Vilifying the Escort Service Owner

The vilification of escort business owners is something that I have seen often in the last 20 years, but more recently it has escalated with each indictment or arrests that involved owners and operators. The high number of people (mainly independent escorts) voicing a hatred of escort service owners in online forums most recently is a result of the Classy DC Escorts indictment and the inclusion of the gun/violence charge.

The truth about the use of a gun and threats by the owner of Classy DC Escorts (if it even happened), is that these people were robbing him. The escorts he allegedly threatened and the driver/booker that he allegedly beat while “brandishing a gun” were stealing from him and the business – the thievery is a fact. If it is all true then he needs an anger management class – no one was actually shot or anything – and to learn to walk away from thieves that rip his wallet from his pocket. As hard as it is to do this, walking away is the only choice.

As I visited various forums shortly after the indictment was handed down, the vicious nature of the posts and clear hatred of escort service owners was all too obvious. I didn't say a word as I do not know anyone connected to Classy DC. Back when Jeane Palfrey (the former DC Madam) was arrested, convicted, and then committed suicide, the posters were 90% vicious bitches from hell. Many were considering her suicide to be reason for celebration. I couldn't hold my tongue and I let them have it – Jeane often caught and said goodbye to thieves. I haven't posted on the TER or Big Doggie forums since.

The bottom line is that if these independents didn't like working with the service, all each had to do was leave, exit, open their own damn business. Just as there is no real excuse for “brandishing a gun” in attempt to retrieve stolen money, there is also no excuse for the thieves. One crime is no better than the other! (actually as long as no one was really shot, I consider brandishing a gun to be the lesser offense)

There will be many independents that cross your path and steal your fees at every opportunity. I still have one that I refer to as “the Christmas thief,” but really it was my fault that she got away with as much as she did. If I had been paying attention as I should have been, the most she could have stolen was a fee or two. As angry as I was at the time, mainly due to my misplaced trust, I knew that my only option was to walk away. That was what I did.

I wonder how they'd feel if any owned a restaurant and an employee was stealing from the register on a nightly basis. Would they blame the party that threatened or even hit the thief? The restaurant owner has the option of dialing the police, but the escort service owner really does not.

Some anonymous party posted a wild and unprovable allegation against the owner of Classy DC on my other blog a couple of days ago, but I deleted it in minutes. I figure that he was in the business since 2006-07, and the feds were investigating from around the middle of 2009, so if such a crazy accusation was not included in the indictment, it has to be entirely baseless and the anonymous poster probably plays a part in the case (like informant).

Every time a newspaper comes out with a story about an underage prostitute being pimped on Backpage, the same crowd lays the blame on the existence of escort services. Only a complete moron would blame the entire escort industry because some idiot commits such crimes. But isn't that exactly what they're all doing by demanding the removal of the “adult services” and “escorts” categories on Backpage? Everyone is supposed to pay for the crimes of a few. Not in this lifetime. I hope that Backpage holds its ground.

Anytime an escort business owner is arrested or indicted many blame the entire industry, as if we all had some hand in the party's business or do everything as they did. A main rule here is that all escort services are not created equal. No two services operate exactly the same. I do not know about everyone else in the biz, but I am sick and effing tired of being called a pimp by idiots and thieves. If the escorts didn't want to be escorts, they wouldn't be. Don't let these people pull your leg – they all want the damn money.

[End of rant, for now anyway] 

The Escort Business: Reflections and Thoughts

I hope that the readers of this blog are having a happy new year, or at least are on the road to a better future. Many of you arrive at this blog by typing the phrase how to open an escort service so I must imagine that this is your intention.

This blog actually gets more reads than my Accused Madam Blog, unless I am blogging about topics of interest to many people, like trials in the news or well-known cases like the Miami Companions case or the Southwest Companions arrests. I never intentionally ignore this blog – it's just that there isn't much that has changed in the escort business, so what is there to say?

When I offered two of my books free through Amazon Kindle store at the end of 2011, the downloads overwhelmingly (4 to 1) favored my “Memoirs” book and not the “Blueprint” book. I considered this odd as I sell so few copies of Memoirs in comparison to any of the Blueprint books. If you missed the free offer I am sorry, but it's available at a low price for anyone actually interested in opening an escort service.

The tech aspect of opening and operating an escort service is always evolving, but the rest of it stays the same. As the internet and search indexing change so do the businesses seeking clients online. I found no solid reasoning to publish a new edition of “Blueprint” over tech stuff as I am not an expert on that topic anyway. Just build a website viewable and findable on smartphones and laptops alike and do not forget the new focus on local and you'll do fine.

State and federal law enforcement agencies have not paid anymore attention to the escort business than they always have and often this is dependent on the area you choose to operate in and the level of acceptance. Always take the safe and consistent side and realize that all money is not good money. Learn to walk away. Realize that you owe no one an explanation for anything that you do. When people start questioning me, I start making up stuff. No random stranger or old acquaintance appearing out of nowhere should ever be questioning you and if it happens, head the other direction quick.

A person that I have posted an article about on both blogs long ago (Doug Ketcher of the former Sweethearts Escorts of South Florida) dropped by to comment as he was recently released from prison. I am sure that his ordeal is not anything that any of you ever want to go through and I implore you to pay attention to what I have stated in the book. I feel for Mr. Ketcher, but at the same time, I didn't have his party and neither should you. Acceptance of credit cards for your business and pretending the IRS doesn't exist as you rake in the big$$$s could place you in harm's way and it is never “worth it” as Mr. Ketcher stated in the comment.

And then there is the New York High Class case.... There were drugs involved in the case and it is not just an escort service prosecution. I have no clue if the many defendants are guilty of anything or not, but according to the indictment, the case involved drug delivery to clients. A similar set-up of the infamous Jason Itzler (of NY Confidential fame) took place a couple of months later in the same jurisdiction. Just skip the drugs and you won't have the sort of problems that any of these defendants currently do. Your mommy should have taught you that much, but if she didn't then take heed of the warning now.

Realize that most of the YouTube videos posted on my blogs have significance to me in one area of life or another. I have never just posted random videos. Not that it matters to you... I'm just sayin'....

If you have attempted to post a short comment and link to your escort website here in past, please realize that if I allowed all comments with adult business links to go through, this blog would be finished in short time. I like my blogs and the US is a censored country, no matter what they tell you, so the comments won't be posted.

On a rare occasion I will let a comment and link to a conservative site go through, but I check that link later to make sure it hasn't evolved into a porn site. One semi-intelligent poster dropped his real comment with a profile link on my other blog long ago and the profile was nothing that mattered at that time, but soon readers were flocking to this seemingly unimportant article. Yes, his profile link became a XXX explicit porn advertisement. It was deleted.

I recently changed my consultation policy on my website to accommodate the small group of people that asked everything from..., well, you have the idea, I'm sure. In the books I do advise that you are welcome to contact me with a question or two and you still are, but if it reaches the point of exasperation and is too time consuming for me, I'll be responding with a link to the consultant page of my website. The one party that actually paid for email consults actually turned out to be really nice and just wants to make damn sure everything is correct. That is something I do understand. Just realize that I cannot hold your hand through the set-up and opening of a business as it places me in jeopardy.

Realize that I do not allow anyone to place me in legal jeopardy. This is something that I learned form my many years in the business and my subsequent prosecution and acquittal by jury. Yes, people have tried – one too recently for comfort. If I even suspect that your goal is to throw me under a bus for your own prosecution, well, I react different ways. Sometimes I ignore the party and other times I just start making stuff up, but whichever route I choose, realize that you are no match for me, at least not in anything even remotely related to the escort business.

