I decided to write this blog because there are none out
there like it that I could find.
The advice that I am giving would have helped enormously had I found it
beforehand. I want to stress that
I am not trying sell anything. My
only intentions are to give an overview of how these schemes work and illustrate
how to avoid the traps.
See disclaimer*
There are a few things you need to accept before you attempt
any of these schemes:
1. 1. Its not entirely free, you have to spend a few
bucks; meaning you must give your credit card to unknown sources.
2. 2. There is a considerable amount of time you need
to sacrifice throughout the process.
3. 3. You need to save everything, so if you’re an
unorganized person think twice before getting started.
I believe it was Google where I saw yet another: Get Your Free PS3® Today! Out of boredom, I decided to try it out. With the increasing security on the internet (and with many banks), along with the number of annoying pop ups I began to experience, I decided to give it a shot. The specific site that I went through was www.mysurveypanel.com and I am going to walk you through the process that I (successfully) went through. Everything that I am describing is through this specific site, although there are many others that are similar.
1. 1. To start out, I had to sign up with at least 8
“sponsors”. This will enroll you
with companies such as: Video Professor,
Discover, and FreeCreditReport.com. You
are required to be active with each company (usually under the terms of a “free
trial”) for a certain time period and will “receive your free gift thereafter”.
2. 2. Here is (one) catch that I thought was pretty
obvious: once your trial period ends you will be automatically billed ridiculous
amounts from that sponsor. This is how these companies are able to
afford this, and it is entirely legal.
Read the terms and conditions of every sponsor’s site before you
click that submit button. I copied
and pasted each one (from all 8 sponsors) into a Microsoft Word document,
highlighting when each trial period ended. Example:
a.
If you
enjoy SimpleBrite simply do nothing, at the end of your 30 day trial period you
will be billed the discounted price of $73.17.
3. 3. Your information will be shared, when they tell you it wont they are
lying. If you don’t like spam I would
recommend making a separate e-mail address. Additionally, these places will give your phone number away
and for a week or two other companies will call you and try to sign you up with
them. Example:
a.
I (originally) signed up with BlogToolKit from Google as one of my 8
sponsors. Another similar company
called me: “Hello sir, I’m from MakeMoneyBlogging (notice the similarity) and was wondering if you would like to
receive a free blogging kit, compliments of our sister company: “BlogToolKit?”
i. MakeMoneyBlogging has no
affiliation with BlogToolKit and if
you accept the offer you are signing yourself up with a totally different
company (a 9th one). They will charge the credit card you gave BlogToolKit a ridiculous amount after
you’re “free trial” if you accept.
b.
Please note that nobody can charge you without your consent. However, your consent can be as simple
as leaving a box checked on a website before pressing submit or accepting a
“free trial” from a phone call.
Say no to everyone, I don’t care how good it sounds.
4. 4. You have to save everything to get your free
PS3. The original site that I signed
up with explained the details in the most vague, unintelligible way
possible. It will benefit you in
the end, trust me.
5. 5. MySurveyPanel required me to stay with at least 6
of the 8 sponsors that I signed up with for at least 6 days. To find the right date(s) to cancel I
used the calendar functions through Gmail and recorded the exact date that I
would be charged. It is not out of the ordinary for a “sponsor” to charge you
on the 7th day. Meaning,
there will be some companies that you have to cancel on a specific date if you
don’t want to be charged. Make
sure your cell phone is charged up too because sometimes you will be on hold
for 45 minutes before you speak with a representative.
a.
Record everything they tell you when you cancel. If they don’t give you a confirmation number,
ask for one. I went to the extent
of asking whom I was speaking with (don’t expect to get a last name) and wrote
down the date and time of the conversation as well. Don’t delete the
cancellation confirmation e-mail either (if you get one).
b.
Some of the sponsors require you to send back
the product after your free trial, its in the terms and conditions. Put delivery confirmation on the
package.
