How to Avoid Scammers in Custom Writing: Tips for Customers

If you need writing help of any kind, you should find a reliable website with good writers. What websites are better? Should you use a bidding platform or companies with fixed prices? How to understand what sites are legitimate and what companies are a scam? If you google online writing help, you may see many comments like “essay services scam,” “custom writing scam,” etc. Is it possible to avoid scammers?

If you want to work with a reliable company, you must choose only professional writers from reliable companies. It’s will be an easy task if you check credible reviews and pay your attention to the details.

In this article, College-Writers.com is going to explain what is the difference between good and bad companies, including the following aspects:

• policies;
• credibility;
• press mentions;
• security;
• presence on media;
• verified reviews from customers and employees;
• federal and state registrations.

This article may help you understand how to find a writing service which is able to fulfill your demands and provide works of a high quality. For example, companies like College-Writers.com put a lot of effort into ensuring security and improving technology.

A Few Words About Credibility and Avoiding Scammers

The first thing you need to look at when assessing the credibility of any company is its name. It’s impossible to expect well-written papers from a company which name is generic. Some websites also have many banners and annoying ads that suggest that the company isn’t interested in providing the best user experience.

Names that don’t describe a business and sound generic are not used by credible companies because creativity is an integral part of any writing work, and such companies realize how important their reputation is.

For example, College-Writers.com have a name that describes both the type of service (writing) and its main specialization (college papers).

How Long Is It in Business?

It’s also quite important to check whether you’re dealing with a new company or a company that has proven to be successful and reliable. College-Writers.com has been in this business long enough to know the difference between mediocre and good papers. Companies that fail to provide their clients with the product of a high quality usually don’t stay in this business for too long.

On the other hand, sometimes it’s hard to see how long a company has actually been on the market, as users are able to check only the domain and see when it was registered. If the domain is relatively new, it doesn’t mean that such a company is not reliable. The point is that the date of the domain does not necessarily prove the reliability of the website.

Alexa Can Help

Alexa has its own ranking system where websites are ranked depending on their traffic. Of course, rankings of writing services are not as high as Google’s or Amazon’s, but you can compare rankings of different writing services and see which ones are more popular. If you cannot find some website in Alexa’s list of top writing services, it might mean that Amazon couldn’t get such information due to some technical problems or that this company doesn’t provide such data intentionally.

Site Security Matters

Websites with a reliable security system are certainly a better choice than those that don’t use any security systems. One of the most common security systems can be checked at any moment by just looking at the address of the website. For example, some URLs begin with “http,” while others begin with “https.” The latter means that a website encrypts all the information that goes to it. Thus, your personal data is protected from those who would like to hack your account.

You can also look at the top left corner of your browser window and see whether the certificate name indicates that this website is owned by this company. The extended validation also helps determine the country where such a website was registered. We suggest choosing companies based in the U.S. if you’re looking for an American-English writer with good language skills.

It takes time to get an SSL validation certificate. When a company wants to get it, it provides GeoTrust with the following information:

• The date of registration;
• The registration number;
• The business address from non-government data sources, if it’s not present in the Government agency records;
• The registered address of the organization.

Any company must provide such information in order to get an SSL certificate. Our website is secure and makes sure your data is protected. You shouldn’t give your credit card information to websites which are not secure because they won’t protect it from theft. Thus, if you cannot find the security certificate, the best solution is to leave the website and look for another service.

Security Protections

Reliable companies often use additional security systems along with the initial certificate verification. If some service has additional security, you will likely find such information on the website.

We suggest choosing companies that are willing to invest in security so that the personal data of their customers can be protected.

Verified Reviews

Verified reviews can help you find a credible website. It’s important to know the customers’ opinion. However, some companies use fake reviews in order to look like a reliable service. Moreover, reviews may be fake even if not all of them are positive. Some companies include negative reviews to create a more realistic look for their review section.