Last, but not least, please do not bother downloading my titles for free on one of those illegal file sharing websites. Realize that I can't be in the business because of my past and I barely survive. I don't think $8-10 is too much to pay for a book that could help you make hundreds of thousands of $s legally and safely, do you?

Stay safe and prosper!

Vicky Gallas

Announcement: Blueprint Updates

In the near future, all Blueprint updates will be in the Blueprint Updates section of my website. I decided not to publish any future editions of any Blueprint books because there really isn’t that much to update with the exception of tech-related information.

All information in relation to website hosting and design is found on the Websites page. Working with WordPress websites is simple once you do it once and it doesn’t take too much effort to learn. These days a local presence is absolutely necessary and all updated information is found on the Focus on Local page. Any important updates related to advertising your business, including both print and online, is located on the Advertising page. Last, but not least, if using a variation of the business model in the books is of interest to you, visit the Business Models page for ideas and information.

A main theme that I will be focusing on is reaching your audience that is online via a mobile device, tablet, or smartphone. My recent research has revealed that this is how the great majority of clients and customers are searching and your website(s) and ads should be targeting this market more than any other.

Some information from the Blueprint Updates on this blog is repeated as it is still current, but there will be much new information on the above noted pages also.

I expect to be finished with this section of the website by the day after Christmas. I have been ill and am not able to do much each day or it would already be completed. I do intend to continue blogging here in the future, but not in reference to Blueprint updates.

Opening an Escort Service: Yes or No

One statement that I make in my Blueprint books is that the escort business is not for everyone. Many will consider the option of opening an escort service, read the book, and then opt to pass on it. I tried to not glamourize the business and clearly state that it is highly unlikely that you will ever make $millions as some people claim.

Over the course of the last year I have received numerous emails from interested people that ask if I would do it all over again as they try to decide their own paths in life. I give you no hype on the topic, but yes, if the circumstances were the same, I'd do it all over again. I state this even though I ended-up arrested, in trial, and acquitted by jury.

Yes, I lost everything that I had as a result of the criminal case and I had more than most people (law enforcement and prosecutors) seem to think as I had invested everything in gold and silver bullion and equities. I studied the gold and silver market for almost two years and bought back when gold was $250-$280 an ounce and silver was $3.50-$5. Because of the many costs involved in my arrest and case, I also sold it all as I went along and by the time I reached trial there was little remaining. As the dealer that I sold to stated, I should consider myself lucky that I had it all to sell and cover expenses. Yes, I cried on more than one occasion over it – it was my retirement and my son's future. Who doesn't want to buy their child a new car etc... and offer financial security?

I was left with no retirement and no financial security whatsoever, gold recently passed $1800 an ounce, and silver was around $40, but it was the equities (stocks) that I really lost on. Back then I could have told you anything about any gold or silver mine in North America, South America, or South Africa. I learned much about a topic that doesn't matter at all anymore.

I decided that after knowing for fact that agents broke into my Orlando house without a court order or warrant, I never wanted to own property in the US again. I also used to have perfect credit, but really who gives a shit about credit anyway? So make no mistake here – I exited the business with less than I had when I started it in 1992. However, I was able to spend my son's years of growing-up with him instead of working all the time and we had the money to take trips to NYC, the Bahamas, on a cruise, shopping etc... all the stuff that never would have happened without that escort business.

One recent email I received:

If you had to do it all over again, would you? I've been presented with an opportunity to enter this realm, however, I am unsure if the risks are outweighed by the rewards.

Thanks for listening.

My response to that email:

Well, it was not presented as an opportunity to me - I was attempting to support myself and my child on an $8 per hour job with no health insurance and we both had health issues. So yes, I would do it again - my son and I had fun as he grew-up, we did things and had the money to. Otherwise I would have never seen him as I would have been too busy working.

If your life is already good, I wouldn't get involved in the escort business. If you are unemployed or barely surviving on a low wage job, you may want to consider it.

You also must analyze the person(s) providing the opportunity. I advise in my book that one should only have a partner if they're married or know the party really well. You can go into business on your own - you do not need an "opportunity" or a partner. Be careful - there are treacherous people involved in the escort business.

Hope that helps.

The response to my response:

Thank you Vicky. That is exactly what I needed to hear.

I assume that the emailer chose to pass on getting into the business. Many of you that read the Blueprint book may do the same. Keep the book in case your circumstances change and you decide to go ahead with the project in the future as we never know what tomorrow will bring. Also keep it because you never know when I will decided to stop selling it – yes, there has been some pressure in recent days and I admit that it is a consideration, albeit a small one.

If you are already in a dire financial situation or have similar reasons as my own for entering the escort business, plan carefully and proceed with caution. Analyze all that you say and do before you speak or do it and you'll be fine. I used to pretend that a jury was listening to every telephone conversation and everything stated to every escort; the sad part is that I still must do this because they are sore losers that never, ever go away.

So I won, but I also lost and you need to clearly understand that. I have serious enemies. Caveat Emptor.

Registration Begins on XXX Domains

Today begins registration for the new .xxx domain names. I found an excellent article in the International Business Times that explains the registrations schedule far better than I could and it includes a chart: .XXX Domain Registration: A Cheat Sheet for the Sunrise

I do not care for the segregation aspect of .xxx and feel that it will make blocking all adult websites, no matter how conservative in design, much easier for ISPs, hotels, and anyone else that so desires. However, if you already have a TLD (top level domain), you really do need to buy the matching .xxx if nothing else.

Censored by PayPal

I awoke today to read the following email from PayPal:

We are hereby notifying you that, after a recent review of your account activity, it has been determined that you are in violation of PayPal's Acceptable Use Policy regarding your sales / offers of an ebook about escort services on blueprintforanescortservice.blogspot.com.

Therefore, your account has been permanently limited.

Under the Acceptable Use Policy, PayPal may not be used to send or receive payments for certain sexually oriented materials or services or for items that could be considered obscene.

It is a trick statement as all of my books are “about escort services” including Memoirs. All are also sold on my website, The Accused Madam. I only had funds from the last three sales in the account so the balance is $30 after PayPal took its fees on the three sales and adding the previous balance of $2.

The censors at PayPal must not want anything sold that isn't for children. Does Disney own PayPal or a piece of the company?

Nothing in any book I have written could possibly be considered “obscene” or “sexually oriented material”. My books are all intended for an adult audience, but if they were rated they would all be PG or at worst R. There is nothing sexual in any book I have written.

Screw the censors at PayPal.

When I login to my PayPal account I see the following notification:

Why is my account access limited?
Your account access has been limited for the following reason(s):

• Jul 10, 2011: When you signed up for your PayPal account, you agreed to our User Agreement and Acceptable Use Policy. Because some of your recent transactions violated this policy, we've had to permanently limit your account.
  
  Please remove any references to PayPal from your website.
  
  You'll be able to withdraw any money in your account 180 days after your last transaction. We'll email you when it's ready to be withdrawn.
  

My email response to aup@paypal.com:

Nothing in any book that I have written could possibly be considered "obscene" or "sexually oriented material". While the intended audience for my books is adult, if anyone were to read and rate any of my books they would each be a PG or at most an R. There is nothing sexual in any book.

What you are doing here is incorrect, but this is the US and I respect your right as a company to not do business with anyone you choose. Welcome to Amerika, the new Disney, where everything is for children and adults do not exist except in relation to children.

