A review of the Great Expectations online dating service, a destination for meeting and dating quality singles
Great Expectations has been around practically as long as the famous book with the same name. Actually, they have been around for about 30 years—since long before dating services cropped up on the internet. Even now, the online matchmaker only uses the internet to enhance its services. Members of Great Expectations should expect to spend less time clicking a mouse and more time hoping to click with someone in person. Also expect to spend more time and money than you would with most online dating services. This is for people who really mean business.
Unless you like corny infomercials, prepare to turn off your computer’s sound before you head to the Great Expectations website. The front page has a flash video that automatically starts, and I don’t see any way to stop it. There is also a link to several success stories, but all of them are from 2003 or 2004. I hope that doesn’t mean there haven’t been any more success stories since then.
To move on from this first page, simply enter your ZIP code to see if there are any Great Expectations locations near you. There are only about fifty locations across the country, so you may be told there is no center nearby. In that case, you will be stuck with their online-only site, called Great Dates.
Assuming there is a center close to you, Great Expectations will then ask for your contact information, which must include your phone number. You will then be taken to a screen with a short form to fill out. This includes basic demographic information and a few questions about your interests and personality. You are also asked to fill out the same information for your ideal match. That is all for the internet portion of your experience until much later.
After filling out the online form, you should soon receive a call from a Great Expectations representative. This is where you need to be on your guard. Some former members have reported being aggressively pushed into meetings and purchases. It’s hard to imagine Great Expectations lasting this long if all the centers and representatives were scammers. All the same, don’t be pushed into anything, and document any offers you receive. Also, ask to preview information about the current potential matches in your area. You may find out that the quality or quantity of possible matches in your area is not enough to make your large investment worth it.
The cost of joining Great Expectations can vary dramatically from several hundred to several thousand dollars. Any way you look at it, it is much more expensive than Yahoo Personals, Date.com, Perfectmatch.com, or just about any other online matching service.
The typical Great Expectations experience involves a meeting where you learn more about what the company has to offer. You can have photos taken, a video made, and they can put a profile online for you. The service also often organizes social events for its members. Great Expectations will periodically screen for members that they think will make good matches. Some past members have resented the amount of control the dating service takes, so make sure you are fine with taking yourself out of the driver’s seat in the preliminary stages of searching. Great Expectations makes the choices up front, and then you decide whether to accept or reject their suggestions for dates.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say that potential members of Great Expectations should be desperate, but they should definitely be serious. It probably would be a good idea to experiment with some of the cheaper online matchmakers first, since there is much less risk involved. If those are unsuccessful and leave you wanting a service that is more hands-on, then you’d have a better idea that Great Expectations is the right service for you.
Great Expectations is way, way, way, more expensive than any other dating service I have ever looked into. You can sign on to other services that have many, many more members for far cheaper and there isn’t any difference in service. Avoid Great Expectations unless you have a lot of money to throw away.
Although Great Expectations is more costly that other dating websites it is a lot more personal. They spend quality time with each member before they begin the site. They took time helping me with my profile and gave me a list of member profiles to take a look at. Also, they have several events each month. In my oppinion, you are paying for a lot more than just a dating service.
What I have found with Great Expectations is that the members all seem to be single and looking. There are less members but it is an adavantage not to be flooded with (frankly) time wasters and less than singles I have found on “cheap who cares who joins” sites.
Great Expectations uses a number of web sites as fronts to lure you into their office (where you THEN discover that they are Great Expectations). Then you are subjected to their high pressure sales presentation. There are no fixes prices. They want you to commit to pay right there BEFORE you do an internet search on them and discover all the disappointed client who have complained of this FRAUD. There is currently a class action lawsuit against them in Arizona, and I believe also in Kansas. After they have got your money, then you will quickly realize how lousy their service is. Search the web itself and you will see!
I have been a member of GE for 3.5 years & it has been nothing but a disappointment. I am a professional with a master’s degree, and stated in my profile that I want to meet a college educated, professional male. The only men who have expressed interest in me are blue collar workers -tool & die, heavy equipment operators, truck drivers. I think GE goes out to factories to recruit these guys by offering discounted memberships. It is certainly not worth the membership fee, and I have no intenion of renewing.
