Know what's proven to be an excellent way to market stuff? Sex! Also? The word "free." Usually when you see advertisements featuring either of these two things, you will not get a single one. Such is the case with FreeCreditReport.com, which isn't so much a place to download your financial history from one of three credit bureaus, but a chance to sign up for a paid monthly "credit monitoring" service. This credit monitoring service will not, however, alert you to the fact that you actually started paying a monthly fee for this convenience. And guess what? Experian, the credit bureau that owns the website, didn't accidentally insert the word "free" into its web address! It's supposed to be there to trick the gullible into thinking a company responsible for holding your credit history hostage actually wants to give you anything gratis. And it's working!

Thanks to nearly $71 million in ad spending last year, FreeCreditReport.com clocked 20 percent more new member sign-ups that year. Maybe it has something to do with its "catchy" TV ads that feature some loser waiting tables because he's in financial ruin (for not checking his credit report!) and singing, "F-R-E-E, that spells free creditreport.com, baby. Saw their ads on my TV, thought about going but was too lazy."

And maybe it has to do with the company basically lying to consumers, promising a free credit report but hooking them into a paid service. The Federal Trade Commission certainly thinks there's something devious going on here, though Experian would beg to differ.

As for consumers — for every one that feels tricked into signing up for a paid service, there are probably 2,000 who have watched FreeCreditReport.com's ads on YouTube (they've been seen three million times) and perhaps uploaded their own spoofs.

[NYT]