Life's A Pitch

I'm a sucker for a good pitch. Aren't you?

Knives that cut tin cans, electric ovens that cook whole chickens in a flash, tapes that make you happy, CDs that make you rich and DVDs that will change your life - I love them all but I wouldn't buy any of them. It's not the products I love it's how they're sold.

Late night infomercials are my favorite. Ron, Billy and friends are masters of "bigging up" their products. Whether it's a dust-cloth, a detergent or toaster, these guys know how to sell it to us. No stone is left unturned in their search for every conceivable way that their gadget, gizmo or snake oil can improve our lives. It's a tidal wave of positivity that gradually wears away doubt and ignites our interest until we make the call and wait for the mail to arrive (up to 28 days).

I can watch these for hours. Knives used to be my favorite but these days I'm always on the lookout for a good fitness thing-a-ma-bob. Not to buy or use (obviously), just to enjoy as the perfect sales-people describe every muscle or joint that's being "targeted" by their ridiculous device. And the sillier the product, the better. Chuck Norris sells a miniature gym that seems to make perfect sense and is probably an excellent product - that's no good. I want four idiots standing in a semi circle jiggling large plastic helicopter blades in various ways while trying to maintain a pre-scripted conversation.

And what a conversation.  Every possible benefit of owning a "body blade" is announced, discussed and clearly illustrated in every way. The only thing they fail to mention is that you'll look like an idiot trying to use it (though, after a few whiskies, even I might make that call).

But is it a scam?

Well, it could be, but in my opinion, it's usually just a clever sales pitch that rewards the seller with a higher than normal profit margin. Those knives that cut through tin cans "like butter"? They're not the best knives money can buy and, chances are, they're not the best knives you can buy at two o'clock in the morning.

A few years ago, Alex and I had far too much fun recreating an infomercial for our own "Wonderblade Pro 3". We highlighted and exaggerated every detail of the knives we were selling to show how easily people can be convinced. Talking to them afterwards, the buyers were able to recall almost all of the points that convinced them to buy. That alone is worth remembering whether you intend to make a purchase or make a living from sales.

Infomercials illustrate how a positive presentation can have a remarkable effect on people. The message is repeated over and over, in different ways until every positive aspect has been clearly demonstrated.

But the real secret isn't in the pitch - it's in us. Infomercials sell products that answer a specific but often powerful human desire.

A leaner figure with an easier regime; a full head of hair in a can; products that cut cleaning time in half and gadgets that make life easier or more fun. These all answer long established human needs. The pitch works because it speaks directly to our internal wish-list and offers the solution for three "easy payments" of just thirty nine, ninety-five.

I don't believe the pitch is a scam but it uses similar tools to achieve similar results. Most customers of infomercials are relatively happy with their purchase, even if they never use it. The price might be higher than it could be but no-one is actually being ripped off (most of the time).

A scam crosses the line and leaves its victims with much less than they hoped for. In my next post I'm going to talk about the Jam Auction and it's many variants. I'll discuss how it uses the same psychology as the pitch but takes things too far, leaving it's victims with much less...

How We Hustle

I thought I'd take a few moments to address some of the FAQs about our show The Real Hustle.

Here are the questions we are asked the most:

1. Aren't you just teaching people how to pull scams?
2. Where do the scams come from?
3. Is it all set-up for the cameras?
4. Why don't people recognise you?

Let's start at the top.

Are we teaching people how to be con artists?

Absolutely not. Con games have been around as long as human beings and every con game ever conceived has relied on one important factor for the scam to work: that the victim does not recognise it as a scam! Allow me to share my favorite quote on the subject, from John Nevil Maskelyne in his book "Sharps and Flats":

"Experience has demonstrated that the ignorance of the public with regard to the capabilities of trickery is the principle factor in all problems connected with every kind of deception. If the public only knew a little more in this respect, the thousand and one quackeries which flourish in our midst could not exist." John Nevil Maskelyne, February 1894