Screw PayPal's censorship of me and my books. So you manage to stop me from selling ebooks that are available from Google ebooks and in Amazon's US, UK, and Canada Kindle stores and as paperbacks through any bookstore. Thanks a bunch and screw you.

Vicky Gallas

Advice for Escort Business Owners and Clients

This could turn into a complicated post if I allow it to; I will try not to go that direction herein. Anyone that has read any of my books is aware that I discuss the blocks on escort business telephone numbers and websites during conventions in Orlando. Memoirs is all about the blocking and the Blueprint books mention it more than once. I have also posted occasionally on the topic on the Accused Madam Blog.

There are always ways around such blocking. First, what do I mean by blocks during conventions?

When there are large conventions in your city you may notice that you receive few calls, if any at all. This is obvious in Orlando, at least to me. This was obvious to several operators in Las Vegas for years and civil suits were filed over the problem. In past I heard from operators in Los Angeles that it was clearly happening there as well. Now I am hearing that the practice has become all too obvious in New Orleans.

Check the conventions in your area. I cannot define “large” in relation to the number of attendees at a convention, but I have seen it with a convention of 45,000 and with a convention of 1000. Today I was asked: “What are the chances that nobody at all calls during a convention with 45,000 attendees?”

I asked what specific convention was being referenced and the answer was Rotary International. Well, the chances in Orlando that no one will call are 100%. No one at all called during the Golf Merchandise show here back in late January and 45,000 people came here for it. Imagine how many hotels fill in New Orleans when that many people come in town for a convention. Yet, not a single call. This owner had his eyes on the situation because previous large conventions brought zero calls and he has great placement in search engines.

One trend that you will notice is that you receive calls immediately before the convention and immediately after it from people there for that specific convention. Some people do arrive early or stay a day or two extra in a convention city. You may even hear from a random caller there for the convention – I try to question on how he found the website and what device he is using to dial me.

Up until mid-January, people using some advanced smartphones were able to view the site and call without issue, but something changed by the end of January 2011. I do not have a grasp on it yet and can only research and make educated guesses. When I figure it out, I'll post about it.

One thing you may notice is that your websites are still receiving high visitor numbers from unique IP addresses and the numbers get higher during the huge conventions. So is it believable that not one person from that huge convention will call to ask a question? No way in hell, especially when considering that it rings off the hook when there isn't a sizable convention in town or from outside areas when there is.

Let's consider possible solutions for the escort business

Plaster your email address on top and bottom of every page on your website. Announce on the main page that interested clients should save your email address – the blockers sure as hell cannot block your email. Include a short statement on the main page of your site that if an interested client is coming to the area for a convention they may find escort service websites blocked and may not be able to get through on the telephone. Assure them that you will respond quickly to email and instruct all to save your email address and/or book an advance appointment.

This is a plug for the adult business forums and sites that offer ads to adult business and are at the top or near the top in the keyword phrases that matter: Place ads on a few of these sites that will run before, during, and after that big convention. Use a new telephone number in any of those ads. Your number on the website may be blocked by the blockers; mine is. Repeat this, always getting a new telephone and number, for all large conventions. You decide what large is, but to me it is 10,000+.

The most known site with great ad prices is EROS. Bigdoggie.net is another well-known site that has been around for a while, but their ad prices are high. You can also post in the forums on these sites. One more to look at is World Escort Guide – they have great prices and are somewhat high in search rankings in the cities they operate in, but they are not in that many US cities.

While you are at it, grab your netbook and wireless modem (all major wireless companies have them) and head out to the hotels during one of the larger conventions. Sit in the lobby and see if you can search for and click on your own website using the wireless modem you brought with you. Dial your own telephone numbers from different wireless phones. Now, go online using the hotel's Wifi if at all possible. If at all possible, use the hotel's ISP for a cable connection in a hotel room reserved by a convention attendee. What worked and what didn't?

Encourage clients that visit your website from elsewhere prior to visiting for the convention to book advance appointments. To do this you would want accurate photos of escorts on the website and know each escort's schedule of availability. You may want to offer a decent discount for appointments booked in advance. You may also want to aim your marketing at other areas and try to grab potential client's attention before they come to your city. If you are in Las Vegas there are many options that are not online.


Possible solutions for clients

If you have any idea that you might be interested in seeing an escort when you attend a major convention, search in advance for the websites. Save the telephone number and the email address. Consider booking in advance or at least calling and making sure that the business will respond quickly to an email when you are ready to make an appointment.

Remember that a Google or Yahoo or Hotmail address cannot be blocked by the hotel. Never use AOL because they have always been known for blocking issues – in email and in search results. Businesses are going to need to adapt to responding immediately to emails – no more 24 notice by email stuff.

This may not be happening in your area at all, but as long as I have been aware of the problems (since 1992), I have known that a major connector is a hospitality industry entity that works closely with conventions in most major cities. The situation has evolved over time, but the convention and hospitality industry connection to the problem has never changed.

Open an Escort Business Anywhere

My Blueprint books are really more easily applied in the US, but they do have information that is useful anywhere in the world too. I must imagine that most areas of the globe have zoning rules and licenses to enter any type of business. Interacting with the escorts and answering the telephone is similar anywhere – in some areas you can be more open than in others. How to answer a telephone and collect your money would also be more the same than different in any geographical location.

There are some areas of the planet I which a person would go about many aspects of the business differently, even within the US, and certainly between the US and Canada, for example. Really it all comes down to the level of acceptance for adult business on an outcall basis. It is the level of acceptance in any geographical area that will ultimately determine how you operate and the type of license that you will want.

Another disparity will be communications: You must advertise and market in the way that is most accepted in the area you choose. It does no good to market your business entirely online if potential clients in the area look at local newspapers. It also won't help to place a print ad if all the clients are online. Every geographical area has its own unique attributes and it is your responsibility to research for the area that you intend to open the escort business.

There are some areas that are truly unique. In the US, Las Vegas is one of them. This of course relates to the level of acceptance and adult business has always been welcome in Vegas. At the same time, Vegas is a highly competitive area and starting an escort service on a small budget is not really possible.

Search Indexing and Advertising for Adult Business

Where your website would show in Google, Yahoo! and Bing used to be somewhat predictable over a period of time, but it isn't anymore. In case you haven't noticed or wonder why your telephones stopped ringing, Google has a new and mostly unpredictable algorithm. Yahoo! and Bing often take so long to index websites that hopefully you have not isolated your attempts to get websites indexed with Google alone.

Advertising for adult businesses – escort services and party or stripper entertainment businesses that serve adults only – on the internet has become extremely complicated lately. I admit that I resent this as we are not all 10 years old and the parents of the 10 year-old (or whatever age) should be responsible for the non-adult's internet access and not the rest of the damn world. I am not sure about the rest of the world, but it seems that in the US everything is being optimized for children. It has always been that way in Orlando because of Disney so I am used to it, but I imagine the rest of the country is surprised. Welcome to my censored world.

This new obscure algorithm will soon be implemented throughout the world, so don't get too happy if you're in another country. In all that I have read recently I understand this is a really serious issue in Germany too. This surprises me – no adult ads in Google, Yahoo! and Bing in Germany? What happened that I missed? Germany has undergone serious changes since I lived there. There is a list of countries that have been affected by these new rules concerning adult content so it isn't only Germany.


