Shopping online can be convenient, but before purchasing an item, it’s important to check the legitimacy of the company and the small print in their offer before giving personal information and making a purchase. Here are Two Lessons I’ve learned when shopping online. 

First Lesson: The URL with “Consumer Review” as a Keyword

When my neighborhood was hit with a rash of robberies, it prompted my search to have a security system installed. Many companies sell a variety of services through their websites, but they aren’t an apples-to-apples comparison.

In my search, I contacted the top five companies I had seen listed on numerous comparison review sites. Most companies have the same thing: a landing page with the call-to-action with a form to complete so someone will call you. I was actively looking, so I wanted to talk to people.

After I completed the online form for one of the self-professed “leading companies” no sooner had I hit send than my phone was ringing. I hadn’t finished reading their value proposition and pricing details to know what I would possibly be buying. About 10 minutes into the conversation with the sales guy, I still didn’t know. He was so robo-reading the script and sales pitch, and I had no idea what tangibles would be installed at my house. When I mentioned I needed time to digest the information, he said, “Well, I’m here to answer any questions you have.” When I explained I actually hadn’t had a chance to compile my question list to know what to ask, he became defensive and told me to check out the online review sites.

I had actually performed an organic search and found several “consumer review” sites with comparison grids. Upon mentioning I was looking over several review sites, he directed me away from Yelp! and Google reviews and steered me to what sounded like legitimate organic review sites. These specific sites were fully loaded with positive reviews, some even sounding just like his sales pitch.

At this point, my marketing spidey-sense had strong suspicions that the company’s digital team had created their own product sales page with their own reviews under the guise of it being a third-party reviewer. Sadly, since anyone can buy just about any vanity URL, that’s a common black-hat strategy. While these types of marketers think they’re clever and working the system, for the most part, they are deceiving people who believe URLs with “consumer review” in the name are legitimate.

Marketers know companies can clearly optimize for organic search, so when you see a review page, dig a little deeper to see if it’s a credible source. And what was the red flag? The language in the reviews on the company-owned-and-masked review site gave glowing 5-star reviews with similar verbiage even mimicking the sales pitch, while the reviews on known sites such as Yelp! and Google were abysmal.

The end result for me was to keep searching and taking time to read other review sites, social media, and Consumer Reports.

Lesson Two: Shopping Cart Stuffing (Bait & Switch)

Browsing through my Facebook feed, I came across a sponsored story in my feed. I confess, I’m a huge K-drama fan, and when I saw the Exclusive headline about one of my favorite Korean star couples, I just had to take the bait and read the juice: “ Staff Sees Song-Song Couple Fighting In The Dressing Room!”

Since Song-Song couple is known for proper manners in public, I figured it may be a silly or funny article. I wasn’t expecting an actual scam. My first red flag should have been the sponsoring page “All Natural Foods,” but I bit the hook.

The faux story discussed the fight was due to the leading man, Song Joong Ki, outing his wife’s personal beauty secrets during an interview. According to the article, Joong Ki said wife always used one particular product on set, and that upset her because she has a contract with another leading cosmetic company. To legitimize the article and elevate their own brand, the article mentioned her the cosmetic company with whom she had a contract.

While the call-to-action was a simple link embedded on the name of the product, it appeared to legitimize the product and make it seem as though the article wasn’t a blatant ad.

Once you clicked on the link, you could take advantage of their trial offer for $2.95. There were no Terms & Conditions, no commitment, just $2.95.

As a smart consumer, I thoroughly reviewed this site before signing up for my low-risk $3 trial. When I landed on the pre-checkout page, there was a “But wait!” offer telling me other people loved this additional product as well, and it was only $4.95 trial. There was no radio button to click or unclick, and I proceeded ahead anyway without ordering this product. The checkout page confirmed my order was $2.95.

Something just didn’t feel right, so I did a Google search to check for consumer complaints.

Checking several scambuster websites, I saw consumer complaints that stated the trial automatically enrolls you in a program of $90 per month… per product! There was no mention whatsoever of this supposed commitment. Consumers also complained the company adds products to your cart without your consent. The customer service phone numbers were listed, and complaints mentioned calls went into a technology wormhole never to be resolved. And then consumers warned the company will even charge a $9.95 restocking fee if you cancel.

I then immediately went to my credit card website and checked my online activity online. Just as consumers had warned, there were TWO charges from TWO different companies. One was the $2.95 trial product I’d been duped to get, and the other was the $4.95 product I never agreed to purchase nor wanted.

End result? I disputed the charge with my credit card and explained in detail how the company works. My credit card company recommended they issue a new card number so the scammers wouldn’t be able to continue charging. I also emailed customer service and told them I was canceling the order.

A few days later, I returned to the article link and found a 404 error code, and there is no sign of the trial offer website either. It seems the black hat strategies caught up with them.