You should look for real reviews written by verified users. Such reviews are often posted on specific review websites. Don’t trust companies that try to impress you showing only positive reviews because even the best services may have a few unsatisfied clients. Obviously, experienced companies also have more reviews, as their clients left them during all the years the company has been in business.

The Better Business Bureau

Some websites have been ranked by the Better Business Bureau. If you want to check a rating of some website, you can google the name of this company and “Better Business Bureau,” or “BBB.” There are no rules that would require a company to necessarily get a BBB accreditation, however, such a decision speaks of the willingness of the company to be transparent.

Owner Responses

When reading reviews, it’s also important to find out how some company addressed any issues and whether its clients got any response at all. Reliable companies always try to solve any problems because they value their reputation. It’s good if a company comments on any review with three stars or less. It’s appropriate to ignore a feedback only if a customer posts rude comments and uses inappropriate language. Thus, a company that answers its customers is certainly much more trustworthy.

A Difference Between Scam and Being Unsatisfied

The word “scam” is often used by unsatisfied clients regardless of their real experience. They may be unhappy with some service and call some website scam, even though it’s not what the real scam is. When customers become victims of a scam, they either receive useless papers or don’t receive any papers at all.

Thus, if you see a review that describes some service as a scam, it’s important to understand the real situation and whether this word was used in a hyperbolic context or not.

An Example of an Actual Scam

There are many companies on a cryptocurrency market that get accused of scamming because of the procedure which is known as ICO (initial coin offering). When people invest money in a cryptocurrency or blockchain company, they get coins or tokens in return. Many people criticize this system and call ICO a scam because such a situation looks like a bubble or even a pyramid scheme.

Companies that don’t produce any actual value can be called a scam. In the world of custom writing, scammers are companies that provide you with poorly written papers and don’t try to make them better, or just don’t give you what you paid for. Some scammers are easy to recognize. For example, there are companies that use pictures of celebrities for their writers.

However, fake reviews are not always easy to recognize. There are a few important questions you need to answer to understand whether reviews are real or not:

1. How many reviews were posted in one day?
2. Do such reviews actually describe the user’s experience, or are they basic?
3. Are there any reviews that say almost the same things or use the same phrases?

By answering these questions, you should be able to understand what reviews are fake.

Credible Websites Have Good Policies

Legitimate websites have policies aimed to ensure reliability and security for both writers and customers. Good companies usually have refund and revision policies that help them deal with unsatisfied customers. Strong revision policies protect customers and also guarantee fairness toward the author.

There are also companies with unclear money back policies. For example, some companies use the following system: customers pay at milestones while their writer works on the paper. Customers have a right to close their order at any stage of the writing process, but they don’t get a refund if they’re not satisfied with the final result. Such a policy is bad for both clients and writers. Writers don’t know how much they will earn from each order, as their clients can cancel orders even when the writer has already started working. As for the clients, they cannot request a refund even if their paper is poorly written, as they release their money upfront, seeing no final result.

It’s also important to realize that some websites talk about a money back guarantee, but in fact, don’t provide it. Make sure to check a company’s money back policy to determine whether it’s logical and fair before you decide to work with it.

Was It Mentioned in the Press?

Some credible companies were mentioned in the press, which is a good sign because it means that such companies are not afraid to be known. Scammers are usually mentioned in a negative context or avoid such situations, frequently changing names and domains.

College-Writers.com are actively seeking press mentions because our company understands that it will allow more companies to learn good things about our service. Credible companies are willing to tell about their services instead of hiding in the shadows.

Legitimate companies also give their customers opportunities to contact freelancers who offer certain services. They benefit from press attention that proves their reliability. If you see a website with a generic name that isn’t mentioned anywhere or can be easily confused for another identical service, it’s a good reason to avoid such a company.

Does the Website Have a Registered Trademark?

Federal registrations mean that a company is accountable for its actions and has a public record. Scammers don’t want to be accountable, and that’s how you can easily spot them.

