Minneapolis Events and Adventures Sales Practices
June 25th, 2009 by DC
Preface: I am not a member of the Minneapolis branch of Events and Adventures, have never attended an event and cannot comment on the actual value of the club or its members. Under normal circumstances I would not post things like this, but after being left with such an insulting and sour taste in my mouth, I felt I had to write about the sales tactics used to recruit new members. Although I have not found bad reviews about the Minneapolis branch, I have read several bad reviews about other Events and Adventures franchises, so I encourage members of the Minneapolis branch of Events and Adventures to comment about their experience with the club below.
If you live in Minneapolis and listen to the radio, odds are you’ve heard about Events and Adventures. They claim to be the Twin Cities premier network for singles. Being single and not having much luck with the internet scene, I decide to give them a call. One of the first things I ask about is membership fees. I am told Events and Adventures can’t discuss membership fees over the phone (red flag number one). I make an appointment for an in-person interview for the next day.
When I arrived at my appointment, Events and Adventures explained that they are a very selective club for people looking to meet “high quality” singles. We talked about goals, a bit about past relationships, and what hasn’t been working with my current dating strategies. I learned that standard membership is about $2000 for one year, plus an additional $30 per month. So in total, the cost is approximately $2360. But wait! That’s not all, Bob. If I order today and pay in full, they’ll reduce my membership fees by $300 AND give me 2 months of membership dues free! So, my total cost is now only $2000…. wait… only $2000. That’s a lot of money.
Despite the high cost, I actually did sign up. I was told I was getting special privileges by having three days to cancel. What wasn’t made readily apparent was the fact that EVERYONE gets this. Written into the contract is a three-day cancellation period, which also happens to be a MN state law. This isn’t necessarily shady, but it should have been brought up more accurately in the meeting.
After I got home, I started to crunch the numbers. In the meeting, it was explained to me that membership dues cover the cost of ensuring quality members and a portion of the event costs. Additional cost is determined per event. There are 1,500 members paying about $166 a month each, for a grand total of $250,000 a month — that is $3 MILLION per year. What kind of events are they hosting with that budget?
Looking at the calendar for July, the majority of the events are outdoor games such as softball, kickball, hiking, BBQ, canoeing, tubing, etc… All very fun activities, but virtually free. There are a few exceptions on the calendar, like a cruise on St. Croix and Tandam Skydiving for an additional cost (see below), but the vast majority of the events are very inexpensive. To their credit, winter events may be more expensive to host, especially if an indoor venue needs to be rented. But again, if they are making $250,000 a month, this shouldn’t be an issue. I expect more from my dues than softball games.
As for the events with an additional charge? A “gourmet” dinner would cost me about $25. Sky diving around $150. Having been sky diving before, I can tell you that they’re only covering about $50 of the cost. What are the membership dues actually going towards? Certainly not the events.
However, my biggest complaint is the 12-month required membership. There are many problems with having such a long membership period. If I meet someone through Events and Adventures and we get married, great, money well spent. But if I meet someone, stop attending events, and then we break up after my year membership is over, I would feel like I wasted a lot of money.
When I had brought this up during my meeting, it was explained to me that you can still come to the events as long as you are not married (another red flag). So wait a minute… I’m in a singles club, and there will be members who are in COMMITTED RELATIONSHIPS? I’m paying $2000 and yet still have to question the availability of the women in the club.
I decided to go back in to see if Events and Adventures could accommodate a shorter contract. They offered to make some phone calls while I was there to see if that was a possibility. I told the rep that even if she could accommodate that, I would still need to think about it. This didn’t sit well and she made some comment about doing “all that work,” trying to get me “special privileges” and I still wouldn’t sign up? Her demeanor had quickly turned from sweet to passive-aggressive.
