Advertising on ourlocality

It is rarer than it used to be, but everyso often you get an email from someone unknown and usually it begins something like this …

Hi,

Could we buy advertising space on news.ourlocality.org?

A colleague of mine in our UK office has asked me to contact some websites related to flowers and family, with the aim of promoting our client’s Mother’s Day flower delivery section to niche markets.

Our client is one the most recognised brands in the UK, in fact you’ve probably bought flowers from them before or received them as a gift.

We could pay you £55 annually for a small text ad to our client’s website and payment can be made via PayPal.

I know time is valuable these days and I appreciate yours.

Occasionally I reply, to see how far I can get … before the scam unfolds.

On this occasion I couldn’t bothered. The email was signed by:

Cyrus Hiatt
Marketing Assistant

Email: cyrus.hiatt@totalmarketing.com
Web: www.TotalMarketing.com
P: (919)-890-3927 x308
P: (919)-890-3920 (Direct)

Cyrus has a public profile on LinkedIn, so looks vaguely legit but Total Marketing’s website is so boiler plate and the personnel profile so cheesy that it shouts at you SCAM. Why else would a company not give it’s legal address on the contact page or the bottom of every page. I didn’t bother to check what other people were saying. These schemes are more often than not what they seem. You have been warned.

But even if the offer is genuine, you are strictly forbidden from using your ourlocality website for paid advertising, paid links, affiliate links or anything that can be construed as violating our terms of service (e.g. reciprocal linking to a site with which you share neither ideas nor ideology).

So don’t be tempted by the apparently easy money.

POST SCRIPTUM

Oh here is another innocent looking one. No money? Huh?

Hello,

We offer a Free Venue Finding Website for people across the UK to find wedding venues, meeting venues and restaurants. We are expanding across the UK and would very very much like to offer our services to your local community.

We would be happy to place a link to you on our website in exchange for a link on your.

Many kind regards,

By @ourlocality

@OurLocality
Publishing Locally in East Lothian since 2010
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