With Mile High Adventures and Entertainment of MN!
Thinking about joining the Edina, Minnesota, area branch of Mile High Adventures and Entertainment, an activities group for singles? Okay. Before you go in for an "interview," let me just tell you my story. Take it for what it's worth. Maybe I'm just blowing off steam, or maybe you can get a bit of advice about what to expect. Anyway, here's my experience:
I moved to the Twin Cities in October of 1996, and (obviously) I began to look for ways to make new friends. I'm not much of a club person, since I don't drink and would rather not lose my hearing before I'm 30, so finding places to meet single people my age has always been difficult. At the end of the year, I received a card in the mail promoting Mile High Adventures and Entertainment. Now, I don't like personal ads or computer dating services and the like, where the romantic intention is so obvious, but MHAE is not like that. The card talked about group activities like biking, hiking, skydiving and many other indoor and outdoor activities, as well as stuff like extended vacation trips. Of course, the little card didn't go into too much detail about how the organization worked.
I tried to check them out on the World Wide Web, but at that time there wasn't much of any information to be found. I certainly didn't find any pages talking about personal experiences.
So I contacted them, hoping to get more information. "Maybe they're like a health club, where the rates are about 20 bucks a month," I thought. "Maybe the club fees pay for most everything. Obviously, stuff like skydiving's going to cost a little extra, and you have to pay for a trip to an exotic island. That's common sense. But maybe I could afford this. And if nothing else, even if I don't meet someone, all these outdoor activities will keep me in shape. It's worth checking out, anyway." The receptionist signed me up for a Thursday in mid-January for an "interview."
"Interview" was a puzzling word. I only wanted more information. But, hey, they have to check me out and make sure I'm not a bigamist or a gun nut who mistakes girlfriends for deer or whatever. And while I'm filling out their forms and they're running their little background checks, I can get a few catalogs and ask some questions, right?
So, I go in for my interview. First, they make me fill out a personality test. Interesting. Then, I wait for my interview with Pam. She invites me into her office, shuts the door, and promptly tells me that it'll cost me $500 more to sign up if I don't join during our interview.
That's right. $500. And I'm thinking, "$500 MORE? How much money are we talking about here?" But she won't tell me the price yet.
Now, an aside: Having never bought a used car by myself before, I'd say that I haven't developed a thick skin when it comes to high-pressure sales tactics. A less naive person than me would have heard her say that and said, "Right. I'm outta here." And I'm forever kicking myself for not doing that. Basically, I don't think I could have asked for a clearer hint than if she'd painted "This is an intense, well-thought-out sales pitch" on her forehead in royal blue.
So, I let her proceed. First, she goes over my personality test and tells me that I'm a nice guy who has a tough time approaching women. Now, some people tell me that this was just a way for them to find out if MHAE was right for me. Other people tell me that this was to put me in a depressed and slightly agreeable mood. The official line from MHAE is that "This allows us to 'break the ice' with you and helps us determine what activities would be best for you. For instance if you have a low conformity score we know you will be more interested in high adrenaline exciting events; a low sociability score means you are going to be more comfortable with small groups rather than our larger events." I'm not sure why they need to know that, since they offer the same events no matter how you rate. So take that for what it's worth. You could also infer that they use that analysis to tailor their sales pitch to match your interests. But I'm not a salesman, so I could be wrong.
I noticed something else. She seemed to be a bit uncomfortable as she was sizing me up. And then she started talking about how this would be a great way for me to meet "singles" my own age. How it would allow me to connect with "people" in my age group. She seemed to emphasize this a lot, and I couldn't figure out why. More on this later.
Then, she grabs a little standee and begins flipping over cards as her presentation continues. If bells weren't going off in my head before, they were now. I'd once made the mistake of letting a vacuum cleaner salesman into my home and watched for an hour as he flipped presentation piece after presentation piece, trying to sell me and soften up the blow as he built up to the price of $1000 for a vacuum cleaner. So finally, I recognized that I wasn't in a "get-to-know-us" interview; this was a sophisticated, well-rehearsed sales pitch.
So why was I not already gone? Because I was intrigued by the events. I was looking over their calendar and seeing how they had an event almost every day. They claimed that 30-40% were free events. Well, that's not bad. No matter what this club cost, it was going to eat up most of my entertainment budget for the year. But, it might be worth it for all of the free events. I could just go to the free ones, right?
I was still on guard, because she hadn't talked price yet. Finally, she flips over that last card. Whoah! We're talking over a thousand bucks for some of these levels! Sure, some of the highest levels would bring the price down to a moderate monthly rate, but I wasn't about to sign up for five years! I held back. I said that even the lowest level was beyond my expenses. So, Pam offers me an introductory rate of 6 months for $595. Just a hair under $100/month. She tells me that I still have the chance to bump it up to one of the better rates after I've sampled it.
"Well, can't I see one of the meetings first? Get a chance to even look at the people?" No, that's not their policy. Only members can attend meetings. Before I can find out what the group is like, I have to pay at least the introductory rate of $595. You can't try before you buy.
