Newspapers ads.......(How to meet your princess)

[FSUrookie]

Good points Thor.
And Richard, I will amend my post to say, as I have posted before here on RWD, your agency IS one of the small handfull of agencies that does seem to be honest and sincere. Unfortunately, this can not be said for the industry as a whole. In regard to guarantees, I never said anything about guarantying any matches or marriages, however, as you probably know, there are many agencies in the USA that do extensive work to match potential mates, and they charge for this too. From various compatability tests to background checks to personality tests, there ARE agencies here in the USA that do a good job of ACTUALLY trying to bring a happy couple together. Some of these agencies are actually very successful in doing so, but never 100% in any case. Of course even these "sincere" agencies in the USA can not and do not guarantee success, but they do offer services that are rarely seen in the FSU. That was really part of what I was trying to drive home....

[Thor]

Good points John,

There is never a 100% gurante that you will find love by going down this road. But if you use a methood that other members have used and lisen to advise other members at this board give, yes then the raith of suceed will race a lot. I see newbies here that use Anastaisa web, and I get upset because we all know that this is a scam. Hi, I recived 40 to 50 letters EVERY day when I was a newbie and made my profil on Anastasia . But even if I where a newbie I understaod that this was to good to be thrue .

I used newspapers ads and was sucesful, other place ads on free sites in FSU and other use the FEW agencys who are honest and find a girl. Use the way you belive is the best and give it a try. I know Ukraine and Ukrainian girls, and I am totally lost in this country, the culture and the peoples in Ukraine.

[Kuna]

Thor,

Let's cut the crap (the marketing crap that is) and be totally honest when advising people in here.

Yes, there are agencies that are scammers. There are women that are scammers.  There are WM that are scammers.  There are guides (people who will organise ads, accom, etc) that are scammers. Taxi drivers...  restaurants...  people on the street/buses/metro/everywhere that are scammers.

The simple fact is this...  No one traveling to FSU to seek a bride should trust everything he is told and to say guides are "risk free" is to mislead FSURookie and others who are still "seeking".  Men are looking for a lower risk path and if you're saying guides/ads/helpers are lower risk because they aren't agencies you are scamming them out of the truth.

Facts mate, facts...  If a man uses anyone (agency/guide/helper/etc) and sticks by the Ten Commandments here he can't get scammed.

Personally I think FSURookie made a HUGE mistake in giving money to his "fiance" because it's a common scam.  Setting up a series of men that send them money makes a very nice living thank you very much!

He was scammed because he ignored red flags and common advice.

Newspaper ads are a good idea... but don't lie by pretending guides/helpers are pure and innocent... They are not and you know it!

LET ME SAY THIS... Unlike you I have no vested interest in the debate between guides/helpers and agencies. Both processes will work equally as well as each other. I DO NOT earn money from giving advice about guides or agencies and I don't have close friends who rely on me promoting their business.  You do on either one or both of the options above.

Please don't be a scammer... just give good advice.

Kuna

[Thor]

Are you caling me a scammer??????????????????????????????????

I promote ads because I know that it works.

By the way, it seems to me that you ALWAYS seems to promote Elenas Models.....Maybe they pay you money for this service???

I have NEVER said that there are only honest private helpers, likse SO many times before you seems to bring this on the table. I repete my self, and says again that i have NEVER said that all private helpers are honest.

[Nando]

Come on guys...this endeavor is so difficult that IMO you should use all the methods and the filter must be the big head

Just to find a suitable girlfriend I was using:
A) 3 agencies
b) Freepersonals and ICQ
c) Used a guide and helper in the past
d) Paid sites like Bride.ru and Cuteonly
e) One agency put an ad on the newspaper and I was going to that town for several dates ( I mean more then 10 )

In the end I found my girlfriend in a small agency part of a network of agencies when I was almost sure that way didn't work (writing letters and talking with women on the phone)

Am I going to recomend the small agency? Well no, because in the same agency there  was a girl who dated lets say some dozens of WM and the owner who seems to be a good and honest person said she was very nice. Well I know her from last year and at least she is dumb and at the most she is an "amateur pro-dater"

My only conclusion is that I lost some hundreds of hours just to find my girlfriend
How about that?

[Rvrwind]

The whole process of finding a suitable and compatible FSU wife is not as easy as much of the "FSU dating industry - agencies" hype promises, but with persistance, patience and educating yourself to the whole process, it can be a (more) successful journey, with less pain and heartache.....

