Something to ponder. On the fence.

[Guest]

So I have something to ponder. I really love being an independent escort. I enjoy taking care of emails ect. I have an opportunity to work for an a really great agency. I know that they will be really reliable and I know that they will take care of the emails and call as promptly as I do. I don't want this to sound like advertising since I want to promote a discussion about this decision I have to make. I will still provide incalls and the same things as I do now. You will still be able to contact me through pms. I will have my account paid here so I can advertise for myself and the agency.

 

They are also a new agency opening up. I don't want to say any names because I don't want to break any rules. So I kind of want to help them out as well.

 

I can see nothing but benefits from working with the agency. I KNOW that they are good people.

 

So my question is. Will this decision effect my clients. I really enjoy my clients. I still want my clients to feel like they can come talk to me and approach me at anytime. If they have any questions I want my clients to feel free and pm me.

 

They will be working for me. I choose the hours. I choose the rate. I create my bio. So I'm the one who makes the calls. I couldn't work in this industry any other way. I only pay a low fee(a very low fee)

 

So I have a lot to think about. To me working for an agency is like hiring a secretary to take care of the paperwork and calls. My main concern is for my clients and how they will receive this.

 

Please give me your opinion about this guys. Feel free to pm me if you don't want to post a public opinion.

[Areez 11906]

Here's my thought on the matter:

 

As convinient it might sound to work with an agency - there is always a give and take situation...

 

Scheduling would be one thing, how will you manage your booking? Will it be strictly through the agency? Will you take on your own booking too? Why this matter - I could forsee some double booking happening if you and the agency both make arrangement, communication becomes a crucial point. Because as much as the agency will become "your" assistant, they have other girls to take care of too. (or i assume there will be other girls.)

 

The sense of personal touch will somewhat very slightly changed, when a client called through the agency, they miss out on that initial contact with you talking with you on the phone. You could not set a standard on how nice whomever taking your call be... (personal experience says, receptionist might come across as too straight forward, this is a pleasure business afterall... you have to entice the clientele. yes they might have answered the same question 100 times that day, hopefully not to the same person.)

 

Anything but that i dont forsee any problems, afterall - you did mention you will still be active and answering question.

 

Good luck in your decision! xo.

[MightyPen 67414]

I'm glad you raised this, and that you've described the arrangement as you have. We haven't had the pleasure of meeting, but here are my thoughts -- and I'll bet they're what you imagined some guys might feel.

 

Personally I've never booked through an agency because I hate, hate, hate the idea that the woman I'm spending time with will be getting less than 100% of the fee. Fundamentally (and irrationally, I suppose) I perceive an agency as a pimp; and I resent the idea that the agency would skim some of the woman's earnings, and that my cash might be supporting them.

 

But in this case that's clearly a dumb and badly inaccurate description of the arrangement you have with the agency. It's clear you're entering into the arrangement having thought it all through, and you've already shown you have all the skills they do, so you don't need them -- you've just decided you'd rather outsource some of the administrative overhead work and you're happy with the terms of the arrangement.

 

So, knowing that, it would no longer affect my decision to book you -- but I must say, if you also provided an option to contact you directly and ensure you didn't have to share the fee, I'd still prefer to do that.

[billybob 20128]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but outside of answering emails, PM's etc. I would have to believe that part of the reason you would want to join an agency is you think it would generate more business for you?

 

I know it's not all about the money, having time to do things you enjoy outside of this business is invaluable.

 

I'm sure it would save you a lot of headache not to answer the same questions X times a day but the upside is you are your own boss, you set your hours, you take days off whenever you want to. I'm sure whoever you decide to work for would tell you that they would be flexible with you the bottom line is that you work for them.

 

I hope it doesn't sound like I'm trying to talk you out of it, just giving you some things to think about.

[fortunateone 156618]

My thoughts: I would never want to see anyone I did not talk with directly, provide my dos, don'ts and rates, get a feel for him and what he is looking for, finding out if he is sober and reasonable. Go agency and you will lose your control over who you see. Unless you do as one agency I read about: they get the call, then give you the client's phone #, you call him back to make the final arrangements for the appt (giving location, etc)

[Guest]

Great points Areez. If I decide to work with the agency they will be doing the bookings. I will have my account paid here. So I will still advertise here but the agency will be taking care of the bookings and the calls. I'm still very, very open to pm's

 

I don't talk about services on the phone. I'm cheerful and friendly but yes I do not get into details. When people want to talk about stuff like that I redirect them to my email anyway. So I'm afraid that I'm not too good on the phone either,lol. I will be still open to talking to clients by pm and answering any questions.