Thank Goodness I’m not the only one! GE is expensive, and a rip off! I have had one date with a guy that would make Oscar Madison seem clean! OMG! Not even an spark of interest in 5 mths! Stay away!
Great Expectations class action lawsuit in Arizona settled out of court for $500,000, it’s nice to see this awful company pay up, avoid Great Expectations they are a total ripoff.
I wish I had never signed up. I got suckered in with a “phishing” website and received much pressure to come to the office. The girl on the phone said she’d get in trouble if I didn’t come in for the appointment. Once there, you don’t leave unless you’ve signed a contract. Since August 2007 I’ve met 3 people, the same as I’ve done myself for free. Most of the emails I get are from men MUCH older than me and many of the ones I’ve requested to meet have not even bothered to respond. You definitely do not get what you pay for.
This service is pretty much a ripoff. I foolishly joined and met one person in about 8 months. If you have money to burn, it might be worth a shot, but it is certainly no better than any free or $20/month site. People there are aggressive, bordering on mean and pushy. Do yourself a favor and stay away!!
Its a total ripoff. I required them to change the contract saying my allotted contacts were counted only if I agreed to meet the lady. The shysters did something to the 3part paper I signed so only my copy contained the change. I only met 2 people for about $600. One was a midget and 2 feet shorter than me! Great Expectations is a pure con.
I wish I had checked out this site before I joined. The men who join this site are rude and unresponsive. The expense was ghastly and I’m stuck with a sh—-y deal. I hope others check this out before they bother going to an office. It is EXPENSIVE, a waste, and a rip-off. I don’tknow how they’ve managed to stay in business so long. I’d like to figure out how to get at least some of my money back. I’ll have to look into the class action suits that are going on.
I went to my scheduled appointment today at Great Expectations and frankly I was pissed off when I left. I have never been so pissed of at a sales presentation before this is the first. The sales representative I meet with her name was Ashley and frankly she came across as being very pushy and very abrupt. When I inform her of this she claim she had to protect her clients then she tried to pressure me into signing a 3 year contract and when I refused she tried to bully me by saying that when she ask me I told her I was ready to invest into meeting someone.
I did not sign the contract I left, as she escorted me out the door she sarcastically told me good luck as to say I will still be alone or I will not find anyone without their service I could not believe her attitude I was about to really get into a confrontation with this women during the consultation or sales pitch it seem everything I answered she wanted to contradict it.
I would give this advice to anyone who is contacted by Great Expectations be prepared for being pushed into signing a 3 year contract if you make an appointment to speak to a sales representative. I thought this would be a fun experience but it was the opposite. I was very angry when I left and I am glad I was strong enough not to sign a d*** thing.
Stay away they are a rip off
I’m ashamed to say I’m another “victim” of an extremely poor excuse for “Great Expectations”. When I became widowed, I didn’t have the desire to go out to public bars or other places similar for the “expectation” I’d meet someone there as I was told would through this company’s intensive screening…”MALARKY!!!” I was aggressively pursued to contract “under duress”, should have known better. My Advice: RUN AWAY FROM GP DECEIVERS! They are extremely unprofessional and out right Lie!
Well I almost went in to an office glad I looked online first. I noticed a ton of terrible reviews and a couple of good ones and they are probably from people who work there. I did notice how pushy the sell aspect was though they must have called me at least 60 times to try to get me to make an appt. Finally made one to get them to quit calling me but then had to cancel I will just tell them will never be interested I did not check them out on the bbb but have a friend who works for them so will ask her what she thinks as well
I’ll be honest Great Expectations does it’s best in squeezing every little penny out of you! I’m going to try to make a long story short, but when I signed up for the membership, the lady I spoke to on the phone assigned me a time to come in for a free consulatation and a tour of the place. I never thought anything of it at that time, but she stated if I wasn’t interested after I had my consultation, than I didn’t have to accept their offers and just leave the office. So after I went in for the free consultation and they briefed me about the opportunities, I told them I would think about it! Obviously, you know what happens next, the relationship specialist pitched a relentless sales pitch to try to sign me up that night. After some negotiating, she lowered my payment from $5000-$6,000 to $2,977. This is where I made the mistake, she asked me if I would be willing to accept this offer if her manager accepted. I said yes, but not knowing what would happen, she never came back to the table with the offer. She just went ahead and charged my card without asking me, and she came back with the contracts to sign. Right than and there I should’ve not of signed the card slip, the contracts before reading them first and just disputed the charge!
