synoches

I'm extremely hesitant to even add a reply here. I rarely check this site anymore but, well, this thread caught my attention as I thought I'd take a peak in here. I learned a long time ago that clients here are not really welcome to have an opinion unless it's one that no provider could possibly object to at any level. Our job is to pay and not ask. Rates have gone up a great deal over the past 5 years or so. I still suspect that the loss of Backpage as a central hub of competition has a lot to do with that alongside the overall economic situation. The biggest hobby-wide rate hike I saw came shortly after Backpage went down. Economically, everything has gone up but, for many of us working stiffs (especially in jobs considered "high paying"), salaries haven't. I'm sure it'll equal out eventually but it does make for a rough patch until then. If vetting a new client uses up a lot of time, then repeat clients getting a discount of some sort sounds pretty reasonable to me. As a client, being a repeat visitor offers a lot of assurances against the usual fears of being scammed, robbed, arrested or just plain disappointed. A "regulars rate" sounds mutually beneficial. I think we have to wonder how awesome the "us agains them" attitude here really is. Hell, here's a thread by a provider and clients can't answer the question asked without taking some heat over it. I certainly have never felt terribly welcome here or like I have to proceed with caution and walk on eggshells. I don't expect many to agree with that because I imagine clients who feel the same way have already left. I'd question hostility as a good business practice but...a provider's business is none of my business. I get it.

I have largely checked out but I still check in once in a while to see how this particular economy is doing. My pay has increased over time but not anywhere near the rate of inflation and there definitely is a "special" economy in some sectors that buck trends everywhere else. This just happens to be among them. I did notice a larger overall change in trends when Backpage was seized. I'm guessing that it provided a low barrier of entry for many girls towards internet-based advertising. I often wonder if anything will ever truly replace that sort of outlet short of legalization.

The end of discussion has already been declared. This thread should be locked.

The weird stuff she said that I referred to earlier was that she said gift cards are the only way to be sure I wasn't LE as they would never use that method of payment. I mentioned TOB and P411 and she said these sites were infiltrated by LE and using them is a surefire way to end up in trouble. I rolled my eyes and took a pass as well.

I’ve seen postings in the past that suggested FS wasn’t a QV option so there’s that variation too.

I have rarely ever bothered with QV myself but there were a few times when I was very short on time but still wanted “something”. Honestly, I think that was only ever 2-3 times. Still, I don’t see it as a “problem”. If there are guys that want that and providers that provide it, how is it wrong? If guys are insisting you provide something you don’t, well that’s always wrong but if someone is asking if that’s an option, I don’t see the issue unless they push it past a “no”. They should just move on to someone who does offer that.

It's not a perfect system but I put a bit more trust in reviews written by reviewers who have been around for a while and have written a fair number. For the most part, while I can't guarantee I'll get what I want out of the experience, it adds some comfort that I'm *probably* not walking into a sting or a robbery. No guarantees in this hobby, of course. We just take all the assurances we can get and decide if the risk level is where we will accept it. I will add, though, tying into those threads about pre-screening and sharing your real life information such as workplace, home address, etc. that could be potentially damning against you: If I found myself in that scenario, you can be sure that I would absolutely NOT write a bad review. The leverage is there to ensure more than just a TOB rebuttal. Luckily, I haven't yet found myself in that situation.

I’ve gotten some pretty crazy backlash over a negative review and a so-so review before so, honestly, this may not be that far from the truth. Another one could be pity. I’ve really been torn before about leaving a less-than-positive review. The most likely one in a lot of cases is just experience. I was more accepting in my earlier reviews simply because I didn’t have a good frame of reference for what a truly great experience was at the time. However, if he can share with you the negatives now, that’s probably not the case.

The update thing is a good point. Just because a reference was given a long time ago doesn’t necessarily mean it’s no longer current. But if there’s no option to update it as “still applies”, then that makes the date on the reference a negative thing to have.

Okay I’m going to say the sort of thing that has gotten me in heated arguments here before but oh well... Typically, those sorts of experiences tend to come with lower rates. Not always, but often enough. That could be one reason for some clients looking for that.

I’ve never thought about that (GFE representing an emotional state). I guess I can kinda see it as far the more intangible aspects of GFE goes. I’d add that besides the technical things that happen, GFE providers at least put on the facade of romantic behavior if not actual romance.

Yes, that’s how I’ve always taken it along with minimal cuddling and caressing, before or after. FIV possibly the more gray area of those things.

Funny thing is, there are still a lot of girls out there who’s idea of screening is asking you via text message if you are affiliated with law enforcement. I mean, if you are, you have to tell them, right? Screening done. I honestly wonder...was there ever a time in our history when that was true? Hasn’t everyone seen Breaking Bad by now?

Obviously, I’ve used the term in my reviews for long enough that I have my own idea. While I’m not sure I have a concrete definition, myself, has anyone else noticed that it’s becoming more popular in other places (namely, STG but probably not limited to that) for providers to assume this means bareback? I mean listings with things like “No GFE/BB!!!”. Has GFE ever meant that?

The girl I was referring to went by the name of Bianca. I can see that her arrangement was previously mentioned a few times by others, also in a positive light in this thread.