Bait and Switch 101

When you first venture out to purchase your gold or silver the choices will be plentiful and so will the advice. You’ll face the options like: squares or circles, shiny or dull, and government issued or good ol’ minted bullion. It can become overwhelming and even confusing deciding whether junk or .999 rounds are the best choice for you. However, one of the best things you can do before making that kind of decision is consulting with experts…and/or someone you trust.

When I first decided that I should be investing in precious metals, the motivation came from my readings on the Federal Reserve Bank and the inflation that was taking place in the US and abroad. I had always thought it was silly to keep money in a bank account when the interest I was accruing wasn’t working fast enough to combat the decline of the dollar’s purchasing power. Thus, I turned to what seemed like a trustworthy investment: precious metals (namely silver, because I didn’t have $500K to throw around). It was then I realized, I need to start educating myself. I hope this was a thought that crossed your mind as well.

Some sound money evangelists were on my radar from my research of the Federal Reserve: Ron Paul, Peter Schiff, Murray Rothbard, and Tom Woods to name a few. Their knowledge quickly lead me through a network of VERY intelligent and well-spoken individuals on the subject. So fear not! The resources are endless. You have no excuse to go into a precious metals purchase blindly.

However, no matter how informed you are, this may not prevent to-good-to-be-true offers that make you salivate at their site. As explained in Peter Schiff’s latest report (that you can download in the top right hand corner of the page) the bait and switch sales model is still alive and well even after numerous attempts to legislate the fraudulent tactic.

In my personal experience bullion and junk have been the safest purchases I have made in physical metal. I’m in no place to share my investment advice with you, but after listening to the experts and reading extensively on gold and silver bullion it lead me on a hunt to find the right dealer. The bait and switch tactic is something you’ll come across as you are shopping for dealers. As stated in Schiff’s Gold Scam Report, “most dealers’ goal is to get you on the phone.” So if you see a deal for a gold coin for $29.95, chances are it IS too good to be true. Many bullion dealers will bait you with the low price in hopes to switch you onto a higher priced item of lower value. Many times this item is a numismatic coin (rare coin) and/or a commemorative coin issued by the US Government.

If you’re looking to INVEST your money, numismatics can be disastrous to your ROI. The scam-dealers may attempt to feed you information about government confiscation, high returns, and other fallacies you’ll find while reading through the Gold Scam Report, however when it comes down to it: bullion outperforms numismatics every time.

So heed this information. This is one of the many lessons you will learn by following us here at Gold Scams. Don’t be too proud to read up on the latest tactics used by scammers, while also learning about the culture and ways to invest! Subscribe today!