Focus on Local

I think we all realized the importance of the local focus a while back. Google Maps was really great for all while it lasted, but it has changed (see previous posts) and Places is not so great. If you read through the help forums for Places you will see what I mean. If you already had a listing before the major change then you may be okay, or not. Now they are even rejecting many that use a mailing address instead of a physical location, but that is far from the only problem. It isn't only adult businesses that are having problems with Places – it is all types of business, but you could forget about phone verification as the rules have changed. Read through the Places Help Forums

People are actually changing their websites in attempt to conform to Places demands and get a listing. Now that is crazy – the website is what it is and if you delete all the keyword phrases that matter, well, your website will be worthless anyway.

A while back I had a couple of websites that were refused by Yahoo! Local. The email stated that there was no way to appeal this so don't bother trying. Please keep in mind that I have never designed and submitted any website that even had nudity! Not even a breast! Any website I have ever submitted could easily be considered general audience, but focusing only on adults. Bing Local has always been out – Microsoft has never been keen on anything adult, which is ironic as the first escort service website in the world was in Seattle, Washington (Microsoft territory). Now Bing and Yahoo! are together.

Yet you see escort businesses with listings in Google Places, Yahoo! Local, and Bing Local. So how do they get there? One way to get in Yahoo! Local is through Express Update or through City Search as both feed Yahoo! Local. City Search looks far too expensive, but I admit that I haven't read thoroughly and am not exactly clear on what you get for your $s. Express Update has a free listing option.

I am not clear on Bing Local yet – supposedly they're mailing a few postcards out so I will post when I see what happens next. Perhaps they have changed, or not.


The New Algorithm

Google's new algorithm is supposed to use a secret formula and thus far it is a secret kept from all. I am getting mixed messages between Google, Yahoo! And Bing. Yahoo! appreciates the keywords in the domain name and this will give your website higher ranking with those keywords. Read the section on Domain Implementations in this Yahoo! Advertising guide. I do not believe that Google appreciates this anymore though, and it may serve to lower your Google ranking – I have seen evidence of this in the new algorithm.

Perhaps you must have one website optimized for Google and one optimized for Yahoo! and Bing. It has all become confusing. It used to be that you simply had one website that said what your business did and offered information, and then the SEO (search engine optimization) people came along and changed that – your website needed SEO or it would sink in rankings. Now the SEO craze seems to be over, except that everyone is attempting to figure out and master the new algorithm. Read through the ongoing discussion on Webmaster World.

As an example, my site that I use for research has been lost at times and research is not really possible as the phone doesn't ring anymore, except periodically (I will get to that issue). Websites that do not relate to the keyword phrase at all have a better rank now, including one that has a couple of sentences and a telephone number and otherwise several blank pages. What the hell? Somehow I do not believe that deleting all information from my website will help it get back the better ranking. I do not get it.

I sometimes check ranking on that site from different IP addresses – easily done by checking from a Blackberry, an Android, and a PC or laptop. Well, the results are astonishing to me: Using the same keyword phrase it will not show at all (I only check up to page 5 of search results) at times, it will show on page 1 at times, and on page 2 at other times. There is no formula possible here except a rotation of some sort. There is no way to optimize with that algorithm and perhaps that is the idea, except that when it doesn't show some total garbage websites do show – and what good is that to the searcher? What good is it to the business? It is just screwed-up and nothing more.


What about PPC (pay per click)?

This is also confusing. You will certainly see PPC ads at the top and side of search results for adult business websites; however, Google has been suspending accounts of adult business sites using AdWords and Yahoo/Bing are anything but clear on adult content ads in their advertising program. Still, you see ads on all three that are wild in comparison to your mild content and images, right?

Want to be confused? Read Microsoft Advertising's Adult Content Guidelines and the Google AdWords Help forum to start. Apparently the rules do not apply to all of us.


Final Thoughts

My advice is to have at least two websites that are different and use different keyword phrases. One domain should make use of the most important keyword phrase in the URL and the other should not. They have decided to confuse us all to death. Use confusion to your advantage and have 10 different websites and watch and see which websites make it in which search engines. Now that is time consuming!

Goodbye to the Old Maps

An anonymous poster commented on Inventing a New Business Model (last comment at this time) that Google no longer offers phone verification for new listings, at least not in the “escort services” category. In other words they now want to mail you a postcard so the address in the listing must be correct. An excerpt from the comment:

“Google no longer offers phone verification for new business listings. I'm sure it's because of the category (Escort Services) I'm trying to submit a new listing under. I've tried pretty much everything to create an account this past month (using different IP"s, submitting to local directories, followed by Google Places, etc.) - but to no avail. The rules have changed, and it's no longer possible to enter rogue addresses for new listings...”

Perhaps this is where the Virtual Office could come in handy, even if you have an over-priced broom closet in a challenging (read crime ridden) area of the county as many in Las Vegas and Clark County must to obtain the “outcall promoter” license. If you're opening a service in Las Vegas you have probably figured out that you will be paying between $600 and $1000 a month for a broom closet that you'll never use, except of course to hang your license on the wall.

In my opinion, challenging Clark County on the requirement of the M-1 or M-D zoned office for the “outcall promoter” license is not really intelligent. Why? Well because they are otherwise friendly – they just want your money (for the license and the 1% of your gross revenue). It is best to choose your battles wisely.

Many office buildings in good areas close to McCarren International Airport or near the Strip offer virtual office space for a low monthly rate. They even toss in access to their meeting rooms so it could be the location that you use to interview escorts, dancers, and strippers initially. No escort in her right mind will want to meet with you at your broom closet office in an industrial/manufacturing area.

Now you could use that appropriately priced virtual office address for Google to mail you a postcard. Make sure that you rent one in a building as close as possible to the Strip resorts as the address should be in a good geographical proximity for this purpose. What's another $200-300 a month to have a real interview/ meeting room to use and an address for Google Places to send a postcard? Of course you could also use it for your listing address in Local.com or to receive all mail for your business. That's the point of the Virtual Office.

The thing about Google Places (formerly Maps) is that the top listings really ring the phone. If you are open to flexible pricing and quote a lower rate on that phone line, you'll be in the money. If you quote the same rates as you do on your website it is a waste of time. Quote $300 an hour in Orlando and you will say goodbye to 10 to 20 potential clients daily, on the average. If these blind callers wanted to pay that price they'd view your website, see the escorts, and pay it. People that call Maps listings are shopping around based on price.

Do not attempt to include a website in your Places/Maps listing as Google won't allow any in that have “escort” or “escort service” in the domain name, at least that is my latest research conclusion. No problem though – simply give your callers a website address with the lower rate and photos of the escorts as this is frequently requested.

The bottom line is that you'll spend a few hundred $s for that Maps listing and use of the meeting rooms, but as stated previously, the phone really rings and allows the opportunity to adjust your rate and book lots of calls. If you booked three (3) calls a month and charged $100 fee from the escorts for each call you would cover costs, but I am sure that you'll do better than that if you're flexible on rates.

 Of course you could also use your actual office in the industrial area for the Maps listing, but then a business with an address closer to the Strip or the particular resort the searcher is at will show in the listings above yours. This is using Las Vegas as an example and it could be different in your city and you may be able to actually have your office in the best area for business.

Edit @5pm to add: I looked on Craigslist in the office / commercial space category and found many listings for "virtual offices" that include a mailing address and box, use of conference rooms, and 24 hour access. This could easily be used for all mailing for your business and to schedule interviews and use the conference room. I believe that most cities have many listings in this category. Make sure the address is in the geographic proximity of where you want to book calls, for the purpose of the Maps listings.

