You've become something of a minor Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube sensation. You've posted a few videos here and there and they're getting thousands of hits. You're even considering YouTube's affiliate program, which pays you a percentage of the ad revenue if you get enough views to your video.

To get your hits up even more, you've read you will need to get several subscribers on your channel that will see your videos immediately when posted.

Some groups or individuals will contact you, saying they can help you “get thousands of subscribers, instantly". Some even tell you they will "send an email to all YouTube users" about your channel, thus ensuring your videos will be among the most viewed online. They might even praise your work, saying, "We can't believe your talent has gone unnoticed this long!" You pay the company the fee, but months later your hits average about the same. In a word, you've been scammed.

How to avoid: don't pay for services like this - a good base of subscribers or followers never comes within minutes. Rome wasn’t built in one day, so build from the ground up. If you want to get more followers, start watching and commenting on other users' posts and videos, which will draw people to you.