I did receive a reply from the site mentioned in the previous blog entry however upon pressing them further, they disappeared. Here is their reply:
From: RealWritingJobs <supportstaff@realwritingjobs.com>
To: perry@perrygamsby.com
Sent: Sunday, 1 May 2011 8:07 PM
Subject: Re: Please Explain
Perry Gamsby,
First we want to let you know that you’re not “paying for a job”, you’re paying to use our service. We have a team of people that search the internet daily finding the best, and most profitable writing jobs and updating it in our member’s area daily.
This is a big effort and we spend a large amount of money on our staff.
There is no where else on the internet that has as many, or as high quality, writing jobs as our service. There is a reason why we have HUNDREDS of happy paying customers.
Hope this clears up any doubts!
Thanks,
Josh Higgins
RealWritingJobs Support
And here is my response to which I am yet to receive an answer:
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Thankyou for your prompt response which is very encouraging however it does not explain how there is some incongruity between the web site saying there are jobs available paying specific amounts of money and the terms and conditions and earnings disclaimer pages giving a very different impression. I must say the web page does not fully explain the process, hence my skepticism. Do you provide a data base of writing jobs for members to apply for or do you have the jobs yourself and allocate them to members according to some formula?
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Rest assured, if this is as you say, then I am the first to spread the word to the hundreds of students who attend my community college courses every year, not to mention the thousands who visit my web sites. I value passing on information of a legitimate opportunity as highly as that of warning of a less than genuine offer.
That was a month ago. I think the silence speaks for itself. Here is an excerpt from their ‘Terms and Conditions’:
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“Membership requires a 10 DAY $2.95 risk free trial. During this time, you have the opportunity to cancel your membership with REALWRITINGJOBS.COM to avoid the continuation of service and the monthly fee of $47. You will be billed the $47 on the (11th) day after you sign up, and thereafter every (30) days. PLEASE NOTE: If you joined prior to March 10th, your membership was a 7 day trial.
Cancellation
If you would like to cancel your service, you may do so at any time, no questions asked, by calling 1-800-980-6172 (U.S. Based Number). Please include your NAME, DATE OF PURCHASE and EMAIL ADDRESS. It is important to reference the email address you signed up with. We also accept cancellations online at our Contact Us page.
If you do not cancel your service, you will be assessed the monthly fee of $47/month and continue to receive our services including daily job listings, expert tips, unlimited support and other great bonuses. “
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While I concede their response to the original query via their Contact Us page was within 24 hours or so, what if they delayed responding to a cancellation and took another $47 out of your credit card? It happens, writers. As for Josh’s claim that there is nowhere else on the internet with as many writing jobs as their site, I would hazard a guess as to why. I think they merely copy and paste jobs from other sites and so, collectively, they are the biggest. But certainly not the best and quite frankly, I wouldn’t trust them with my $2.95 for a ‘risk free’ trial. You can sign up at
Odesk or
Elance and bid for great writing jobs directly, cut out the middleman milking the gullible and trusting and it won’t cost you a cent.
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Why have an ‘Earnings Disclaimer’ that includes the lines:
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“ANY CLAIMS MADE OF ACTUAL EARNINGS OR EXAMPLES OF ACTUAL RESULTS ARE NOT TYPICAL. YOUR LEVEL OF SUCCESS IN ATTAINING THE RESULTS CLAIMED IN OUR MATERIALS DEPENDS ON THE TIME YOU DEVOTE TO THE PROGRAM, IDEAS AND TECHNIQUES MENTIONED, YOUR FINANCES, KNOWLEDGE AND VARIOUS SKILLS.”
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I mean, if the results are not typical then surely the only reason to present them is to con people into thinking somehow they can achieve similar, albeit untypical results? And why include ‘YOUR FINANCES’? Does this indicate the more you pay the better your chance of making some money? Is there something waiting for the member such as an upgrade to no doubt ‘Gold’ or ‘Platinum’ membership?
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Still thinking of signing up or becoming an affiliate?
Check out their affiliate links and banners. Note the daily amount varies from $315 to $325 a day, and yet of course that is not ‘typical’. So how much can you earn? Some ads say even less, around $295 a day. Old ads? Look at the Adwords copy at the bottom, read the click on banners. You can see this is a slick marketing operation selling subscriptions, not writing jobs. They merely collate all the jobs already freely advertised and send you the lists or allow access to their web site. If you can afford $47 a month and your time is so precious you can’t spend an hour a day surfing the better job sites yourself, then go ahead. Make them rich. Caveat emptor!
