Spamming for dollars

Occasionally I receive an e-mail or a comment from some spammer wanting to write a guest post for this blog. Now there's not much chance of that ever happening. Though I will be more than happy to run Mike Anderson's answers to the questions I posed him last month. I get the feeling that won't be happening, either.

Last week, however, I received an e-mail from an attorney in San Antonio who was willing to pay $15 if I would allow him to write a guest post that linked back to his website. Or I could post a small banner ad for the princely sum of $40 a year. My curiosity was stoked.

Hi,
 I'd like to inquire about doing a sponsored blog post - about 150-300 words that talks a little bit about DUI law and links back to our site http://www.michaelpackar dlaw(dot)com.We provide DUII, criminal defense, and immigration Attorney Services and thought we might be a good fit for your readers/visitors on http://kennedy-law.blogspot.com 
Here's a list of some blog post titles we've done in the past:
- San Antonio Attorneys Can Help Your Criminal Case
- How a DUI Attorney Can Save Your Life
- Reasons Why You Need A Immigration Attorney
 Our budget is around $15 for the post. Is this something you'd be open to?
Also we might be interested in a small banner ad if the price is right.
Our budget is $40/year - something like this:
http://postim age(dot)org/image/ltpbrr70t/

Let me know if you'd be open to either or both of these.
 Also if you have some other sites just send them over and we might be interested in doing a sponsored post on there as well!
 
Regards,
 Phil
MichaelPackar dLaw(dot)com

But, interestingly enough, when I typed those article names in Google, I got nada. That's right, nothing. Come on, Phil, how could I possibly agree to post one of your articles if I can't even find them on the internet?

So then I went to the website - and scrolled down to the bottom. And there I found it -- LexisNexis. Now it was off to LN's marketing site - Lawyers.com for a little more information. And there I found an article about DWI and prescription drugs. Unfortunately the article was just a quick summation of the law and a call to action. But that was the only posting and it was from back in September of 2011.

Over at Mr. Packard's firm, the lawyers are "devoted" to your case - and they are dedicated to providing compassionate legal services.

There was also this nugget, courtesy of LN:

We at The Packard Law Firm are passionate about getting favorable results for our clients. We prepare and deliver persuasive arguments on their behalf and strong rebuttals to points raised by the opposition. We know the stakes are high for you, and we make every effort to deliver your best case to the judge and jury.

And, you see, that's what makes them different. They are willing to pay LexisNexis a good chunk of change to create their website and fill it with the literary equivalent of drool. I don't know who Phil is - I'm not sure if he's an employee of the firm or a shill for LN, but he's got a hell of a lot of nerve. Why on earth would I agree to let someone write a guest post for my blog who doesn't even have a blog of their own? Why would I agree to let someone do it who can't show me one decent example of what he can write?

I would like to think that Mr. Packard is a good attorney who will do what it takes to ensure his clients get the representation they deserve. I would like to hope that Mr. Packard was sold a bill of goods by the local LN rep. I don't know if he knows what his marketers are doing to promote his "brand," but I hope he realizes that he's responsible for everything they do in his name - whether he knows about it or not.