This is the best advice I read so far...
I would really like to know the stats on an agency that does matchmaking. Seems to me that is the epitomy of MOB right there... different strokes & all that...
To me if you want to succeed it is like anything else in life, you work for it. Hard work never hurt anybody & usually pays off good dividends.
There are good & bad Guide/Helpers & Agencies. It is up to those who are experienced to offer the good ones up for the rookies. Even then it still many times fall flat. One of our boardmembers is here now, with Tver Romance!!! Go figure after all the bad press he still used them. This will do nothing to clean up this industry, nothing at all. Unfortunate but there in lays the truth of it.
Until governments pass laws clamping down on this industry, nothing will change. Jim's List, the CMA are all a waste of time & bandwidth because it hasn't & won't change a damn thing. Even most of you & I include myself in that, are wasting our breath, because in the end they still use the bad agencies no matter what we tell them & sorry to say that without laws, international laws that force these companies to fly right or go out of business, it will never change.

[HiTech]

I will be trying both methods from my trip in 2 weeks. I have a number of ladies lined of from the agencies, and I am also place an add.

HiTech

[ScottinCrimea]

HiTech,  The problem with the ads is that you will still need someone whether it be an agency or a guide to place the ad, screen the replies, etc.  Otherwise you will be meeting these women with basically no profile, no photos and no idea of their true intent.  Are you going to meet every woman who responds?  How will you decide?  Who will provide the interpretation if she doesn't speak English?  While it does give you a broader field, isn't it more of a crapshoot than the agency route?

[Thor]

I went on 40 dates and several blind dates too when I used ads back in 2005. Jack Bragg has said that this is a numerous game...To be successfully with ads you need a specific text in the ad when it comes to what kind of girl you are searching and meet only the girls that are close to your requirements. With a private helper he can help you to "customize" what kind of girl you are searching for, and build the ad very specific for what kind of girl you are looking for.

Several girl has told me that they don't want to be listed at agency's because the locals sometimes look at agency girls as prostitutes...This because so many girls seems to be golddigers..And the locals are not stupid and blind, so they see that this girls seems to take men after men to the most expensive restauran gs and so on..

Ads can be a better way to reach honest girls who wants to be more discreet..BUT of course there are honest girls at the agency's too.

[groovlstk]

HiTech,  The problem with the ads is that you will still need someone whether it be an agency or a guide to place the ad, screen the replies, etc.  Otherwise you will be meeting these women with basically no profile, no photos and no idea of their true intent.  Are you going to meet every woman who responds?  How will you decide?  Who will provide the interpretation if she doesn't speak English?  While it does give you a broader field, isn't it more of a crapshoot than the agency route?

There are a large number of single FSU women who would never use an agency. You have to consider that men who are educated about this process know full well that many - if not most - agencies out there are dishonest. But we're not the only ones who get screwed, decent women do too, and they talk.

I've said it before and I believe it strongly: any guy searching ought to put a foot in this pool, a hand in that one. By diversifying his methods he'll expose himself (not in a perverted way  ) to the maximum number of single women possible.

[Serebro]

I went on 40 dates and several blind dates too when I used ads back in 2005.

Yeah, right, you were lucky that you haven't been killed  by some criminal who could have read this newspaper and invite you to meet "her" in some nice dark place or used his gf and his mafia friends for that to accuse you of raping his gf   after that and made you pay money
I remember seing stories like that in the crime tv shows, so come one, just put a newspaper like "A handome rich american is looking for his princess"....
I hope we will hear from you.

[FSUrookie]

Right on Groov, Thor, others....
Part of what hurt my situation with my former fiancee Maria was the fact that the number of women that I have dated in my 2-year FSU experience came from a small pool of women, and pretty much only one pool at that (a few agencies). Thus, I did not explore all the great choices of women that were out there, many of whom would never use agencies...... Diversify and explore is a much better way to go.....
Oh, one thing to add, there are several guide / translators who offer this service, and it is very organized (I spoke directly to men who actually used the service), and they setup and screen all the women for you. Of course they have a price for this service, just as agencies have a price, and you meet at locations that you and your guide choose... You can even run a 1 month ad if you choose, and exchange intro letters with these women before you arrive in Ukraine.....
Of course, nothing is risk-free or foolproof, but in talking with friends that have actually used this classified ad service, they were very happy with the quality and sincerity of the women they met....

