Local Businesses Beware – Scammers are on the Prowl!

SEO Phone ScamProbably just like you I often find myself on the receiving end of emails, voice broadcasts and cold-calls from scammers who claim something like “Hi, we’re with Google and we can get you on the first page…..”

It’s gotten so bad that when a real Google rep called us last month to discuss one of their new Adwords programs the first thing the poor guy had to say was “Really, I’m not kidding, I really am with Google!”

So… I couldn’t resist sharing this recording that we got at the FetchLocalCustomers office last night.  Please take a listen and then I’ll point out why this is a scam and how you can protect yourself from these types of charlatans.

What’s Wrong With This Scam

1. Google, Yahoo and BING do not use or need “data providers”.  They fill their search results with all the pages that their spiders deem worthy 24x7x365. I suppose by the most loose definition, I suppose you, me and anyone else who ever posts a web page is a “data provider”

2. The suggestion that the caller is somehow associated with Google, Yahoo or BING is an outright misrepresentation.  It’s interesting that “Phil” didn’t name a Company (I didn’t bother to call Phil back).  But… in the past when I have called back or “pressed 1″ and learned the company name a quick Google search yielded hundreds of scam complaints.

The fact of the matter is that you can’t “buy” one of the top organic spots in the major search engines. You can work hard to optimize your site or hire experts like us who work hard for you and that can lead to top positioning but you can’t swipe a credit card and outright purchase a spot.

Think about it.  If that were true the search engines  would instantly be discredited, people would stop using them and all of their paid advertisers (think AdWords) would stop paying them billions of dollars!  That is NOT going to happen!

So beware of the scammers who call you claiming to be part of the Big 3 and promising to sell you a top spot.

And, if you are interested in really getting new customers from a world-class online presence, by all means give us a call at 888-505-6162.  The call is free, our advice is invaluable and we might just determine together that our service has a good fit for your business.

Related posts:

1. Is Google’s “Like” Button Good for Your Local Business?
2. Local Businesses Should Put Their Money Where Their Customers Are!
3. Google Preview Means Your Local Business Site Had Better Look Good
4. Twitter’s New Look | Good for Local Businesses or Not?
5. Google Mixes Up the SERPS (again) with “Places”