Identifying a Legitimate Home Business
A Home Business Article Contributed by Jenni Mckinney
A Scam or a Legitimate Home Business?
If you are one of the thousands of people in the modern work force today who is looking to start a home business, how can you discern if the opportunity you've found is legitimate or not? If you are confused, you are not alone, as new business owners have lost over $100 million a year to scams that advertise themselves as "a legitimate home business".
If you've ever read the classified ads in your local newspaper, you've seen the offers to work at home doing easy jobs such as stuffing envelopes or reading books. These ads promise you that thousands of dollars a month can be made from such menial tasks, and many persons fall prey to these empty promises. Unfortunately, when enough people have been swindled by these companies and start to take legal action, the companies declare bankruptcy and start up again somewhere else.
Claims That a Legitimate Home Business Opportunity Would Never Make
How can you tell if a company is a legitimate home business opportunity? Well, oftentimes it is easier to learn to recognize what a legitimate company isn't. A legitimate home business opportunity will not promise you that you can make an enormous profit with only a part-time investment. A legitimate home business opportunity will not require you to send money before you can receive any real business information.
A legitimate home business opportunity will not negotiate the start up prices if you tell them you are short of cash. A legitimate home business opportunity will not refuse to provide contact information for other investors in the business. A legitimate home business opportunity will not pressure you to make a decision quickly, but rather will welcome any and all questions you may have regarding the product and the organization prior to your making a decision.
After all, it is in their interest that you are a success.
The Research to Prove That a Home Business Opportunity is Legitimate
Do your research before you write out a check. First of all, use your computer to visit the website of the Federal Trade Commission (www FTC.gov), where you can find a sample listing of scams and pyramid schemes. Contact the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if any complaints have been filed against the company you are interested in. Visit your local post office and see if they have listings of any companies involved in mail fraud operations.
Write to the National Fraud Information Center (NFIC) for a listing of the latest updates on scams and frauds. If you have already sent your check to a company and later found out that it was not a legitimate home business opportunity, do not despair. It is normal to be embarrassed, but you have to bear in mind that the fraudulent company you've dealt with is banking on the hope that you will be too embarrassed to fight back.
The best thing you can do is file complaints with the organizations listed above.
