Bbb Institute For Marketplace Trust

THE BBB INSTITUTE'S MISSION IS TO FOSTER CONSUMER TRUST AND ETHICAL MARKETPLACE BEHAVIOR THROUGH RESEARCH ON CONSUMER / BUSINESS MARKETPLACE ISSUES, EDUCATION OF CONSUMERS AND THEIR BUSINESSES, DEVELOPMENT OF STANDARDS AND BEST PRACTICES AND PROMOTION OF ETHICAL CONDUCT.

THE BBB4GOOD PROGRAM ADDRESSES THE GROWING SEGMENT OF CONSUMERS SEEKING TO SUPPORT BUSINESSES THAT ARE COMMITTED TO BOTH PURPOSE AND PROFIT. THROUGH OUR NETWORK OF BBBS LOCATED IN COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT NORTH AMERICA, BBB4GOOD AIMS TO 1) EMPOWER CONSUMERS TO IDENTIFY SOCIAL IMPACT BUSINESSES IN THEIR COMMUNITIES BY CREATING AN ONLINE DIRECTORY OF SOCIAL IMPACT BUSINESSES, 2) SPOTLIGHT, CELEBRATE, AND RECOGNIZE ORGANIZATIONS THAT INTEGRATE SOCIAL IMPACT INTO THEIR BUSINESS PLANS, AND 3) EXPAND OUR REACH THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH LIKE-MINDED ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE PROVIDING CRITICAL SUPPORT TO SOCIAL IMPACT ORGANIZATIONS.

BBB SCAM TRACKER IS AN ONLINE TOOL THAT ENABLES CONSUMERS TO REPORT SCAM ACTIVITY AND PREVENT OTHERS FROM FALLING PREY TO SIMILAR CONS. THE EASY-TO-USE TOOL COLLECTS AND PRESENTS SCAM DATA IN A SEARCHABLE ONLINE "HEAT MAP", SHOWING USERS THE NUMBER AND TYPES OF SCAMS AND HOAXES REPORTED IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. BBB SCAM TRACKER PROVIDES A WINDOW ON THE SCAM LANDSCAPE, DISTRIBUTING DATA-DRIVEN CONSUMER ALERTS AND TIPS BASED ON CURRENT INFORMATION. DATA IS ALSO SHARED WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES FOR INVESTIGATIVE PURPOSES.BBB SCAM TRACKER IS ALSO A SCAM PREVENTION TOOL, ENABLING CONSUMERS TO DETERMINE IN REAL TIME IF THEY ARE EXPERIENCING A SCAM, THUS PROMPTING THEM TO HANG UP THE PHONE, AVOID MAKING A PURCHASE, OR BLOCK AN EMAIL.IN 2021 ALONE, BBBI ESTIMATES THE ONLINE PLATFORM SAVED CONSUMERS $31.4 MILLION.IN 2021, BBB INSTITUTE CONTINUED WORKING WITH THE BBB SCAM TRACKER TASK FORCE TO IDENTIFY GOALS FOR EXPANDING THE IMPACT OF THE PLATFORM. WE RELEASED A REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR THE PROJECT; THREE PROPOSALS WERE CONSIDERED BY THE TASK FORCE AND THE IABBB EXECUTIVE TEAM. BBB INSTITUTE BEGAN SEARCHING FOR CORPORATE PARTNERS WHO WOULD SUPPORT THE PROJECT. WE ENTERED AGREEMENTS WITH AMAZON AND CAPITAL ONE TO HELP US BUILD OUT A NEW-AND-IMPROVED BBB SCAM TRACKER. THE NEW PLATFORM WILL BE BUILT IN 2022.

BBB INSTITUTE AND FACEBOOK PARTNERED ON A HOLIDAY CONSUMER EDUCATION CAMPAIGN DURING THE 2021 HOLIDAY SEASON. THE PURPOSE OF THE CAMPAIGN WAS TO SPREAD CRITICAL INFORMATION TO HELP CONSUMERS AVOID LOSING MONEY TO SCAMS. THE TWO ORGANIZATIONS CREATED EDUCATIONAL ADS AND VIDEOS THAT WERE SHARED ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND VIA PAID ADVERTISEMENTS. ALL CONTENT DIRECTED CONSUMERS TO ONLINE RESOURCES. BOTH ORGANIZATIONS ALSO GAINED EARNED MEDIA COVERAGE TO EXPAND THE REACH OF THE CAMPAIGN.

