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As the month of May approaches, many young adults will be sending in applications for various summer job opportunities and internships. Thanks to handy modern technology in the Information Age, most individuals are able to take advantage of job listing sites and applications, including “free listings” (such as Monster.com) and career services through universities and current employers.
However, what many applicants that are eager to begin working don’t fully realize is that shady opportunities and crooked operations often use these job listing sources as a way to quickly recruit the naive and unsuspecting. If job seekers aren’t careful, they may eventually find themselves caught up in a variation of a ponzi scheme, illegal pyramid scheme, or similar scam.
Here are a combination of some classic and new age warning signs to look out for as you pursue opportunities in your area:
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- Paying a Fee to Work or be Considered for the Job -
Most legitimate job opportunities will never require you to pay some kind of “membership fee” or “participation fee” upon acceptance. If the position does involve taking specific training or a class with a fee attached, the company will normally provide detailed information about the necessity of this extra education. Often times the new employee is also reimbursed partially or fully for this expense. If, however, you find yourself pressured into paying a suspiciously high ticket price for the opportunity to “work,” you’d be wise to leave. At the very least, you should explain to the company representative that you were not expecting to encounter “fees” and will require the opportunity to conduct additional research before progressing further. Many pyramid schemes and deceptive “commission” based programs often charge fees upfront.
- Chain letters or “Gifting” Scenarios -
If you come across any opportunities advertising the ability to “stay at home and send out letters,” or receive a list of names (“leads”) and are instructed to solicit and convince them to send money via mail or payment processors (such as “paypal“) to yet another list of names, you have most likely stumbled upon a chain letter or “gifting” scheme. These programs are very similar to traditional pyramid schemes and typically only benefit the first people to send out the original letters.
- Extreme or Desperate Eagerness to Hire You -
If the company or program seems especially eager to start plugging you in without fully examining your specific qualifications and questioning your ability to contribute as an employee, your “employer to be” is probably either hiding something from you or has you convinced that you’re applying for something better than it truly is. The American job market is extremely competitive, so if you find yourself being accepted with open arms even before the interview process, be wary and ask plenty of questions.
- Suscipious Interviews -
You may encounter a very unusual interview process in which your “interview” is nothing more than a pep-talk or walkthrough of basic information dealing with the opportunity. In some cases, you may be accompanied by several other applicants during this odd “interview” process. This can indicate that the job does not necessarily require any special knowledge or training and will therefore most likely result in strict “commission” based sales, low average pay, and/or very little opportunity for promotion and raises. Most competitive jobs will extend you the courtesy of a direct, professional interview.
- MLM / Recruiting Deception -
Distributors and representatives for MLM (Multi-Level Marketing) companies are becoming more familiar with job listing sites and often use them to scout out new recruits. Although MLM companies with unique products and services are legal by FTC definition, they are very different from traditional, secure jobs with steady paychecks. Many representatives with such companies are honest about these differences; however, some shady training organizations for MLMs train their distributors to deceive job seekers into thinking they are applying for a job as opposed to learning how to become an independent distributor. As an MLM distributor, you are strictly paid commission based on your ability to sell products and services and based on your sucess ratio of recruiting other people to go out and do the same. If that’s not your “cup of tea,” watch out for sleazy MLM reps and beware of descriptions that resemble the following: “Work from home” , “Choose your own hours” , “Own your own business.” Also beware of any “opportunity” of any kind that only emphasizes rewards for “recruiting” and “sponsoring;” that is the mark of an illegal pyramid scheme or unethical MLM system.
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One final tip for the road:
Before you even begin the interviewing process for any exciting job opportunity, make sure you research and complete due diligence on the employer. Being informed and prepared is always a great idea before proceeding with any interview; however, you can also often differentiate scams from legitimate jobs ahead of time (i.e. pre-interview) with a little “homework” and save yourself a great deal of time and effort. Best of luck!
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- Mr. Ryz
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11 comments
SMiamiFan says:
May 11, 2010 at 9:41 pm (UTC -5)
Good article and advice you have here.
I use monster and careerbuilder . Last year I was told to meet for an interview with a marketing assistant temp job offered. As suspicious as I was since I didn’t have marketing or sales experience and had little information about the company I decided to run for it anyway . I needed the money, time was flying quickly and the bill stack wasn’t growing shorter on its own.
I show up in professional outfit light yellow shirt, dress pants tie, the works . Then find I was sent to a hotel! Which was not what the email had told me to look for!! That was key number 1 that something wasn’t right.
I go walk in and receptionist directs me to a room. I approach a table crammed with blue nametags and give the lady my name. She was VERY CUTE but there I had to stand looking like an idiot , and say that I don’t know what I’m supposed to do or where my interviewer was. She gave a surprised look and repeated, interviewer? That was key number 2 that something really screwy was going on .
After standing there in the hallway by the meeting room for five minutes a couple young men approached me and rattled off a few names. One of the names happened to be mine and I was relieved to see that the Chris I had spoken with by email hadn’t forgotten about me. I was led into the meeting shortly after . I made a statement to Chris about not being sure I liked the looks of the whole hotel meeting setup and he looks me in the eye smiles and says, OH don’t you worry! What you’re about to hear will change your life.
