THE
INDEPENDENT ROUTE
Several
years ago a client of mine flew a Canadian escort to New Jersey for
the weekend. To his disappointment, the escort was not particularly
friendly, and their weekend together was somewhat strained. To alleviate
the tension, the client invited me to join them for one of their evenings
together.
The three of us went out to dinner to get to know each other. Unfortunately
it turned out to be a disaster. The escort ordered numerous drinks over
dinner, and consumed most of a double-bottle of wine by himself after
we returned to the room. Worse yet, he was becoming more obnoxious as
the evening went on, and began an argument with the client. We finally
began having sex together, only to hear the escort announce he was tired.
He stated that he only wanted to get us off so he could go to sleep.
When I finally left, I felt bad that the other escort's behavior had
ruined the evening for the client. I never forgot that he did that,
and over the next two years I discouraged quite a bit of business away
from him. I estimate his severe lack of professionalism cost him several
thousand dollars in lost business. More importantly, other clients were
diverted away from him towards other more responsible and friendly escorts.
If you have decided
to take the independent route of escorting, I congratulate you. It is
the decision I made years ago, and I have not regretted it for a single
day. I hope your experiences are as rewarding as mine have been.
Of course, before you can start making your millions, you have four
pieces of business to address. You need to:
Determine the image
you are going to use.
Price yourself in the market and set your rates.
Choose an escort name for yourself.
Develop an initial strategy for your business.
Once you have managed
these tasks, you will have all of the advanced planning done and will
be ready to begin the process of advertising. Once your advertising
reaches the public, your business will be up and running.
Choosing Your Image
The first step
in becoming an independent escort is to determine precisely what "type"
you will be. Porn stars, tops, swimmers, and even "nasty slave
boys" all have a market in the escort industry. Choosing the image
that is right for you will help successfully guide your business through
the planning stages into a thriving escorting business.
Every public part
of your business will be affected by your image. This includes the way
you phrase your advertisements, how you act on the phone, how you dress,
how you interact with clients, and even how you have sex. From bottom
boys to homeboyz, your image defines who you must be when you escort.
For most of you,
choosing your image will be easy. If you love leather and enjoy the
sight of a freshly paddled ass, chances are you are headed for a leather
role. Similarly, if you spent your college years playing sports and
are still physically active, you are a likely candidate for a jock.
You may even be cute, friendly, and intelligent, in which case you would
be well suited for the image of a boy-next-door type.
Of course, you may
want to be a bit more creative or unusual with your image. In my own
case, I identified as an intellectual boytoy right from the start, because
of my education, my short height, and my extremely boyish appearance.
A quick read through your local escort advertisements will reveal plenty
of others. I glanced in Unzipped magazine and found ads with images
such as an aggressive bodybuilder, international model, lifeguard, and
muscle cop.
Your geography may
also play a role. Consider where you live and what the area is famous
for. New York is a great place to present yourself as a model, and anyone
advertising as a student in Boston will certainly do well. Similarly,
Florida and Southern California are famous for their beaches and will
attract plenty of attention for those offering a surfer or beach boy
image. The opposite may apply as well. A rugged Iowa farm boy may do
well in New York City.
Of course, your
city or state may not have a good reputation associated with it. (Living
in New Jersey, I can certainly relate.) In this case there are plenty
of other options to consider. Pick an image based on an important trait
about you. Consider using past military service, how intelligent you
are, or even what styles of clothing you like to wear. College boys,
ex-Marines, and preppies
are all popular
options that bring specific images to mind.
Do not hesitate to use a more feminine image if that applies to you.
Because the vast majority of escorts are masculine in nature, an escort
specializing in gender-bending services could do well in some areas.
If you are a cross-dresser or transsexual, by all means use that as
your image. You will be placing yourself in a smaller market but one
in which you will have far less competition.
Pricing Yourself
Although your chosen
image will help you attract customers, the ultimate test of your success
will be whether potential clients are willing to pay your rate. Setting
your fee is tricky business because of its extreme importance. If you
set your rates too high, you will lose business. Set your rates too
low and you will be swamped with low-paying, less desirable clients.
To complicate the
issue even more, you should keep in mind that there is no correct way
to design your rate structure. While most escorts have an hourly rate,
an overnight rate, and a per-day rate for travel, others prefer more
creative fee structures. Some escorts offer lower rates on additional
hours, and others offer rates for 90-minute sessions. Some escorts charge
less for incall services, and others ask more for appointments that
require a significant amount of travel time. Other escorts will vary
their charges depending on the type of services they are providing or
whether the client is taking them out to dinner. A few escorts even
offer package deals, charging less per appointment if the client pays
in advance. I even know of one escort in California who charges $20
for 20 minutes. I cannot imagine he makes as much money as he would
by using a more traditional rate system, but he insists he does well
specializing in quickies. My own strategy has been to keep my rate structure
as simple as possible, although for more distant clients I require a
two-hour minimum.