After I decided to cancel, she made a comment such as ”So it really comes down to the money, right?” I told her that I don’t want to spend $2000 for a year subscription on something I haven’t heard anything real great about, never experienced, and could possible be just a waste. I also mentioned that I was starting a small business and this probably isn’t the best place for me to put $2000 at the moment. She replied snidely, “So, really, you just can’t afford it?”
Its not about what I can afford, it’s whether or not I see value in what I’m buying. She would have been much better off just letting me turn in my notice, telling me she was sorry to see me go and that it’s really a great club. But instead, she turned it into another high pressure sale (buy today! buy now!), and topped it off with an insult. I know lots of “quality” singles who couldn’t afford a $2000 membership, and I know lots of wealthy jerks. Being able to afford their pricey membership in no way indicates if someone has a character of “high quality.”
If I spent that amount of money buying drinks for women at the bar – that’d be a drink for 5 different women every Saturday night for one year – odds are I’d find a “high quality” woman and have as “high quality” of a relationship.
As I said at the beginning, I could be completely wrong on my impression of the value of the club. It could be the greatest thing since sliced bread. What could Events and Adventures do to change my mind?
- Offer shorter memberships. If the club really is so great, people would continue to go month after month because it is a great value and experience. If people ended memberships because they found the man or woman of their dreams, success! Success breeds success. A major component of eHarmony’s success is showing REAL PEOPLE finding REAL LOVE. Last I checked they have 90 members married a day. You can’t argue with that type of success.
- Reduce membership dues. As I noted above, with the exception of a few, the events themselves don’t seem that spectacular, and it’s disappointing that the really exciting ones still cost a significant amount of money. Reducing membership dues would also attract more people (1,500 singles spread between men and women really is not that many), since I know a lot of quality men and women who simply could not afford this.
DC,
I’v been planning to join events and adventures for quite sometime now but somehow things kept getting posponed coz i coudn’t find the time to take an appointment with the E&A staff. I glad i stumbled upon your article before i scheduled anything.
The rep has been calling me almost every other day to ask when i can join them. The only thing they really ask to ensure you’re QUALITY is that you are currently single and do not have a criminal record. She hasn’t so far discussed the fee with me but with what you reveal, even though i consider myself quality!! and have the money to spend, i feel its just not worth it.
It definately makes more sense to use the kind of money on getting to places where the action is ….
Thanks for the info. I had an initial conversation via phone which a couple of people and was put off by their attitude when I insisted on an understanding of cost before I committed to a meeting.
I just came from an interview in Vienna, VA where I got the exact same treatment. She flat out told me I was not a “quality” person because I wasn’t willing to fork over $1000+ right then and there and I was probably going to be single for the rest of my life because of it.
St. Louis, MO here.
I had an interview about a year ago. It’s fairly consistent with others’ experiences (large up-front payment, offer to spread out the payments, high-pressure sales tactics). If I were a few years younger (and a few thousand dollars richer), I would have said yes and fell victim to what comes off as a scam.
However, I decided not to, as I told the sales rep about my past experience with working at a carpet cleaning company that baits-and-switches consumers into paying $1000+ for a “deep-scrub” job in lieu of an advertised $19.95 for a basic steam clean. I told her that the business comes off similar to this experience, even if it’s not intentional: screwing people over the same way I had to screw people over in order to make my commission…
Thanks for the information. I saw an ad in city pages and thought I would check it out. Glad I didn’t give them my real phone number.
Not being up front with fees, and having to endure a high pressure sales pitch, not gonna go there.
Reminds me of timeshare sale pitches I’ve had to sit through to get the free buffet!
DON’T DO IT!!
I used to work there- the sign up sheet when you walk in bases you for how much you are going to pay. When you check off your income that tells the “sales” girls how much to charge you.
The biggest scam is the events. Most of the stuff is free, and your monthly dues are paying for their overhead. We would purchase the items for the events but you had to pay for your dinner afterward- nothing ever covers the cost of what we were buying, a kickball, a softball, a soccer ball. You always end up paying more for sporting events or concerts because they upcharge everything. a $17 group rate ticket becomes a $35 ticket- you don’t know and they keep the difference. It’s the biggest scam ever.
