That’s a pretty bold title haha and damn is it eye-catching. It doesn’t exactly seem like good business to advertise that your own website is a scam, does it? I’ve always done things a bit differently here though.
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I started this blog in 2007 and started working on it full-time in 2009. It’s my baby. I love it and I love all of you. Without you guys, there would be no I’ve Tried That. Some 3.5 million people have visited this site since I started it. For the most part, people seem to enjoy my work. You guys like to email me or leave comments on my blog thanking me for opening your eyes to new scams.
I used to try and keep track of how much money has been saved by this blog, but the task became very tedious. I’d have to guess that it’s within the tens of millions of dollars by now (mainly due to all my work exposing wire transfer scams.)
But alas, some people are not happy about I’ve Tried That. They accuse me of having ulterior motives (“wolf in sheep’s clothing” comes up as the most common insult) and taking advantage of people who want to learn how to make money online. It sucks, but with 3.5 million visitors, someone is BOUND to get angry every now and then.
So, I decided to collect a laundry list of complaints against the site. Here are the most common complaints that pop up (in no particular order)…
I’ve Tried That is a Scam!
Steve promotes the same products he bashes!
“How can you bash data entry or home typing “jobs” because they sell affiliate marketing training and then promote a company like Wealthy Affiliate that ALSO promotes affiliate marketing training?!”
I completely see the confusion. I’ve called out plenty of programs that sell affiliate marketing training programs and I DO highly recommend another. There is absolutely no denying that whatsoever.
The thing is, I don’t bash a program for promoting affiliate marketing training. Affiliate marketing is one of the few legitimate ways of making money online. I bash programs who disguise the fact that it’s affiliate marketing and overload their sales pages with hype to try and deceive people into thinking affiliate marketing is a quick and easy way to make a lot of money online.
The biggest offenders here are companies that label themselves as data entry or home typing jobs. If you paid money to become a data entry employee, what would you expect? Probably something along the lines of getting paid to transcribe data from paper into digital form, right? Would you expect a packet of information on how to do affiliate marketing? Is that at all related to data entry? No! Herein lies what I advocate against.
Here’s a visual aid to help illustrate my point. The following two programs are both selling Affiliate Marketing training. One is the type I warn you guys against, the other I actively promote. Spot the difference!
Again, both are selling Affiliate Marketing training, but it should be immediately obvious which one is actually going to help you and which one is using insane amounts of hype to trick you into think affiliate marketing is something that it’s not.
Affiliate Marketing isn’t a job in the traditional sense of the word. It’s a business that you start. It CAN eventually become a job, but it does take quite a bit of time and effort. It’s not easy to go from knowing nothing about affiliate marketing to living solely off the income you make as an affiliate marketer. It takes a lot of work. I realize affiliate marketing isn’t for everyone which is why I also make recommendations on telecommuting jobs, and other miscellaneous ways of making money online.
Steve wants you to trust him so he can sucker you into wasting money!
My good friend Eddy over at WorkAtHomeNoScams.com (check it out if you’re looking for more ways to make money online. Eddy’s site rocks!) had this to say…
The fact of the matter is you provide various ways to make money online legitimately. Many are free. But when it comes to running a business it requires an investment in the business and or training to run a business. It’s no different than someone going to school for an MBA. You have to pay tons of money to do that! So why would it be different for an online business.
The issue here is there is a lot of misinformation out there about fees and making money online. Too often sites and people are running around saying anything that requires money is a scam. But what really should be said is that you probably shouldn’t pay for a job but when it comes to a business there is going to be an investment involved. In which case you should still do your research to determine if the business is legitimate.
Smart guy that Eddy. Seriously check out his site.
I’ve covered this plenty of times in the past though. When I say “you shouldn’t pay to start a job” I mean, avoid websites that are guaranteeing you’ll make a set wage doing things like data entry, typing, filling in forms, surveys, etc. If they make it sound like you’re going to be an employee of a company and you’ll make x amount of dollars per hour, but want you to pay some fee up front, they’re most likely trying to trick you into buying information and NOT offering you an actual job.