Regardless of how
you want to design your fee structure, the first step in setting your
rate is to get a baseline price of what escorts charge in your area.
You can do that in one of several ways. Take a look at the escort ads
in your local gay publications or on the Internet. If you live in the
United States, you may also wish to look at your state's listings in
Unzipped magazine. Although not all ads list prices, you should be able
to get a feel for what escorts routinely charge. You can even assess
rates in your area more accurately if you concentrate on escorts who
are similar in image and appearance to yourself. You should also keep
in mind that people advertising as porn stars often have a slightly
higher rate because of their increased visibility.
If your publication does not print prices or has too few to make a decent
comparison, you may wish to call several escorts to inquire about their
rates. Pretending to be an interested client is an excellent way to
do this, although it is somewhat sneaky. You may also want to tell the
escorts you are new to the business, in the hopes that they will offer
you advice. Whatever you learn, be sure to listen to multiple opinions.
Occasionally you may find an unfriendly and highly competitive escort
who deliberately gives you false information.
The next stage of
pricing yourself is to consider the economics of supply and demand.
In simple terms, this means the more demand there is for your services,
the more you will be able to charge. Similarly, the less of a supply
of competition there is in your area, the more your services are worth.
The opposite is true as well. If you have plenty of competition and
are operating your business in a market with relatively few clients,
your prices are going to be significantly lower.
Of course, escorting is not a passive activity. There are plenty of
things you can do to increase the demand for your services while limiting
the supply of competitors. Some of them can be done when you initially
enter the industry, but others will take time to implement.
Your Rates Will
Be Higher If You…
Run a large and
highly effective advertising campaign.
Are unusually intelligent and well-educated.
Have an established clientele.
Offer fetish services.
Offer SM services.
Escort in an area with a large number of business travelers and tourists.
Live in an area with laws against prostitution (especially if they are
enforced).
Live near high-income suburban and urban areas.
Are able to offer both incall and outcall services.
Are famous, such as if you are a well-known porn star.
Have a good reputation as an escort.
Want to escort only on a limited basis.
Likewise, the opposites
of these will lower your rates. There are also a number of factors that
may reduce the demand for your services and supply of competition, thereby
lowering your rates.
Your Rates Will
Be Lower If You…
Are limited in what
you are sexually willing to do, such as not kissing or bottoming.
Provide bodywork and massage services rather than have sex.
Are particularly choosy about clients you are willing to work for.
Live in an area with large numbers of competing escorts, agencies, and
brothels.
Are difficult to contact by phone or e-mail or are not able to return
messages and pages quickly.
Have a limited schedule during which you are available.
When all is said
and done, you will probably have a rate somewhere between $100 and $200
per hour and between $500 and $800 for overnight appointments. Bodyworkers
will probably charge between $50 and $100 per hour and rarely have overnight
appointments. If you set your starting rate higher than those rates,
you may have a more difficult time developing a clientele. It also goes
without saying that rates in other countries will vary accordingly.
You should also
be aware that many escorts charge a higher fee for couples and threesomes.
Precisely how you want to handle this is up to you. Some escorts double
their rate, but others charge an additional 50%. Still other escorts,
usually the more expensive ones, do not charge more for threeways because
they feel their rates are already sufficient for their time (or because
they like the sex). Whatever your rate for threesomes, you should be
aware that this is only for meetings with two clients. It is not customary
to charge an additional fee when the third person is another escort.
You may find yourself
tempted to lower your rates if you lack confidence in the value of your
time. While it is a personal decision, I urge you not to sell yourself
short. The above rules of pricing should help determine a good starting
rate. A skilled escort is always in demand, so do not undervalue the
importance of your time. If you undercharge your rates in the beginning,
you will be flooded with too much business and will be forced to raise
rates later.
Conversely, you
may feel the suggested rate is too low for you. In this case, you should
not despair. Once you develop a clientele, you will find your rates
steadily increasing. We will come back to the topic of raising your
rates in chapter twenty-one.
Regardless of your initial rate, you should know one important lesson:
There will always be people who will believe that your rates are too
high. You cannot please everyone, so don't even think twice when a client
complains about your rates. You are in business, after all, and a good
businessman knows what his product is worth. If a potential client gripes
about your rates, politely inform him that "you get what you pay
for." You will still lose most of the complainers, but sometimes
they will surprise you. The same client may call you an hour later and
offer to pay your fee.
