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| Spotting Diet Plan Scams |
Diet Plan Scams...They're Everywhere!
If you are here, you're probably like all of us, looking for a diet plan that will work for you. We've listed some of the best out there for your review. But what about the ones that aren't so clear-cut?
Can you tell if the website is offering you real product and not the latest snake-oil? You can, if you know what to look for. The images are all from ONE specific website but are broken up to show you what to look for in these scams. Here's a perfect example...
In researching for the products we've listed, we came across these ads many times in the search engines. Sometimes, we weren't even looking for diet products, these "popped up" as we visited news and information websites.
Have you ever seen this "mom" before? She's one of many examples they use in their banner ads. No telling who she really is, they no doubt found her pictures on a weight loss website somewhere, but not for this product. You can click the ad for a full size view.
Click on the images below for larger view then match numbers on page with the following:
- 1) Very top: Advertorial. What the heck is an advertorial? No such thing. Tells us though this is an ad even though it is made up to look like a Health News Alert.
- 2) Below headline: This site is not affiliated with any newspaper publication. Well, at least that's true!
- 3) The Date on the right: This is a piece of code the website owner uses that will always make the date that you see todays date. They use the same kind of coding to show your city name on the web page.
What do I mean? Here is the simple code for your city. I can say something like:
See your city? It's all computer code, nothing more, so don't be fooled!
- 4) Julia's photo: This girl is on ads everywhere. I know who she is and her name isn't Julia. Her real name is Melissa Theuriau and she is a news anchor in France. Click here to see her website and pictures of her that have been stolen for many fake diet plan ads.
- 5) Note the quote: "we here at News 6". Now look below at number 6.
- 6) In the image it says "Julia Miller of the News 7 team". What?? Which is it? News 6 or News 7?
- You will usually see a "Results" listed by week. Again, this is pure hype. There is no Julia, there is no News 6 or 7 or whatever they're calling it and there is no test they're running. But they'll tell you their "Results" for a 4 week period almost every time.
I'll show you in a moment where they will tell you this is all hype, right on the page, if you know where and what to look at. I'll also show you something shocking that I know you would never have guessed when you first looked at this ad to begin with.
- This is another giveaway for a fake ad or fake news story. They'll always have some kind of "Comments" section where people who bought this offer have used it, are going to try it or have had success with it. These are all written by the person who built the page.
None of these are real. You can tell at the end of the comments section when you see the notice where the arrow is pointing in the large photo. It will say: "Comments closed due to spam" or words to that effect. That's baloney, it is to look like users commented and the News 6 or News 7 website had to stop it..
- The print is very fine and I don't know if you can read it on your monitor but this is what it says. The terms and conditions are here, mandated by the FTC. It says, in part: "It is important to note that this site and the comments/answers depicted above is to be used as an illustrative example of what some individuals have achieved with this/these products. This website, and any page on the website, is based loosely off a true story but has been modified in multiple ways including, but not limited to: the story, the photos, and the comments".
It continues: "Thus, this page, and any page on this website, are not to be taken literally or as a non-fiction story."
In other words, this website is entirely made up. Now, who do you think did all this? And, is this the only website they have? Check out the next photo for some shocking news! (pun intended)
- 1) This is taken from the Whois Record Search. You can look any website up at http://whois.domaintools.com and get this information.
- 2) This website is owned by Mr. Linh Wang. Mr. Wang also owns 1,645 other domains! You'll notice this domain name is onlinehealthnews7.com. I'm sure he has all variations from 2 to 99.
- 3) And guess where Mr. Wang lives? Hong Kong! China! And you thought this was a website that little ol' Julia put out there so you could lose 25lbs in 4 weeks! Not so. Let me explain more about these kinds of offers below.
It's Not Limited To Diet Scams...
Mr. Wang is a proficient producer of these websites but he is not the only one doing it. There are likely thousands of other people who produce these fake sites designed to get you to think you've found a news story to confirm something you hope is true. They will probably get closed down eventually as well but for an example, here is the same "News" like website, telling you how Work At Home Mom Makes $6,397/Mo.
You will notice too when you click this link that Your City Name will appear in the headline, making you think it is more believable. Click Here to see it but remember, it's a fake.
I'm Not Going To Win Any Friends In The Marketing Arena With This...
These offers for Free Trials that you often see with Acai Berry or Colon Cleanse are what are called in this business as Continuity Offers. What that means is, you order with a credit card for a free trial and usually pay a nominal shipping. They send your order but here are the things you may not see in your haste to order your free trials:
1. The trial period is limited to 14 or 30 days but this is from the date you order, not the date it arrives!
2. Once your order arrives, you are free to try it but if you've received a 14 day trial that means you've only got at most 10 and probably 7 days to give it a try before the offer expires.
3. When the 14 or 30 day trial is over, they bill you automatically. They will keep billing you monthly (or every two months) until you cancel. That's why it's called a "Continuity" offer.
4. Trying to cancel can be a nightmare depending on who you're dealing with. Odds are you're going to get billed at least once and maybe two or three more times before they stop.
5. And, in this case with this specific offer of Acai and Colon Cleanse, your trial offer of only $2.49 S & H for both products, turns into a whopping $238.11 charge on your card within 14 days of your order. And, for products you could likely find elsewhere for less than 50.00!
Remember...
The FTC came in hard this last year and exposed a lot of fake blog websites for doing this very thing. The illustration above is typical of many fake "News Story" websites today and they get away with it by posting the terms and conditions on the page you see. The Free Trial type offer is more often a hook to get your credit card to overcharge you for products you could normally buy for a fraction of the price. Read the whole page before you buy and if you have any questions, write us! We'll be glad to give you our honest opinion of any website you find.
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