At least two Grand Rapids-area small businesses recently were targeted by a bogus awards company, but instead of falling for it, they called the Better Business Bureau.
“This is a pretty common scam we’ve seen around the country,” said Katie Grevious, a communications specialist at the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Serving Western Michigan.
The scheme goes something like this: a company is notified it’s been selected as a winner for “The Bureau Group’s 2022 Grand Rapids Awards,” and given a code to enter on a website. From there the company is prompted to purchase an award up to $300.
“Most legitimate awards do not come with costs to the winner,” said Lisa Frohnapfel, president and CEO of the BBB Serving Western Michigan. “The goal of these award schemes is to take advantage of a company’s excitement and sell them an award at an inflated price.”
The phony awards website has enough information on it to appear legitimate at a glance, but some of the hyperlinks are circular, leading the user back to the front page where a couple of paragraphs describe the award as if it’s a longstanding Grand Rapids institution:
“The Grand Rapids Award Program is an annual awards program honoring the achievements and accomplishments of local businesses throughout the Grand Rapids area. Recognition is given to those companies that have shown the ability to use their best practices and implemented programs to generate…