On the other hand, we have “paying to learn how to make money online.” The distinction here is that you’re paying to learn how to do something that you didn’t already know how to do. You want to learn how to make money online? A good place to start would be to seek out a mentor or a training program. Find someone who can teach you the things you don’t know. This costs money because you’re paying for someone’s expert knowledge. You’re not paying for a job; you’re paying to learn. It’s no different than attending classes at a school. Make sense?
Steve is a millionaire!
Ha. Ha. Ha.
God I wish this one were true.
Did a binary “watchdog” group lead you to this page?
I have extensively covered HUNDREDS of these binary option programs over the last 14 months. I’ve said just about everything I possibly could have on these scams.
I also seemed to have made quite a few “review” sites angry by not actively promoting ANY binary option programs. It’s hard to promote something you willingly know will be robbing people of their hard earned money. The people affected by these programs are the ones who usually have it all on the line and stand to lose the most. I could never comfortably live with myself knowing I was making money in that way.
These fake review sites like to point fingers and claim that I AM the one lying to deceive folks. They essentially accuse me of the exact tactics they are using. It’s definition insanity.
Why I Don’t Deposit Money into Binary Option Brokers
A new binary option program pops up daily, sometimes 2 or 3 open shop, each and every single day. These programs are designed for one purpose: to get you to deposit money into a foreign brokerage account that is not regulated by any U.S. law. Meaning, you have little to no recourse at ever getting any of your money back, filing a complaint, or sometimes even withdrawing the money on the off-chance you win one of your bets.
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These programs typically have a $500 minimum deposit. With two popping up per day, I would have to spend $1,000 of my own hard earned money, every single day just to test their claims.
Listen, I don’t need to punch myself in the face to know it’s going to hurt. And I also don’t need to send $1,000 per day overseas to know I’m not going to become a millionaire just by pushing a button or by following some secret algorithm.
Here’s the Million Dollar Reveal…
There’s a program being touted as a guaranteed winner right now. Numerous fake review sites are popping up promoting it. It’s called Fast Cash Biz and they 100% guarantee you’ll earn $10,000 per day on average JUST BY PUSHING A BUTTON.
I am not personally exaggerating this. These are the exact claims made by Fast Cash Biz, taken DIRECTLY from their website.
Here is a screenshot directly from their page…
Let’s think about this rationally for just a second.
If it were that simple to make $3,650,000 per year, why on Earth would I ever advise against joining? We could all be millionaires overnight! There is literally no reason for me to ever say a bad word about this program.
Unfortunately, reality falls far from their claims.
Did you know that Fast Cash Biz pays out $250 in affiliate commissions? That means, any of those fake review sites are paid $250 every time a new user follows one of their recommendations.
Last time I checked, my Fast Cash Biz review was averaging over 100 views per day. If I were to review it positively and recommend that people join it, I suspect I could convert on average 10 people per day. This means, I would make $2,500 per day in affiliate commissions from Fast Cash Biz ALONE. This is close to A MILLION DOLLARS PER YEAR just for one article.
Hey… are you starting to see why so many of these fake review sites are popping up?
And this is just ONE PROGRAM. I have HUNDREDS of these reviews in our database. I am comfortably sitting on millions of dollars worth of commissions if I were to give these scams a positive recommendation.
Why on Earth would I ever advise against joining a Binary Option program? You already know the answer to that…
Because what they claim isn’t possible.
The only people making money here are the scammers suggesting you deposit money into these shady brokers. Not you. That’s all there is to it.
The Good News
The FTC is currently on to these scams. I suspect we’ll start seeing some of these fake review sites shut down in the coming months. Expect to see headlines where they issue millions of dollars in fines and possibly even jail time. It’s happened before with scams I’ve covered previously. It’s only a matter of time at this point.