F.Y.I.
Below is one testimonial I read that gives some perspective about how the classified ad service actually works;

I have been to Ukraine several times in the past few years searching for the girl of my dreams. I have tried all the services of the marriage agencies and I have also met many ladies by chance in the cafes, night clubs, etc etc. So far I have not succeeded in finding my future bride. I have heard about posting a personal ad in a local paper before. Some marriage agencies offer that service too. But there can be a catch. When the girls contact the number on the ad the agency will inform the girl that they represent you and for her to meet you she must agree to join their marriage agency first. But Xxxxxxx's approach is different. He believes any decent girl will never use a marriage agency. Xxxxxxx represents you as a friend and not a client to these girls. I liked this approach. So, anyway I have never placed an ad before and decided to give it a try using Xxxxxxx's service. Now I will tell you about the experience.
 
First I must say that Xxxxxxxx's service and professionalism was 100%. I was very impressed with him. He gave good advice and his method of meeting the ladies was solid. His interpreter service is excellent and he is not greedy when he is working on the clock for you.
 
 I purchased the one week ad with photo for $130. I think this is the way to go. I provided Xxxxxxx with all my personal information similar to my profile I would send to ladies in the marriage agencies. From this he wrote my ad on my behalf which included some certain instructions by me. The ad was a huge success in terms of response. All total we got about 70 replies. From this 70 I was only able to meet 11 ladies. Why? I had a time factor problem. I was only in Kharkov for one week. I recommend two weeks or more or a 10 day trip which will include two weekends. The problem is the ladies are usually not available to meet during the day. Busy working or in University. So, our meetings usually started after 4 PM. During the weekends they are available to meet day and night so you can get a lot of work done during the weekends. And yes it is work! A few girls replied by email with photos, some replied by sms (Text message), and some did what is called a missed call. This is a signal for the man to call her back on his money. Xxxxxxx provides this service included in the $130. 80% of the information will be without a photo. So, I narrowed my list down by age, height, and weight. I got my list down to about 40 and then we started making the calls to arrange meetings. Again due to the short time factor and the narrowing of my list I was only able to meet 11 ladies. Xxxxxxx's method of meeting the ladies is perfect. Being that most of your meetings will be blinds dates it is good to have a back door to escape. Xxxxxxx arranges the meetings in front of a McDonald's near a metro station which is and simple and convenient for the ladies to find. When the lady arrives Xxxxxxx will introduce you. If you're not impressed with her right away you will suggest coffee in the Mcdonald's. This is a signal for Xxxxxxxx to know your not interested and the meeting will be kept short. If the girl impresses you then you will suggest a cafe for coffee or tea and Xxxxxxx will lead you to nearest cafe. We scheduled our meetings every hour. 4 pm, 5 pm, 6 pm etc etc. This seems to work best even if you like a particular girl. It's best to move on and set up a second meeting with her another day because the next girl could be even better. Of the 11 girls I met 2 of them were very beautiful, 2 were not attractive at all, and the rest of them were what I would say good looking. This was the percentage I expected. You got to sift through the coal to find the diamonds. So, I have met two girls that I would like to return and meet again. During the meeting Xxxxxxx encourages you to take charge of the conversations during the meetings. I agree with this. These are not marriage agency girls expecting the same kind of questions from and interpreter who works for an agency. This is a girl who thinks Xxxxxxx is your friend helping you out with the meeting. It's all about you and the girl. Of the 11 ladies I had met not a single one of them was a scammer in any form. Trust me I know the type. I have met hundreds of ladies in Ukraine. Of course Xxxxxxx will pay attention to the girls and offer you his opinion but during my meetings we both knew the girls were all sincere. We even met a local rich girl. She pulled up in an $80,000 Lexus. Owned her own business. As far as the cost are concerned. Well, it can add up at $10 per hour which is Xxxxxxx's interpreter fee. This is the going rate. But even at 5 hours a day working with him the cost will be less than dating a marriage agency girl and you can take comfort in knowing your not getting cheated by the agency interpreter and the girl you are meeting. Sometimes they work as a team and split the interpreter money. In conclusion I think this method of meeting the ladies is a good idea and can work very well if you have the time and will to put some work into it. Good luck!