Life evolves and we must evolve along with it.

Inventing a New Business Model

It is a fact that life is always evolving. Technology improves and situations change and we must go with the flow and change as well. Some changes are for the better and some are not. Sometimes there are new beneficiaries to changes in technologies and situations in life - even anti-adult business crusades.

A reviewer of my Blueprint book on Amazon made a statement that stuck in my mind - the review is titled Incredibly Useful Book, and the statement:

"...This book doesn't have 100% of the answers. Each area and each philosophy have their own complexities. But it has really valid guidance for anyone in the adult entertainment industry. For your tiny investment, you'll get thousands of dollars worth of information."

In other words, there is much information to gain from the book, though there is no one size fits all plan. There are probably as many ways of doing business as there are people in the business, and every geographical area has its issues that are specific to the area. Anyway, this isn't a book ad, so on to the idea of inventing a new business model.

Ideas always evolve and my last post was the beginning of an idea. There are a variety of situations that have changed in the escort business in the past few months.

Craigslist eliminated "adult services" and "erotic services" in the US a few months ago and as of this weekend they have eliminated these categories worldwide. Some entrepreneurial adult business owners were placing ads on Craigslist outside of the US for businesses in the US, and now that is cut.

Google Places/Maps has evolved to the point that one doesn't want to include a website with any listing because Google has issues with any adult business landing page - even when the dancers, strippers, entertainers, escorts or whatever are dressed and it is an "R" rated website. I admit that I don't get it, but then that is immaterial, right?

Backpage has adult categories as of this point in time (LOL - see date of this post), but I seriously doubt that this will continue for much longer.

I am finding that it is taking an excessively long time for escort businesses to be indexed in Google's regular search results as well these days. I'm not sure when all of this began, but I submitted several sites a couple of months ago and none show where they need to show as of yet. Perhaps this isn't a completely new problem: A few years ago it was over six months before the research site that I've used showed in the appropriate keyword phrases, but then I really didn't work at it at all either so it was unnoticeable at the time.

There isn't much money in selling ad space to independent escorts, unless you've been doing it for a while and your website is well-known in the world of adult business. Unless you have some reason to be happy with earning close to nothing for the first year or two of business this idea should be out.

I posted about the Craigslist situation on my Accused Madam Blog tonight and at the moment the best category name for the new business model that I could come-up with was appointment referral publisher. I will work at renaming the category this week, but this is the business idea behind the name:

As a business you'll only be charging entertainers and escorts one referral fee - this depends on what rate you quote as your fee will be higher if you quote higher, otherwise you have no incentive to quote a higher rate for the independent contractors. The idea is to have lots of escorts/entertainers to call at any point that you are answering. You can give only basic information - name, telephone number, and address or include some sort of verified information. The Blueprint books get into verifying.

The general rule would be that the escort or entertainer must call back immediately if she isn't going to the appointment. The reason for this is so that you could contact a different escort/entertainer and make your referral fee. You'll find that plenty of independent contractors are interested in signing-on with this type of operation - they keep more money and there's no game involved in passing out their telephone number or staying longer.

This business model must be refined and independent contractor agreements must be clear on the referral only aspect of the relationship. I'm just making changes to the same contract that I include in my books - simple.

The idea here is to take this idea and adjust it so that it works for you. It sure beats the label of escort service these days with all of these groups on a crusade to finish off adult business. It will work because the great majority of independent escorts really want to be completely independent; however, they're clueless on the topics of websites, marketing, and advertising so they'll never get search engine optimization.

What you are actually doing is marketing and publishing online and scheduling for independent contractors. Many clients call services to begin with because often these independents are unable to schedule them or do not answer a phone when they call, so build a business model from that.

Booking Calls: Ideas and Issues

It has recently come to my attention that some escort businesses in Central Florida take exorbitant fees from escorts for the sole act of passing on a telephone number. Let's be clear here: that isn't booking a call. Booking a call involves verifying client information in some way, calling the escort with the information, and then anticipating that the escort will call you when she arrives. It doesn't end there either – you really are responsible to make sure that she safely leaves that call.

This problem seems rampant in Central Florida so there's little doubt that it is transpiring in other locations as well. These businesses are not new and inept in the booking process; they are merely shirking all responsibility. One in particular that was brought to my attention actually just passes the telephone number on to the escort and tops that off by taking over 50% for a fee. So if the person answering the telephone quotes $250, the fee for the call is at least $125 and sometimes more. I was told the split was 60/40 with the higher amount going to the service by one escort and 50/50 by another, so I must assume they charge escorts differently.

In the case of one particular company that's been around for a long time they sometimes do no more than retrieve the telephone number from voicemail and call the escort and instruct her to call and quote the price and client information; often they will then go to sleep and the escort is on her own.

This could be acceptable if the company charged a small fee. I recall a business from South Florida that was open for many years – at least a decade – that only passed on a name and telephone number. They gave the escort 5 minutes to call back and say she was not going, and if she didn't call back in the 5 minutes she owed the $50 fee. It didn't matter if the escort went to the call or not or went and stayed for 5 hours, making $2000 – she owed the $50 fee. They did collections daily at a Denny's restaurant and if an escort didn't show to pay she was off the call list.

This could actually be a good way of doing business – it eliminates the concern of escorts stealing calls or pretending to leave and staying and collecting hour after hour. If the escort called back within the 5 minutes to say that she wasn't going, they called someone else immediately no matter what her reasoning was. If she did that too often (perhaps 2 times in a row?), they no longer called her and instead called someone else. Try to cheat them out of their $50 fee and you were out quick – end of that gravy train.

I have also noticed lately that so many of these independent escorts are thieves that I can't really blame these businesses. Often these escorts accept a call and then call back with a short story about why they will not be going. They then go to the call and keep all money for themselves. Who knows what they state to the client to secure his silence – I have no clue as I'm not the escort. Sometimes the client calls back later and the service finds out anyway.

With all of the thieving independents out there today that simply do not know how to advertise and market for themselves and want to steal agency clients, including the first booking fee, it may be time for change. If you are not inclined to run around all night to see who is doing what where, you may be better off with charging a small fee for the information and just letting her work on her own. I do not advise you to take 50% in such an arrangement though, and I do advise you to note the specifics in a contract so that the escort is clear on your level of responsibility and hers.

The way that you operate should be based on your level of participation and your expenses. I am seeing viable reasoning for that old South Florida business model, but prices have gone-up across the board since then and charging $60 or $75 for a name and telephone number isn't entirely out of whack. If you have plenty of escorts to call the thieves will soon realize they have been checkmated.

This business model is somewhere in-between an escort service and an internet publisher. I think I actually like the idea and will be putting it to good use.

Backpage under Attack on Anderson Cooper

Anderson Cooper and Amber Lyon are now attacking Backpage in the same way they went after Craiglist. The show is on the air right now so I cannot find a link yet. Give it a while and do a Google search for the link.

Because of a runaway girl and some idiot that sent her out via Backpage these people attacking adult business in the US will most likely succeed at censoring out any adult categories on the Backpage website. I'm sure you've noticed how prices have risen since Craigslist exited; well wait till the categories are removed on Backpage. Already – as of two or three weeks ago – no images are allowed in the "adult jobs" category.

Ad space for any adult business anywhere will be premium price. In my opinion this is overkill and purely an intention to eradicate adult business in this country except under the most controlled conditions. What is next? Internet Service Providers that host adult websites, in my opinion.

