Why not a topic about scammers

[Lady_Eva]

@Mind_Seeker20

Since it might be considered reviewing other places outside of BALG which isn’t allowed.

Correct - unfortunately, there are many problems with this forum having reviews in the public section, to name a few:

1. due to our rules on advertising, merchants may not join to reply if they feel they have been unfairly criticised, and due to sometimes unrealistic expectations by buyers, that is a strong likelihood if reviews are invited from all and sundry

2. this is a forum for BALG, a business, and hosting reviews of other businesses in the same area is just a tangle of potential misunderstandings about why they would allow this (especially highly critical reviews), or, conversely, whether they are behind praise given, to the extent of accrediting it (seems unlikely but trust me, people’s comprehension isn’t always where we might hope it would be)

3. there are already established sites that allow reviews of magickal goods and services, and that means people are able to share their opinions on neutral territory

4. it opens a temptation to merchants, especially the less honest, to set up shill accounts and fake satisfaction with their own services, increasing moderation workload and risking throwing the forum into disputes over what is or is not advertising.

For that reason, I suggest running searches on the internet and on sites and forums that permit this, to find out whether a specific person’s service will be helpful to you.

A single topic which contains possible red flags to watch out for (and which doesn’t point fingers at any specific trader, or contain identifying data - or passive-aggressive “jokes”) would be permitted and welcome, and is in line with the rules.

For example I mentioned one old scam in the info about the free readings rules:

@Lady_Eva

And finally, any member receiving a free reading that contains a hint of a sales pitch (perhaps the old “you’ve been cursed and need to pay me to remove it” chestnut) is invited to contact a moderator, in confidence, regarding this breach of the community’s rules - remember, if someone is being this underhanded, they’re probably trying to game you as well.

That’s a scam so well-known it was even featured in Sex & The City, because people are often in a vulnerable place when they’re seeking out magickal help.

But to recap, this forum is primarily for people to talk about their own magickal experiences, from beginner to adept, and to get help and suppoirt when needed, not for discussing purchase of services and how to evaluate them, there are already sites and forums for that, so that’s an important thing to bear in mind.