Put simply, if the public is made aware of a con or a scam, that scam ceases to be as valuable or effective to the con artist. As the old saying goes, "never wise up a mark."
The Real Hustle entertains its viewers with real scams played on real people, for real stakes. The result is an increasingly popular TV show that is shown around the world. Every person who watches the show is, by osmosis, learning how to identify these scams before falling for them.
Alex and I know this for a fact. People have reported scams to the authorities stating that they only knew it was a con because they had seen it on our show.
Of the millions of people who watch each show, the vast majority are honest people - potential victims of con artists. Exactly who the scammers don't want us to educate! Just about the stupidest thing a con man can do is attempt a scam we have recently exposed on the show. His pool of potential victims has been greatly reduced and the chances of him being caught, increased.
Informing the public is our purpose. Con artists already know how to con people!

Where do the scams come from?

New scams are being created every day. Thanks to the media, scams are exposed quickly and new versions appear frequently. One hundred years ago, con men could work the same scam for decades by moving on to the next town when people got wise. Now they need to re-write their scams to counter public knowledge. It's like a virus adapting to resist new treatments. The problem doesn't go away, it simply changes.

Alex and I monitor the media for any new scam or twist on an old scam. We then write the scam as a Real Hustle item and pass it to the producers and the BBC for approval.
When getting ready for a new series, we sit down and collate all the material we've built up during and since the last season. Our sources include books, internet sites, newspapers and our sources "in the business". Some of these scams are very old, others are cutting edge. Some are common and others extremely rare but they are all based on cons from the real world. The BBC insists on this. When presenting ideas to the BBC they want to know exactly where they came from and Alex and I must show our sources.
We're not in the business of making up scams but we do try to frame them in a way that will be interesting and memorable - that way it's easier to identify if the same thing happens to you.

Is it all a set-up?

In a word: NO.
This is a very common question. Many people like to tweet or blog that it's "obviously faked". They're wrong.
To some degree you'll have to take my word for it but let me point out a couple facts.
First off, people can't act. When you see those reactions on our show, they're real. Those reactions are the most important part of the show. The only way we can insure a genuine reaction is to make the scam real for those people. Whatever else happens, the mark must believe everything and genuinely think they got scammed - otherwise their reaction will never work because people simply can't fake that moment.
From day one, Alex, myself and our execs have insisted on doing this the hard way. It's the whole point of the show and the reason for its success.
There are many elements that you never see on the show; scams within the scam to make sure our marks are in the right place at the right time. The "marks" are rarely random people. We have a team of researchers who do their homework on any potential contributors. It's a tough process but the rewards are on screen.
The mark does not know they are being filmed by The Real Hustle and they have no idea it's a scam.
this is clearly stated at the top of every show but people still doubt it. A few years ago, after the Queen was misrepresented by not-so-clever editing on a BBC promo, shows like ours were closely monitored to make sure we complied with the BBC's strict rules.  Our show seemed to enjoy special interest in this matter but our producers were able to clearly prove that everything complied with our opening statement. Had we been faking things, The Real Hustle would have been off the air years ago.

Why don't people recognise us?

Another very common question. The answer is - they do. Often.
Our research team spends most of their time trying to find people who have never watched the show and have no idea who we are.
There are millions of people who watch Real Hustle but there are millions more who do not. Our team invest a lot of time in identifying viable subjects before the frustrating process of getting them to the right place at the right time. It's one of the toughest jobs in television.
Over the years we've come up with several methods to identify the best marks and come up with the best ways of getting them to the party on time. I'm not about to reveal those methods or they would cease to be viable.
Even with our arsenal of tricks we sometimes come unstuck. All too often someone walks into a scam and recognises us before we can say a word. Its a numbers game but if it happens, we reset everything and wait for the next mark.
In the current show we are using disguises to alter our images. This is not for benefit of the mark - if they watch the show they'd soon see through our hats, wigs and glasses. Instead we're trying to avoid being recognised by the people around us! I couldn't tell you how many times someone has walked into a live scam to tell us how much they love the show. That's the one factor we can never predict but always prepare for.

