avoiding scams

10 Surprising Marketing Tricks You Should Be Aware Of

Paul Michael — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 11:24:31 +0000

As an advertising professional, I get exasperated by the use of deceptive language and product claims that are misleading. From ambiguous wording, to modern examples of snake oil, here are 10 things you should know before spending your hard-earned money.

1. Excedrin — Many Names, One Product

You’ll see this not just with Excedrin, but with a multitude of products in the pharmacy section. Why sell just one product when you can repackage it many different ways and grab more of the market share? In this case, Excedrin Extra Strength, Excedrin Migraine, and Excedrin Menstrual Complete all contain exactly the same ingredients, at the same strengths. Buy one; you’ve got them all.

By the way, this also goes for Tylenol Simply Sleep, Benadryl, and generic allergy meds. The only difference is the price and the packaging. (See also: Market Clones: How to Pay Drastically Less for Pricey Products)

2. Beware of "Organic" Eggs

As we all try to do our bit to encourage better food production practices, we often spend a little bit more on eggs to ensure they’re organic and also cage free. But some of those labels are misleading. In one recent case, the 36,000 hens at Chino Valley Ranchers produced eggs for a variety of different labels, ranging from Walmart’s Great Value label to Eggland’s Best and Horizon Organic. The same eggs were repackaged and the prices varied depending on package and destination, but not the treatment of the hens.

3. Chocolate and Champagne Diamonds Are Usually Poor-Quality

Here’s another example of an already scandalous industry trying to make even more money from something that has little worth. It’s no secret that the diamond industry hordes diamonds to keep the prices artificially exorbitant. But now, there’s a new scam. Although there are genuine brown diamonds out there, the vast majority are dusty, cloudy, poor-quality diamonds that have been exposed to radiation, turning them brown. You wouldn’t want these "gems" anywhere near your rings and necklaces, but they have been rebranded as "chocolate" or "champagne" and their prices marked up accordingly. Avoid them.

4. Subway's "Cold Cut Combo" Is All Turkey

Strange but true. Even the Subway menu has it in writing, saying, "The Cold Cut Combo is stacked with turkey-based meats — ham, salami, and bologna." Now, call me old-fashioned, but I always thought ham was made from, well, ham. This is not the case at Subway. Salami and bologna, I was willing to accept that they would be a mixture of different meats. But ham? Even the term "Cold Cut Combo" implies a selection of different meats.

5. Jose Cuervo "Especial" Isn’t Special

If I sold you a cashmere sweater, and you discovered it was made with 51% cashmere and 49% cotton, how would you feel? If I sold you a diamond necklace, and you later found out only 51% of the diamonds were real, would you be annoyed? Well, this is the same deal with Jose Cuervo Especial. The law states that you can label a drink Tequila if it has at least 51% agave. And Jose Cuervo Especial meets that bare minimum. The rest is fermented from other less expensive sugars. Ironically, it’s the most popular brand of Tequila, due to price and some very smart branding. But if you want the real deal, stay away from Especial, and go with their Tradicional and Reserva De La Familia varieties. Better yet, buy a bottle of triple distilled Corralejo Reposado. It’s under $50 a bottle and tastes divine.

6. You Cannot Name a Star

It’s a nice idea, right? To name a star after a loved one as a birthday present or anniversary gift? And there are plenty of sites out there that will let you name a star for as little as $20. They’ll even send you a frameable certificate and a picture of your newly named star.

Well, it’s completely bogus.

Those names are not recognized by anyone outside of the company you paid. Only the International Astronomical Union assigns names to stars, and usually they are a long string of numbers containing the precise coordinates of the star. So, if someone gives you a "star" as a gift, you can smile and say thanks, but just know it means absolutely nothing.

7. Certified Angus Beef May Not Be All That

This is another example of the power of marketing.

In 1978, the American Angus Association coined the term "Certified Angus Beef" as a way to promote Angus as a higher quality beef than other cattle breeds. And now it’s seen as a label of real quality. But the major control method used to determine this Angus "quality" is that the meat comes from a cow with at least 51% black hide. There are other control methods, too, but many butchers will tell you that you won’t be able to taste the difference between regular beef and Certified Angus Beef. If you want quality, look for the USDA Prime label. But note, only 2 to 3% of all beef can receive that high grade.

