Expert: Ed Freeman - 2/16/2006

Question
Hello,

I saw a question to you about Allen & Associates but no answer. Can you advise your response and, by the way, the price is  now $1500. The question is provided below.

Thank you,
Elizabeth

Ed,
I apologize if this is a duplicate question but I do not believe that my first follow-up was sent. I have three follow-up questions:
1) The cost of the below listed services is $1100. Is this cost appropriate and in line with industry standards for the services provided?

2) The company has almost 2 complaints per month according to the BBB (most settled). Is this ratio in line with industry standard?

3) Do you know of a reputable career managment companies?

Thanks, again, for your time.
Bob

-------------------------
Followup To
Question -
Ed,
Have you heard of Allen and Associates (http://allenandassociates.com). Can they be trusted? Someone from this company has contacted me and wants to change me $1100 for the following:
Comprehensive Resume
A results-oriented resume. Your resume will include electronic job board
optimized versions on a disk. Ten paper copies included.

Broadcast Letter
Your primary job campaign document designed to generate interviews.

Reference List
A professionally formatted list of business and personal references.

RESEARCH & MARKETING SERVICES
Preliminary Research - Preview List of 200 Employers
Generated from the exclusive Allen And Associates database of over two
million potential employers based on your criteria of industry, size, and
geographic locations.

Detailed Research - 100 Verified Employers & Contacts
Derived from your preliminary research, we provide detailed information on
100 employers based on your selections. Upon selection, our team of
researchers will verify each of the executive contact names, addresses,
and telephone numbers for currency and accuracy.

Printing, Postage, & Mailing of 100 Broadcast Letters
We will prepare, package, and mail your documents to the decision-makers
at all 100 selected companies.

Meta Job Search
A dynamic search engine returning results from the world's largest
database of jobs, (4.5 million and counting) aggregated from over 5,000
commercial job boards, corporate job boards, government sites, etc.
Access for 60 days.

Personal Salary Report
Detailed compensation analysis by location, industry, and company size.
Tailored to your experience, education, and performance. Used to maximize
salary negotiations between you and your employer.

Research & Marketing Materials on Disk
All of your documents are supplied to you on a disk or CD-ROM.

COACHING SERVICES
Allen And Associates Total Job Campaign Manual
Our copyrighted manual details successful strategies for today’s job market.

Personality Energy Analysis
The Personality Energy Analysis Test (P.E.A.) provides you with additional
insight into your strengths and weaknesses, especially during the
interview process.

Career Planning
Job search strategies, such as effective follow-up strategies, initial
interview training, and initial salary negotiation training, are all
available from your career-marketing manager.

Coaching Videos
You have access to a series of job coaching videos through our online
career portal.

Five Year Guarantee - Career Planning
Provides follow-up service to you for five years, adding security in
today’s job market.  

Answer
Elizabeth-

I am not familiar with the career services companies or whether their rates are appropriate.  You can do exactly the same thing by doing your homework and research.  You have basically answered your question about reliablity by checking with the BBB.
We keep links to several good resume help sites at http://employmentatlanta.com/#resume

Good luck!
Ed Freeman
Employment Atlanta
ed@employmentatlanta.com
http://employmentatlanta.com
Resume' and Career help -
http://employmentatlanta.com/#resume