The Ride Principle

It's not easy to convince someone of something that's completely untrue.
That said, it can be quite simple to distort the truth slightly by persuading someone to look at the truth from a different perspective.
Look at any political debate and you'll find several sides to any story. A con artist can use lies and half-truths to influence how his victim understands information.
With time, this layering of tiny lies can smother the mark in one big lie, which appears to be perfectly obvious from the outside. It all begins with a good line to grab the mark's attention - a hook.
Here's an excellent set-up for a scam:
"The economy is in the toilet but this is when people become really rich - they buy up all the bargains and wait for the market to improve. They get all the cream. That's what no one tells you. It's the secret they don't want you to know."
Lets break that down:

1. Start with the truth then instantly distort it with a fascinating piece of information. Yes, the economy was "in the toilet" but the idea that "this is when people become REALLY rich" is extremely misleading but also very attractive to the uninitiated.
2. Balance these claims with a simple to understand and easy to believe reason for why they have never heard of this before. The "secrets THEY don't want you to know about" line is classic con material. Be very wary of anyone who uses this to bolster or explain their "facts".

The hustler could spend weeks layering the scam with bogus facts and figures to support their story but it all boils down to that initial line - the hook that draws the mark into the scam.

The next stage would be to present the mark with an incredible opportunity based on the hook. If the mark has swallowed the hook already, it's just a matter of keeping him on the line. More on this later but, for now let's try and understand how a con artist manipulates their victims and controls everything they see.

Ask any victim of a scam what they remember and it usually boils down to the initial line that attracted them. All the other smoke was just set-dressing, it's the story that keeps the mark hooked.

I call this the "Ride Principle".

When someone gets onto a ride at Disneyland they're attracted by the promise of excitement and adventure. In a con game, people are attracted by many things but most of these boil down to money or self-improvement.

Just like a ride, once you get on, it's not easy to get off.

Also, once you're on that ride, everything you see and experience has been created for you by the designers of that ride. At the Haunted Mansion, your car follows the tracks and turns from side to side to point you at everything they want you to see. If, however, you try to look elsewhere, it's remarkably difficult because of the large hood at the back of the car.

The illusions created at the Haunted Mansion are remarkably convincing and extremely effective because the viewer is always in exactly the right position to appreciate them. The lighting and the angles are perfect and the there's always something new and different to attract your attention.

It's all too brief, of course and , before you know it, the ride is over.

Looking back, I can only remember a small percentage of what I saw but I can easily describe the experience as a "journey through a haunted house".

Con artists are taking their victims on a similar journey, taking greater control of their victim's perspective as the scam deepens. Before the mark knows it, everything they see and believe has been carefully controlled by the hustler.

They're on the con artist's ride, buckled in by their own wants and desires.

Rides at Disneyland are fun, thrilling and leave you wanting to come back for more.

A con game can also be fun, certainly thrilling, but when it comes to an end, the ride collapses.

Some scams are actually designed to bring people back for more but, for the most part, victims walk away confused and often ashamed. Many never even report the crime to the police or their family. 

The lesson here is to not get on the ride in the first place but con games have a habit of creeping up on you. Learn to spot the signs of a good scam before it gets you hooked: 

• Is it too good to be true? 
• Are you being pressure into making decisions? 
• Where is your information coming from? 
• Are you being blocked from obtaining help or advice from family, friends or recognized sources? 

If you recognize any of these points, stop the ride and get off. 

Stall Hoppers

There are hundreds of techniques used by pickpockets to grab your cash, many of which have been exposed on The Real Hustle. The most common "dips" are pretty bold and require little skill other than the proper timing, others require years of experience to perfect.

"Stall Hopping" falls into the former category.

You're in a public toilet, using the facilities inside one of the stalls. Someone to your left asks if you can pass over some paper as their stall is empty. You look up to see their hand waiting and you kindly oblige.

Your wallet just got nicked. From your trouser pocket, around your ankles.

While looking up, someone in the other stall is reaching under the dividing wall, straight into your unguarded pockets. While wearing your jeans, this move would definitely get your attention but while sitting on the throne, it's impossible to tell that someone is rummaging through your lint.

This can also be worked alone - the thief simply signals that he needs paper and then crouches to make the steal while you're collecting paper.