BBB INSTITUTE PARTNERS WITH THE FINRA INVESTOR EDUCATION FOUNDATION TO OFFER FIGHTING FINANCIAL FRAUD, A FRAUD-PREVENTION PROGRAM THAT PROVIDES INDIVIDUALS WITH THE NECESSARY TOOLS AND RESOURCES TO MAKE INFORMED FINANCIAL AND INVESTING DECISIONS AND AVOID FRAUDULENT OR UNWISE FINANCIAL SCHEMES. BBB INSTITUTE TRAINS LOCAL BBB OFFICES TO DELIVER THE FIGHTING FINANCIAL FRAUD PROGRAM IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY. BBBS LEARN HOW TO CONDUCT THE PROGRAM TO ORGANIZE WORKSHOPS AND CAMPAIGNS IN THEIR SERVICE AREAS; THEY SUBSEQUENTLY SHARE HELPFUL INFORMATION AND RESOURCES ON HOW TO MAKE WISE INVESTMENT DECISIONS. THROUGH DYNAMIC IN-PERSON AND VIRTUAL TRAINING EVENTS, ONLINE RESOURCES, AND VIDEO DOCUMENTARIES, CURRENT AND FUTURE CONSUMERS LEARN WHO FITS THE PROFILE OF A POTENTIAL FINANCIAL FRAUD TARGET; HOW TO IDENTIFY THE PERSUASION TACTICS FRAUDSTERS USE; HOW TO REDUCE RISKY BEHAVIORS BY ASKING QUESTIONS AND CHECKING INFORMATION; AND SIMPLE STEPS TO TAKE BEFORE ANY INVESTMENT DECISION.IN 2021, BBB INSTITUTE CONTINUED VIRTUAL TRAINING WITH THE BBB NETWORK DUE THE CONTINUING IMPACT OF THE COVID PANDEMIC. BBB INSTITUTE ALSO LAUNCHED A DIGITAL EDUCATION PROGRAM. FIGHTING FINANCIAL FRAUD PARTICIPANTS CREATED MORE THAN 20 EMPOWERING VIDEOS AIMED AT HELPING CONSUMERS SPOT FRAUD AND AVOID LOSING MONEY. IN MARCH 2020, BBB INSTITUTE GATHERED BBBS THAT HAVE CREATED BOTH K-12 AND POSTSECONDARY BUSINESS ETHICS PROGRAMS IN AUSTIN, TEXAS. THE STRATEGY DISCUSSION FOCUSED ON CREATING AN UMBRELLA PROGRAM WITH A FLEXIBLE DELIVERY MODEL THAT CAN BE USED BY BBBS SERVING COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA. BBB INSTITUTE AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS CONDUCTED AN INTERNAL ANALYSIS OF THE K-12 PROGRAMS TO DETERMINE THE STRENGTHS AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ALL EXISTING PROGRAMS. IN 2020, BBB INSTITUTE BEGAN SEEKING PARTNERS FOR AN INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM.IN 2021, BBB INSTITUTE CONTINUED TO PROVIDE FREE RESOURCES AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING TO MILITARY SERVICE MEN AND WOMEN AND THEIR FAMILIES IN PARTNERSHIP WITH LOCAL BBBS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. THE MILITARY & VETERANS INITIATIVE FOCUSES ON 1) EDUCATION TEACHING FINANCIAL READINESS CLASSES TO SERVICE MEMBERS ON AND AROUND MILITARY INSTALLATIONS; 2) COMMUNITY OUTREACH PARTICIPATING IN COMMUNITY EVENTS; 3) INFORMATION DISSEMINATION SHARING RESOURCES VIA SOCIAL MEDIA, WEBSITE, AND NEWSLETTER, AND 4) DATA COLLECTION IDENTIFYING TRENDS IN SCAMS TARGETED AT THE MILITARY COMMUNITY.MORE THAN 600,000 MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS HAVE PARTICIPATED IN THE MILITARY LINE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM SINCE IT WAS CREATED.BBB INSTITUTE SERVES ON SEVERAL ADVISORY GROUPS, INCLUDING THE MILITARY FAMILY FINANCIAL READINESS ROUNDTABLE AND MILITARY SAVES (CONSUMER FEDERATION OF AMERICA), AND CONTINUED PURSUING PARTNERSHIPS WITH LIKE-MINDED ORGANIZATIONS AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.BBB INSITUTE PUBLISHED NEW FINDINGS FROM THE BBB SCAM TRACKER RISK REPORT THAT HIGHLIGHTED THE IMPACT OF SCAMS ON MILITARY CONSUMERS.BBB INSTITUTE CONTINUED DISTRIBUTING ITS MONTHLY BBB SALUTING TRUST NEWSLETTER FILLED WITH TIPS AND RESOURCES FOR MILITARY CONSUMERS.THE BBB ADTRUTH PROGRAM TEACHES CONSUMERS ABOUT POTENTIAL ADVERTISING ABUSES AND EMPOWERS THEM TO REPORT ADVERTISEMENTS THAT COULD CAUSE FINANCIAL OR PERSONAL HARM DUE TO FALSE PROMISES OR FAULTY PRODUCTS VIA AN ONLINE CONSUMER REPORTING TOOL. THE DIGITAL IQ PROGRAM PROVIDES CONSUMERS WITH THE PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE THEY NEED TO NAVIGATE THE DIGITAL WORLD, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON PROVIDING TIPS AND EDUCATION ON EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES AND BETTER DIGITAL BUSINESS PRACTICES. IN 2021, BBB INSTITUTE PUBLISHED ITS SECOND REPORT ABOUT ONLINE PURCHASE SCAMS. THIS INFORMATION WAS USED TO EDUCATE CONSUMERS ON HOW TO PROTECT THEMSELVES ONLINE DURING THE BUSY SHOPPING SEASON.