As a small business owner, you always seek ways to meet new clients. Networking events, referrals, and advertising are ways to get the word out. Belonging to organizations like Chambers of Commerce, Kiwanis, Rotary, BNI, or other professional organizations is a great way to meet like-minded individuals. Unfortunately, some people create bogus organizations to scam hard-working people out of their hard-earned money. One such organization decided to call me.
The first time I saw something about the <Organization in Question> was a Facebook ad displayed when visiting a Facebook Business Group. It seemed on the up and up. I completely forgot about them until I received a call from an unknown phone number in New York. (I should explain that I am from the East Coast.) My friends and family live in New York, so I didn’t think much about it. So, I answered.
Scammer Girl (SG) called and said she was calling from the <Organization in Question> to verify some details to see if I would be a good candidate for their organization. SG asked questions like how long I’ve been in business and other organizations I belong to. Simple things that I could find on my website. Sometimes, I didn’t answer my questions, I just coughed (because I had a cold), and she would skip right along to the next question. SG started with all the benefits but wouldn’t give me anything in writing until I was a member. I said, “cut to the chase; how much will this cost me”? The memberships were $299 and $199, nothing too extravagant. Then she asked for my credit card. I say sorry. I don’t give credit cards over the phone. So, she starts telling me how the line is secure, blah, blah, blah…
First, no small, two-bit organization will have a secured line. Second, it isn’t secure on my cell phone, which negates the purpose of a secured line. There are ways of making calls secure, but it requires a lot of time and effort. It would also need another blog post to explain all the boring details.
Giving someone your credit card over the phone is not a secure option. Sure, it is better than email, but entering your credit card over a secure site using SSL and a company like Stripe or even PayPal is more secure.
SG got annoyed and demanded that I give her my expiration date first, then my credit card. I say, “this is how this will work; you will provide me with the website name, and I will verify your organization.” “Then, if I feel like this is something I want to do, I will sign up online.” I must have struck a nerve because SG exclaimed, “it was apparent that I wasn’t ready for an organization like theirs.” SG gave me the URL, and I hung up.
I did a little research, and I determined that this was, in fact, a little scam with over 200 complaints in one year from women who were taken advantage of by this organization. Many of them were charged repeatedly for services they didn’t know about, and when they didn’t receive their refunds for the fees as the organization promised, they complained to the Better Business Bureau.
Since I hung up with SG, I received three callbacks from them, and I finally answered to tell them never to call me again. A few days later, the same company using a slightly different name, emailed me to tell me I was approved and how I could purchase my membership online. I looked, and this one had even more complaints than the first.
What is the moral of the story? There are plenty of national and international organizations with local chapters. You just need to do your research. If an organization is on the up and up, they will direct you to their website, invite you to an event and let you meet their members. They will not expect you to give them your credit card over the phone with promises of press releases and exposure. They also will not give you an award and make you pay for the plaque.
