Ben Popken's "Beat The Cheat" Reader's Digest Article Online
I've got a new article in Reader's Digest about 9 scams that exploit national trends and how to avoid them. Flimflammers use the same basic scams over and over again, they just use the strips newspaper headlines to layer on like papermache on their chickenwire schemes. My article points out nine recent iterations and how to avoid them. Thanks to all the readers who sent in their stories to help out with the article. Loyal blog readers will enjoy that we splashed longstanding Consumerist nemesis IDT Energy's skanky sales practices in national print. Gotcha, suckers.
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Comments:
Flim Flammery, you have been served!
Nice job Ben.
I love when Reader's Digest does articles on stuff like that. I remember the one about As Seen On T.V. products where they rated their degree of crappiness.
Hey Ben, did you happen to meet the girl on the cover? If so, did she seem to like guys who write blogs?
Great article, Ben!
"Loyal reader of the blog will enjoy that we..."
That's either a typo, or a self-deprecating funny. I laughed when I read it, so I'll go with self-deprecating funny :)
Hurrah for the Consumerist!
Way to go, Ben! Great article - the more people who learn about this the less those scam artists can sucker, and Readers Digest reaches a HUGE audience.
Isn't it second only to TV Guide in circulation? That's huge. Great work, Ben.
@Ben Popken: More than that if people take advantage of the Readers Digest deal you featured the other morning in Morning Deals.
I think I'll start grifting. Since I read the Consumerist, I can always stay one step ahead!
Very clear and helpful, Ben. I bet Reader's Digest reaches some people who might not be hanging out online as much as we regulars do. Some of these tips will be news to them -- news they can and should use.
What a great resource to reach many people. More exposure for you as a writer and more exposure to the potential scams that people may face. I'm sure the many elderly who cherish their RDs thank you, too. I can't wait to read it soon.
Very nice article! I haven't been impressed with something I read in RD for a long time, but this was topical, interesting, informative and well-organized. Go Ben!
@The Name's Ash78, Housewares: People still "read" tv guide? I figured the onscreen menu would've killed that magazine by now.
Awesome! I'll probably buy the magazine anyway and I'm definitely taking out this article and saving it. Great Job, Ben!
I thought it was funny that on the page warning you about scam "debt relief" companies, there were Google ads on the sidebar that advertised "debt relief" services. Totally legitimate and effective, I'm sure.
Hmm... I read that article in RD this month and all I could think was "C'mon! I read about this stuff at the Consumerist months ago!" Now I know why.
I'll have to read the by line more closely next time. Congrats, Ben!
Except for the fact that I know a number of people who have done debt settlement and gotten themselves out of huge jams. Sure you can try to negotiate on your own, but most banks won't do anything in terms of lowering your balance. The real shot you have is lowering your interest late, but that doesn't help people who really need help. 9/10 they started with the lowered interest rate and losing a job or whatever bad thing they had happen caused them to not be able to afford their bills.
So no, you can't necessarily just do it on your own. None of them were able to reduce their balance on their own. And getting sued wasn't something they wanted. Like I said about the credit repair post, you could buy a house on your own, but a realtor can make it much easier.
This clearly rules.