8. Power Balance Bracelets Do Absolutely Nothing

Well, let me rephrase that. They make money for the companies selling them. And they take money from the poor suckers who believe the hype. But other than that, they are just silly pieces of silicone and plastic that do not contain any special powers at all.

It’s all about the power of suggestion and the placebo affect. If you think you’re getting some benefit from one, it’s because you think it’s working. Mark Cuban famously trashed the stock of power balance bracelets in the NBA dressing room. Oh, and the makers settled a $57 million lawsuit because they had to admit the product does not do what it claims. Still, they continue to be sold on sites like Amazon, so please, avoid them.

9. 73% of Doctors Do NOT Recommend 5-Hour Energy

Have you seen the 5-Hour Energy ad that shows a woman sitting next to a massive pile of papers? There are some incredible claims made in that ad, but this is a classic example of the power of words and the way in which they can be manipulated. It would take a long time to explain it all, and other outlets (Forbes, BrandFailure, BlenderLaw) have dug into the ad in detail. In a nutshell, the ad claims that "73% of doctors who reviewed 5-Hour Energy said they would recommend a low calorie energy supplement to their healthy patients who use energy supplements." It’s garbage. It’s deceptive. And it’s a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Doctors are not recommending this product; they are saying that healthy people who are already taking energy supplements should take a low-calorie version. It’s unbelievable that this ad even aired, and as someone who works in advertising, I’m ashamed of this kind of misleading rubbish. Not only that, but 5-Hour Energy has been linked to a number of deaths. Having this ad out there, linking it to doctors, is beyond irresponsible.

10. Vitamin Water Should Really Be Called Sugar Water

This is another example of blatantly deceptive language in an attempt to cash in on many consumers' desire to eat healthy and stay fit.

You’d think a product like Vitamin Water would be a healthy one, but once again it is marketing at work. The two main ingredients in the drink are water and fructose. And while the label states there are only 13 grams of sugar, there is deception at work yet again. Why? Because there are 2.5 servings in a bottle of Vitamin Water! That means a bottle contains 32.5 grams of sugar, which puts it up there with most sugary soft drinks. As for the vitamins in the bottle, they are in there, but they’re trace amounts of synthetic vitamins. The greater danger here is that because of the deceptive language, people are chugging these bottles of "healthy" water without realizing that they’re as bad for them as a bottle of Coke or Pepsi. Even Coca-Cola’s lawyers (Coca-Cola produces Vitamin Water) say that it’s not a healthy beverage! Don’t buy into the hype. Drink water, preferably from the faucet.

How have you protected your wallet by avoiding misleading marketing or outright scams?

This article is from Paul Michael of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

How to Choose a Better Password

Mikey Rox — Mon, 06 Aug 2012 09:48:42 +0000

If you’re addicted to the Internet like I am, chances are your life is full of passwords.

Passwords for social networking accounts, bank accounts, frequent-flyer accounts, daily deal accounts — the list goes on and on.

With so many accounts, of course, comes the increased possibility of being hacked, and a successful hack can make you feel violated and even leave you broke.

So to help you avoid the embarrassment and hassle of a hack, here are a few tips on how to choose a better password. (See also: Wise Bread's Guide to Identity Theft Prevention)

What Not to Do When Choosing a Password

I’ll get to the best ways to fortify your accounts with a solid password in a minute, but first we need to cover those things that you should never do.

When creating a password, NEVER:

Use only a word. Any real word is off limits. If it’s in the dictionary, don’t use it.
Use your user name or real name. That’s just common sense. Also avoid using the name of another person or pet in your life. If the hacker is someone you know, these are the first words he or she will use to try to gain access to your information.
Only put a digit in front or behind a password comprised of a real word thinking that you’ve changed the game. That won’t help you; hackers are on to that trick, too.
Spell any of the off-limits words in reverse to beat the system. You won’t.

What to Do When Choosing a Password

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to establish a password that’s nearly impenetrable. Here are some ways to create one that most hacking programs can’t crack.

