Advertising Services


Country United States
State Aruba
City Chatsworth
Address 9909 Topanga Canyon Blvd. Ste. #106
Phone 8555575566

Advertising Services Reviews

  • Jul 16, 2014

We're a local, family business in Wichita Falls, TX who got called on by Robert Mahanes (his business card says, but highly doubtable as his real name and identity - after all, if you were as BIG of a crook as he is, why would you use your real name?).

He was the loudest mouth salesman that I've ever encountered in my over 30 years of business. But his offer for an ad in this new Wichita Falls Today magazine to be distributed at a reputable local supermarket chain seemed to be an attractive source for multiple exposure.

I've read another similar Ripoff Report from another business owner in Frisco, near Dallas, of the EXACT type of sales call from the same Robert Mahanes. His MO (modus operandi.....greek, for: "don't drop the soap in the shower") was the same as this other Frisco business. He'll offer the moon in offering multiple store locations for the "magazine" (read: glossy, toilet paper substitute) and to ignore the bills that come every month from the home office. "Just pay this low fee of XXX per month."

Well, they sent me an art deadline for an ad in less than 48 hours. Then they said they'd design an ad from our website for us, since no there was no time to apprpriately design our own ad. It sucked.......

I started trying to contact the "art department" (which I think is a guy named Art in the basement of some vacant department store building. Hence.....art department.....for this shamefully scam company).

Then they wouldn't anser my emails. Then I started REALLY getting mad with emails. And of course, an email address for the venerable Robert Mahanes is BOGUS. ANd my inquiries to get his real email address went unanswered too. Mr. (boy does THAT title give him too much respect) Mahanes' promises of our ad to run FREE in multiple grocery store locations in nearby towns of within 50 miles was a GREAT ploy that hooked us on his scammy ripoff. But when I finally got emails back from Advertising Services' other personnel, they were coming from all these different email addresses - and from different "people" each time. They were also from "nac2.biz" email address. Finally my research took me to find out that this "National advertising council....or somesuch".......which lead me to stories about other scams that were EXACTLY like ours!

ANyway, I filed a complaint with my bank, cancelled my company credit card which was taken for the first $199.00 payment - so that they wouldn't rip me off for any more money.

I went to the local supermarket to find their "magazine" and to talk to the manager about any other reports about this fake operation. There were only about a dozen copies of this rag on a bottom shelf in the section by the office of free ad racks. I've gone back several times only to find it in the same lousy location with the same or fewer copies.

After reading MANY MANY other ripoff reports of other "lifestyle" magazines around the country that this company is selling ads in, I've come to reason that they print up a few dozen magazines with your ad in it and literally dump them off at a store, without any intention of printing or distributing any more. And then they continue to bill you for some exhorbitant amount for the ongoing ads. Pity the poor sole who actually paid for a lengthy amoutn of ads from these crooks in advance - with no way to get any money back.

I'm lucky that I only got terribly inconvenienced by the first payment. I've since contacted my credit card company to find out how to file a fraud grievance and get the charge reversed to my account.

As others have done that have been ripped off by this company, I have filed a report with the State Attorney General's Office. And their ongoing "statements" that they send me - I'm return faxing to them with the statement that they can refer to the Attorney General's Office about their advertising "contract".

I've ignored their ongoing billing statements - but they keep coming anyway.

I WILL NOT PAY THEM ANOTEHR DIME....THE CROOKS!!

And IF the guy, Robert Mahanes, EVER shows his face around MY TOWN or MY BUSINESS again, he's going to get a taste of humble pie and a prescription for NOASSATOL that I will administer with my RN degree (Right kNee - at a right angle up his ass!).

Avoid this "company" like the plague, folks. They are criminals for fraudulent misrepresentation of ANY ADVERTISING that they try to sell all over this country.

I would love to eventually see their faces on a "60 Minutes" report some day.

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