• Research the company. Find out information about the company first and check to see what others are saying about the company. Determine if the company will employ you directly or only sell you training and materials. Beware of companies that say they will give you a list of customers for your own use, because these can frequently be lists of people that were sold to them that may not even have the same contact information.
• Don’t believe in getting rich quick. Operating an online home-based business or home based business is just like any other business – all require hard work, motivation, skills, good products or services, and time to build clients to make a profit. Scams will often tempt you with a "quick" way to make money, that is the first clue to knowing it is not a legit work at home job.
• Beware of emails offering work-at-home employment. If you don’t know the sender, chances are the email is not going to be filled with scam free work from home opportunities. Most important, do not give out any personal information (especially social security numbers or bank information) by email for someone claiming to offer you a job that you have not determined to be legitimate.
• Know what you are paying for. There are a lot of scams that require you to pay for something upfront. Make sure you know exactly what you are paying for. Some companies will have you purchase all of the materials you are going to sell and then you only make money after you have sold them. Therefore, if you don’t know whether you are very good at selling, this may end up costing you in the long run.
A company that has a money back guarantee is your best bet to avoid this unfortunate event, unless you know the items you purchase can easily be used by you and/or your family. There are also companies that require you to purchase at least one product to know what you are selling and this sounds more logical. It would be difficult to passionately sell something you know nothing about. A legitimate company will also be happy to give you information about exactly what you will be doing and for whom.
• Research the success rates and possibilities of doing well in that market. If the job requires you to sell certain products, try to determine the current demand for that product. With an economic downturn, some products are just not in as high of a demand as others.
Medical billing and craft job opportunities may state that there are customers just waiting, however that may not be true. Ask who the customers are and contact them to confirm. You can also check around for likely customers in your area (such as doctors for medical billing services) to see if they really employ people to do the job.
• Get references for other people who are doing the work. Ask them if the company kept its promises and felt it was truly a scam free work from home opportunity.
• Familiarize yourself with legal requirements. Make sure the job does not legally require you to obtain a license or certificate. You may determine this by checking with your state attorney general’s office. Request information from your local zoning board to see if there are any restrictions on operating a business from your home. There are certain types of work that cannot be done at home under federal law. You may also seek out the nearest U. S. Department of Labor in the government listings of your phone book.
• Understand the refund policy. If you have to purchase a service or buy equipment and supplies upfront, ask whether and under what circumstances you can return them for a refund and how much of a refund you will receive. Scam free work from home opportunities should have this information available.
• Be cautious of the old envelope stuffing, supposedly “no scam work at home job”. In this classic scheme, individuals will send you instructions to place an ad like the one you saw and ask people to send you money for information about working at home. This is an illegal pyramid scheme because there are not any real products or services being sold. This will not earn you much money and may end up getting you prosecuted for fraud.
• Beware of offers to send you pay in advance. There are some people that will try to con you by building trust as a way to get money from your bank account. Never ever give your bank account information away because someone claims they will deposit money into the account. They may also send you a check, you deposit it, and the bank claims the check has cleared because the normal time has passed to be notified that checks have bounced.
Then the con artist contacts you to say they made a mistake and you must return part of the pay. After you send the money back, the check you originally deposited finally bounces because it turned out to be an elaborate fake check. Now they have your payment, and you’re left owing your bank overdraft fees and the money you sent to the con artist.
• Do your own research about work-at-home opportunities. There is a book called the “Work-At-Home Sourcebook” which you can find at a local library along with many other resources to learn about other scam free work from home jobs. However, you may discover that some of these companies will only hire local people and there may be nothing available for you in your area.
Try to go with your gut instinct without any impulsive decisions. Consider your strengths and weaknesses, and you will do just fine. There is an opportunity for you just waiting to be found. You can do anything you set your mind to do.
