Susan Fox

She's got the "Mr. Right" approach to finding the man of your dreams.

Ten years ago, Susan Fox, divorced and recently unengaged, decided to write a personal ad. She wasn't keen about the idea, but she says, "Friends were fixing me up with men who were compulsively commitment-phobic or who just didn't work for me."

Her ad resulted in 30 dates over the next 10 months, but it was number 31 - MIT administrator Rick Hill-whom she married.

Soon the therapist/writer began to help her friends--and their friends--to write personal ads. "I said, 'It's silly to give this service away.'"

So in 1992, Fox started a company called Personals Work by taking out ads in Boston Magazine and the Appalachian Club. By the time the credit card bill hit, the ads had already paid for themselves. "Business soared right from the start," says Fox. Now, word-of-mouth attracts clients from all over the country as well as Europe and Canada. The majority of her clients are women 35 and up.

"For an average fee of $400-450, Susan first puts on her therapist's hat and consults with new clients--either in person or on the phone--to determine their goals and the qualities they're looking for in a mate. She puts together a portrayal of who the client is "in language that's different from other ads," says Fox. "We don't say they're beautiful when they're not, but we don't undersell," says Fox. "It is advertising."

Though the price tag may be a little steep, Personals Work!  boasts a 50 percent success rate. (Call Personals Work!  at 617/859-0720 or email to sfox@latoile.com.)