I despise online crime but I have to admit that there is some good sales copy behind many of the scam emails sent from Nigeria. I decided to dissect one of them to see what convinces so many to share their personal information and money with total strangers.
My goal is not to train a new generation of cyber criminals but rather to highlight how words can be very powerful.
Hopefully you’ll learn ways to protect yourself while also learning more about human nature, something you can use in your (legal) sales techniques.
I’ll be printing excerpts from the letter in italics and then analyze them in regular type. I’ve changed some of the details as I don’t want to breathe new life into an old letter.
LET’S WORK TOGETHER; IF INTERESTED!
This subject line makes you curious. You want to find out more, even though you don’t know the sender of the email. The use of all capital letters is a warning sign as most business correspondence doesn’t use them. Still, you’re curious.
My name is Dennis Catardish. am a Nigerian citizen and a seasoned Banker in Abuja (Berhad office)
Here we immediately receive a name. Names give people authority. There’s a tremendous amount of sharing going on here designed to create the image of a real person. You’re given city and office information that most American’s won’t recognize.
The idea is that by deluging people with these “facts,” we start to accept what they say as true. It doesn’t seem like a criminal would share that much information. Think again! You’ll also notice the typo at the start of the second sentence. Here we’re fortunate that these criminals are not proofreading masterminds as most bankers would likely check a letter before it’s sent.
Is there information about your background or your position that is so impressive or interesting that it could lead a prospect to be more in tune with what you’re saying?
I occupy the position of an accountant in this branch office, it is with good spirit of heart I opened up this great opportunity to you.
Another grammar mistake should make you nervous but the promise of not just an opportunity but a great one is intriguing.
We the idea of things being not just good but even better. Sales are nice but Big Sales somehow get us more excited. You see this all the time in the retail world.
A deceased client of mine, that bears the same last name as yours, died as the result of a heart-related condition on March 12th 2005. His heart condition was due to the death of all the members of his family in the tsunami disaster on the 26th December2004 in Sumatra Indonesia. (Website address link) for more information.
We like fairy tales and the idea that ordinary people can have amazing things happen to them. This feeds into that desire. Think of the excitement you feel when you have a chance to be a VIP for a night.
We remember the Tsunami so that event adds more authority to the email. I’ve taken out the website address but that also makes things seem more realistic.
At the same time, we don’t get the name of the client, only the news that the deceased shares the same last name as yours. This should tip you off that Dennis doesn’t know your last name, he’s just spamming people. He wants to create the illusion that he’s been working late for weeks, trying to find you.
My late Client has a deposit of twenty one point three million dollars ($21,3000,000) left behind I contacted you so I can present you as my late client next of kin, so the money can be transferred to your account, and we will share it together.
You don’t see a lot of round numbers in our world. How many prices ends with 99 cents? Psychologically, we get nervous around round numbers. So Dennis has used a big number that seems so random that it has to be real.
When pricing your products, pick unusual numbers. The stranger they are, the more real they seem. Why would someone pick such a strange number if it wasn’t based on something, you think.
While Dennis continues to struggle with punctuation, he goes in for the kill as he asks for your information and talks about sharing the money. Why would a banker get to split the cash? But by this time, you’re so seduced by the opportunity that you start to believe that a person who’s gone to such lengths, should get some kind of reward.
In your life, can you make a prospect think that you’re doing something extra special for them and that they’re getting a smoking deal. Suddenly you become less of a salesperson and more of a business partner.
Please reply immediately with your information including your full name, full address and telephone number for easy communication with you. I await your prompt response immediately,
The email’s last line carries a sense of urgency. No one wants to miss a good deal so you feel like typing out a response. But most unexpected, great opportunities that come out of nowhere, can wait a little while. This allows you to do a little investigation if you feel there’s some truth to it. Otherwise, don’t respond to the message.
A deadline can push a customer toward a sale.
Bottom line: Every one of these letters can be defeated by the saying, “If it’s too good to be true, then it probably is.”