Another distraction is for the thief's partner to try the door to your stall. While you react to this, your wallet is taking a walk.

Apart from the obvious advantage of easy access to your pockets, it's also very difficult for you to make chase if you catch them during the steal or "wake up" to the scam right away. Someone shouting "stop thief" with their pants down is more likely to be arrested than the two guys running up the street...

It's highly unlikely that this steal will ever make it into the UK show for obvious reasons. It's an extremely rare scam but one to be aware of and another good reason for wearing a money belt...

Snide Gear

“Hey, Mister. Want to buy a mobile phone? One careless owner. Good as new - except for where it fell off the back of the lorry....”

Most of us have been approached at least once with an offer to buy some “dodgy” merchandise. At a market, in the pub or just walking down the street.

It’s something for next-to-nothing. A deal too good to be true.

As a set-up for a scam, this is a real winner. Everyone wants a bargain and some people, perhaps more than you’d expect, are willing to buy stolen goods. The secret is to play the mark so they are attracted to the bargain but not worried or guilty about where that bargain came from.

The term “fell off the back of a lorry” is a simple, well established way of saying that something has been stolen or misappropriated with no harm done to a previous owner or individual. In my opinion, it’s just a more acceptable way of saying “this has been illegally obtained”.

Hustlers use this as way to explain why a deal is so attractive and by accepting this, the mark demonstrates that they are willing to engage in a crooked transaction. All the hustler has to do is reel them in - but where’s the scam? 

People who sell stolen goods for real will simply try to get the best price for whatever “stock” they are supplied. Thieves pass it on for a fraction of the amount, allowing a healthy profit for the fence. It’s a simple, criminal, business transaction. In these cases, the crooks try to keep it contained by limiting how and where the goods are sold. In essence they set up a safe distribution chain made up of customers who are unlikely to report to the police.

If they do “go public”, they are hardly likely to advertise the true nature of their “suppliers”. Instead they are more likely to misrepresent the item as second hand, shop soiled or, my favorite, an “unwanted gift”.

Hustlers, however, want to drag their victims into a false scenario, where the mark is made to consciously take part in a crime. With charm and a good line of BS, the con artist makes the crime palatable; easy for the mark to accept. Usually this is about convincing them that no individual has been hurt and that the goods came about by “good fortune” (i.e. someone left their van unlocked - know what I mean?).

This helps the mark to believe in the bargain they’re being offered - it makes perfect sense - but it also distracts them mentally from what’s about to happen. Despite their willingness to consider buying, they need to be assured that they are insulated from any repercussions and this is cleverly woven into the con. 

The mark is sorely tempted and trying to assess any potential dangers. Meanwhile, the hustler is putting their mind at ease and creating the perfect moment to switch that mobile phone or DVD Player for an identical box filled with potatoes or bottles of water!

From here, he can say or do anything to get their money. He can even drop the price drastically because anything over the price of a bag of spuds is pure profit.

Versions of this scam are legion but the mechanics are the same. Create a believable scenario with a tempting product that gets switched out while the mark is distracted. 

The best part of this scam (from the hustlers perspective) is the “cool out”. Victims are much less likely to report the crime to the police since they were agreeing to buy stolen goods! 

As with many con games, the golden rule applies: If it seems to good to be true, it probably is.

That said, consider this: most people would apply the golden rule as soon as they hear the price - until the scam artist gives them a believable reason to dismiss the rule and consider the proposition. 

It all seems so feasible - until your left with nothing but “old tatties...”

How To Spot A Sucker

How does someone fall for a scam?

 How do hustlers select their victims?

At the end of this article I'm going to teach you how to spot a potential “mark” (victim of a scam). This is a surefire method with guaranteed 100% accuracy. Before that, it’s important to understand how and why people are fooled.

Does being gullible make someone a mark? Is greed the reason why most people fall for a scam? Most of us might think so but I would like to encourage a more charitable and, in my opinion, more accurate perception of con victims.

Let's look at two very different con games: three card monte and the 419 scam.

Three card monte is designed to look like a street game, where money is wagered on the position of a playing card, a marked disk or some other object. The idea is to watch the hustler mix the cards and guess where the winner is.

