Unsatisfactory record at the
Better Business Bureau
Pattern of complaints at the BBB
Unanswered complaints at the BBB
Claim Al Capone started the BBB
Conflict of interest
Upfront fees
High prices
High sales pressure
Guaranteed work
No website
No tear sheets
No client list
Pricing not on website
Hidden fees
Extra expenses (total cost) not
communicated
Not up front about basic
important issue(s)
Website FAQ does not answer basic
important question(s)
Training not free
Online portfolio not free
Specific photographer required
Manipulation to use specific
photographer
Agency makes profit from
photography
Website address of "professional
photographer" not provided
Company has its own photographer
or own photo studio
Pictures taken by photographer do
not look professional
High fees for web portfolio
High fees for infant photos
Professional photos for infants
Professional photos for kids
under four years old
Most models make less money than
they pay for photos
Late payments for completed work
Leaders have history of fraud
Leaders previously prosecuted by
the Federal Trade Commission
No agency license
Published news reports allege
fraud, greed, corruption
The words "scam" or
"fraud" are often used in online
discussions of the company
Local media issued warnings and
consumer alerts
State consumer protection agency
issued warnings and consumer alerts
False/misleading/unsubstantiated
advertising
Claim famous agencies use the
company to seek models
Claim top agencies use the
internet to seek models
Claimed/implied affiliation with
celebrities
Claim they started the career(s)
of supermodel(s)
Claim supermodels use the service
Claim supermodel started the
company
Company promotes lucrative
modeling but its models only get "minimum-wage"
"modeling"
Company talks like an agency, or
says it is an agency, but it is not an agency,
and has no license
Pictures of models on the office
wall also available at K-Mart
Company name includes "International"
but it has no offices in other countries and no
model placement in other countries
Slams other types of modeling
businesses (convention slamming schools; schools
slamming conventions)
New company
Payment only accepted in cash or
money order
No receipt given unless asked
Imbalance in financial risk (one-sided
for consumer)
No money-back guarantee
No refunds
Company makes profit even if
models get no work
Company's models do not look like
models/have not received work
Company seeks long-term exclusive
model contract with new/untested model
Firm does not mention and BBB
record does not include its success rate (placement
record)
Model scouts are not model
bookers
Model scouts are paid by the
number of people they recruit, not the amount of
work the models get
Company recruits models in state(s)
where it has no office(s)
Company seeks quota (x number of
new models)
Company pretends to be highly
selective ("only 2% are selected" and
98% fail, when in reality it is more like 98% who
are selected and 2% fail)
Use of important-sounding
positions like "Talent Executive" which
require no training and no skill
Claims someone else (who is
important) has to make the selection decision to
make them appear to be selective
Very high new model selection
rate
Very high ratio of models to
staff
Company runs a national photo
directory (online/print)
Overall impression the company is
really most interested in making/taking money
Business plan designed for fast,
easy money (requires low effort, low experience,
low skill, low performance)
The "free open call" or
"free audition" is nothing more than a
contrived meeting for a sales pitch (to sell
classes, convention, online portfolio hosting,
etc.)
It would be difficult to hold the
company accountable if the model signed a
contract because the agency is in another state
Address is only a PO Box number,
not a street address
Business partnerships which
create conflict of interest (e.g. schools with
agency; schools with convention; agency with
photographer; photographer with convention)
Convention contestants not
screened by agents with photos prior to
convention
Oral representations different
from written representations
Nothing in writing
Emphasis of marketing to aspiring
models is the (models') future potential not the
(company's) past; fame ("you could be a star"),
money ("you could make millions"), the
dream, etc.
Emphasis of marketing is call
backs (low standard), not placement rate (high
standard)
Little if any time given to
background check company and review contract
Minimal or minimum cooling-off
period allowed to change mind
Representation to aspiring/untested/new
model that work will be offered immediately, be
easy to get, and pay extremely well
Most work the agency gets is for
events ("promotional"), not print, not
editorial, not commercial, not fashion
Calls itself a modeling school
when it is more accurately called a finishing
school or a charm school
Represents training at a
finishing school is required to become a model
Claims a model must be trained to
be signed
New models are not signed until
they have paid for training
"The last place is still
open"
