Don't Fall For It: The Most Annoying Social Media Marketing Scam

I think every woman I know has gotten a message like this. Heck, I’m sure most of the PEOPLE I know have at least gotten a comment on Instagram that goes something like this: “Wow! We love this image! DM for a collab!”

Don’t fall for it, it’s always a scam. If you’ve every had a conversation with one of these accounts then you know that they are persistent and sometimes very convincing. They’ll tell yo all about their product, they tell you that you’re awesome and they want to work with you, they’ll tell you all about how you can earn discounts and maybe even commission, but then they hit you with the real stuff. In order to get all of those benefits, you need to buy their product. They might offer you a special discount and tell you how they will repost you so you gain followers. Do. not. cave. in.

Here’s the secret they don’t want you to know: you’re the customer that they’re targeting,

I’m really sorry to break it to you, but they don’t want to promote you or work with you. At the end of the day, once you’ve signed up for their program, they’ll keep feeding you small discounts with the promises of greater results. There won’t be any. Your recommendations are valuable, and your time is valuable. Do not ever pay to promote a product, and don’t give away your stamp of approval so easily. You’re worth more than that!

This kind of marketing strategy is EXTREMELY common, so please don’t be fooled! And leave your stories about this in the comments!