Sounds simple.

It's not.

At a later date, I'll write more on the actual mechanics of the game but, for now, let's step back and watch what happens. Some people are playing the game. A tourist walks up to see what's going on. Pretty soon he's getting involved and before you know it there's money in his hand. He tries to bet but he can't get his money down in time.

Then we see him go for more money. He makes a big bet. In seconds, the game is over and the hustler has gone, along with the victim's cash.

From this perspective, it's easy to assume that he was gullible. In fact I found the following definition online: GULLIBLE - easily tricked because of being too trusting; "gullible tourists taken in by the shell game”

How about the 419 scam? Someone receives an email or a letter regarding a proposition from a wealthy businessman in Nigeria. They need someone to receive a large amount of cash so that the businessman may legally move his fortune out of Lagos, without incurring a huge emigration tax. In return, the helpful recipient will be paid 20% of the amount transferred and be entitled to any interest accrued while the money is in their account.

Sound feasible? You probably already know this is a scam - but what if you didn't? What would drive you to pursue such a proposition?

Many people assume it is greed. The amounts promised by the Nigerian businessman are huge. The mark's percentage would be substantial and extremely attractive. Surely, then, greed is the driving force behind this scam?

Let's look at both scams again, this time from the perspective of the victim.

You're walking down the street when you see a crowd gathered. You walk up and see a game being played. Perhaps you've seen it before - in movies or on TV. Maybe you know it's a con game - something to do with sleight of hand. It's interesting to see it happening for real so you stay and watch.

As you watch, you realise that you are actually pretty good at working out where the winning card is - let's say it's the queen of hearts. The guy shows the cards, mixes them and you nail it every time. Even when other people are losing, you're not being fooled and you always know exactly where the queen is.

It's got to be worth a ten or a twenty. Even if you lose, it's not a fortune - besides, you haven't been wrong yet!

You try and bet ten bucks - you put your money down but someone else wants to bet more money than you. Your bet is refused and the other guy loses with a different card - it turns out you would have won if only you'd bet more money.

Your hand goes back in your pocket. You're pissed about losing to the idiot with more money on the table. You're watching real close and you're always right. In your pocket, your hand pulls all the cash from your money clip.

That guy loses again - and now he's getting upset. He tosses the losing card on the floor and, as the hustler picks it up, the loser reaches over and pops a bend in the queen of hearts. It's now clearly marked for all to see.

This is an intriguing situation - the loser takes out more money as the hustler mixes the cards briefly - you follow the queen easily and it's still bent at the corner. Before you know it you grab your chance and bet everything you have on the marked queen.

The bet is taken and you're already spending the cash in your head when the card you bet on turns out NOT to be the queen!

Someone says something about "police" and everyone scatters. The cards and their owner disappear into the crowd and suddenly you're standing alone trying to figure out what just happened.

This con game isn't about being a gullible person - it's about becoming gullible for a second due to the mechanics of the scam.

Even if you know a little about the three card trick, it's easy to believe that you are smart enough to work it out.

After watching for a few minutes, you soon become convinced that you are smarter than the other players and are tempted to prove this by betting a little. The hustlers (the guy mixing the card and up to a dozen of the other "players") then make sure you can only bet when you have all your money on the table. They’re teasing you - not accepting your bet when another "player" overbets or showing other "players" winning on the cards you've been following.

If you are only going to bet a little, they'll probably switch a card, take your cash and squeeze you out. If you don't bet at all, you'll soon find the crowd pushing you back.

If you look ripe, they'll continue to draw you in with their little charade. The final coup-de-grace is the bent corner. With the card marked, it seems impossible to lose . The secret is a devilish piece of sleight of hand that both switches the queen AND moves the mark to another card. Bent card? A little lipstick? Either way, there's a trick to it but that's not what's important.

Every time I've watched this particular ploy go down, as an onlooker and as the hustler, there's a look that comes over the mark. Imagine a deer in the headlights, where the deer has its hoof in a jar of cookies. The mark knows something he shouldn't - he has an unfair advantage and he wants to see how it plays out.