THAT was number 3 and a big key that it had been a mistake to come to the thing . and some of you already know where this is going.
It was a MLM sales pitch alright. They wanted me to sell some super nutrition juice from some super island with some super powers BLAH BLAAAAH. Recruit others to sell juice too. MORE BLAAAHhhh.
I was NOT one bit happy or amused! I specifically used bolded warning to state I wanted a SALARY paying job preferably with benefits and wasn’t interested in commission .!! Some of these MLM snakes don’t give any consideration for you or your time , they’ll do anything to get someone into their meeting.
I told Chris what I thought of him wasting me time and he just said his quick sorry and then made some comment about not seeing the dream or picture or some more BLAAAHH. I didn’t care I was just angry I was wasted an entire evening when I was sure had made my expecations clear from the resume and description.
So yes be careful ! These MLM crews do tell their people to trick people into thinking they are going for an interview. Always ask for details before you agree to meet up if you have doubts about the honesty of the responder!
Here’s wishing the best to youngsters everywhere . I know America doesn’t seem like the land of opportunity right now but things will pick up. Hard work now will pay off in the future . Don’t give up!
Peace and blessings *
Scott
Mr. Ryz says:
May 12, 2010 at 2:22 pm (UTC -5)
Hello Scott,
Thank you for sharing your experience. I have heard very similar testimonies before and I can certainly understand your frustration.
After years of being “prospected” by friends and family for all sorts of different MLM companies, it usually only takes me the first 1-2 minutes of the conversation to predict that an individual is going to attempt to “sell me” on an MLM deal. As you may have experienced yourself, many of them refuse to mention any company names or titles and respond with something along the lines of: “Oh, that’s not important right now. I want you to come to a meeting and all you’re questions will be answered.”
Because I value my time, I usually (unless special circumstances apply) demand to know the name of the company they represent or the discussion ends there. I refuse to drive all over town for “mystery meetings.” If a similar situation presents itself to you, Scott, I recommend you do the same. This way you’ll be able research the company name and determine whether or not the individual is willing to offer you a job with salary (as requested) or simply trying to dupe you into attending some MLM recruiting event.
Best wishes,
- Mr. Ryz
SMiamiFan says:
May 13, 2010 at 1:14 pm (UTC -5)
Hi Sir.
That’s a good tip thanks . I haven’t found myself whisked into any more MLM BLAAAAHH since then because they ALL SOUND ALIKE!!
SO EASY to spot them .
They all want you to go to a meeting . or sit down at a house or restaurant or something. They never tell you what its about just that they HAVE TO MEET wit you whenever possible!
I’ve gone through this twice with 2 relations on my soon to be wife’s side . Without agreeing to travel far and wide to their crazy rally I did get them to admit you must recruit to make anything.
If that’s what they really want I’m not one to tell them what to do . But I know most people never make a decent living from MLM and they actually lose a lot of money that could have been spent on 401K and retirement.
I don’t get it , but then I’ ve always been hard to crack and never been that desperate to find something that provides some pay. I have no problem working for an honest pay check.
Peace
Scott
Amos Reimers says:
May 13, 2010 at 4:37 pm (UTC -5)
The MLM concept may not be a ” scam ” by legal loopholes but it should be. The U.S. has time to persecute anyone who has offshore swiss accounts and tax the honest wealthy class to hell and back, but they can’t hire one good employee with an acceptable understanding of geometric mathematics to determine why MLM hurts 100 people for everyone 1 person it helps? I’ll never understand how those idiots have let MLM slide for 40 years.
Scott you should be proud of yourself. Working for an honest paycheck is something this generation has lost to the sands of time. I know so many people that have lost their shirt playing around with MLM dreams that I can without any uncertainty congratulate you and urge you to pursue your profession, whatever that may be. 98% of those people you saw at the MLM meeting you talked about last year have either quit or dug themselves into a hole with losses as high as $10.000 by this time. I know, I have seen it.
One thing I have noticed is that network marketing people are like vampires. They’ll leach on to anyone they can and bring them into their downline or matrix, anything to start making some kind of commission off them. Family and friends start avoiding you like the bubonic plague. You lose your reputation and everyone who looked up to you starts to view you as a cheesy salesman with a rubber suit.
MLM is pure trouble and I would hope eventually the FTC is going to hire someone with that wonderful pink fluffy stuff at the top of his head and seal all the loopholes that MLM sharks chew their way through.
Keep pressing on and find a real, honest job. Don’t ever settle for a MLM snake pit.
Yours truly,
A. G. Reimers
SMiamiFan says:
May 13, 2010 at 8:09 pm (UTC -5)
Well put Amos .
I don’t know and have never known anyone to make real income with MLM. So many dare to dream and then lose not only money but a lot of time they’ll never get back , time they could have spent enjoying with family.