The claims being made by these programs are also getting increasingly outlandish. Their marketing methods are becoming ineffective and these are last ditch efforts to attract new victims. This is a cycle I’ve seen time and time again. And I will continue to work behind the scenes to make sure these scams are properly persecuted.
On our side, I’ve Tried That has been around since 2007 and has become one of the most trusted voices on the web. I’ve celebrated my site’s 8th anniversary this year and I am happy to continue to work tirelessly for all of you for years to come.
Steve doesn’t care about his readers!
Of all the complaints against I’ve Tried That, this one hurts the most.
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If you’ve spent any time on the site or have sent me an email, you’ll know my goal is to protect and help others. I can’t even begin to count the hours of free support and help I’ve given out over the years. My I’ve Tried That email account currently has 65,000 emails in it. That’s about 44 emails per day since starting this blog! That doesn’t even include the times I’ve purged my email because I was running out of space.
It’s greatly upsetting to know that people think I don’t care about my readers. I know I shouldn’t let the opinions of a few upset people get to me, but it occasionally does.
One things is for sure though: I’m going to keep on doing what I’m doing. I’ll continue to point out scams, provide legitimate ways of making money online, offering hours of email support, and just helping out all of you in general. I truly hope this blog has helped some of you.
Enjoy the music as well.
Bottom Line: I’ve Tried That is no scam. Feel free to drown out the naysayers and leave a comment below. I always love hearing from you guys.
Love,
Steve
You, Edward And Ryan are big Saints saving everybody from getting ripped off. Don’t Stop. God Reward you all!
Our Dearest Shalom IslamFiat Beatitude Patriarchal Blessings,
Joseph Cafaro zeitoun01@gmail.com
First Saturday Vigil Service Organist
The Blue Army of Our Lady Of The Rosary Of Fatima
Steve, you know what got me with wa. When you said learn how to do what you love and make money at it. For years i have been a runner and talked to people about it. Now i can make money doing it. This is great i can help people and build a business on what i love. I always wanted to start a running shop but it was always too.much to inveat. But this is just right. Rhanks again Steve.
I’ve intentionally tried staying out of any of the (often nonsensical) emotional arguments over who and what is a scam which can sometimes be very confusing BUT, I have been researching a whole lot of sites including ITT and as such thought I’d put my 2 cents worth in. ANYBODY with half a brain who fully checks out the content of your site, including the recommendations, cannot come to any other conclusion, in my opinion, than to see that what you do my friend is offer a valuable source of information AND some excellent recommendations!! Ignore the haters my man and keep up the good work!
Steve about a week ago you sent me an email about something you were working on and making 300.00 dollars on.Seeing as im retired this would be ideal hope to here from you soon.
ray
Just wanted to say, I’m glad you’re not taking the negative comments too seriously, every time I check someone out I have to allow for the negative comments and really read what they’re saying, and normally, they’re not complaints per se, just people complaining. If they didn’t have you, it would be someone else, and like you said, with an audience of 3.5 million, it would be a miracle if you didn’t get some complaints, legit or not. I love your site and it’s one of very few that I trust.
PS…….Thanks for the great music, I haven’t heard Queen in years and never saw one of their videos, makes me want to go out and see what else they have out there, they’re definitely one of my favorites, made my day.
KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK AND INSIGHT TO SCAMS! SOME PEOPLE just don’t know a good thing when they see it, all they have to do is read what you post. I wonder how many didn’t believe you and was scammed, that would be a number I’d like to see(just curious) You’re doing more good than anything with your Blog, like the others I’ve turned your Blog onto numerous others too and it’s helped them out alot. I have been doing Opinion Outpost, Swag Bucks and MySurvey and have earned well over $400 between all of them. Thanks for all the help finding money online at home. Don’t pay attention to those who know not what you do for the many.
