud one’s mind and lower defenses. I have no problem working hard for my money and did not count on it being \”easy\” money. I just assumed you only would make as much as hard as you worked whether it was three hours a day to 10 hours. I write this to remind others as well as myself the sound advice that if it looks to good to be true it most likely is.

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Work At Home Scams: Want To Know The Truth?

by David Gates

Are you considering starting a home-based business so you can earn an income while staying home with your children? There are many wonderful opportunities and success stories associated with home-based businesses, but there are also many scams and fraudulent schemes out there, as well. Here is a short checklist of what you might want to think about before starting a home-based business.

Remember that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is! You would be shocked at how many smart individuals have fallen victim to scam artists. Watch out for business opportunities promising lots of money in a short time with little work.

One of the most common types of scams is the pyramid scheme business. Thankfully, these companies are illegal in many areas. The pyramid scheme encourages their members to recruit others to join the pyramid by paying money to the company. You do not actually make money by selling a product; you make money by recruiting. Since most people are only able to recruit so many others, only the people at the top of the pyramid actually see any real money. Sadly, the majority never make money from this type of business. Avoid the pyramid scheme at all cost!

Stuffing envelopes and home assembly programs are two other scams that have lured many unknowing participants. These two will be discussed together because they have both existed for many years, but you can still find their ads in popular sources like magazines and news publications. Few people actually make money from stuffing envelopes; in fact, I know some who have tried this business. These people paid the requisite fees, followed the directions, and were subsequently told that their work was of poor quality.

Stuffing envelopes and home assembly programs are usually not a good idea. I am lumping these two together, because they have both been around so long, and they still show up in legitimate sources, such as magazines and newspapers. While there may be some people who have actually been paid for stuffing envelopes, I have had some friends who have tried making money this way. After paying the $25 to $45 fee, and following the directions, all have been told that they didn’t meet the \”standards\” of the company.

Be wary if the Home Based Business site claims that you can make thousand of dollars in the very first week from the comfort of your own home. Can this really be true? Sorry, but the answer is no. The internet does have many lucrative opportunities because of the large audience it offers, but you must also be extremely careful and research these opportunities before making an investment.

Many of these businesses are legitimate; this is especially true in the area of Internet Marketing. I myself have taken part in such opportunities with some success. Unfortunately, most internet sites like this are only out there to take money from you. The advertisements are written by very talented copy-writers. These people have been trained to use certain words and graphics to convince you to buy into anything and everything.

Look for the proof that they can back up their claims. You read an extremely vague ad. You haven’t a clue what the business is about, but boy, could you be making the bucks! Read through the lines and the fine print you will probably find that it’s another home business scam. Do your research. There are great opportunities out there, but they are easily lost in the swarm of sites that are intended merely to scam you.

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How to Lose $10,000 Trying To Work From Home

by David Gates

Tired of working to make your boss wealthy? Want freedom from that awful job? Can you start your own home business and earn a great income? You may receive answers to all these question, and it’s possible you can do it. But first - beware! While there are excellent work-from-home programs that will enable you to fulfill your goals, there are also many that are simply rip-offs whose sole aim is to separate you and your money.

Thanks to e-commerce (\”Electronic Commerce\”) and the Internet, millions of people make a handsome amount of income by working online jobs. These people can be found all around the world, working from their own homes.

As they say, though, there are two sides to every story. For every person who has been able to succeed in their efforts to work from home there are others who have spent a few thousand dollars and ended up with nothing except frustration and betrayal.

Perform an online search using the keywords ‘work from home’ or ‘online jobs’ and you will would be surprised to see thousands of web sites which make tall claims of helping you generate a six figure income by doing almost ‘nothing’. Are you about to be scammed? That’s the problem. You don’t know who to believe. All those pictures of fast cars, mansions, palm trees, poolsis it real? Or just hype?

It is, without any doubt, difficult to work out which sites are genuine and which are scams. However, there are a few techniques that you can use to help determine which are genuine and which are not. Companies that lure you in with web sites of private jets, luxurious homes and cars are generally bogus. If the photos are polished and look like they come from a magazine, they may have - or at least were bought from a professional photographer or stock photography company. Look for photos that are obviously snapshots and unpolished.

Look carefully for outrageous or unbelievable claims. Nobody is going to make a million dollars in their first year in any legitimate online business. Companies which are genuine are not going to make such crazy claims. Only trust companies which have a solid and positive track record at industry watchdog organizations. Online forums are extremely useful ways to read other people’s opinions of companies, and to discover genuine online jobs.

There are many legitimate home business reviews on the Internet. Review them before you spend any money. It’s too easy to fall prey to bogus companies with dodgy businesses.

Before spending a single dollar, do your research. Most of the fraudulent companies require a one-time membership (sometimes ongoing) of around $100 or more. It’s possible some of these are real businesses which do provide you with real work and reasonable incomes. But many are not, so beware. It’s not just the subscription money you risk, either - you will waste your time, which in the end is far more valuable. Finally, realize that scammers will continue to ask for more money once they get their hooks into you.

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Starting an Ebay Business: Watch Your Bank Account Grow Daily

by David Gates

In these hard economic times, many of us are looking for a way to make extra money. You’ve thought about that entire inventory of items you have that you’ve purchased during better times. How can you convert them into extra cash? You can start a home business on eBay. But first, let me tell you that you are going to \”graduate\” on to a much better way of making money with eBay. I’ll tell you about that in a minute.

Most people hear this and are tempted to jump right in with both feet. However, make sure you take the time to appraise your inventory. You may search your house and find outgrown clothes, designer shoes, or high-tech gadgets. Researching how and where your items will best sell is crucial to amplify your income. Spend time finding the right information before you start selling if you really want it to work.

The best way to begin is by searching eBay for items in your possession. Take note of how much people will pay to get your junk, and shut your dropped jaw before you slobber all over your computer when you find how much some of your stuff will sell for. As the saying goes, One mans trash is another mans treasure.

You can also utilize any popular search engine to find information and resources about the brands you have lying around your house. You can uncover valuable information such as what to pay, how to verify authenticity, where to buy wholesale and so much more.

One popular saying declares that resellers do not make their profit when they sell an item, but rather when they purchase it. Your closet clutter will not last forever so look into wholesale sources before you need to take advantage of them. Having the right information is imperative to keeping an Internet home business up and running.

Consider each listing of your personal items a practice run. Take time to research the best way to make money off of your inventory. Use what you see successful sellers do to help you create listing descriptions and starting prices. Let every failure be a learning lesson of what not to do in the future.

Research and practice may reveal that traditional Internet auctions are not your thing. You may hate your daily trips to the post office or be tired of tripping over the inventory strewn throughout your house. If that describes you, consider using one of many companies that will help you create a website and drop ship the items you sell from their warehouse. You can also sell information items over and over again. EBay is capable of automatically listing a new auction after one of you information items sells. You can sit and watch your bank account grow with this wonderful method of making money on eBay.

Creativity shines through in dark economic times like the sunshine after a thunderstorm. Career paths formerly hidden or passed by suddenly become viable options. Always remember that the right information plays the most important role in making an Internet business work for you.

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