[Thor]

Yeah, right, you were lucky that you haven't been killed  by some criminal who could have read this newspaper and invite you to meet "her" in some nice dark place or used his gf and his mafia friends for that to accuse you of raping his gf   after that and made you pay money
I remember seing stories like that in the crime tv shows, so come one, just put a newspaper like "A handome rich american is looking for his princess"....
I hope we will hear from you.

I have never been to Russia so I cant say how things are there, but all my friends who have been in both Russia and Ukraine tells me that Ukraine is a much more friendly country. There seems to me that there are much more mafia in Russia, I could be wrong but this is my impression. They told me that the police in Russia always seems to look at foreigners to earn some quick money, but in Ukraine the police take good care of the foreigners because the foreigners are important for business and so on..Russia seems to believe that they still are a super power , you see this in the politics and in the way they look at the rest of the world. Ukraine is different.

I used a private helper and he was with me on almost all my meetings. During my 12 stays in Kharkov and 13 in Ukraine I have NEVER EVER had any problems with the locals. Kharkov is more safe than the capitol in my country Oslo where I never would have walked in dark streets in the night. In Kharkov I have no fear to walk home in the dark nights...I always feel completely safe in Kharkov. Kharkov is a very civilised city.

But use common sense and you will be fine. Don't listen to peoples that says that FSU is so dangerous, my impression is completely different, but there can be differences between Ukraine and Russia..

[HiTech]

Scott: I already have some one to place the add and screen the replies. I also have a full time guide who I have used twice before on an add needed basis to also help me screen and be interrupter if needed.

I also am already meeting a number of ladies the traditional agency way who I have been corresponding with for 2 months.

HiTech

[Kuna]

Are you calling me a scammer??????????????????????????????????

I promote ads because I know that it works.

By the way, it seems to me that you ALWAYS seems to promote Elena's Models.....Maybe they pay you money for this service???

I have NEVER said that there are only honest private helpers, like SO many times before you seems to bring this on the table. I repeat my self, and says again that i have NEVER said that all private helpers are honest.

   Naah... you're not a scammer... just a very enthusiastic businessman!   

I actually don't promote Elena's Models.   I do tell people that I used them but I also tell them  met My Girl through freepersonals.ru.  I also tell people ads seem like a good idea but my point is that people shouldn't totally trust anyone they deal with in FSU because people will and do exploit men looking for a FSUW.

I've heard good stories about guides and helpers but it seems pretty common for these people to become corrupted over time.  I can't blame them if they are dealing with the sort of WM I've frequently seen while in Ukraine.


On a different note... I'm still interested to know what the success rate of a reasonable sample group of men is taking this approach....  It's probably got a lot to do with the "coaching" a helper can give a man before his trip because the helper COULD influence a man to be more realistic and lower risk and that would be a good thing for everyone.

The "testimonial" adds some interesting perspective on the process.  It seems like an efficient way to do a WNVM trip but I wonder what the timeline looks like for the whole process.  The writer of the testimonial says he'll return again to spend more time with two women.  I wonder if the women know that.  I also wonder how many speak at least some English.

Cheers!

Kuna

[ScottinCrimea]

HiTech, it sounds like you have all of the bases covered.  It will be interesting to see how things go for you.  I do think it has promise as an option if you take the necessary precautions, just like with any other option.

I don't think I would give a lot of credence to the testimonial other than as one idea to handle the meetings. I found some points of the testimonial quite interesting as I read between the lines:

This quote: "I have been to Ukraine several times in the past few years searching for the girl of my dreams. I have tried all the services of the marriage agencies and I have also met many ladies by chance in the cafes, night clubs, etc etc. So far I have not succeeded in finding my future bride".  and this one: "I have met hundreds of ladies in Ukraine."  Was the problem really the method or more the person using the method?  We know nothing about his age, looks, social skills, etc. so it's really hard to say.

The percentages were interesting.  Out of 70 replies, 30 were eliminated off the top because they didn't match his helper's interpretation of his wants or strictly because they didn't match the physical characteristics he wanted.  No mention of other qualities here.  These 30 were narrowed down based strictly on availability and time factors to 11. 

Now this next quote tells us a lot about this man: "Of the 11 girls I met 2 of them were very beautiful, 2 were not attractive at all, and the rest of them were what I would say good looking. This was the percentage I expected. You got to sift through the coal to find the diamonds. So, I have met two girls that I would like to return and meet again."

So the only two he was interested in meeting again were the "very beautiful" ones.  Again nothing about any other characteristics, ages, language skills, etc.