But remember: he's already itching to play and prove he's got this game beat. When the cards are mixed, the mark has no problem following the queen and, because it is also marked (for his benefit) he has no doubt at that instant where the queen is. He is also worried about being over-bet or pushed out by another "player".

Put all this together and the mark takes the bait and his money is gone in a flash.

Three Card Monte is a charade that draws you in and cons you into thinking you know better than the people around you. This isn't a difficult con to pull off since most people think that way already.

This so-called "game" then manipulates the mark towards the key moment where they’re convinced it’s a sure thing.

Looking back, even the victim has no idea how he got duped. “It all happened so fast.”

With the 419 scam, the scammers usually take their time.

Again, let's look at it from a victim's point of view:

It's eight months since you lost your job. Your savings won't last more than a year. Things are getting desperate and so are you. Feeding and clothing the kids is eating into your budget. Little Billy is already growing out of his school uniform and Sally needs new shoes. Every day, you receive letters from the bank and credit card companies demanding more money and charging for your overdraft. Bills are mounting up along with the stress and you've even started praying for a solution.

Then, one night, at your lowest point, you get the email and it seems your prayers might be answered.

You're not some estate agent looking to increase your bulging bank balance. You're in a dire situation and this proposal, from your perspective, might appear to be the answer to your prayers.

This might seem like an extreme example but in my experience, it is much more likely than someone pursuing a phantom Nigerian purely out of greed. There are always reasons for someone being lured into the 419 web. Greed is certainly a factor - the large sums of money that attract (and distract) the marks will certainly appeal to people's greed but who amongst us doesn't have a little avarice about them?

Another common reason for people getting involved in a 419 scheme is naivety. Being aware of this scam is its own deterrent but many people have never heard of the "419" or its ancestor "The Spanish Prisoner" scam. Many people also cannot conceive that other people would go to such lengths to perpetrate a con. It's an odd fact that many scams seem easier to believe simply because they are so far-fetched. It's difficult to understand unless you're in the mark's shoes but, as someone who has pulled hundreds of con games, there's a twisted logic that is easier for people to grasp than the seemingly more obvious fact that it 's actually a scam! More on this in a later post...

Despite what most people think, victims of scams are not stupid. Misguided, maybe. Misled, certainly.

I know many genuine hustlers, cheats and con artists. They share a common opinion about their marks - it’s their own fault for getting involved.

Needless to say, I don’t agree with that statement at all but it reveals a great deal about how scammers insulate themselves from the results of their own actions. I’ll write more on this later.

For now, the lesson to learn is that “getting involved” can be as simple as replying to that 419 email or walking up to a crowd to see what’s going on.

Once you’re “involved” you are targeted by extremely powerful and convincing strategies, designed (and proven) to manipulate you into giving up your money.

The minute you engage with a hustler, he or she is in the driving seat. They have been in this situation thousands of times. They’ve seen every outcome and know exactly what buttons to press to get the desired result. No matter how smart you think you are, the hustlers have the upper hand. They are better at conning people than you are at not being conned!

These are two common but very different scams and the chances are that, while I hope you now have a better understanding of why people fall them, you’re still thinking: “that could never happen to me”.

Are you sure? Just by reading this article, or watching The Real Hustle, you’ve armed yourself with the most powerful weapon against cons and scams - knowledge - but be careful not to infect yourself with the con artist's greatest ally: arrogance.

When people read in the news that someone fell for a seemingly “obvious” scam, try to think about how clever and convincing the con artist must have been to work that scam, rather than dismiss the victim as merely stupid. One day it might be you.

If you genuinely think you can’t be conned, think again. Just because you know how to recognise common scams, doesn’t mean you’ll wake up to a more sophisticated con game.

The great con artists tailor their schemes to fit their victims perfectly. If they know enough about you, con artists will figure out how best to bait their hooks.

After pulling over 400 scams and spending a lifetime studying the art of the con, I have no doubt that I could be taken in by the right scam. Despite all my knowledge and understanding I know that we’re all a sucker for something.

Which brings me back to my sure-fire method for spotting a potential mark: stand in front of a mirror.