The Great American Photo Contest review: Bait and switch 47

You can't even vote, and no email confirmation is ever sent. You just keep getting redirected to a bunch of offers and products they want you to buy. What a SCAM.

I also signed up and paid the 20.00 to this comapny, is there any legal action that can done to shut them down?

I heard from a friend there is a class action starting against the company responsible for all this spam. Let's chase the vermin down and run them outta town! What a sick, stupid scam. Sorry to all those who fell for it and still receiving these crappy emails!

YES, IT IS A SCAM. NEVER GIVE THEM PERSONAL INFO OR MONEY. GOD BLESS THE PROUD PARENTS OUT THERE. STAY SAFE!

How do you delete your account? I haven't figure out a way yet.

I also feel very dumb for doing this without looking it through. The whole thing is based on trying to get your email, and for you to email everyone you can possibly email to get votes, so they have their emails too. All so they can try to get as many people as possible to sign up for offers and BS, and spam their emails and yours. So everybody you send a vote email too will probably hate you for getting them on their spam list. Luckily I never gave them anyone else's email to vote, because of all the offers and crap they tryed to put me through when I signed up. As for deleting it, you're right, I haven't found any way to delete it. Maybe you have to contact them. Just the fact that my kids photo is on these lowlifes site sickens me.

They should be forced to watch Barbara Streisand's Yentl every day for life.

look you guys, after years of looking at scam web sites, just LOOKING at this gave me the impression that it probably wasn't legit, ALWAYS research any site that you might do business with, you will almost always find complaints out there, additionally check with the BBB, NEVER give any web site that isn't known and reputable your cc or debit card number, NEVER! If you REALLY want to register for a site like this, use some sort of email aliasing service like Yahoo premium mail where you can create email aliases and then delete them if the site turns out to be spammy. I NEVER EVER give ANYONE my root email address (the real address behind my dozens of aliases) not even my friends and family have the root and because of this system i get ZERO spam, if i do, i track down the alias it was sent to and DELETE IT!.
Get Mcafee Site Adviser (its free) and READ the site reports because it will often warn you about spammy, or scam web sites such as this.
Another great tip, look at EVERYTHING on the internet suspiciously first, treat everything as though it *could be a scam and after a while of doing this, you will begin to spot the scams. and im sorry, that site doesn't prey on parents that think their kids are cute, it preys are dumb people!

I have received numerous emails saying that I need to hurry up and vote and then that my baby has won. I became paranoid after receiving different emails asking to give my credit card info to enter my child into another contest. I did not give credit info. They even said that i can send by mail only a consent form to a address listed on site, after down loading the form and now that I am writing this, I do not know if there is even a address to send to. They must have wanted me to down load a virus. Please stop these people. My credit card company is sending emails as well. I also entered my child into cute Kid contest and I never received anything from that site as well and I did enter my credit card info. I will write back to let you know what to do. Is anyone starting a class action suit against these scammers?

How do you delete you account from the web-site?

How do I remove my name from their web site?

OK...as a user of the site, I understand where ya'll are coming from, but you're all missing a key point here. One of my good friends was April's winner, and I know how many votes she had, and I was pretty close. I was pretty pissed the first time I voted, so I tried something out. I selected vote, and then closed the page immediately without giving any info to these ads. The vote counted, and I told all my friends, and my friend who won told all her friends, and BAM we got hundreds of votes and never signed one thing. The best part is, the only reason they can afford the prize is bc of those ads and garbage, and my friend basically reaped the benefits of other people's stupidity. They gave their info, made money through the ads for the biz, and my friend got the reward. Also, if you don't want their emails, just block the sender of em; it's pretty easy. I also got one of their books, and it was high quality...nice cover, high-quality pictures. The book isn't a scam. And, in my eyes, if you play your cards right you can have a great time with this contest without having to be annoyed at all.

