Weeding Through the Bad to get to the Good

I recently began looking on Craigslist for new clients/opportunities. Now some of you may be rolling your eyes and wondering if I am crazy, desperate, or both. I would like to think that I was just inquisitive.

A colleague gave me a tip to a grant writing job posted there, so I checked it out. It turned out that the job was with an organization that wanted to have someone in office, (which does not work for virtual assistants) but I began looking regularly on Craigslist.

For about a week I responded to several ads; I was excited about the prospects. Yet, I found within another week that that excitement was not well-founded. On Craigslist there is a "Scam Alert" disclaimer that warns you that there could be bogus ads on the website. I feel like I am pretty aware of scams and schemes. I was amazed how creative the scammers are. Here are common tricks they may use:

1. They'll ask you to buy something and promise to pay you back, usually through certified check or money order.
2. They'll tell you that they will send you more money than necessary and ask you to forward the rest of the money to someone else.
3. They may tell you that you will make thousands a month, all you have to do is pay a small fee.
4. They will create bogus websites that make you think it is real
5. Eventually they will ask you to reveal personal information that is unnecessary and that could compromise your identity.
6. Look for bad English grammar.

Are there any ads that are for real? Here are some things to look for:

1. A company name
2. A local phone number and address
3. A website
4. Meeting in a local place

One of the ads I responded to was awful in the sense that the scammers took a real person who has a photography studio in Idaho and used his name and website. Because of this, I thought it was for real. The ad claimed that he needed an assistant. I researched the company and the man to make sure that he was a real person. This was so difficult because he is a real person, but he was not the one who was writing the ad and contacting me. I noticed his bad grammar after a couple of emails and then I had a hunch. I decided to call the number listed on his website. It became clear that the man's voice on the machine was definitely American with no trouble with his language. I knew then that this was not the man emailing me and I cut off communication at that point.

Now I am leery about any ads. I find it better to use other job websites instead, like the local classified ads or Monster to look for potential clients. Be careful and remember, there is no such thing as luck!