There are also two
other types of pricing worth mentioning. The first is "negotiating
down," a technique whereby an escort quotes a higher rate on the
phone but is willing to settle for less money. Unfortunately, this approach
is ultimately self-defeating and unhealthy for the entire escort industry.
Clients learn that if they negotiate with escorts they can get a lower
rate, which in turn encourages them to request discounts from other
escorts. I do not recommend anyone adopt this system unless they are
in immediate need of money. You would be better off lowering your initial
asking price instead.
The second method
is "negotiating up." In this style of pricing, an escort meets
the client and begins to perform sexually, only to refuse to provide
certain (often promised) services until the client pays more money.
Dancers who find their clients in adult theaters, hustlers who work
the streets, and "gay-for-pay" escorts most commonly practice
this tactic. Practicing this technique can be dangerous, because on
occasion victims of these tactics will become physically threatening
or violent.
On occasion you
will meet an escort who charges by the act. This is not standard and
is extremely legally risky to practice. You should not consider adopting
such a system. If there are sex acts you would be willing to do if people
paid you more, charge more in the first place and then offer them as
a service. If that idea does not appeal to you, then do not offer those
acts as services at all.
Negotiating up also
occurs when escorts demand more money from clients they consider unattractive,
either in advance or once they arrive. This is highly unethical and
is hurtful and insulting to clients. An escort who is unable or unwilling
to provide services for a client should politely apologize and leave.
Choosing an Escort Name
The vast majority
of escorts, even those who openly display their picture in advertisements,
use an alias in their work. An alias will provide little legal protection,
but it does give you some privacy from the general public. Escorting
can be a dangerous profession on occasion, and the ability to hide your
true name can be an invaluable tool when it comes to protecting yourself.
Choosing your escort
name is not difficult. Unless you have plans to enter porn or otherwise
become well-known, a last name is probably unnecessary. Just be sure
to look through local print and online advertisements for escorts, crossing
out names that are already being used.
Before you choose
from the remaining selections, I can offer you one tip that I guarantee
most escorts will not have considered. You should make a point of choosing
your name based on letters early in the alphabet. Once you begin advertising
on the Internet, you will find that many sites list escorts in alphabetical
order. Having a name that begins with an early letter will give you
a much stronger placement. This can be particularly important when the
list has several hundred escorts on it.
Planning
Your Initial Strategy
Now that you have
determined your image and your pricing, you are ready to plan your initial
business strategy. By this point, you should already have a number of
ideas on the subject, so your strategy should be easy to formulate.
For starters, consider
whether you plan on using escorting income to meet your basic living
expenses. This includes full-time escorts, those using their escorting
income to pay tuition, and people depending on escorting to pay important
bills. If you will be subsisting on your escorting, you will need to
pay much closer attention to what you are doing, keep better records,
maintain higher standards of client goodwill, and treat your business
with a greater level of professionalism. This is not to say those who
escort for fun and spending money should not be maintaining high standards
as well. Escorts dependent on their business income simply have much
more at stake.
Another consideration
for your strategy is whether to take incalls. Entertaining a client
in your home has its own risks but also generates additional business.
Incalls are ideally suited for escorts who live alone, although many
escorts with supportive roommates offer them as well. Your home should
have adequate parking, convenient access to mass transportation, and
be located in a safe neighborhood. Similarly, you will need to address
whether you will offer outcall services. Although the vast majority
of escorts do, some choose to work only in the comfort of their own
homes. If this is the case, you will need to make your limitation clear
at every step of your advertising process.
How your clients
contact you will affect how you run your advertising. If you do not
have regular access to a computer, you will be almost completely limited
to print advertising. Likewise, if you are living with your parents,
you may not be able to set-up appointments over the phone and will be
limited to online advertisements. Using either print or online advertisements
are fine for new and part-time escorts, but career escorts will want
to use both.
Finally, how much
money you intend to make will affect your investment of capital. Multiple
phone lines, a cellular phone, enhanced voicemail, a powerful computer,
and high-speed Internet access are all useful in this line of work.
Other "technical toys" like a digital camera, a scanner, a
good web-design program, and encryption software are also handy. Even
a suitable office area in your home is important. You will want to balance
your business needs with your financial goals as you develop your escorting
business, but in general the more you invest, the more money you will
earn.
Once you have set
your image, determined a competitive rate for your services, given yourself
a name, and plotted a basic business strategy, you will be ready to
begin the process of advertising your services. Chapter eight will reveal
the secrets to escorting successfully on the Internet, and turning the
page and reading chapter seven will tell you everything you need to
know to advertise your escort services through print advertisements.