Keep your eyes open here folks – life is really changing in the US.

The Outcall Escort Business

I will be the first to admit that I am over the escort business. With all the years that I was in business in Orlando ending with the trial from hell, the earlier years of answering telephones in Miami, and the recent years of research, well, I've just had it. Perhaps this was obvious to you after you read my previous post.

We all reach our snap point and I think that I've passed mine. For financial reasons I have considered putting that research site to good use, though I have been quite ill the past month and my voice sounds terrible. I almost feel as if I'm losing it (my voice). And then 99 out of a 100 callers are a problem for one reason or anther: too cheap; a group; made a compromising statement prompting me to disconnect the call; expect a Playboy Bunny but cheap; out of the jurisdictional boundary. You name it, I've heard it lately and it's a problem.

Many callers are treating an agency as if they called an independent escort. You could translate that to they've been too cheap and do not consider that any rate quoted includes a booking fee. Before the year is over I will be giving the research site to an independent contractor that I've known for a while. Perhaps she'll have better luck or opt to quote lower rates and do all of the calls herself.

I may be going into business in another city, but it will be an entertainment company that sends out dancers and strippers for parties, not an escort service. Sorry, but I can't tell you which city I have in mind and actually I may operate in several cities as the rules about crossing state lines do not necessarily apply if your true goal is to book dancers at parties and it is 100% clear that it is a Strip-o-Gram and party style of operation.

I have had a target on my back since 1994, so actually booking parties will be a fun change for me. There won't be any private parties or one-on-one involved in this business and any independent contractor (dancer, stripper) that crosses the line will be promptly dismissed. The dancers and strippers will be required to have a variety of costumes.

When I have the business and website set-up properly I will announce the location here with the hope that interested dancers in the cities of operation will contact me for professional work.

I probably will not be advertising my Blueprint books anymore in short time, but the paperbacks will always be available on Amazon.com or any could be ordered from Barnes and Noble. I also intend to stop selling PDF copies from this blog and my website. All of this will transpire before the year is over. I will still support my books, but readers will need to contact me at the email address included in the book for a response. All I ask is that you actually read the book before asking the questions – you may need to refer to the book at a later date if issues arise, so don't lose it or toss it out. You never know…

Look for my announcement in the near future or feel free to contact me if you have an interest in working as a professional stripper/dancer for events and parties only in any specific city.

The Touring Concept

It sounds like a great business idea unless you are aware of the potential pitfalls. The concept of escorts touring to different cities for pre-booked appointments should be a viable business plan, but it isn't. I have stated this fact in each Blueprint book, in every phone consultation, and in any email that touched on the topic. Of course I also add it to every other blog post for maximum saturation. By now you know my opinion if you're reading this.

It is a widely known fact that crossing a state line transforms a state issue into a federal issue. But why should that matter because you are not doing anything illegal, right? The simple answer is that it shouldn't matter. The explanation is that you must only be accused of doing something illegal. Being accused and being guilty are two different situations. The base of any allegation by federal prosecutors would be a description of the defendant crossing a state line in the course of business, so if you've never done this then you do not need to worry about the entire issue.

These days it is often teamed with the sex trafficking allegation when it pertains to touring escorts or companions. I have discussed the evolution of the term sex trafficking in depth in other posts, so I won't be repetitive here. This is merely a reminder with proof attached. Many that read this blog are not interested in The Accused Madam Blog, but I want you to read these two recent articles:

Miami Companions Owners Indicted

Unraveling the Miami Companions Indictment

If you still think that touring escorts is a good idea after reading, well, we don't know each other. Sometimes I have little to say about the escort business as it is like an old hat to me – how much can one say about it? It is what it is.

Image: Downtown Miami Florida at Night 2010 © FotoMak / 2010 © iStockphoto.com

A discussion about Drivers

Whether your business is an escort service, companionship service, or an entertainment company there is no reason to ever hire a driver to drive the independent contractors to calls, houses, or events. Your independent contractors must drive themselves or have their own driver to transport them. Your business should never have interactions with their drivers, if they have one.

Hiring a driver for other reasons is usually a good idea though. That driver should work for your business and not for the independent contractors. The driver's job description would be to collect your fees from the independent contractors as directed at the time and place that you instruct. Really your driver is on-call for you during pre-determined hours.

An added use for a driver would be as a chaperone at a party if you are booking bachelor parties or other celebrations and providing strippers or dancers to entertain more than one person. A dancer or stripper will often have her or his own chaperone – usually a friend or boyfriend, but it's a good idea to have your chaperone present for all party-type events, and collecting fees at the event is convenient when you do it this way.

Paying your driver can be done anyway that you want to do it, but here is an idea that's fair to all involved:

To have your driver on-call for your business from 8pm to 6am (or whatever hours) you will need to pay that driver a specified amount per shift, whether you call the driver or not. All of this depends on how busy you are, and when you first open it's a better idea to be your own driver. This type of pay should be in the form of a weekly pay check, but your driver could also be an independent contractor and receive pay for each shift. Read IRS guidelines on independent contractors v. employees and decide which best describes your situation.

If using a driver as a chaperone for parties or events that you dispatch dancers or strippers to, that driver should receive added compensation. The driver would already be receiving shift pay from your business if attending a party, but this is an extra duty and that shift pay is really only to collect your fees. It is a good idea to have a surcharge – the amount is up to you, but don't cheat your driver/chaperone. A surcharge of $20 per dancer/stripper added to the total tab shouldn't be an issue for the customer. You can explain it just like that – we have a $20 surcharge per dancer for chaperone services, and sorry, but we require that a company chaperone be present at all events. Your driver/chaperone should receive the entire amount.

Other compensation for the driver that is a chaperone at events should include a tip. The dancers/strippers should value the chaperone services enough to part with a decent tip as they are tipped by partygoers. In America services are rewarded with tips. Sometimes dancers/strippers try to be cheap though, so there should be a set percentage. You'll never be able to keep everyone honest, but then the chaperone is there and will see whether tips are flowing or not. If the driver feels cheated on the tip – he or she must deal with you, and not with the individual stripper. You will deal with that stripper. The percentage would vary from 10% to 20%, depending on how many partygoers and strippers are at the scheduled event. You'll have to offer a solution that is acceptable to all – the chaperone and the strippers.

If you don't already understand this I will state it once more: Your company driver should never transport an escort, entertainer, dancer, stripper, or companion to a scheduled call or event. Their transportation must be their issue. Your driver should also never appear partial to a particular person as he or she is there representing the company and shouldn't accept any tips for picking up your fees as you direct. All involved should be clear that your company driver is exactly that, and not their ride or tool to more calls or events.

Edited to add: Your driver should always be reimbursed for expenses. Expenses are gas, tolls, or any other expense that is a result of carrying out your instructions.

The Erotic Review and Reference Verification

Best known as TER, The Erotic Review is a website visited by "hobbyists" and "providers" that interact on the boards. The "hobbyists" are of course clients that often post reviews of the "providers" that they arrange appointments with. These odd terms came to be back in 2002, following the arrests of operators of the Big Doggie website and a lengthy list of participants on the site that followed sting operations. Prior to late 2002, I never heard the term anywhere and then it suddenly became the accepted lingo.

The practice of references and reviews is indeed questionable. The great majority of reviews written by hobbyists are explicit, though many make an attempt to mask the reality by using commonly known terms in the adult business world. Newsflash – the terms are so common that law enforcement officers would have to be buried in sand to not get it. I have known some stupid cops in my time, but none that dumb. The references system began innocently enough with providers exchanging references for clients to avoid arrest and to at least feel safe from harm when with a new clients, but later escalated to operations like Date Check.