So after the consultation, I went home and researched the Better Business Bureau site and some reviews about the company and found this site with reviews about the lawsuits and the high costs for the memberships. I knew I made a mistake so I went back today to try to get a refund, cancel the membership, or reduce the cost as much as I could. I had some success! I found that it is best to find a local lawyer nearby the business and ask them to call the business, dispute the charge with the business and the credit card company, and write them letter asking them to reverse the pending charge, cancel the membership or reduce the cost of the membership. So I paid a small fee to the lawyer and went back to the business to hand them the letter, and argue my point, but with no success. So at that point I knew I wasn’t going to get much out of them because of their policy, so I just left. Sure enough they called back 5 minutes later asking me to join again but a reduced cost. At that time I figured what do I have to lose, so lets see what I can get out of them. I’m now only paying $1200 for the membership even though I did want a full refund but I guess it’s better than nothing since I received quite a bit of credit back and I didn’t want to go through a long drawn out process. Hope this helps!
I learned my lesson to read the contract and the terms before signing! or better yet, walk away, and not accept it if the service or the agreement seems misleading.
Perhaps I am an outlier, but I got married as a result of meeting my wife on GE. Initially, I was shown several profiles of women in my area (NYC) – and also offered selective “first dates” with newcomers even before they officially appeared on the site. When I first tried to contact my future wife, she intially didn’t respond for a couple of months – and I actually thought (egotistically) perhaps her profile was just a fake and she didn’t exist. Indeed, she was just away for awhile, and, when she did get back, we had our first date and the rest is history. I can say that before I met my current wife on GE, I was having lots of fun with other women I met via GE (it was hard to give up, actually). I was about 35 at the time. Caution is in order, however – since I found most of the women to be on the older side – since these are the type of women who can both afford to pay high fees for a service like this, and are also comfortable paying high fees for a service like this. Until I met my wife, I didn’t meet anyone I would have considered marriage material…but, as they say – it only takes one. One of the best parts is the background check they do and the video – you can learn alot more about a person watching a brief, professionally done video versus on other sites where you just look at their picture (likely the best picture they ever took and also outdated). Lastly, I should mention that I walked into the office with absolutely no intention of signing up, but walked out a member. So their sales people are smooth. Although I did not feel pushed.
My husband and I were married thru GE in 1997. I wasn’t at all pushed back then with them, but I guess now they gotta really push since the internet has really come into play. I had great success with them, and as a result I have 2 beautiful kids and a wonderful husband 13 years and still going. I joined in late 1995, and wasn’t real active, only had a few dates, until I met Scott, seemed kinda crazy, we grew up in the same town and went to the same HS together, graduated 1 year apart. Seems we could have met since we were so close, but yet so far apart, thanks GE!
I got suckered out of $1,000 by this company a few years ago. In my early, 30s, single, attractive, financially secure, educated and they had me crying in their office during their sales pitch. I was hopeful. I didn’t meet one person. Most of the men were in their 60s, unattractive and couldn’t put together a sentence not to mention most were in other states! I’m lucky all I lost was $1,000, many lost way more as they seem to base their fee on how much they can get out of you. I am now happily married but remember how I felt going throught this humiliating experience and hope others can avoid it.
I was ripped off by Great Expectations as well, to the tune of thousands of dollars. The best person to talk with if you are unhappy is the CEO of the company, Robert Fisher, who is based in Houston, TX. His e-mail address is [email removed by editor].
At first they tell you it costs $5,000 but you can get them down to $1,200 if you tell them that’s all you’re willing to pay. Make sure your credit card bill reflects this.
