3 Reasons People Fall For Get Rich Quick Schemes

June 18th, 2010

I used to wonder how people could fall for these crazy get-rich-quick schemes.  But as I came to find out…it’s not all that hard.  The reasons people fall for these thigns are the same reasons they play the lottery.  The only difference is that the lottery probably gives you a higher chance of making nay money.

DSP explores….

1. Greed

Hey, what can we say? We all want to get a buck—a whole lotta bucks.  But greed is the undoing of a lot of people.  And the emotion these schemes play on is a person’s greed.  Oh, they also play on your “feel-sorry-for-yourself” emotions.

Now you too can learn the wealth secrets that they are hiding from you.

Isn’t it time YOU started getting what YOU deserve?

But when it’s all said and done the big promise is earning a lot of money with very little effort.  And that, my friends, is just plain greed.

2. It costs very little to start

Most people who fall for these schemes aren’t exactly millionaires (the people who actually make money from these things are the guys running the schemes—or they’re paying big fines or serving jail time for their troubles).  But hey, you’ve got NOTHING TO lose.  What’s a mere $120 when you can earn THOUSANDS A WEEK?

Many people figure it wouldn’t hurt to try.  But it does hurt to try.  If you really want to give someone $120, go ahead and donate to this blog.  Because that’s exactly what “investing” in a get-rich-quick scheme is: giving away your money.

3. Great marketing

What can I say? I’ve been a copywriter and a great copywriter can make anything sound worthwhile (remember those $30 magnet pens?).  When you see all those (fake) testimonials, read reference letters (letters from friends or partners of the schemer), and hear how easy it is, it can be quite convincing.

I might be tempted to say that people who fall for these things are stupid, but they’re not.  They’ve been specifically targeted.  And they are told what they want to hear.  You want a dose of reality, you’d have to come to this blog or other friends of the blog.  The schemer is not going to tell anyone he’s scheming.

Everyone at one time is affected by marketing.  People without kids think nothing of those baby commercials, but once you have kids you’ll buy all sorts of crappy products that are supposed to keep you baby “safe”.

People with kids know what I’m talking about.

So the schemers target people who are most likely to fall for their message.  That’s why the get-rich–in-real-estate infomercials are at 2AM.

People with good jobs aren’t usually up at that time. They are looking for people down on their luck, out of a job, or slacking.

Yep..they know who you are…and they know what you want to hear.

And that’s all the more reason people fall for it.

Posted in Things You Don't Want to Hear
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  • Tony

    Hi Carlon!

    I think that you missed one. It's the same thing that drives people to pray, to toss two pennies in the fountain, and to keep on keeping on when it doesn't make sense to continue to do so.

    It's hope.

    It's the hope that maybe — just maybe — this is legit, that this will work, that the smiling guy on the TV screen knows something that I don't.

    Hope.

    If you watch and read the marketing carefully, you'll see that this is on what the marketers of these “products” actually feed. Does greed come into play? Sure. It does at times. The low cost? Sometimes, but as you well know, many of these “opportunities” aren't cheap. And the great marketing? Yup! It sure is great — and the marketing uses hope as the key into the minds — and hearts — of the audience.

    Pope wrote that “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.” In my view and in my experience, this is the prime mover in the audience that buys into what are oftentimes obviously scam, get-rich-quick-scheme products.

    Thank you for the great and enlightening post. I hope that I add something to the conversation.

    All the BEST!

    Have fun … Tony.

  • carlon

    You have a point. If you look at the marketing copy, it's all about getting people to turn off their BS detectors. Hence a lot of..”I didn't believe this either until…” or something like “this is legit, not a pyramid scheme…”

    Why do they say that? They're answering objections going on in the reader's mind.

    So, yes, the marketing does play upon people's hopes and fears.

    I believe that hope can be an obstacle.
    And maybe this shows a bit why.

  • Tony

    Hi Carlon!

    I think that you missed one. It's the same thing that drives people to pray, to toss two pennies in the fountain, and to keep on keeping on when it doesn't make sense to continue to do so.

    It's hope.

    It's the hope that maybe — just maybe — this is legit, that this will work, that the smiling guy on the TV screen knows something that I don't.

    Hope.

    If you watch and read the marketing carefully, you'll see that this is on what the marketers of these “products” actually feed. Does greed come into play? Sure. It does at times. The low cost? Sometimes, but as you well know, many of these “opportunities” aren't cheap. And the great marketing? Yup! It sure is great — and the marketing uses hope as the key into the minds — and hearts — of the audience.

    Pope wrote that “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.” In my view and in my experience, this is the prime mover in the audience that buys into what are oftentimes obviously scam, get-rich-quick-scheme products.

    Thank you for the great and enlightening post. I hope that I add something to the conversation.

    All the BEST!

    Have fun … Tony.

  • carlon

    You have a point. If you look at the marketing copy, it's all about getting people to turn off their BS detectors. Hence a lot of..”I didn't believe this either until…” or something like “this is legit, not a pyramid scheme…”

    Why do they say that? They're answering objections going on in the reader's mind.

    So, yes, the marketing does play upon people's hopes and fears.

    I believe that hope can be an obstacle.
    And maybe this shows a bit why.

  • Brand-of-one

    Who are you, and why are you so pissed off?

  • carlon

    @brand-of-one

    Who said I was pissed off? My name is on the blog.
    What more do you need to know?
    It's not like this is a dating site or anything.

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