Money isn’t everything you know. It seems that’s what most MLM people only care about though . It just rubs me wrong in many ways, I couldn’t ever bring myself to do it. I’ll take the job instead and be happy in doing it.
Thanks for the encouragement
Peace
Scott
Freedom in 5 says:
May 14, 2010 at 8:26 pm (UTC -5)
I don’t have much time to spur with losers that put people down who are looking to make something out of their lives with MLM but thought you should know HOW WRONG YOU ALL ARE ABOUT MULTI LEVEL!!!
People fail because they are lazy not because MLM fails them! That’s what our education teaches. You must go to school and score high on tests so you can find a job you can tolerate for 45 years and work life away! WHAT A TERRIBLE WASTE!!
That sounds good to you? It must! You call MLM illegal all you want and enjoy working your whole life while you’re at it. I plan to build myself and my team and retire in 5 years or less because of network marketing.
As much as I’d like to help people like you see the light you have to help yourself first.
TO FREEDOM!
Amos Reimers says:
May 17, 2010 at 12:33 am (UTC -5)
Spoken like a true brainwashee and believer of the MLM fairy tale. I did not say MLM was illegal but that it should be illegal. If for some reason you think that makes me a loser or lazy then you have a lot to learn about MLM.
I know multilevel marketers that have spent over 10 years busting their arses trying to make a decent wage from MLM. It doesn’t happen. They just keep losing more money with each passing year. So don’t try to pass off your 5 year theory as a fact because it’s pure fiction and something people at the top of MLM pyramids want you to believe so you continue to build their paychecks.
Don’t ever make fun of people who choose honest jobs over the MLM vampire lifestyle. They improve society and make 100x more than you probably ever will in your endless sponsoring scheme.
I just hope you figure all this out before you put yourself into major debt thinking this MLM nonsense is going to make you rich.
Sincerely,
A. G. Reimers
Freedom in 5 says:
May 18, 2010 at 3:17 pm (UTC -5)
If MLM is so horrible why is it that Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki like it? I think I’m going to continue listening to millionaires instead of negative people who talk about working at jobs for almost their entire lives.
TO FREEDOM!
Amos Reimers says:
May 18, 2010 at 4:21 pm (UTC -5)
Freedom in 5,
You’re joking right? Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki are not trying to build the pyramid at the bottom of any MLM. Donald Trump started his own MLM group and reaps profits from anyone who joins under him.
There’s a complete 180 difference between that and joining MLM as a distributor. As a distributor you are forced to buy and sometimes even hoard expensive products that wouldn’t ever sell for such a high price in a supermaket. You are summoned to MLM meetings and workshops and pay high ticket prices for every single event. Then you are told to go out and sell the outrageously expensive merchandise and recruit other people to go through the same insanity.
So the MLM company has you working for free and they make money off you from product sales and event tickets whether you fail or succeed.
Of course rich people such as Donald Trump like MLM when they buy spots at the top or become the founders of the scheme. They stand to profit from everyone that joins the pyramid, even if those below never profit by a single cent.
Business models that allow the rich to leverage free workers is a win-win for them everytime. In your situation, it’s a lose-lose. I would rather work for a guaranteed salary than volunteer for Donald Trump or Robert Kiyosaki and hope for a few sprinkles of commission.
Sincerely,
A. G. Reimers
Manes says:
May 19, 2010 at 12:45 am (UTC -5)
I’m not surprised by what I’m seeing here at all. The Mlm reps are slamming jobs with others are explaining why Mlm doesn’t and can’t work for most people.
Simple numbers show this. I can’t understand why simple math is so hard to examine today. 1 recruits 2. 2 recruit 2 more. Those 4 recruit 2 more and so on.
Then the world runs out of people who actually fall for the Mlm hype. The company stays alive as long as it can convince the 99% on the wider levels that they can get rich soon too.
I wasn’t against Mlm until the 90s. It was that time that I realized focusing on product was a foreign concept to Mlm reps. It turned into a recruit and numbers game which might as well be a pyramid scam.
Amos Reimers says:
May 19, 2010 at 3:41 pm (UTC -5)
Thank you, Manes.
It’s nice to see someone on the same page. MLM has taken all focus off the product for many decades now. Anything resembling a steady business that benefits consumers was destroyed long ago.
The main pointers you will hear in any MLM recruiting pitch are that you can become wealthy and you must recruit others to recruit others to earn that wealth. So it turns into exactly what you have explained. It’s a legal pyramid scheme that will only deliver recruiter’s promises to less than 1% of the people that run up the recruiting numbers.
I have more dignity and respect for myself and others than to get them involved in something like MLM when I know 99% of them aren’t going to reach the kind of potential that top pyramid levels keep telling them about. I still can’t believe MLM business has escaped charges of fraud over the years. As I said before, the FTC doesn’t have it all together and I’m very disappointed in their loosey goosey approach.
I’m hoping to see that all change in the near future. Economy recovery should come first, so I’m not expecting any quick remedies. I do expect increased regulation with no exception to these ugly MLM companies. I’m not sure if they’re going to pull out the tough muscle.
Sincerely,
A. G. Reimers