You can evaluate the credibility of a certain company by checking its registration. Sometimes, you can find such information in a security certificate. You can also look for trademarks registered with the federal or state government. Federal trademarks are more expensive and cost about $1,000. When a company registers a trademark, it also protects its intellectual property from theft. Sometimes, websites may have a copyright that applies only to the content of the website but not to the papers offered by this company.

Trademarks are intended to protect such assets of a company as its logo and name. Fake companies usually don’t want to spend money on trademarks, as they don’t care about building a long-lasting reputation. It’s also not so easy for such a company to buy a trademark, as there are many other companies with similar generic names.

Employee Reviews

This is another thing that may help you detect a credible writing service. There are many websites where writers post their feedback on various companies. Good companies not only care about customers but also about writers as well, while scammers are usually not fair to their employees because they’re not interested in retaining talented writers.

If writers are unhappy, it means that some company doesn’t fulfill its responsibilities regarding payments or doesn’t give them enough opportunities for a professional growth. This is also a reason why bad companies work with writers from third-world countries, who have lower standards and are ready to work for less money.

If a service is able to properly pay, its writers are satisfied, which is proven by their positive reviews. Scammers always try to underpay their writers, which results in poorly written papers and bad reviews from their employees.

The Importance of Working with American Writers

It’s important to know whether a website hires American writers or writers from developing countries. Only American writers can guarantee that your paper will be written in a proper American-English.

The globalized economy makes it possible for people from developing countries to offer their services in the U.S. Such writers can afford to work for cheap, which is a reason why many companies are looking for such people and outsource labor in order to save costs, which is not a bad solution itself.

However, the specifics of custom writing determines the necessity of working with native speakers, while writers from developing countries have English as their second language and cannot provide high-quality papers. They also don’t have the same level of education as American writers do. Moreover, sometimes they lack even basic writing skills which are necessary for a writer who works with academic papers.

Thus, if you see that some service has ridiculously cheap prices, it’s a good reason to feel suspicious. According to all the rules of business, you get exactly what you pay for.

Platforms like Upwork are a good example of low prices for bad papers. Writers from India and Kenya offer cheap writing because living in their countries is much cheaper than in the U.S. However, there is no way these writers could compete with American writers in terms of quality. Upwork doesn’t offer you any guarantees that you won’t end up with a bad writer, so customers can look for either lowest prices or a high quality. It’s impossible to find a professional American writer who would write papers for $4 per page.

Don’t Trust Sensational Claims

Promotion of dishonest services and products goes against the Google’s advertising policy. Google stands against any sorts of dishonest behavior and scamming, and even mentions many writing services as companies aimed to mislead clients.

College-Writers.com provides only original papers and stands against the academic dishonesty of any kind. When somebody buys a paper on our website, he or she gets a non-transferable license. We provide clients with sample papers that can be used only as a reference, so customers shouldn’t replicate or re-publish them.

Some writing services claim that they guarantee “A” grades, motivating their customers to participate in academic dishonesty. There’s no website that could guarantee a certain mark, especially given the fact that it’s every instructor’s decision how to grade some paper.

Obviously, such companies cannot guarantee good grades under any circumstances. If you ask their support representatives how they guarantee certain grades, they will likely tell you that you can “rest assured,” because they have the best experts. Some companies even steal profile pictures of Ph.D. experts from other sources.

Some companies go even further and feature a service called “online exam appearances,” which violates Google’s policies and also goes against any existing university standards. Fortunately, Google discourages such content and doesn’t advertise pages that contain misleading information or misrepresentation.

Although Google puts a lot of effort into filtering the misleading content, you must choose writing companies accurately, taking into account the fact that no writing service is able to guarantee that its papers will get a certain grade.

Another useful thing to consider is whether a company has a social media presence. If it has profiles in social media, it means that such a company is not afraid of real feedbacks.