"Could I take a few days to think about it?" Why, absolutely...but this $500 "discount off their normal rates" is only good for the first interview session. I had a hard time believing that anyone would pay their normal rates, considering how exorbitant $595 was for six months, let alone $1095 for six months. But then, I'm still mid-20s and only making 20 grand a year. I suppose some people pay those rates, but I didn't know why anyone would.
I'll admit it. After much hesitation, I finally relented and signed up for $595. Since I had my credit card on me, we had the contract signed and the membership processed that night. If only I'd thought to just leave my wallet behind! But why would I? I was only going in to get information.
Most of their events require advance notice (which prevents you from getting a look at the group before your refund period expires; more on that later), but I was lucky that there was an opening in a dinner theatre that Saturday. "Is it free?" No, it's $14.
So, I attend the dinner theatre. Most of the people at my table are guys. There are two women who appear to be in their mid-30s. And given that there's a performance going on from the time I enter, there wasn't a chance to mingle between tables. But there didn't appear to be much of any females my age there.
Now, what I didn't know at this time was that the contract only gives you three business days to get your money back! I guess I was fortunate that there was even one event for me to attend before the 3 days were up.
The next Tuesday evening, I get a call informing me that a personal situation has suddenly left me $1000 poorer. Tuesday evening. The night of the last day that I could ask for my money back...and even then, it had to be in writing and either on the desk at MHAE or postmarked that day, both of which were impossible by that time. And as it was, I didn't even know that I only had three days; I didn't discover that until I read the clause on the back of the contract (they make you sign the front; I hadn't noticed the back!) several days after this.
I spent most of the next two weeks leaving messages for Pam, which she didn't return. When I got hold of her, she told me to speak to the company president, who wasn't in. By the time I reached him in early February, it was far too late for any kind of "money-back grace period"...and it didn't sound like he would have given me one anyway.
Meanwhile (as I'm going through this) I attended two more events. The first was a disco party. It was a loud, crowded, dimly lit dance in a bar...exactly the kind of situation I don't like. Oh, and it wasn't free. It cost $8.
The second was their new members meeting in a bar, but this was the first real social occasion they'd had since I'd joined. It was free(!) with hors d'oerves, although drinks were up to you. And as I finally got to get a real look at the members, I realized that there were several women in their 30s or possibly 40s. I ran into one woman in her 20s; I and about 4 other guys divided our time talking to her. I realized that the reason Pam had kept stressing "people" and "singles" was to avoid saying that I'd meet any women my age! Not that there weren't any, but their numbers were dwarfed by the guys in the group.
Thinking that I'd made a mistake, I casually talked about my worries that I'd stuck myself with a $595 stupid decision. The other new members began talking about their interviews. How they'd attempted to leave several times. How their interviews had lasted twice as long as mine (I'd been in a hurry to meet someone). How their interviews dragged on and on until their resistance was worn down. One person said that she'd actually managed to talk the sales rep into letting her attend this new member meeting before committing...but only after hours and hours of refusing to sign up! Nobody seemed overly thrilled about the way they'd become members.
THIS is what bugged me the most: if MHAE is so wonderful, why the high-pressure tactics? Why the refusal to let people even see the membership? Why the less-than-honorable tactics like a "money-back period" of only 3 days and putting some of the tougher clauses on the back of a contract that you sign on the front?
Months of appeals to the franchise, the Minnesota Attorney General and the Better Business Bureau were unsuccessful because nothing they did was illegal. Unethical sales pitches are not illegal, and they're quite careful to follow the letter of their contract.
So, what should you know if you're thinking about joining?
- MHAE claims to offer a large number of free events every month, but those almost exclusively consisted of meetings in bars and clubs. Hey, I can go to those on my own! Additionally, they are only "free" in the sense that buying refreshments is up to me.
- MHAE has a very high-pressure sales technique. The moment your "interview" begins, they tell you that it will cost $500 more to sign up later. DON'T be at ALL swayed by this. If you come back later and insist that you'll only join if given the rates you were first told about, they'll either cave in and give them to you or you can leave and be no worse for it.
- Before your interview, MHAE has all applicants take a personality test. This helps their sales technique; during your interview, they look over the test and tell you why you're unsuccessful at dating. This puts you in a depressed and suggestive mood.
- If you sign up, you have only three days to ask for your money back. This ridiculously short time doesn't give you a proper chance to test out the group and see what the events are like.
- The contract you sign has the area for your signature on the front, but most of the stricter clauses (such as the three day waiting limit) are on the back.
- Another of the strict clauses is the provision that MHAE is only required to deliver items specified in the contract. In other words, the representative can say anything during the interview and the contract will still be binding.
The facts that I've listed here certainly apply to the MHAE branch located in Edina, MN. Obviously, some of the specifics may change from area to area, and it's possible the MHAE sales representatives at other chains won't be as hard-sell as the ones in my area. Since this page went up, I've received a lot of feedback from people saying that their experiences were very much like mine; I've also heard from people saying that their MHAE group is much better. Primarily, this page should serve as a reminder to be on your guard if you consider joining any such group, and much of my advice will still be applicable. As the age-old saying goes, "buyer beware"!
If this page keeps you from making a big mistake, I'll be happy. Please if it does.
You can read some
of the responses to my page