Many years ago I started looking into the income opportunities that I saw advertised in the back of certain magazines. These ads were intriguing to me because I was young, and didn’t have a lot of money. The idea of making good money while doing something extremely easy was very tempting.
So, I bit.
I sent away for the information (back in those days it was a flyer or sales letter you got via snail mail). The ad’s title probably said something like this: Make $200 to $500 a week stuffing envelope from home.
Since I’d had experience stuffing envelopes while doing office jobs, I knew this was something I was qualified to do in my sleep. Oh boy, was I excited about receiving that information. When I got my Make Money at Home Stuffing Envelope kit, it consisted of a set of instructions, and lots of other flyers for get rich quick programs.
The instructions told me that all I had to do was have a stack of copies made of the very same flyer that I’d just received that promoted free envelope stuffing jobs. Next, I’d order a certain amount of “fresh” mailing labels to go along with the flyers. Of course, I was in luck because the company that sent me the instructions also conveniently worked with a printing company where I could purchase all my flyers and mailing labels from at the same time.
At first I was a little surprised that that was all there was to it. I mean, I thought I’d be finding out which legitimate companies would hire me to stuff envelopes for them from home. Instead, I would be offering the same opportunity I got to other people and would make money from the company when those people placed orders through my mailings.
Oh yeah, that’s the other part. I was required to spend my own money for postage and flyers, of which I was sure I’d make it all back after getting lots of orders (with my affiliate ID attached) from people who were as eager as me to buy flyers and posters to make easy money from home.
Ha!
Needless to say, I never got a dime from that company. I was taken in by the old envelope stuffing scam and there was nothing I could do about it but take my lumps and move on. Unfortunately, I moved on to mailing out other get rich quick opportunities (what can I say? I was a slow learner).
If you are considering a stuffing envelope from home opportunity, stop right here and don’t give these offers any more of your time. If you take the bait, you will only lose hundreds of dollars, your valuable time, and feel foolish for being gullible. Believe me, I know what that feels like.
After several years of wasting time and money, I finally figured out who the real get rich quick winners were in this whole scam – the printing companies. Think about it for a second. Business is slow, you figure out you can place an ad that promises instant riches for not much work. Let the interested people know you can print up those nice flyers and mailing labels for them for a nice set fee, then watch the money roll in.
What about those fresh mailing labels?
There were lots of bad addresses – better known as nixies. The ones that do get delivered are probably quickly tossed in the garbage. How many sales flyers do you keep?
Just some food for thought. Real businesses do not need people to stuff envelopes from home – this is a complete pipe dream. Trust me, I have stuffed plenty of envelopes while working various office jobs and this was NEVER outsourced to individuals. Plus, if there is a large mailing, there are automatic machines that do the job quickly and efficiently.
I hope I have succeeded in discouraging you from handing over your hard-earned money to these scammers. These companies feed off of people’s desire to make easy money, or those who need to bring additional money in to add to their income, but you won’t get any help from them – just empty pockets.
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