Hi Jenifer,

I've run into the same things when posting my ad on Craigs, and I also specifically state that I am not to be contacted about other business opportunities as well. That still doesn't stop those ads and spam from being sent to me. I've become very careful in terms of even sending my details to any responses that appear to be legit because of this, and what I've made as my own policy is to respond to any supposed legit inquiries and ask them for their specific business information first. I ask them to send me their link to their corporate website, if they have one, and other details of that nature. It's helped me to weed out the good from the bad, and I know that if I don't get a response to my request for further details, then they probably aren't legitimate prospective clients.

Interestingly enough, I had a response to my Craigs ad today. It was from someone claiming to have a collection agency and they needed someone to assist them with their correspondence. The red flag was raised on my end when they said they needed someone to also help "disburse appropriate funds." I wrote them back and asked them very detailed questions, and did not receive any sort of response.

I think Craigs is a good resource in some regards, but it's like a lot of other things...buyer beware. There are genuine, legitimate businesses and people out there needing our services, and it's a shame that a few rotten apples can sometimes spoil the bunch.

Having said that, and realizing that Craigslist is a free resource, I find that I often encounter inquiries from individuals who basically expect me to work for free, or thereabouts. I'm also constantly having to define the word "Virtual", as it appears that many people do not understand that it means that I am located somewhere other than the city where they are located. Do you encounter this as well?

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Anne Short
Founder - YourGlobalVA