OH… and make sure you cancel with a hand written letter in 3 days and bring it in to the office, because after those 3 days- they will do everything they can to get their $$ including sending you to the collection agency.
All, I am a current member and signed up for a “year” in May of 08. That year has come and gone. I have not been able to go to any events due to health problems. This has been a huge waste of money for me. I had a back injury last january and haven’t been able to do anything. I am trying to get out of my contract. They show my contract as a lifetime membership. I am pissed and want to get out of this. My cost was $1995 and I get I notice the other day saying I still owe over $1000. I have paid a total of $ 1510.00 to date. I did not authorize a renewal of my contract in May of 09 nor did I sign up for the “ongoing membership”.
Anybody had anyluck canceling their contracts? Anybody want to sue?
Totally agree with this company scamming people. I too didn’t read the fine print and haven’t been a member for over a year now but am contiuing to pay E & A. I am in collections currently with RPM, who is also as shady as E & A. I have had $100 deducted from my checking account since April of this year. I get a call today from RPM stating that they need to change my withdrawal date because they were told by E & A that they want the amount paid sooner. Also they say that my account has accrued $60 of interest since it has been in collections. I was told initially that it wouldn’t accrue interest and then today was told by RPM that it is E & A’s decision to accrue the interest. So I call E & A directly and they tell me that the information I was told was incorrect. They said I could pay them directly. They told me I owe a higher amount than what I was told that I still owed through RPM. E & A said they would notify RPM to end payments. This is such an nightmare. I feel like I can’t trust anyone. It is nice to hear that others feel the same way, but it’s a shame that E & A can continue to scam people. People stay away from this company!
This club sucks. I was told there would be 4 to 1 women. I’m a 35 year old guy, decent looking, normal size. 90% of the women are like 40+, divorced with children, or fat. The events aren’t bad, but I wanted to meet quality singles, not a bunch of has beens and left overs…
In response to Post 3 by KW, I too just came from the Vienna, VA location and received the same kind of treatment. I intend to write a letter to the better business bureau about their negative marketing tactics. I wish I read these reviews before wasting three hours of my life on this scam. The lady actually left the room while I was there to go talk to, who I think must’ve been, her boss. I actually heard the entire conversation on the other side of the wall. I heard the girl interviewing me say, “Can I offer her this?” And her boss lady say, “No. Why would you do that? You’d only be screwing yourself.” Then, I heard her boss say, “IF YOU SHOW THEM THIS PLAN, THEY WON’T KNOW THE DIFFERENCE AND THEY’LL GO FOR IT!” I couldn’t believe I was hearing this. When she finally came back in and showed me the payment plan, I told her it was crazy! Then I asked if my $ 1600 joining fee and $30/month dues would include all the events. She said no!
The link below is for another discussion on the E&A complaints and ripoffs. The link does refer back to this page on one of the complaints. Just useful to try and link all the E&A complaints together.
http://www.rgbscan.com/2007/09/05/events-and-adventures-singles-club-review/
I too, have fallen victim to this scam. Similar to #7 above, I had extenuating circumstances. I lost my job and moved out of the area. I didn’t care for the club either, but I knew that wasn’t reason enough to get out of a contract. But surely loss of income and a move should. These people run a bad business. I have also had erroneous changes to my credit card by this company. The amount of money I am losing to these people is devastating.
I just went to the sales meeting and joined today. I didnt look for this website and the multiple comptaints, I wouldnt have gone and paid 1,795 + (12 X $30) to equal $2,155. I went to my first event at a downtown italian restraunt tonight. I met and saw a wide diverisity of people (That is a good thing). I am not trying to look down on people, but this was not the croud I thought I bought into with that “Private Club” atmosphere.
There is no screening, no background check, no check of anything-its all for show (says so in the contract on the back page) They just make sure that your credit card clears, thats it.
