Company refuses to provide in writing the number of ideas that have been sent to them and how many they accepted. Salesmen apply pressure to send money in right away. Company tells you to fully describe your idea in writing and then tells you to mail this information to yourself and not open the envelope. This ploy is used to give the inventor the false impression that the idea is somehow protected. In fact, it does absolutely nothing.
Company recommends that a design patent be applied for.
Company provides a patent search without a patentability opinion. You can never directly reach the salesman without leaving a message. The salesman is most likely working out of his home and is using a phone drop. Company claims to be located in one State but all correspondence is postmarked from another State. Frauds commonly use fictitious addresses and mail drops to hide their true location.