The Erotic Review has reviews by city and state that are sorted by the date posted. The last time I looked there were over 800 posted in Orlando area. Both hobbyists and providers seem to believe that they are anonymous, with all the aliases; however, TER has been under investigation by state and federal law enforcement agencies for too many years. They kid only themselves. To read the explicit reviews one must be a member of TER, and otherwise can't read "the juicy details". Only post reviews there or join if you really do not care about arrests or the exposure of your "hobby".

Date Check is another crazy operation – let's not pretend that law enforcement officers can't create their own references. The minimum amount of information for hobbyists/clients includes first name, last name, and middle initial, the last four digits of a social security number or driver's license, an employer's name and location, and a direct line to reach you at work. They also want a list of providers that will provide references, whether members of Date Check or not. At the end they offer a "this is for entertainment purposes only" disclaimer. No kidding, right? What a database/client list this must be, right? It sure wouldn't surprise me to hear the feds were/are involved in this operation as it sounds like it could be far more successful than the credit card sting operations.

Anyway, my point herein is that having reviews plastered all over the internet or allowing anyone to verify information for you can end negatively. Don't believe me? Read the farewell statement from John St. Marie and the ABC News article about the situation in Minneapolis in the Nice Guys investigation. You can also read about the Mississippi cardiologist charged with Mann Act violations in Mississippi Cardiologist Won't Go to Prison for Online Dating. Mann Act violations and touring prostitutes is a topic that I will post on in the next few days.

Credit Cards and Escort Services

There are divided opinions on the topic of escort businesses accepting credit cards for service, but most readers are aware of my position in the argument. The main reason that I would never take credit cards is that it creates a client list for the bank and anyone that wants to subpoena the records – read state or federal government. If I wanted to pass around client lists then I would go ahead and accept credit cards.


Jeane Palfrey (the accused DC Madam) didn't accept credit cards, but she did have the escorts mailing her money orders on a regular basis. If they managed to locate all of the escorts that testified by tracking the money orders, what do you think they'll do with your credit card records in relation to tracking your clients? That is how they located close to all escorts that were called as government witnesses in her case, and even a few clients that she had mailing her money orders.

It is not that you are conducting any illegal business. It is that if you are ever under scrutiny for any reason, the first thing that they will do is subpoena those records. Those records are client lists. Do you not believe that if squeezed by state or federal authorities the clients will state whatever they're told to state? Whether escorts provided prostitution or not or you discussed full service with the clients on the phone or not, you have set yourself up for a fall. It depends what that client has to lose, and most would say anything to get themselves out of a jam. Credit card records are there for years.

It is also important to note that the credit card billing must be in the correct legal name of your business and the paperwork with the credit card processing company must reflect the correct type of business. Surely you have heard of charge-backs, right? Well, you'll have more than your share of charge-backs and the consequent problems with the escorts. Few escorts want to work for the service that accepts credit cards once they realize that it could mean they won't be paid for an appointment.

I read through, and still have, all of my co-defendant's credit card records in the case from hell. Why do you think he pled guilty? Certainly the client list/credit card records played a part in the plea. There were plenty of people with incentive to testify against him. In the case they located only one client from my agency, and he had given an escort a business card a week before agents accosted her and searched her purse. She was not arrested – but they stole the business card from her purse. They then contacted and threatened the client by telling him that they had all of my client records, and dipshit that he was, he bought it hook, line, and sinker. He then helped them get me to send an escort out, and that escort was arrested. I never thought anything of sending her there as he was a repeat client. However, because he was the only client they located and because he hired an attorney, they didn't call him to testify. Of course the manner in which they located him also had something to do with him not being called as a witness.

These days there are cash machines everywhere – from 7-11 to the hotel lobby. How can anyone that wants to book an appointment claim that they cannot get cash?

You may never have a problem with cards, with the operative word being may. I will state that there is a 10% chance that you will never have legal problems as a result of accepting credit cards. Is it all worth the chance to you? If it is, then you should accept credit cards for your escort business. If it isn't worth the probable fallout, then send your potential clients to cash machines. It is really that simple. We all operate our businesses as we see fit, but any agency that I have ever encountered has had legal troubles over the cards, eventually.

Advice for the Independent Escort

My Blueprint for an Escort Service book and Blueprint for an Escort Service 2: Beyond the Original Blueprint are written for the escort business entrepreneur and are all about the business side of the equation. An independent escort interested in turning her (or his) lone venture into one in which they are able to profit by setting appointments for other escorts and operating an escort service will benefit from both books. Everything that I write is from the perspective of the escort business owner (former anyway).

For the independent that is only interested in booking her own calls and is looking for advice that is more escort oriented, there is a list of great books available on Amazon.

Amanda Brooks writes The Internet Escort's Handbook Book 1: The Foundation and The Internet Escort's Handbook Book 2: Advertising and Marketing. Amanda has two blogs and writes frequently on the escort business, but from the perspective of the escort.

Kay Good has written an excellent advice book for independent escorts, and as far as I know, she is still in the business. Her book is titled In Good Company: The Escort's Guide, and it is available on Amazon. Kay doesn't have a blog or website – at least it's not connected to her book page on Amazon.

If you are seeking tax advice, J.D. Roberts is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) that has written two books targeting the independent escort that works on her own. This is his specialty tax area. His books are:

The Business Side of Escorting: The Ins and Outs of Running a Business in the Cyber Age for the Escort and Sensual Masseuse Serious about Her Business


The Business Side of Escorting II: The Escort's Guide to Intelligently Running Her Business in the Cyber Age

Now J.D. Roberts is an accountant and his titles are mainly tax advice for an independent.

Hopefully, with all of the real books available, you will pass on these $100 to $600 books or guides offered by so-called experts. I'm sure that each knows something about the escort business, but anyone that tells you that you'll make millions$ or tries to convince you that you need a 5-volume package is pulling your leg.

Most people that get into operating escort services never read a book about the process because there is no exact process. It is business and not much more. Tips and advice are helpful, but in the end it is really up to you to make your business work.

How to Open an Escort Business

This post on how to open an escort business gets so many reads that I felt it necessary to add an update. If you really want to open and operate an escort service correctly you must be aware of the party offering the advice. Sure I'd like it if you opt to buy a copy of Blueprint but the goal of this update is not to sell my $10 ebook.

One main point that I'd like to make here is the absolute necessity of knowing who is offering the information. If anyone claims to have operated a successful escort business for several years or more, that party should not have any problem giving a real name and verifiable information, unless they never owned an escort service to begin with and/or evaded taxes. And then if they were as successful as they claim, why write and sell such information? Hell, they shouldn't need the money and should be kicking back in Amsterdam (or wherever), right?

There are others besides me that are capable of writing a how to book on escort service operations; however, to date none of them have. The information that I see out there comes from a couple of marketers that have read my book, a couple of people that have been in business for 2-4 years and are still in business, a guy that uses escorts for sexual trysts, and a woman that was in business in Canada for a few years.

The marketers are people that have read books on how to operate an escort business (like my books for example) and then rearranged the information, threw in this or that and removed parts, and now are on a hard sell mission. These people may indeed be better at marketing than I am; however, they know little to nothing of how an escort business actually works and the many potential dangers involved for you. They paint it with a broad brush and refer to it as "fun" and "sexy" and tell you you'll make $millions when it's more likely that you'll be indicted before the first year is over if you follow their advice.

