Move over, bots in the comment section selling “extra tickets” to every show, there’s a new Facebook racket on the scene.
If you’ve been on Facebook recently, you’ve probably experienced something like this: You get a notification that one of the musicians you follow has tagged you in a comment on a post. The profile that tagged you has the artist’s name, and probably the artist’s actual Facebook profile picture, but when you click on the notification it turns out it’s a comment on an old post with a bunch of random people tagged and a link to buy a very fake-looking piece of band merchandise, most likely with a message along the lines of, “This shirt comes and goes… so if you want one, you better get it now…” Here’s a handy, five-step guide to how to handle Facebook t-shirt sales bots:
Step 1: Use your brain.
If your first thought is, “Hmm, this is a pretty janky way to sell some pretty janky band merch,” well… you’re absolutely right. Before you blindly follow the link in the post, click through to the profile page of the person who posted it. If you get there and think to yourself, “Huh, I guess it’s super weird that this artist I’ve been following for years only has 3 Facebook friends and created their profile last Thursday,” trust your instincts. This profile might just be fake. [Note: In case sarcasm isn’t your strong suit, it’s absolutely, definitely fake.]
Set 2: Don’t buy the fake shirt.
You’ve figured out that this is a fake Facebook profile selling a bootleg t-shirt. Well done. The next step is super simple: Don’t buy it. I feel like this should probably go without saying but, you know, they still have to put signs in public bathrooms reminding people to wash their hands, so…
Set 3: Report the fake profile.
Click the “…” button to the left of the “Add friend” and “Message” buttons at the top of the profile page. Tap “Report Profile” > “Scam, fraud or impersonation” > “Impersonation” > “A friend.” Type in the name of the friend/profile being impersonated, click on that profile from the drop-down, and then tap “submit report.” It’s hard to know what Facebook does with the reports from here, but this is the only official course of action the app offers to report fake profiles, so it probably can’t hurt.
Step 4: Reach out to the real artist being impersonated.
It’s always fun to interact with the artists you follow. Now, you have a reason to reach out! Find the real profile for that artist and shoot them a message so they know they’re being impersonated by a t-shirt sales bot with questionable graphic design taste [Note: Look, bots, I get that this is a fake shirt for a musician, but do you really need the shirt to say the actual word “music” in two separate places?] Make sure to crack a joke about how you guess this means they’ve “made it.” They’ve definitely never heard that one before. They’ll love it.
Step 5: Go buy some of that artist’s actual merch.
Congratulations, you’ve bested the t-shirt bots in a battle of wits. They’re not gonna trick you into buying bad, fake merch. You’re way too smart for that. But after all that runaround, well, you kinda do want one of that band’s shirts now. Here’s the most important step: Go find their actual merch store and buy an actual band t-shirt. Never been to that artist’s merch store? Go find it! We’d be willing to bet that there’s a “shop” or “merchandise” link on that band’s website where you can find a much cooler t-shirt than the cheesy one the fake Facebook profile was slinging.
Buy a shirt. Buy that hat. Buy a record. After all, the reason that initial scam post caught your eye is because you’re a fan of that artist and the thought of them reaching out to you directly was exciting. Channel that excitement into something that will actually help that artist. Merch sales go a long way for touring bands. This is your chance to turn a weird annoyance into something positive: You get a shirt that’s way cooler than the “I-designed-this-in-Microsoft-Paint” trash that bot was slinging, and the artist you wanted to support actually gets supported. When you’re done, click over to the “tour” tab on the band’s website and scoop some tickets to see them live when they’re in town.
If you’ve made it through these four easy steps, well done! You’ve bested the bots at their own game and helped support an artist you like in the process. Maybe one day a fake Facebook profile will sell knockoff t-shirts with your name on them, too.
The post What To Do If A Fake Facebook Profile For Your Favorite Artist Tries To Sell You A T-Shirt appeared first on L4LM.