6. 6. The original company (MySurveyPanel) didn’t
update me at all on my “progress” to receive the PS3. They never sent me one e-mail. It is up to you to keep track of where you stand in their
system. Somehow MySurveyPanel tracked
the computer that I was using (after I cleared cookies and changed my ip
address) and I was redirected to another site when I tried to go to www.mysurveypanel.com. I’m serious. I found my way around this because I had originally saved
their terms and conditions, which included a telephone number.
a.
After I was able to access their site at will I
kept myself updated on my gift status.
On MySurveyPanel’s homepage there was a tiny link in the bottom left
corner that allowed me to view my gift status. This enabled me to stay on track throughout the process.
7. 7. To make matters even more ridiculous,
MySurveyPanel indicated that they had “no clue” of whether or not I even signed
up with these companies. After 6
days (from the link on their home page) you are told to send in a bank
statement, with the account numbers blacked out, showing your involvement with
the sponsors. With about half of
the sponsors I chose, the “free trial” included a $3.95 or so shipping charge
with the sponsor’s products.
a.
Take the time to pay the extra 5 bucks and put
delivery confirmation on these documents so they can’t claim they “never
received it”.
8. 8. Remember those cancellation e-mails that I
talked about from the sponsors?
The e-mails that an ordinary person would probably delete after he/she
realized they wouldn’t be charged anymore? Even though you were never originally told so, MySurveyPanel
eventually required me to send those in too for “further verification”. As unofficial as it sounds, I actually
sent in printouts of the cancellation e-mails from the sponsors.
a.
Remember to put delivery confirmation on the
package, again.
b.
With each package sent I included a full (professional)
letter explaining to MySurveyPanel every aspect of my involvement with the
sponsors. I was specific and to the point.
9. 9. After they received the documents that I had
sent (my 2nd package to them), which indicated my cancellation with
the sponsors, I was finally informed that I was qualified to receive my PS3
(from the link on their homepage).
It took me over 2 months to get to
this point. I was now required
to verify my address through a gift voucher, which needed to be verified by a notary.
a.
You can get free notary services from a bank,
usually.
b.
Put delivery confirmation on the package, again.
10. 10. I
finally got a knock on the door from UPS and received my PS3. It took a little over 3 months from the
time I originally signed up with each sponsor to receiving my gift. I never received a single e-mail from
MySurveyPanel throughout the whole process, it was totally up to me to follow
their rules. I guess it was worth
it, I’m amazed that it actually worked.
Please note that I didn’t receive my PS3 for free. I calculated all my costs:
a.
Sponsors:
$37.82
o I
received 3 boxes of Gevalia coffee, a 15 day trial to FreeCreditReport.com, a
teeth whitening kit, a “Blog Tool Kit” (never used), and a Video Professor dvd
(never used)
b.
Delivery Confirmation: $28.64
o Your
only option for delivery confirmation through usps is priority. This amount is
for 5 packages. I sent two
packages back to two different sponsors and three to MySurveyPanel.
So I ended up paying around $65 bucks altogether, which
doesn’t include my time.
All-in-all I would say it was worth it.
In Conclusion:
Yes, these people are out to get your money and probably do rip off hundreds of customers. However, a scam is defined as a fraudulent scheme and any fraudulent
act, in legal terms, is defined as a crime. Hence, these companies may be unethical beyond all means but
they are not doing anything illegal.
I could see an innocent person getting cheated out of well over $400
bucks by not reading the terms and conditions, which is mainly why I am writing
this. If I wasn’t such a pedantic,
meticulous individual, I would have been that person.
I hope this helps someone out there!
I hope this helps someone out there!
Disclaimer*
All data and information provided on this site is for informational
purposes only. I have made no representations as to accuracy, completeness,
currentness, suitability, or validity of any information and will not be liable
for any errors, omissions, or delays in this information or any losses,
injuries, or damages arising from its display or use. All information is
provided on an as-is basis.