I have never been one to be quiet so I’m not going to stop now. After getting scammed twice, only twice, thank God I found Eddy Salomon. This was 2 years ago. Needless to say he has saved me money I never had. I learned about Steve thru Eddy and now I listen to both of them. If you would know what you are actually reading you would never say such a thing. I can barely make ends meet and I have had people try and scam me dozens of times over jobs. Thank God Steve looks into these things for me and he has helped me from suffering more of a broken heart over being jobless. I also remember him saying why he promotes WA over some. I asked him questions about that and detail by detail he explained everything I wanted to know and with great satisfaction. He hurts me to hear such things from people who don’t know what they are talking about. That olde saying “What goes around comes around”. Check your sources before you start trying to exploit some of the few people out there trying to help us.
Good Job, Good Work, and I will stand up for Steve anytime. In fact I recommend this site and I have mentioned it to others.
Hey Steve,
I see what you’re talking about when you hear people talk trash about your site being a scam. I don’t believe so. I purchased your $7 a book about two weeks ago. Damn, I didn’t know that I could get your book for free if I was struggling?! Man, I’m so stupid. I don’t think your site’s a scam and you offer a lot of free programs. None of the programs I tried from you offered me to pay anything.
Those people don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s best to ignore them because they’re going on about what they don’t know.
Hi Steve
Its amazing that you have been accused of making up the comments on I’ve Tried That. Once again you are wasting your time with taking notice of Knockers
Steve I have been on this earth for 66 years and if I have not learned something about people by now then I would be stupid. I am an intelligent woman and a strong minded woman. I take people in small doses these days and if self development were taught in schools we would have a better world.
On the light side on the brighter side I am planning a wonderful holiday next year to India to see the Taj Mahal from there to Manchester in the UK to see a Cousin see the beauty of the UK and the usual historical tourist attractions from there to the Continent seeing places like Germany, France, Italy and then all the way back to Australia. I am the luckiest woman alive. I have worked hard all my life and owe this holiday to myself before I get too old. If I was to worry about what people say about me I would never get to turn my back on the majority of people and see God’s beauty and Thank him for all he has helped me do. Note the words helped me. God gave me a brain and doing so, gave me a choice.
God Bless
Joan Marshall
Steve = I know it is easy to get caught up in all the negative comments – I hope you know by now this kind of thing always comes with success – so dont even bother defending your self because you dont need to!! Keep up the good work – They are all just a bunch of haters LOL
@Rick: This may not surprise you, but I have been accused of making up all of these comments myself.
@Everyone: I love you guys.
Hi Steve
In this twisted world people will always knock people who want to genuinely
help people but, if you know in your heart that you are sincere Do Not worry about the Knockers. Ignore these people and move on.
Kind regards
Joan Marshall
Hang in there, Steve.
That is all.
(Normally I’d contribute something to the conversation, but you sound like you just need a little boost.)
In my opinion, if there are any “sad sacks” out there that think you’re a “skunk”. invite them to read the comments on your site. Perhaps they think you’re paying us commenter’s for all the accolades, huh? I think I’m gonna’ be lot older before I see a check from you with my name on it for: Comments rendered.” PS Be sure to add me to that mythical list if and when you decide you have nothing better to do with all those millions you’ve got stashed in a cave somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle,(my home town, by the way!) OK? OK!
I owe my knowledge about Wealthy Affiliate University from and I also owe you in saving me from nearly joining “P____ with P___” program. Your site was the best one that struck me the most when I was looking for ways on how to make money online. You are the main reason why I trusted and joined Wealthy Affiliate University. All the things I learned about internet marketing are all because of the blog I read from your site.
I appreciate all the effort you are doing here Steve. Don’t worry if there are naysayers. I also don’t understand why are they doing that. As for me, I’ll continue to support you. Wait a bit and I’ll buy your $7 ebook as well.
Cham
Excuse me while I re-hinge my mouth. As I recently told a friend, “I don’t understand people. Never will.”
Those who actually know what you do, and with what frequency you spend time helping others for no remuneration whatever, know the truth about who you are. And, *that* is all that really matters. I’ve experienced your generosity of spirit through the many emails during which you have held my hand as I take baby steps to start my own online business.
