International Law

Shop to Earn Scam

Image by Chandra Marsono via Flickr

Tracy Coenen has a long post about Shop to Earn, in which she questions the basic business model.

"There are still plenty of people searching for "Shop to Earn scam," ShopToEarn fraud, "is Shop to Earn legitimate," Shop To Earth scam, and the like.

The company has, for the most part, avoided negative commentary on the internet.

It seems important, therefore, to go over some of the finer points of this newer multi-level marketing (MLM) company that is being promoted as the next big thing. Let's review..."

Tracy makes a number of good points, but omits one of the most important ones. Shop to Earn is essentially an affiliate program - you purchase a web page, and try to sell or direct customers to various consumer websites. If someone goes from your web page to the consumer website and buys something, you will make a small commission.

There are a number of affiliate programs out there, Commission Junction, for example. Google "affiliate programs" or go to www.shoemoney.com to read about how to make money from these programs.

These programs are free - no need to spend any money with Shop to Earn.

Full post as published by Misleading Advertising Law on October 06, 2008 (boomark / email).