World's Dumbest Crooks

by ROY and ARDIA NEVES

TF&G Owners

OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, WE HAVE ISSUED PERIODIC WARNINGS AND updates on efforts by lowlifes who have been attempting to defraud subscribers to TEXAS FISH & GAME and other major Texas magazines, including TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE and TEXAS MONTHLY. The scheme these crooks have deployed is both simple and simple minded. They send fraudulent subscription renewal notices to a list of addresses—in our case hunting and fi shing license holders—in the hope that some will respond, thinking they are legitimate notices from publications to which they subscribe. If someone does respond, the perps simply keep the money and the subscriber does not receive the magazine they think they have ordered.

Most of the subscribers to TF&G who have received these fraudulent notices have been smarter than the toilet fl oaters sending them. Very few of you have fallen for the con. Most have either ignored the notices, or have contacted us to question their legitimacy.

We have taken care of the few who have fallen prey to the scam and notifi ed us. We’ve honored the subscription term these subscribers paid for, even though we never received the payment. Because we consider ourselves to be the real targets of this fraud, we have had no problem taking the fi nancial hit. Fortunately, the actual damages have been minor, thanks to the aforementioned I.Q. gap between our subscribers and those trying to steal from them (and from us).

The fact that these creeps are engaged in a criminal activity that actually puts more fi nancial risk on them than on their targets shows that we are not dealing with class valedictorians here.

We have no clue where they got the idea that fortunes were to be made siphoning cash from individuals responding to direct mail renewal notices. First of all, to operate this scam, the morons basically have to incur much of the same business expenses they would if they were running a legitimate operation. This means printing hundreds of thousands of order forms, carrier and reply envelopes, and then paying the postage to mail them to the individuals on their list (which they had to obtain somehow—and the more illicit the list source was, the more expensive it would have been). Our guess is they are spending in the neighborhood of $400 per thousand items mailed—most of it in postage. Direct Mail campaigns are dicey even for highly skilled marketing experts. One to two percent is the normal response rate for a successful direct mail campaign—and that is usually achieved with an elaborate package of glossy, full-color brochures, enticing extras, and postage-paid reply envelopes. These clowns use a simple form, with little or no selling verbiage, and a reply envelope that requires a stamp. In most cases, the fraudulent notices use higher prices than normal for a one-year subscription, such as $48 (where we normally only charge $24.95). But even at that exorbitant markup, if they get one percent return—and keep in mind, the higher the price, the lower the response potential—they stand to receive $480 for every thousand notices mailed—after spending $400 just to get in the game.

If they were able to get better than one percent on such a fl imsy marketing effort, heck, we’d want to hire them to run our marketing campaigns legitimately! But it’s doubtful they are getting anywhere near that high of a response, which means they can’t be making much, if anything, more than what it is costing them to run their scam. Aren’t there a lot of other, easier, ways to make a dishonest buck? Which might explain why different operators seem to keep popping up to try this scam. The latest is an outfi t going by the name Publisher Payment Services. This one, for the fi rst time, is operating out of Austin, Texas. Most of the others have been in Oregon, Utah and Arizona. Being in Texas, it was easier for us to sic the authorities on this new gang of nitwits, and the Texas Attorney General’s offi ce and U.S. Postal Inspectors are already on the case.

If you have received any of these fraudulent notices, whether from the Austin bunch or any other source that does not look (or smell) legit, let us know. Just call the Fraud Hotline number above, right.

Unfortunately, when we do shut this latest operation down, another slime bucket, too lazy—and too stupid—to make an honest living, will pop up somewhere else and start the scam all over again.

www.FishGame.com

Published by Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC.

TEXAS FISH & GAME is the largest independent, family-owned outdoor publication in America. Owned by Ron & Stephanie Ward and Roy & Ardia Neves.

ROY NEVES PUBLISHER

CHESTER MOORE EDITOR IN CHIEF

CONTRIBUTORS

JOE DOGGETT • SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITORDOUG PIKE • SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITORTED NUGENT • EDITOR AT LARGE

LOU MARULLO • HUNTING EDITORMATT WILLIAMS • FRESHWATER EDITOR

CALIXTO GONZALES • SALTWATER EDITORLENNY RUDOW • BOATING EDITOR

STEVE LAMASCUS • FIREARMS EDITORDUSTIN ELLERMANN • SHOOTING EDITORKENDAL HEMPHILL • POLITICAL COMMENTATOR

REAVIS WORTHAM • HUMOR EDITORTOM BEHRENS • CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

GREG BERLOCHER • CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

RAZOR DOBBS • CONTRIBUTING EDITOR CAPT. MIKE HOLMES • CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

DUSTIN WARNCKE • CONTRIBUTING EDITORSTAN SKINNER • CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

LISA MOORE • CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITOR

SUBSCRIPTIONS

247 AIRTEX DR. HOUSTON, TX 77090

PHONE (800) 725-1134

ONLINE SUBSCRIBER SERVICE MYACCOUNT.FISHGAME.COM

FRAUD HOTLINE: (281) 869-5511 Call this number if you receive a suspicious offer in the mail or by phone

ADVERTISING

ARDIA NEVES VICE PRESIDENT/ADVERTISING DIRECTOR

DIRECT PHONE: (281) 869-5549

EMAIL: ANEVES@FISHGAME.COM

DUSTIN WARNCKE • ADVERTISING SALES (512) 497-7674 • (281) 869-5513

EMAIL: DWARNCKE@FISHGAME.COM

DEBRA COPELAND • ADVERTISING SALES (210) 430-0473

EMAIL: DEB@FISHGAME.COMLARRY DALTON • BILLING

247 AIRTEX DR. HOUSTON, TX 77090 PHONE: (281) 869-5511 • FAX (281) 783-4542

TEXAS FISH & GAME (ISSN 0887-4174) is published monthly by Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC., 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. ©Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC. All rights reserved. Content is not to be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission. The publication assumes no responsibility for unsolicited photographs and manuscripts. Subscription rates: 1 year $24.95; 2 years $42.95; 3 years $58.95. Address all subscription inquiries to Texas Fish & Game, 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. Allow 4 to 6 weeks for response. Give old and new address and enclose latest mailing address label when writing about your subscription. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: TEXAS FISH & GAME, 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. Address all subscription inquiries to TEXAS FISH & GAME, 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. Email change of address to: subscriptions@fishgame.com. Email new orders to: subscriptions@fishgame.com. Email subscription questions to: subscriptions@fishgame.com.

Periodical postage paid at Houston, TX 77267-9946 and at additional mailing offices.