Photo Credit: ToastyKen

Right on the Official Google Blog, a post was added today with regard to steering clear of online scams. I think the post is very timely, and it offers excellent advice with regard to how you can check if an opportunity is genuine.

In essence, here are the tips pointed out in the post:

1. Do a web search first, looking for reviews. (Beware of reviews which are just affiliate sites too!)
2. If there are upfront charges for things that are offered elsewhere for free, investigate further.
3. Read the fine print.
4. There is no such thing as guaranteed top placement in Google, whether is organic listings or advertising.
5. Do further investigation in pyramid schemes. Are they sustainable?
6. Ignore all you spam mails, or suspected spam mails. If they are too good to be true, they probably are.

Here is a line right out of the horse’s mouth:

Creating a successful website is hard work – successful sites earn their money by writing compelling content, developing useful applications and maintaining vibrant user communities. Any claim that you can skip all of that and make just as much money by posting links, using a secret system, or running a kit to generate websites should be treated with a heavy dose of skepticism.

Re-read this quoted paragraph twice. Or ten times if it is what it takes.

If you are promoting a product for someone else – whether its an affiliate product, or membership site, or a network marketing program, do your sums, and always think “Is there any value creation involved in this program?” No matter what business you are in, money come always as an exchange for value.