You've probably heard the term a thousand times. Maybe it was a YouTuber trying to sell you a "guaranteed" crypto strategy, or a late-night infomercial promising a pill that melts fat while you sleep. We call them snake oil salesmen. It’s a shorthand for a fraud, a huckster, someone selling a miracle cure that is actually just flavored water. But if you really want to define snake oil salesman, you have to go back to the 1800s, because the phrase actually started with a product that actually worked.
Sorta.
The original "snake oil" wasn't a scam. It was brought to the United States by Chinese laborers working on the Transcontinental Railroad. These workers carried oil made from the Chinese water snake (Enhydris chinensis). This stuff was rich in omega-3 fatty acids. It actually helped reduce inflammation. When the American coworkers saw it working for joint pain and sore muscles, they wanted in. But, as usually happens, someone saw a way to make a quick buck without doing the hard work of sourcing actual Chinese water snakes.
The Man Who Made the Myth
Enter Clark Stanley. He called himself the "Rattlesnake King." This guy is the reason we use the term today. In 1893, at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Stanley put on a hell of a show. He’d reach into a sack, pull out a live rattlesnake, slit it open, and drop it into boiling water. He claimed the fat rising to the top was the secret to his "Stanley’s Snake Oil."
People bought it by the gallon.
The problem? Rattlesnakes aren't water snakes. They don't have nearly the same level of omega-3s. Even worse, when the government finally seized a shipment of Stanley’s product in 1917 after the Pure Food and Drug Act kicked in, they found out there wasn't even any rattlesnake in it. It was mostly mineral oil, beef fat, red pepper (to make it feel "warm" on the skin), and turpentine.
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Stanley was fined about $20. He'd made a fortune. The term was cemented.
How We Define Snake Oil Salesman in the Modern World
Today, you won't find many guys in top hats standing on wooden crates in the town square. The medium changed. The hustle didn't. When we define snake oil salesman in a 21st-century context, we’re looking for a specific pattern: the promise of a high-reward outcome with zero effort or risk.
It’s the "Finfluencer" showing off a rented Lamborghini.
It’s the supplement brand using "proprietary blends" to hide the fact that their capsules are 90% caffeine and sawdust.
It's the software company promising "AI-driven" results that are actually just outsourced to a call center in another country.
Basically, a snake oil salesman is anyone who exploits a gap in your knowledge. They find something you’re desperate for—health, wealth, or status—and they offer a shortcut. They use "technobabble." They use big words that sound scientific but mean nothing. If you can’t explain how the product works in two sentences, you might be talking to a modern-day Clark Stanley.
The Psychology of the Scams
Why do we fall for it? Honestly, it’s not because people are stupid. It’s because the human brain is wired to look for patterns and rewards. We have a "desperation bias." If you’re in chronic pain or your bank account is at zero, your critical thinking skills take a backseat to hope.
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Psychologists call it the "Illusion of Validity." We see a guy in a white lab coat—or a guy with 500,000 followers—and we assume they know what they’re talking about. The salesman doesn’t sell the oil; they sell the feeling of relief. They sell the "after" picture.
Red Flags You Can’t Ignore
If you're trying to figure out if you're being played, look for these specific traits. A real professional or a legitimate product will have documentation. A snake oil salesman has testimonials.
- The "Secret" Knowledge: They claim to have a secret the big corporations/doctors/banks don’t want you to know.
- Artificial Scarcity: "Only three spots left in my masterclass!" This is classic pressure tactics.
- The "Everything" Cure: Real medicine and real business strategies usually solve one specific problem. If one product claims to cure cancer, fix your gut, and help you grow hair, it’s fake.
- No Side Effects: Everything has a trade-off. If there's no risk mentioned, the risk is that you're losing your money.
Real-World Examples of Modern Hustles
Take a look at the "Theranos" scandal with Elizabeth Holmes. That was the ultimate 21st-century snake oil. She promised a machine that could run hundreds of tests from a single drop of blood. It sounded like magic. It was. It didn't exist. She used the same tactics as Clark Stanley: celebrity endorsements, vague scientific claims, and a "mission" to change the world.
Or look at the "Liver King" (Brian Johnson). He sold a lifestyle of eating raw organs and claimed his physique was purely natural. He was selling supplements based on that "ancestral" lie while secretly spending $10,000 a month on performance-enhancing drugs. He was selling the oil; the steroids were the red pepper and turpentine.
How to Protect Yourself
You've got to be your own gatekeeper. It’s boring, but due diligence is the only way to not get fleeced. When someone makes a massive claim, ask for the "peer-reviewed" version. Not a screenshot of a DM. Not a glossy brochure. Actual data.
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Check the fine print. In the supplement world, look for "third-party testing" labels like NSF or USP. In business, look for a track record that spans more than a single bull market. Anyone can look like a genius when the economy is booming. The real experts are the ones who are still standing when the "oil" runs dry.
Next Steps for Spotting the Hustle
To avoid getting caught in a modern-day snake oil trap, start by practicing "lateral reading." When you encounter a new "miracle" product or guru, don't just read their website. Open five new tabs. Search for the name of the product plus the word "lawsuit," "scam," or "criticism." Look for what independent experts in that specific field (doctors, certified financial planners, or engineers) say about the underlying technology or method. If the only people praising the product are the ones getting a commission to sell it, you have your answer.
Always ask: "If this worked as well as they say, would they need to spend this much money trying to convince me?" True value usually speaks for itself through consistent, measurable results over time, not through high-pressure sales pitches and flashy displays of unearned wealth.