Hi there! While I would LOVE to be able to jump on the naysayer bandwagon... I feel compelled to clear the air for all those parents out there who want to show off their beautiful babies. In November(I think) of 2007, I submitted a photo of my daughter, along with $20 to the "Fame & Fortune Contest" - please note, the Fame & Fortune Contest IS a part of the Great American Photo Contest... however, it's the alternate contest where you actually pay an entry fee...and I believe it's a bi-annual contest. They also have the free entry contest that occurs monthly, and yes, you DO have to deal with the spam of ads and offers... how do you think they keep the contest free? But I digress... the point here is to tell you... IT'S LEGIT! How cool it was to find out last Thanksgiving (November 2008) that we had won the Grand Prize! As it states on the rules you get a U.S. Treasury Bond... which means, yes, it's valued @ $25, 000... but you gotta wait until it matures... but hey, it's a VALID, US TREASURY BOND... and wow! You WON! Additionally, we were so excited to have had the opportunity to meet Mr. Gillon (CEO) and his family when they came down to personally deliver the prize. They also brought my daughter a trophy so that she had a tangible memory! Not only that, but we got our 15 minutes of fame...we were published in the local paper, The Orlando Sentinel...and then... just this past month... we were proud to see our picture in none other than People Magazine!

Moral to this story: think of ALL the people who enter these contests and the hundred or so who may have had an issue with them... think of other large companies that suffer similar statistics. I'm not negating other people's complaints... what I AM saying is that the contest IS a valid contest. People DO win... and if my daughter hadn't exceeded the age group limit... I'd be entering her again! I think she's JUST...THAT...CUTE. So for all you parents who want to show off your kids, this is a contest worthy enough to give it a shot!

This contest is a lie... I entered my girls picture the first month (April) and had a little less than 100 votes, so I did not win. They supposedly re-enter you again if you dont win. O.K so I got all my friends to vote everyday for the month of May, got almost 200 votes and BAMMM, I tried to go in my account just hours before the end of the month and could not enter. There was a message saying that my account had expired. I mean, if they re-enter you again, where does it say that your account expires before the months end? This is a SCAM and everyone should know it. I sent them a message stating the expired account and that I would contact the Better Business Bureau and have had no answer since the end of May. I had asked them a question that how could we know how many votes the winners had, they answered that everyone should not worry about others votes but your own, WTF. How would this be a LEGIT contest if no one gets to know how many votes the winners had, right? We all know we have cute kids, but stop wasting your time like I did for two straight months.

I just want to weigh in again here... I entered my daughter in the contest in late 2007 and did not find out I had won until Thanksgiving of 2008. Mind you, I participated in the paid portion of the contest... there were a ton of entries even in that division. My daughter received the prize, they came out to the house and delivered it IN PERSON. The CEO of the company introduced us to his family... yes, these are people like you and I... it's not an automated thing. But it does take time.

If you feel you wasted 2 months voting for your child..then yes, you WASTED it. It's all in how you look at it! I also entered my daughter in the FREE, get that... FREE... contest... and I was PROUD to share with my friends and family what a beautiful little girl she was and since I'm not a spammer, I told them to vote for her... ONE TIME. I didn't browbeat them, because hey, what's the fun in that? Instead, I had a great time... and yeah, so I got a handful of emails telling me to enter my kid in the Great American Photo Contest... and I was like, I already did... but obviously, once you sign up you make your email available for future advertisements. I read the small print... I clicked accept and submit. Life goes on. It wasn't a scam though. Just because you don't win doesn't make it a scam... but posting about it in a fit of angst due to the fact that you did NOT win... just makes us poor sports. And one more thing... MANY contests out there do not post winning results... in fact, in order to get a list of winners, most of the time, you are required to send a SASE to an address. Try and remember it's also supposed to be fun and a way to show off your beautiful children as opposed to looking at it like a competition or a children's beauty pageant. I have this mental image of 16 mothers slinging photos of our kids around the room, screaming that their child is the cutest, while a bunch of toddlers play on the floor together!

I agree completely that this is a scam. It is not so-called FREE if you have to pay 20 bucks to enter. How is that free? I did some research about it being a scam and found where a woman managed to get ahold of their HQ address and found it to be an abondoned building. Does that sound legit to you? So for what Miss Audra Smith said about it all being true, sounds like you work for The Great American Scam Contest. PLEASE..DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY!