I am a business man and active Army Reserve, in great shape and I look good. There were some wierd looking people, very out of shape people, there was one group of average to attractive girls that I could have talked to at a seperate table but I was in good conversation with some other people at another table.
Tomorrow is the NEW MEMBER ICEBREAKER and COSMIC BOWLING up in Blaine. I will go to that and look for some a ray of hope in this place, but now its just out of morbid curiosity while two grand hangs in the balance before I cancel. I do not see anything about a $400 interview fee, they better not pull that #*%!.
Sorry this has been long winded, but oh well if I save you money right. This company will get you out of the house and in the company of single people. There will be no hip socialite people, no hot women or guys like in the advertising photos, just some average to below average people that had alot of money to spend and this was something they tried.
If something interesting happens, I will come back and add to this.
I agree with all naysayers of this club. E&A is a scam…run for the hills. Deceptive and overpriced financial consideration for activities and the people whom I have met are NO BETTER than anyone I have ever met at a bar. Seriously. I am actually getting ready to file a claim against this company in small claims court at the urging of the MN Attorney General’s office and a private attorney. Why? Because they prey on the vulnerable AND they changed the terms to allow married people to join. Sounds like breach of contract to me. I have one word of advice……..Meetup.com. Believe it or not, but I have actually attended events through various Minneapolis Meetup groups where the Events and Adventures folks were there at the same time. Meetup is FREE!
This is a SCAM. There is no customer service, they do not have managers who know how to manager. They are money focused not customer focused. DO NOT JOIN because you cannot cancel. They will still hold you to pay the monthly fees and if you do not pay, send your account to Collections. I sent a letter stating that I cancelled my membership, there was no charge to my credit card (which I had authorized upon joining) aso I ws assued they received my letter and I was no longer a member. 6 months later I receive a letter that I owe for 6 monhs plus penalties. I was specifically told at my interview that I because it was a new club the first 6 months were free. It was changed after signing to be 6 months after the first year.
STAY AWAY and SPREAD the word about this and any other company that operates like this. if anyone out there knows how to help persons who already joined are are being screwed by them now fofr money, please let us know.
I joined Minneapolis E&A in 2005. I was so depressed with my life (and I’m sure the sharks sensed it and started circling) that I let myself be suckered into the high price, which I had to pay off monthly (for an additional fee). At my first event (Halloween Party) exactly ONE person spoke to me - the bartender. Granted, I’m a shy guy, but I was hoping at least one of the hosts would have tried to make me feel welcome in a room full of strangers. If I was an outgoing person, I wouldn’t have joined the club in the first place. Anyway, Jackie, the events coordinator at the time was a very nice person. There were monthly meetings where members could attend and give suggestions for future events. So that was good. But it became very clear early on that this was a club was a scam. It’s probably great if you’re already an outgoing, great looking person. But then you wouldn’t need to join in the first place. I actually got so depressed that I had to take a one month hiatus because I dreaded going to any events with those people. I had a problem remembering the names of people I spoke with so a few different times I glanced at the sign-in sheets to jog my memory. Apparently someone saw this and reported me to the executive committee. Everyone sees the name of everyone above them when they sign in anyway! So it’s not like this is privileged information. What was the big deal! Being accused of stalking really really bothered me to say the least.
I only knew of one couple in the entire group that got engaged. Anyway, I was so relieved when my membership ended (although I kept paying off my debt for several more months). I felt worse about myself when I left than I felt at the beginning. What floored me was the number of people who signed on for more years (some even had lifetime memberships!). If your only goal was to make friends (as I heard as a rebuff), why couldn’t you just do stuff on your own with the friends that you made during your first year? I can’t fathom paying to have friends.
The happy ending is that one month after I left the club I met my soulmate, a year later we were married and now we have an adorable little boy. I will occasionally make reference to “when I was in the Stupid Club.”