It’s obvious some of you people are just making up your comments…firstly you can date as many people as you want… You select and they select you. So if you’re not meeting people its your own fault for not being proactive… Also most of the members are in their 40′s and 50′s and very interested in meeting someone…They do background checks so your’re not meeting felons like online nor married men just wanting “one thing” nor serial daters…most women get sick of this online and are relieved they are treated with respect here….They don’t email at GE…so don’t know why someone here says they do… They take the pictures and do videos and background checks so when you meet people you know that’s really them. I worked for GE for 3 years…just got laid off but still don’t want to hear people lying about the service…It works fantastically for many people…Many people find someone they absolutely adore here and end up in great relationships that last…it’s as good as anything out there…and lightyears better than meeting men online who burn a lot of women out there out there – I should know…I talked to legions of them for 3 years… I recommend the service…you get out of it what you put in… They have the people you just have to get out there and meet them…but you must be realistic and honest with yourself….hey I use to be able to get any guy I wanted when I was 20 & 30…but I’m 50 now and one has to re-adjust their expectations – it’s not easy…but at this age character and personality become more important than if he looks like Brad Pitt… We got millionaires in sometimes…Really sweet guys that really missed having a woman in their life… I recommend it…and just select a lot of people..you only need one to be the right one afterall… Nothing is perfect but I know they have the right people…nice personalities, relationship-oriented/family-oriented types that are sincere…. One can complain about any service and people do…Microsoft and Disneyland have loads of complaints too…doesn’t mean they don’t provide a valuable service. We got a lot of referrals from people that said their friend, co-worker or family member married someone from GE and always said they had the greatest relationship…were really happy & compatible and were married for many years… 8% divorce rate is what they report… Again nothing works for everyone…but I believe this is the best out there. This is my honest take on it after 3 years of working there so take it for what its worth – These kind of forums always turn into b**** sessions…so thought an alternative opinion would be nice
I was a member of the Irvine, CA office and so sad to hear it went out of business. I met my husband through the Irvine GE office. I joined after hearing about the third couple I know who met through GE. My Dad met my stepmom at a Los Angeles GE dance. He was a member, she was not. They are still happy after 14 years of marriage. Dances were stopped from too many members bringing nonmembers. That was too bad because the dances brought many people together. That’s something the internet dating doesn’t offer – dances. There is nothing like that now; GE would have no competition. Couple #2 my stepdad’s coworker met through the Irvine GE; married happily with 2 kids for over 20 years. Couple #3 neighbors now friends, inspired me to join. They are happily married and another great match through Irvine GE. What great matches these people are. It’s inspiring. We are so happy. Thank you GE!
To My Dear Friends at the Better Business Bureau serving Alaska, Oregon, and Western Washington: I hope everything is going well for You during these Holiday Seasons and Thank You for being there for the people like me who unwittingly become the victims of “businesses” such as the one I am frustratingly embroiled with now who seem to only see dollar signs in their “customers.”
I am a young man who was always shy when I was growing up. So it was truly a blessing when online dating was introduced. A little over a year ago, I managed to obtain a very good job that I hope becomes my career. So I decided that it would be nice to find a companion who I could share my life with, now that I am blessed with a good, dependable source of income. I did quite a lot of research and put a good amount of effort into finding the best online servce. The website Dating-Site-Advisor seemed like they really knew what they were talking about when they wrote of the recommendation of Great Expectations, a somewhat newer one to the online scene though they claim to have been around for decades. The thing that is supposed to make them better than the rest is the fact that they screen their members’ backgrounds, etc. I’m a pipeliner who had been working on the newly-constructed, 680-mile-long Ruby Pipeline Project. After its completion, I decided to take a vacation to Seattle, Washington, to visit the Music Center/Space Needle Complex. I had mistakenly believed that the Corporate Office of Great Expectations was located in Seattle and I was very enthusiastic about getting hands-on-coaching in my endeavor to locate the companion of my dreams. I had made an inquiry concerning the price of their membership but was told that they did not discuss such matters over the phone. I knew that it was probably more than the other online dating services out there, I just did not know how much more.
So when I visited their offices, I was led to a backroom where they showed me a video about what a wonderful and successful business they were and how they had helped so many people find the companions of their heart’s desires. My foolish heart was led to believe that my relationship with them was going to be just about as good as the one I have with my Lord Jesus Christ. When I asked the visiting supervisor how much the service cost, she said not to worry, it was only in the “low thousands.” Next, the Seattle location manager, Jennifer, entered to explain the cost. It turned out to be what they consider a “discounted” price of $2704! I had come so far and truly believed that if I paid the requested fee, they were really going to help me and somebody else land the relationship of our lives. What a shock I was in for! I went and bought some nice clothes for the photo shoot (which was not included in the price) and had to stay in Seattle for a couple of days until they could manage to get their stuff together.