SCAM SCAM SCAM SCAM! I hate to admit it, but I am also one of the many (naive) victims of this scam, too. I actually ordered a photo plaque in 11/08 by debit card, received a confirmation email with an invoice number but the item was never received. Still haven't had received it even after making several attempts to contact them via email, phone & mail. I did get several reply emails stating the order would soon be shipped (canned response). I also asked to be provided with the shipment tracking number & then did not hear back at all. So I filed a complaint with the BBB. Anyway, it has now been over a year ago since the original transaction. I would love to be a part of any class-action lawsuit against this company & this Mr. Gillon (or is that his real name?). Recently sent another email to their customer service dept. We'll see if they reply at all.
Chrisann123

Rosiemama, I get it... you're bitter. Don't accuse people of things though. If you actually READ the post I wrote, you'd have seen it said I paid $20 to enter the FAME AND FORTUNE contest... which is not the same as the FREE contest. But if you're so determined to believe that I work for them, try watching the video. Mr. Gillon and his family were awesome. His daughters were playing with my daughter, his parents were there talking to my parents. It was a wonderful surprise just before Christmas. Just be sure you know what you are accusing people of before you start slandering them. I don't work for this company. I work odd hours with a horrible boss for crappy pay just like half the people out there... but then I also accept the fact that NOT EVERYONE WINS. And while yes, my daughter won this contest, she hasn't won EVERY contest we've entered. I'm just able to accept that there are other cute kids out there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhS7NWkhsvY

This contest is not a scam. How do I know? My son Carson won for the month of August of 2009. We have already received the check so I know it is real. Yes there are a lot of sponsors and adds but how else do you expect the contest to be free? As for the Fame and Fortune contest I think $20 is pretty reasonable considering the amount you have a chance to win. I have spoke to Mr. Gillon both on the phone and through email and everytime he has been kind and helpful. This contest has been one of the greatest experiences for us, just being able to see the wonderful collection of baby photos they have!

STAY AWAY FROM GREATAMERICANPHOTOCONTEST.COM!
It is a total scam! These people should be locked up!
SCAM SCAM SCAM!

yeah I too like an idiot got caught in this site. can anyone tell how to delete my account from the site...

Scam.I enter a dog contest these con artist's are running.I had to verify my phone number then they
text me, Now I had to pay them $9.00 dollar's.
Someone should file a lawsuit against these con's.And also write the FBI.

scam.Tell the FBI

Here is there email address and phone number.
GREATAMERICANPHOTOCONTEST.COM!

Here is great american photo contest.com. contact information.
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www.greatamericanphotocontest.com website ...
Address : Jeff Aldrich 24 W. Railroad Ave. #139. Tenafly, NJ 07670. US. Phone : +1.[protected]. Email : customerservice@greatamericanphotocontest.com ...
www.faqs.org/websites/greatamericanphotocontest.com/ - Cached
#
www.Greatamericanphotocontest.com - Greatamericanphotocontest
Phone: +1.[protected]. Email: customerservice@greatamericanphotocontest.com[Who Is Domain] Technical Contact: What If Holdings Jeff Aldrich ...
www.ip-adress.com/.../www.greatamericanphotocontest.com - Cached - Similar

It's funny how quickly people assume something is a scam just because they didn't read the fine print. My friend actually won this contest last year and received $2500 as a prize. Yes there are a ton of ads to go through, but you aren't required to sign up for any of them. It's a free contest... OBVIOUSLY there will be ads to go through. Maybe you people shouldn't be online searching for free money and complaining when it's harder than you thought, instead of finding a job and actually working for money.

Also its laughable how so many people have no idea what the BBB does. They are a glorified complaint service. Get a grip people. Plus if you don't trust a site here's an idea: DONT GIVE OUT YOUR CREDIT CARD INFO! DUH!

These people are the ultimate scammers, they get you to buy a framed photo which in the picture looks like a really nice frame monogramed with the picture from the contest, well, when the picture and the frame arrived it was a cardboard frame that cost about .02c and the best part was the picture in the frame had no head all this for 6.95. These crooks will do anything to prey on people, their so stupid they couldn't even get this right, and don't believe these phony posts from so called winners their part of them.

It is not a scam. My niece won and she got her money. And what "kjpuuri19" says it is all true. It disturbs me to see how much people are hating on the website. For us it was a great family experience. And I am 100% sure this site is not a scam. My niece is a winner of 2009, and that is all the proof I need for it not being a scam. And congrats to all of the winners!