Use a combination of the following techniques to create a strong password:

Use at least eight characters — a combination of numbers, upper- and lower-case letters, and punctuation marks. More characters is always better.
Shorten a favorite (but not famous) movie quote or song title to only the first letter of each word in the quote or title. For example, change the "Casablanca" quote “Here's lookin' at you, kid” into HLAYK. (Although, again, using something less famous is better.) To further protect it, add a series of number to the end of it, perhaps the year “Casablanca” was released — 1942. You also can choose to lowercase some of the letters, such as the A. The final password would be HLaYK1942. To make it ever stronger, replace the A with the @ symbol to create the password HL@YK1942.
Throw a punctuation mark into the middle of a word. Example: Wise$Bread.
Use a word you like and can remember, then remove the vowels and replace them with numbers or punctuation marks.
Misspell a word in your password on purpose.
Use your imagination to come up with a password that has no significance in the real world. Just make sure you can remember it.

Additional Tips for Keeping Your Password Safe

Once you have that password created, keep it safe by following these suggestions:

Never save a file on your computer containing your passwords. That’s just asking for trouble. If you must, write the password on a piece of paper and lock it in a safe. It’s best, however, to never write it down — which is why it’s important to choose a password you’ll remember.
Never give your password to anyone for any reason. No one needs to know your password. If someone wants it, it’s for nefarious purposes. You can count on that.
Never respond to an email requesting your password, even if the email claims to be from someone of authority. Your respective networks will NEVER contact you via e-mail asking for your password information.
Try using a password management tool such as LastPass or KeepPass. Not only do they increase your level of security, they also simply your life by requiring that you only remember one password.

How did you create your password? Does it adhere to these tips? Let me know in the comments below.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Some advice in this article has been updated.

This article is from Mikey Rox of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Are You Getting Charged by a Text Message Scam?

Xin Lu — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 10:24:17 +0000

Recently, I started to receive some spam text messages. Then I got a text that was more disconcerting. It said that I signed up for a $9.99-a-month service called Bingoroo, which I never did, and welcomed me to the service. (See also: Living Without a Landline)

I was a bit confused, so I looked up the company name in the text message — it's some text message bingo game. Their website says that you have to text them to subscribe, and I never did. So called AT&T customer service to ask what this is all about.

The AT&T customer service representative was very apologetic and told me that this is a third party company that is using the AT&T direct billing system to sell their content. I asked her how I can get rid of it. She said that this happens often and told me that I have to text STOP to them right away, and if I do get a $9.99 charge on my bill, I should call them back to get rid of the charge. Also, in her system she did see that the subscription is active even though I did not purchase it.

Here is what is really scary — I asked the AT&T employee if any of these SMS content companies could just bill me if they had my phone number, and her answer was yes. Then I asked what would have happened if I hadn't read my text and replied STOP, and her answer was that basically they would keep on charging me through my wireless bill. Essentially, for these text message services, having someone's phone number is as good as having their credit card, especially if the victim is someone who does not even use texting and just ignores the messages.

I asked the representative how I could prevent these schemes, and she told me that there is actually a free-purchase blocker option that I could set up for my lines. However, this option is only available to technical support as part of parental controls, and there is no option on AT&T's website to turn it on. I told her that I would like to set it up for all my lines. This means all automatic purchases through SMS will be blocked, but AT&T will issue me a PIN that can be used in case I want to make any purchases. Also, AT&T will cancel all current subscriptions.

After this ordeal I researched premium SMS scams a bit, and they can come in many forms. There are actually many mobile phone apps that are disguised as games but actually sign people up to these useless services that charge a monthly fee. However, most service providers have an option to block content purchases. Here are a few tips to stop yourself from being a premium SMS scam victim.

Check your phone bill and content subscriptions, and make sure everything is what you ordered. If you have AT&T, premium subscriptions can be checked on their Manage Mobile Purchases & Downloads page.
Read your spam texts and text STOP immediately to messages that say you've signed up for something. According to the AT&T customer service representative, this gives the phone company a record when you unsubscribed, so when you contest the charges, you have them on your side.
Contest any charges for services you did not purchase as soon as you can. I've read some stories that some people have been charged hundreds of dollars over years of being victimized.
Turn on premium content blocking with your phone company so that purchases through texting can be only made by you with your PIN.

Hopefully in the future I will not have to deal with unauthorized SMS purchases again, but it really bothers me that the phone company knows that this is going on, yet still allows the offending companies to be operating on their network.

What do you think? Have you experienced a premium SMS scam?

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This article is from Xin Lu of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread: