With so much noise on social media, it’s easy to get lost in the messages and comments, making it harder to understand what is legit & what’s a scam. Authors, here’s a brief run-down on the red & green flags to look out for.
So if you’re receiving messages from an unknown business or person, take a look at what content is available under their name. Do they have reviews? Does a simple search, turn zero results? Do they have mutual followers, or no followers at all?
Once you’ve identified the traits scammers use compared to what a professional uses, the distinction becomes easier to identify. Below are some ‘Red Flags’ or scammer tactics to look out for:
- Incoherent, misspelt messaging
- No profile image or content
- Link to a webpage that looks suspicious, e.g. a link with a completely different name, or shortened link
- Irrelevant questions, that don’t make sense for your book or you as an author
Here are a few ‘Green Flags’ or more professional traits to look for:
- Message is relevant to you as an author and questions/comments are linked back to your book or brand
- Profile has recent, clear content
- Weblink has the same name
- Reviews & same images come up after an online search
Of course there are many more to keep an eye out for, but these are just the top traits to look out for.
Keep this list handy for the next time you get a sneaky message on your social profiles.