So ultimately of those that responded, his "success" factor in meeting those that he was interested in was 3%.  So what was his actual cost per woman he found that he was interested in?  With his priorities, I don't see his success rate as being any better than just choosing the hottest pics in the photo gallery and arranging meetings.  It's just another method, but I suspect his ultimate success rate (i.e. finding a woman to bring home with him) will be the same.

Maybe the only benefit he can site is access to women who he wouldn't ordinarily find through an agency, and since he had probably exhausted that resource as well as every other, did he really have any other options?

[HiTech]

It will be interesting how it works out Scott.

Nice analysis btw. If it was just cost per girl  contact  there would be not doubt with your view. The intangible to be determined is the % of quality women in the base group. So you also then have to factor in the cost of the meeting of non serious along with just the cost of the contact and emails. But quite frankly I view the cost of the add processing and placement as almost irrelevant for trying out a different option. The loss of time would be the real cost.

HiTech

[Serebro]

I have never been to Russia so I cant say how things are there, but all my friends who have been in both Russia and Ukraine tells me that Ukraine is a much more friendly country. There seems to me that there are much more mafia in Russia, I could be wrong but this is my impression.

Mafia belongs to the organised criminality and the low-class criminals who are attracted to  open Ukraine from different parts of FSU in warm seasons have nothing in common with them.

[Thor]

Ok,

But my impression are that Ukraine is a very safe and nice country .

[rambo]

Thor,

Ukraine is a nice country, but it is not as safe as you might think. For example, it seems to have the 11th highest murder rate in the world (Colombia is at #1, Russia is at #5) according to:

 http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita

[Serebro]

Thor,

Ukraine is a nice country, but it is not as safe as you might think. For example, it seems to have the 11th highest murder rate in the world (Colombia is at #1, Russia is at #5) according to:

 http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita

This all is about murders.
Russia has a bad reputation mainly because of its mafia(which is interested in rich businessmen)and domestic violence(see the number of alcoholics who beat their families and their friends-alcoholics with who they drink).In fact you have a bigger chance to be shot by a drugger in an american supermarket than in a russian one.
But it's a well-known fact the the south of Russia and especially Ukraine(which has a big number of foreigners)attract many low-class criminals in tourists' seasons where people make money even of nothing both legally and illegally.

[ScottinCrimea]

The statistics cited are from the time period 1998-2000.  From what I have heard and seen, there has been a downward trend in crime in Ukraine over the past several years so a more recent study may show quite different numbers.  In addition, if you don't focus only on murder, you will see that Ukraine ranks quite a bit lower in other areas.  For example, it ranks 28th of 32 in rapes and 42 out of 60 for overall crime.

For me personally, I feel much safer in Ukraine overall than in the US, but this can also depend on where you live.  IN the midwest your chances of being the victim of a crime are much less than downtown Los Angeles for example.

[rambo]

Scott, you are right, of course, that the web site I mentioned did not have the most recent crime figures.

I, too, feel safer in Ukraine than in the States, but Ukraine is in Europe and I don't feel that it is as safe as countries such as Finland, Denmark, Norway, Estonia, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Slovakia, or Hungary.

So, to summarize, I agree that Ukraine is a fairly safe country, but I don't agree with Thor that it is "very safe". (Thor, please forgive me if I am being overly pedantic!)

[Thor]

Hi Rambo,

It is Ukraine is different from the European country's you mentioned. But if you are are carefull and threat peoples in FSU with respect then you Will be safe. Be discreet, I sometimes see foreigners in Ukraine that speak loud and show to the whole world that they are foreigners, then it can attract some criminal elements of course, but this goes all of the world..

[HiTech]

So far the out come of the Advertising looks to have some positive and negatives.

The Negatives, I did have one set of young girls setup a false meeting.
It is also difficult to keep in mind that the lady you are meeting might not have considered the consequences of a foreign relationship.

The positive, I have met women who did not wish to go to an agency. The last meeting I had today was the best I have had with any lady in the FSU to date. From wow to when she walked up with no makeup tennis shoes and simple athletic attire (finishing her PHD in Physical Education), to 1 hour later when she is saying she would like to join us at the zoo Wednesdays, and when I ask her," So I assume you are interested in me then", to watch her eyes light up with a big smile and nod yes.

Oh did I mention she is very close to fluent in English?

Dale