There's one new guy in town and he bought a copy of my book back when it was available as a PDF. I'm not going to name this outfit, but you'll find that the expensive book they sell has a similar structure to my own, though the content is not at all the same. In other words, they used many of my chapter titles, but that is where the similarities evolve. One major difference in the book is that they try to sell you on a merchant account by including a free website (thanks, but I'll control my own domains and websites).

Yes, they want you to sign-up and accept credit cards for your new escort service and if you have read my book, well, you know what I say about that, whether anyone agrees or not. Hell, I have sat and watched it for over 15 years now and always knew better than to accept cards or any form of payment other than cash. Yes, that includes the Green Dot crap, but that isn't why I'm bothering to update here.

I have mentioned this long story on my other blog - Operation Out Call (IRS), but the original story that was embedded in the blog footer is no longer viewable as Blogger won't allow frames anymore. It is available free in Google Books and is a New York Magazine article dated July 22, 1996, titled "The Love Float," but states "The Screwball Scheme" on the actual start page.

Go to page 30 here: The Love Float by Daniel Green

End of March 2012 Update.

My last post induced me to look and see what information is actually available for the inexperienced escort service entrepreneur that has little or no knowledge of the business. So guess what – I'm going to do your work for you and include a list here; I will also offer my opinion on each listing, though I recommend my Blueprint books for the entrepreneurial types that need to get involved in a money-making business and do not expect 24/7 live support. I certainly answer questions, but there are limits to this.

1. The most findable information is offered by Michelle of Exotic Publishing.

The first issue that I have with Michelle is her opening line: "Have you ever dreamed of getting rich by opening and owning your very own escort agency?"

To me this is scary stuff. Why? Because I have known people with agencies from Orlando to NYC to London, and none have ever hit the "rich" category. To me the escort business is simply create-a-job. Sure, you can make a decent living at it, but it is a lot of work, and you'll never get rich if you operate correctly. Sorry, but those are the facts. Michelle offers a 5-volume box set for $544. Sorry Michelle, but the escort business isn't rocket science and I cannot imagine what information requires five volumes.

After reading the "about" page on her website, I decided that Michelle seems like a nice lady, that probably knows her stuff – except for the credit card thing. Accepting credit cards is good, if you're in Canada or Las Vegas. If you want 24/7 live support it might be a good idea to go with Michelle's deal. From my perspective, if you need 24/7 live support you don't belong in the escort business, and this is not a service that comes with my books by any stretch of the imagination. Just do yourself a favor and ignore what she says about credit cards.

2. The next most simple to find information is from Lenexa & Hefner, whoever they are. They say that they are "experts in the escort industry," but don't you want to know why they claim such a title? I do. Who are they? Well, they do not explain that at all. I don't know about you, but I want a resume of some type from anyone that claims expert status.

They state that their information is valued at over $550, but it's on sale now for $?. That's quite a markdown – better hurry. They list a featured client as "Las Vegas Escorts" and have a banner link to the website. Few services in Vegas refer to the business as an "escort service" as escort services cannot be licensed there. Vegas has loads of "entertainment companies" licensed as "outcall promoters" that send out dancers or entertainers.

Where is Mr. Winky? I can't seem to find his information anywhere, but this guy can tell you how to find girls and use them to operate an incall – which is not an escort service at all. So if that is what you want to do, then find Mr. Winky on your own. He does sound like an expert on that.

There are several real books on Amazon.com that relate to becoming an escort, advertising and marketing for the escort, and accounting for the escort, but that is not the discussion here. This is all about opening and operating an escort service – I never went out as the escort and I'm not figuring that you intend to. This is all about running a business.

If you are seeking a babysitter, I would advise you to go with Michelle - she charges a high price, but she also states that 24/7 live support is included. At the same time I must ask you to analyze your ability to run escort services.

Caveat Emptor!

Defining Escort and Escort Service

What is an Escort Service?

In the course of my research for a second book that's in progress, a situation of great importance, at least in the adult business world, has come to my attention. I believe that what is transpiring can easily be attributed to law enforcement continuously labeling hookers as "escorts" and brothels and in-call operations as "escort services" – it is as I stated it in Memoirs of an Accused Madam – the general population listens to these police agencies and believes what they state, and after it is stated repeatedly on various forums over a length of time, it becomes factual, at least in the mind.


Definition of "escort" from two sources:

Oxford University Press Dictionary & Thesaurus (2002 version):

noun (1) – entourage, attendants, bodyguard, protector, convoy, defender, contingent.
(2) – partner, companion, gigolo, hostess, geisha; informal date; dated beau.
verb (1) – accompany, guide, conduct, lead, usher, guard, protect, safeguard, defend.
(2) – partner, accompany, take out, go out with, attend on.

Cambridge University Press (2009 online version)

noun (social companion) (1) – a person who goes with another person, usually someone of the opposite sex, to a social event. (2) – someone, often a young woman, who is paid to go out to social events with another person: He hired an escort girl to go to dinner with him.

verb (formal) – to go to a social event with someone, especially a person of the opposite sex: Who will be escorting her to the ball?

Nowhere in either definition does this describe "prostitute," as a geisha is not a prostitute. Only in the U.S., thanks to overzealous law enforcement agencies, is "escort" defined as "prostitute." It must be noted that both Oxford and Cambridge are universities in the UK, so one may find "escort" defined as "prostitute" in a recent US dictionary – this is the trend lately, and not the proper English definition.


Definition of "escort service" or "escort agency":

Cambridge states: a business which supplies people who work as escorts.

Oxford online nor my 2002 version list these terms. Merriam-Webster also does not list it, so I'll go with the above stated Cambridge definition.

Now that we've straightened that out I'll get back to the problem at hand. I met two ladies a couple of days ago and each told me they had worked as an "escort" recently; however, both described an incall/brothel situation, and not at all an escort service. According to their stories, the business operator set them up in an apartment, scheduled 15 minute appointments, and sent in men. This could never be described as an "escort service" – it's clearly an incall operation, and if sex was involved, a brothel situation. Neither stated whether sex was involved or not and I didn't ask, as it falls in the category of none of my business. It simply infuriates me that a business operator would present such an operation as an escort service and these ladies had the audacity to refer to themselves as escorts! But then, I'm sure they interpreted it to be exactly that from listening to local law enforcement rhetoric that is now embedded in the minds of the general population.

An escort service sends escort out, and the escort and client go out to dinner, to a club, or tour the area. They do meet in the client's hotel room, but only to take care of business matters as this is not done publicly. An escort service can also operate as an entertainment business. An entertainer can entertain a client in the privacy of his home or hotel, and by "entertain" I mean offer a non-therapeutic body rub, a private dance, or a lingerie show. Certainly there will always be greedy and/or in-need escorts that will accept additional money (in the form of tips) for illegal services, but escorts are paid for time and company, not prostitution services. I have not yet encountered a real escort agency that takes any part of these tips, and few promote this type of service – why would they? While any escort service operator would hope that the ladies are tipped, at the same time none would expect it to be at their expense or for prostitution services.

These days every prostitute in the country is referred to as an escort, from the street hookers to the online hookers found on BigDoggie.net, Backpage, Craigslist, in Village Voice ads, or on The Erotic Review. The ads clearly reflect prostitution services, not escort services. There is a difference in services just as there is a difference in ad content.

Skip the inappropriate labels, please.