And, yep, I happily purchased (for a whopping $7) your renewable list (and it *has* been renewed free of charge) of available, legitimate online work. It led me to several writing jobs which have jump-started my self-confidence, and my willingness to commit to creating my own, fledgling web site.
There are too many people in the world who open their metaphorical mouths before they engage their brains. I hope you will never let such idiot folks get you down. Too many people know how much of your free time you give to others in an effort to help them find ther way through the maze of virtual work, to avoid being scammed, and to realize their dreams.
You rock, my friend. And just like the incredibly young Freddy Mercury sings: let nothing stop you, keep spreading the love, and have the time of your life!!
We love you for it. We love you, period.
Stacy
I’ll add my piece to drown out the idiots. If they actually read your site, everything you just posted is obvious. You not only say who to look out for and who is trustworthy, but also WHY. I point folks to both you and Eddie every time the subject comes up . . . and in my world of stay-at-home-moms, ways of earning a little extra money without getting burned is a subject that comes up VERY often. Keep it up!
Let’s just say that your site has become my “go-to” site for honest advice on making money online. I would be much more wary of the nay-sayers…
Hi Steve!! I was surprised to hear those negative comments too. But you are right with that many followers you are bound to get some of those.
I know from personal experience that you care about people. I am an example of that!! I could never repay all the help and encouragement you’ve given me!
You are a true professional………and friend!! :)
Thanks from the bottom of my heart.
Get real!! That’s what you do Steve. Real advice about real sites out there and real trouble you can get into!!
It’s always a gift to check out your blog and know where I’m headed and whether it makes sense or not. I love WA and will keep with it — I’m relatively new, expect to start making a profit with it by the end of the year.
Hi Steve, we have not heard for a long time. I try every day to steal some time to work with my site of other duties. It going slowly but every day i learn something new and I’m more confident in myself. This new opportunity, to which you pointed me, changed my life and gave me hope after a long unsuccessful search to find real thing with no scam. Wealthy Affiliate University is great community, with people who is willing to help you. You only need to ask. I must thank you again for that!
Regarding to your site I’ve Tried That and rumors that is a scam I must say that is not true. I can only give praise for all your work and tell you to go on!
Wish you all the best Steve!
Warmest Regards
Milos
First of all, let me commend you on a well put together site. I actually knew you weren’t a scam when I saw some of the jobs that I knew were legit before running across your site. I know of people that would love to only pay $7 for a large list of REAL work at home jobs you provide. I am thankful for stumbling across your site when I did because it saved me from scams I never knew about and some that have shown up in my email recently. You provide very great customer service and I know this because you responded very quickly with a question I had about the booklet. You really do break down all the information of the work at home jobs so the consumer knows what kind of job it is and if they meet the requirements or not. Your book is the first one that I have seen to be simple, straightforward and up to date. It isn’t your job to make the companies hire people so anyone that doesn’t get hired by any of the jobs you mentioned in your book then it’s not your fault because you provide more than what a lot of people would. Anyone who is on your mailing list or reads your blog regularly knows that you are very generous, legit and care about people knowing the truth. Also, I am working for one of the jobs you mentioned and have interviews with a few more since I am sort of a workaholic! Thanks for all you’ve done and I am glad to know you are not letting any naysayers stop you from continuing blogging!
Steve
These people have ABSPOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT THEY ARE TRYING TO TALK ABOUT….
YOUR site is AWESOME…. let some of these people try to find 121 jobs that are truly legit and THE SINCERE DESIRE TO HELP PEOPLE… Your 121 hidden jobs IS A BLESSING. I USE IT ALL THE TIME.
YOUR SINCERE CONCERN FOR HELPING PEOPLE LIKE ME MAKES THESE OTHERS NEED YOUR HELP EVEN MORE THAN I DO.
