iFreeClub.com is reportedly a site which "offers hundreds of the most popular products to their Club Members at no cost to them." According to the welcome page, they've made deals with marketing and research firms which allows their members to participate in short surveys in exchange for valuable electronics, appliances and more. And you can buy a one-year membership for only $19.95! Too good to be true? Well, yes.
Let's take a look at all the shady sides of this bargain, one at a time.
- Marketing: If you're like me, you first heard about this website when you downloaded a misnamed MP3 and heard an advertisement; in my case, a cheesy Bill Clinton Impersonator. Wanting to believe the best, I thought that perhaps, rather than a truly sleazy marketing campaign from the website itself, it could be just a member looking to get referral bonuses. However, I quickly realized that no member is going to get credit for these bonuses without using a referral ID of some kind, which was not mentioned in the ad. Conclusion? Genuinely disreputable marketing feeding off the vulnerabilites of blue-blooded internet users who just want to download their illegal music in peace.
- Limited Time Offer: On the welcome page, iFreeClub.com cautions you that the $19.95 deal for a one-year membership is a limited time offer that expires at 12am tonight. But which night? I've checked back to this website several times, and trust me when I tell you it's said that very same thing for at least seven months now. No rush.
- FAQ's: Here's where the savvy surfer can normally find the real meat of the issue. Most of the larger internet scams aren't going to risk fines or legal action by making promises they can't keep. What you're looking for, rather than outright lies, is vague language. Mind you, this website is among the best at avoiding any instant deal-breakers, but if you look hard enough, you'll find enough subtle implication of deferred liability ("Please note that iFree Club is a promotional research and referral service. Each of our partners sets the terms for their free offers.") to tip you off. Probably, what you're actually buying into is a website that lists links to hundreds of websites where you're promised a free iPod after completing endless pages of "offers", rather than just offering up your own opinions. To further clarify, I sent an inquiry via their "contact us" box, and was promptly sent back an e-mail assuring me that different items required different things, and I may or may not have to complete the occasional offer to get any particular item. Well, that's not vague language at all.
So, should you buy it? Well, no. With a little "No" one the side. And then some "No" for dessert.
Any current members of iFreeClub.com, please feel free to comment if you feel differently.
1 comment:
If you notice the £ sign in front of the 19.95 price you are claimed to be charged note that the symbol is a British pound symbol and this converted into american dollars would actually be $39.72. Crushing spirits was not my intention.
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