 

I know some people don't like agency's. Agency's have a bad image sometimes.

 

I set my schedule. The same as I do now. The second they start telling me what to do is the second I walk out the door. I would hope that most girls are like this. This is not a normal job and you have to be in the right mindset to provide a good service. For example I took two days off this week because I really needed it and it felt great.

 

I still want to keep the personal touches to it and be the open and friendly Peachy that I have always been. As a matter of fact I'm going to keep the same name if I work for them.

[Athos 108589]

I don't really know. Many clients use agencies all the time, and it strikes me that the reputation of the agency is very important. Ultimately you'll have to judge whether the advantages outweigh the costs.

 

I'm not sure whether it will affect any of your regular clients. I personally prefer booking independants and have rarely used an agency. I'm not dead set against it, but the inability to chat with the lady in advance, even if only by e-mail, always seems problematic. This might not be an issue for current regulars and cerb members who can pm you.

 

It strikes me -- and I could be wrong about this -- that agencies cater to the same day or "whose available tonight" client. I prefer independants, in part, because I prefer to plan these things well in advance.

 

If you think it's a good opportunity you might as well try it. Nothing really to lose. If you don't like the arrangement you can always go back to being independant.

 

Porthos

[DukeSSk 3430]

I'm not sure whether it will affect any of your regular clients. I personally prefer booking independants and have rarely used an agency. I'm not dead set against it, but the inability to chat with the lady in advance, even if only by e-mail, always seems problematic. This might not be an issue for current regulars and cerb members who can pm you.

 

It strikes me -- and I could be wrong about this -- that agencies cater to the same day or "whose available tonight" client. I prefer independants, in part, because I prefer to plan these things well in advance.

Porthos

 

Certainly the same reasoning for me. I don't plan on hobbying often, so I'd like to get some conversation going before the encounter in order to introduce myself and to just take my time in general.

 

But, it's tough to argue against having your appointments and communications looked after. I'm well aware that independents have other stuff to do and don't sit in front of a computer plowing through PMs and emails with their phone nearby, when not with a client, I have no problem with being patient.

 

Hence why I prefer to get the ball rolling in advance: introducing myself, asking the lady some questions (advance booking an option? Getting an idea of location for transportation reasons, what she needs to know about me, etc...)

 

So far, I only talked with one ageny and they told me that scheduling a few days in advance with a specific lady isn't really an option. But based on their reputation here and the steady flow of recommendations for their ladies, their methods don't seem to be much of an issue. If it works for some gentlemen, then good for them!! :)

 

Good on you Peachy for sharing your dilemma with us :D

[billybob 20128]

 

Good on you Peachy for sharing your dilemma with us :D

 

 

Agree 100% a great topic for discussion.

[backrubman 64800]

...

So my question is. Will this decision effect my clients. I really enjoy my clients. I still want my clients to feel like they can come talk to me and approach me at anytime. If they have any questions I want my clients to feel free and pm me....

 

So from my perspective (and of course before I discovered CERB, agencies... well that's a story for another day) as a client is I decide to see Peachy as I've read all her wonderful recommendations and know a fair bit about her from her posts here on CERB and I'm really picking the "Peachy Brand", so if I can still contact her or PM her anytime then that is what I'm going to do, even to make a booking. So she still ends up answering a lot of PMs or emails then her time doesn't really get offloaded by the "agency" so I start to not see the benefit of it.

 

Some elements of what you are describing strike me as a booking agent as opposed to an agency in the typical sense, a different model than most main stream agencies operate under currently. Now maybe someone like a booking agent that finds her additional business, does client screening, accepts electronic payments and some off loading with some value add and promotion, but the agency model of call them and they send who ever is working tonight (and get to deny they have any knowledge that it has anything to do with prostitution), well CERB kind of bypasses that already. Of course such a booking agent (as opposed to agency) I do see the benefit of (to Peachy) but they would probably run into trouble with the law as it still stands until it changes if it changes, were LE isn't too interested in bothering with Peachy who acts alone right now, they might go after her booking agent if they were taking bookings for multiple ladies or living of the avails (no matter how little they charge).

