Venus Factor is one of a number of so-called diets peddled on the Internet, except that it specifically targets women. Like other Internet scams, this one offers significant weight-loss or body-shaping results, but don’t believe it. These offerings usually feature some man or woman who have come up with an “amazing” plan anchored by one special “secret”. In addition to the Venus Factor, recent Net offerings include Pound Melter, Trouble Spot Nutrition, The 3 Week Diet, The Truth About Cellulite and the Weight Destroyer, just to name a few. Their slick websites ask for the “low price” of $35-39.95 for what appears to be an ebook or a “program” that “guarantees” weight loss. This is a textbook version of the numerous other $39.95 infoscams that have infected the Web over the last three years. Venus Factor charges $37 just to see the details of the program. But it is counting on upselling you — it advertises to affiliates that the average sale is $54. So, if you fall for parting with your $37, know that you’ll likely be tricked into shelling out even more money. Here’s the Venus Factor posting at Clickbank:
If Venus Factor’s claims looks familiar, it is because is mimics other questionable other weight loss offerings also hawked on the Internet — and it was probably conjured up by the same marketers. In some cases, one marketer may be offering a host of related products. A guy named Clayton Nee, for example, boasts that he has created Disease Less, Memory Healer, Weight Destroyer and Pound Melter. They almost all charge the mysteriously-set price of $39.95. (We’ve reviewed some of these scams and they are laughably bad) Here’s how it works: you are treated to a videomercial that touts the “proven way to lose weight; many of them are targeted specifically at women. Is it a scam? Is it a rip-off? Does it work? You’ll never find out, largely because of an increasingly pernicious Internet industry that uses fake product review sites to hide customer reactions. You’ll also never be able to find out about the credentials of the authors — often the authors don’t even exist .
WHY WE SAY THAT VENUS FACTOR IS A SCAM
So, should you spend the $39.95? We recommend not, for the following reasons:
1. The Venus Factor relies upon a small scientific semi-truth: leptin levels are related to obesity. Then it jumps off an entirely unscientific cliff by proclaiming that it will help you raise your leptin levels and, thus, get your weight down. The problem is that there’s no scientific support for how Venus Factor will raise your leptin levels. Just check out the very reputable Web MD and read their assessment: Leptin science is unraveling as research shows it doesn’t directly affect body fat. In fact, it appears that the way to increase leptin levels is to reduce your insulin levels. And that’s not too hard: eat well and exercise.
1. There’s a reason this sales pitch is slick — they spend a lot of marketing money to get it to you. Who is paying for that? You are. And, like many scammers, they are using Clickbank to sell their ebook so don’t assume you’ll get a refund. “Rock solid guarantee”…..don’t bet on it. The scammers bet on the fact that most consumers won’t seek refunds until after the 60-day period expires. In fact, they count on it.
2. If you look for a review of the product, you are deluged with lots of fake review or “scam” sites that simply direct you to the main sales site or offer some officious pablum talking about how the product is highly rated or recommended. The marketers for this service pay 75% commission for any referrals they generate. So these “affiliate marketers” create create fake review sites which effectively thwart any customer who is looking for real reviews. It is also a tactic to obscure any customers who have posted complaints or alerts about fraudulent claims. This affiliate marketing trick makes it very difficult for consumers to detect this and other such scams, As one persevering blogger has noted, scam artists rely upon these fraudulent reviewers to be using tags like: “does it work?”, “is it a scam?” or “verified review” to suck unsuspecting consumers into this fraud.
3. John Barban, who promotes the Venus Factor and Anything Goes diets, does appear to exist. However, a web search for Mr. Barban turned up no independent site verifying even his credentials or any speech, news interviews or public appearance made by the gentleman…..perhaps he’s too busy working out and selling to make public appearances. We did, however, find that WOT (Web of Trust verification service) has received enough complaints about Venus Factor that it has posted a warning for any person clicking on the Venus Factor site.
4. Perhaps most importantly, there is an abundance of free or low-cost diets available on line. Sadly, most all of them don’t work. Fad diets been around for so long that we lose weight just calculating all of the weight loss schemes out there. They are all appealing because they make it look as though others have succeeded. But be aware that the only fat that melts away is whatever surplus existed in your checking account. In fact, fad diets that promise dramatic results often can be dangerous. Please know that no matter how well-intentioned you are, without a commitment to exercise and substantial lifestyle changes, you likely won’t succeed in maintaining any weight loss. And if you have that commitment or will-power, then just about ANY diet will succeed. You don’t have to pay $40 for the information. Begin by going to this free and reputable website and then follow-up with your doctor to make sure that the diet you’ve chosen will work for you.
5. The testimonials offered in the video do not offer the full names or backgrounds of the individuals who are touting the product in very terse, well-crafted and well-lighted videos.
FREE ALTERNATIVES TO THE VENUS FACTOR
Our bottom line: you don’t have to spend $37 to get information about how to lose weight. And beware ANY Net-based sales pitch that has uncredentialed, slick video presentations with no independent reviews. It may not be a scam, but it is probably a rip-off because it is overpriced for what it is offering. In this case, there’s lots of good diet information in the marketplace offered at a fraction of the cost of most weight loss schemes. Save your hard-earned money.
If you really are interested in lowing weight and not losing money, check out our no-cost, no-sacrifice diet that actually works. And the best part is that it is entirely free and fully researched — with citations.
One additional warning: once you give them your money, you’ll be tagged as “meat”. Once they know that you’ll fall for this pitch, the same marketers will be coming back to you over and over and over for other such pitches. So understand that if you pay these marketers anything….let alone $37…..they’ll continue to hound you with more slick schemes designed to prey on your fears and concerns. Don’t open your door or wallet to them.
Thanks for the article. Something else I just noticed about their website when researching them is they provide a citation list with no context of how they’re using the studies. They also mix various formatting styles, which gives the impression that their sources are copy and pasted from somewhere, or at the very least, not cultivated by somebody with a science background.