The type of work I am doing now calls for having the ability to relocate within relatively short notice. I love what I do because it contributes significantly to raising the standard of living for so many people. I believe in serving the Lord by serving people. It wasn’t long before my supervisors requested that I go to a very small city named Colusa, which is located about an hour driving distance north of Sacramento, California to assist on a 14-mile 24-inch-diameter pipeline – the Colusa Transfer Station. After I arrived in Colusa, I called the Seattle branch office to let them know that I desired to have my profile transferred to Sacramento since there was no way that I could participate in any of the activities in Seattle. My request was flat-out refused. Since then, there have been times when I could not get through to them and my letters have been returned. Meanwhile, I continue to be invited to attend events that are being held over 700 miles from where I live. This is the type of company that seems psychopathic in its nature due to its overzealous attitude to utilize any means at its disposal to get its greedy hands on the customers’ money while unconscientiously leaving its clients confused, deceived, and divest. Please Help!
It is my sincere belief that this dirty-dealing organization operates just this side of legality. My complaint is concisely and precisely that this company’s procedural blueprint is designed to give free reign to its employees to ruthlessly pursue their quarry until – exasperated – they finally give in to extortion. They make the legendary used-car-salesman look docile. It must be a commission-based company. Add to that the insult-to-injury of intelligence fact that this organization thrives off of the misery of vulnerable people in the same manner that liquor distributors do.
Why can’t I live at a time when the good dating services are predominant?! It makes me feel as though the majority of online dating sites today are the modern times equivalent of the boiler-room-generated junk mails of yesteryear. I wish times would change before I get much older. To top it off, they only allow their “patrons” to send a total of five contacts per day!
I was ripped-of by this sleazy business back in 2009. I went to their office where they put me in a windowless room for THREE hours while they went into their stronghold sales tactics of prying into your personal life so the sales witch could use the material later in her sales pitch to push all kinds of emotional bottons to further their cause of manipulation. She would NOT let me take the contact home and think about it/look it over. She would NOT let me look at their website or reveal the number of members they had in my zipcode. She said it cost $10,000 to join initially. YES she did. THEN she slowly started creeping down and held the price at $6,000 until I flatly said I had to leave and get out of their. THEN, she did an fast drop down to $3,000 and said that was the final price right then and I needed to sign the documents. Boy was I TAKEN! The high pressure, oppressive tactics, and use of my personal relationship stories to humiliate me because I was single were over the top, and meant to insult your self esteem so they can swoop in and grab your money. THIS BUSINESS IS FULL OF SCAM SALES PEOPLE, and they have been sued in several states. STAY AWAY! The BBB gives them an F-. Read the complaints on your local BBB site. STAY AWAY!
I too fell pray to GE. While studying for an MBA, I had little time to go out to meet someone, but did want to have someone in my life again after a bitter divorce. I waited 32 years for a wife; who left me for her own reasons and I wanted to start over a few years later. I thought I would try a different approach. All that happened was I lost money. I told them I don’t drink and don’t go to clubs. They said no problem. Turns out 99% of there functions are around drinking and clubs. I could have done that on my own for free. They really do price the service high and then come down to an offer you think may be a good deal. They show you all these other suckers, I mean people who are supposed to be active, but are not when you go online. Or they are 3,000 miles away. It’s crazy. The functions are terrible. At one function at a club…the host asked me what age group and I told her and she sat me at a table with people 10 years older and right next to a loud speaker playing constant music. I met no one of interest and eventually left slightly deafened. The whole thing is a long con. They should be shut down and everyone refunded their payment. Almost all the profiles online are “inactive” and in over a year, I have had one response and she would not return my call or emails. Nothing. No results. I suggest you run as far as you can from this company. I met 7 women on an eHarmony free weekend that led to 3 dates. I have met over 30 women just walking around town and talking to people that have led to a few dates. No one date for the $$$$ I spent with GE. Terrible.