Not only did my husband and I both receive tons of SPAM when we entered our twins, I also received a trillion text messages for games, and other offers. Such a crock and it really ticked us both off. The reason I thought it might be somewhat reputable and just a fun thing to do, is because on facebook it is an ad that says, "Gerber is looking for a new baby/Do you have the next Gerber baby?." With Gerber's name tied to it, I didn't even think to not enter my beautiful babies! I am doing whatever I can to make people aware of this scam. I am also contacting Gerber to se if they know their name is associated with it. And I am leaving my feedback about the ad on facebook as well.

Although it's difficult to navigate the site, the Great American Photo contest is not a scam. They are a legitimate business who maintains a physical location in New Jersthe ey, and they pay their bills with advertising dollars. The company is headed by Joshua Gillon, and has 6 employees. They have an approximate yearly budget of $420, 000. The BBB has a file on them which is available at www.bbb.org. They currently have a rating of C+, which although not stellar, is also not an F, which is what they would have if they were not a legitimate business.
I did all this research because I too was wary of giving out my personal information when I entered my child Austin in the contest. However, if you pay attention, and learn how to use the site, you will find that it is not actually necessary to do more than give your first name and email to the site. You do NOT have to sign up for any of the offers made to you by the various advertising companies whose dollars pay for the site's maintenance.
I know that I am very happy with the contest and the company in general. My son won the contest for January 2010, and I did indeed receive the check for $2500 in a timely fashion. I spoke with Mr. Gillon personally on the phone, as well as various other employees (when I was taking care of some paper-work related issues after my son won.)
The bottom line is that The Great American Photo Contest LLC is a legal business and NOT a scam as some other, frustrated would-be entrants have claimed. Remember too that the company has over 100, 000 entrants each month, so when you enter, you will need to send the site to your friends/family to get them to vote too.
Elessandra C.
San Antonio, TX

I figured out how to delete it. at the bottom of the page they said you saying hurry up or whatever, there is a link that says to be removed click here. Click there and there is a do not contact list you can get on. I suggest everyone do it!

What the hell?! Does the Great American Photo Contest screw everyone over on every category? When I mean "every category", I mean the Pets category. Because I just entered my dog's pic a few hours ago and I just got an e-mail about an hour ago saying that my pic had been selected to be in the Most Adorable Pets in America Book. This is way too good to be true and I'm really, really scared that I might get screwed over for money, espeacially since my family's on the brink of losing the house. So, if anyone knows if the GAPC does this in the Pets category, please, please, please, please respond to my comment. Also, can anyone please tell me how to delete my account? Thank you.

I entered my boxer in one of the pet contests. I haven't been asked for an entry fee. I recieved an email saying that my pet was selected to be in their book "worlds most adorable pets of 2010/11". So far, they've got me a believer, because of the photo they selected out of the six I uploaded. The only concern I have is the smaller print explaining the details of the publishing part, which will take several months to complete. That they are charging 69.95. Another 10.00 to print a story to go with it. But my understanding is that if I choose not to buy the book now, then my pet's photo may be chosen at a later time at the commitees' discretion; to be in the book. Although I'm a bit confused, I think itd be really cool to see her in such a book, but I want to be sure it's all legit. I see alot of mixed reviews on the Great American photo contest. Can someone tell me if they've done this and what if anything has gone wrong..or right? Thank you, Sylvia

im 18 and a new parent how do i get my money back

I want to know what issue of people magazine your kid and you are in and what page, I did a google search for your name and people magazine and you didn't show up.

What issue of people magazine are you in Audra? I googled your name along with people magazine and it didn't turn up any results. I'd like to see someone win and have it proclaimed in a reputable place.

People have won and gotten money from this. Its a free contest and anything free that you might win is going to have tons of ads. how the hell do you think they pay for the contest. you people are stupid.

I totaly agree Greatamericanphotocontest is a scam.

Well... Whether it is real or not, I have not recieved any spam from it. Only emails stating my 3 year old will be in a photo book with the most beautiful babies in America. Fake or not, I could care less about winning any money. It's something cute I can show my children when they get older and Im sure they will get kicks out of it. Also, if it were to be fake, I signed up 2 children and only recieved emails on 1... Although they are both gorgeous!