If they want to work at home, they need to know the difference between a job and a business… And your fees are SOO AFFORDABLE I DON’T SEE HOW YOU OFFER THEM FOR THAT COST BUT THAT JUST SHOWS HOW MUCH YOU LOVE HELPING PEOPLE LIKE ME…
I will enroll in your 7 day email course when I get the funds.
God bless you Steve
Terry
Screw all those people, they’re just idiots. You are not a scam and I think for the most part what you do is help people.
Although I am not thrilled with WA and for the most find it very confusing I do believe that with enough persistence you can make money with their system. I’ve given up after two weeks for now but that’s just me :(
Thanks for all the good information. Keep up the good job.
You have got to be kidding me! Well, this one takes the cake. But I guess someone, in all the years you have been helping people, is bound to take a run at you.
I am an old lady. I could have possibly been taken by anything while I was desperate to start something viable. You and Eddy Solomon are my links to look at when I am in doubt about a business. You always come to my rescue when I have a question. I bought your $7.00 list of companies and I think it is very good. Of course your going to charge something and Wealthy Affiliate is a great spot to learn from. I have been a member of their sight for years.
You keep up the good work. You keep charging your $7.00 for your list you worked hard at getting to share with others and you keep advertising wealth affiliate and you keep telling us about the scams that are out there.
I will keep listening to you and Eddy. I am now working on a little at home business of my own. I’ve have made a little money at home because of you.
I will chant your praises all the way as I am sure others will too.
Keep up the Outstanding and Great Service you give.
Rachashael
I find such an accusation odd…thanks to ITT, I now make a decent income from Textbroker, and this writing site was first recommended on your site. I also think that I first started looking at affiliate marketing thanks to ITT, and I do make a residual income from that as well. Thanks Steve! And just remember: even bad press is better than no press.
As i started to read this blog, the first thing I thought was : “Eddy Salomon isn’t a scam, either”…and lo, along comes a positive reference to said Eddie!!!!! Both you guys are a pleasure to read, not the least because I don’t have to worry whether there is some ulterior (financial) motive buried in your blogs. All the info on both sites is meant to educate, inform and assist those who are willing to work and eventually make a good living from home, whether in affiliate marketing or in more traditional stay at home jobs. Finally, Eddie’s sense of humor alone makes his blog worth reading!!
Keep up the good work Steve, and your supporters will drown out the “naysayers” on an average of, say, 100 to 1!!
Well said my friend! Scammers don’t take the time to write such an insightful post airing out stuff like this. They’re out trying to steal people’s money and not adding value!
It takes a very self aware person to be able to write a post like this and it should clear the air for anyone that has doubts. That’s assuming they actually read the posts and aren’t hell bent on hating you. =)
Your body of work speaks for itself! If people take the time to actually READ it they’ll come to the conclusion that 99.9% of us have concluded. You’re here to help us!
And I for one appreciate having some other real dude out in the trenches with me fighting the good fight in this shady industry.
You continue to add value my friend. Every company has the occasional hater. It comes with the territory. We’re never going to be able to please everyone. Sometimes people are jaded from their past experiences and can’t let it go. They want to believe everyone is out to get them so they look for any sign of it. And if they can’t find it they make it up or twist things so it validates their feelings. That’s basically what’s happened to you with these few reports of being a scam. And there is no real reasoning with folks like that. You just have to focus on the people that get it and continue to add the value that you do!
You’re doing a great service for people and you deserve to make money for it! Perish the thought that Steve gets compensated for all the hours he spends emailing and commenting to folks. It’s okay for people to come here and find ways to make money. But Steve isn’t allowed to do the same. Tsk, tsk. lol
Keep grinding my friend! You’re doing great. Hopefully a large portion of the people that you have helped will come out in droves and stand up for you when they see nonsensical allegations like this on the web.
Take care and thanks for writing this post. (It’s good for SEO too. ;) Might have to something similar. lol)
Eddy
P.S. Thanks for the love as usual! I’m just trying to be like you. lol