[theliquor (Lost but not fo 50595]

Morning.

I would be concerned for you on two items:

-first and foremost is the safety factor, as the history of agencies here and around the world is not great, normally associated with gangs and drugs and are more easily targeted by law enforcement

-second, what happens if they change owners, bring new owners in, etc.

 

So bottom line is what makes you comfortable short and long term?

[Guest s******ecan****]

If a lady I enjoyed seeing in the past joined an agency it would not put me off of seeing her again. Likewise I have booked with both independents and agencies, and had good experiences either way.

 

You should follow your own gut on this and do what you feel is best for your own situation.

[roamingguy 300291]

I personally have stayed away from agencies and kept my encounters with independents. In my newbie days I was thinking of seeing a lady from a agency, but honestly it was her looks that were the major factor in that, and she left the agency before I ever saw her. So I haven't used an agency. Aside from what others have said, I'll throw in my two cents. Part, actually a major part (much more so than looks or services) of what makes me interested in seeing a certain lady is, well for lack of a better word, her personality. A way to get an idea of a lady's personality before you actually meet is through her posts on CERB, emails, pm's. That is the best way for me to get a real three dimensional picture of who the lady is, if that makes sense. If you go with an agency, do you lose your CERB board presence here (does the agency speak for you and other agency ladies on CERB), not to mention does the agency handle all communications for you. If so, would you not only be portraying a two dimensional picture of who you are to potential clients. I hope that is making sense

One other thing, for how long are you committed if you say yes to an agency. If it doesn't seem to be the right fit for you are you committed for a set period of time or can you just leave.

And last, my comments and others aside, and yes I know you were asking for feedback. But at the end of the day you have to decide what is right for you, don't let anyone else tell you what to do. It's a decision you have to live with

Whatever you decide, good luck

RG

[Luckyme 41401]

First, I would like to thank you for consulting with us regarding an important issue like this one. This is one of the reasons that you are a well-liked and well-respected person here, Peachy.

 

After reading all the posts here, I would like to chime in with my comments -

It does sound good and less stressful that this agency will handle all the bookings, emails etc., and that you have full control of setting the hours, rates and so on. If I am not mistaken, you had worked with an agency or agencies before. So, you will have a better idea than most people here as to what it was liked. This will also give you a hint of what you'd most likely expect if you go with an agency.

 

It seems to me that (according to you), this agency is new and has good people whom you know and like. You have also mentioned that you have the wish to help them out. This of course, comes from your kindness and your desire to please others. Although knowing that you are a person who knows how to take care of yourself, I'd however, suggest that the most important person to you is you and you should feel comfortable and put your well-being ahead of anything else.

 

There are other concerns that other posters mentioned here, such as not 100% of donation will go to you, dealing with a not-so-friendly phone person etc. The latter problem has been mentioned time and time again on other boards and is very much a turn-off for would-be clients.

 

At the presense, I love the way I use to book an appointment with you, ie., through PM's, well in advance, and confirmed/finalized by phone calls. The phone call itself gives me a feeling and an assurance that the time I have booked is suitable for you and that you are the right person I would like to see. The latter may be more important for a new client though.

 

Ultimately, the decision is yours to make and I will respect whatever route you take. However, like the saying - if it ain't broke, why fix it?

 

Good luck, Peachy.

[Boomer 33202]

This is a decision you obviously must make for yourself, and if I'm not mistaken you've already worked for an agency before. I think probably it's a matter of weighing the pros and cons. I can't remember the last time I used an agency, probably as I think the dollar I spend should go to the girl in question, and she can use it to cover her expenses in the manner she decides. I think most of the guys are on here regularly would favour independents as they have the resources to do some research in making their choice.

 

As for the pro, definitely you can reach a broader market, and when times are slow that's important, and as you say they take care of the routine tasks. They reach quite a few guys that aren't plugged in.

 

As a con, it would seem to me that you loose the ability to screen the clients to the standards you do today. If the agency is not as diligent in this part of the job, you may see clients that you wouldn't otherwise. Now and then they might send you a bad client.

[Guest]

"Some elements of what you are describing strike me as a booking agent as opposed to an agency" Thank you Backrubman. They will be more a booking agent. I don't see why they wouldn't take bookings in advance providing that the girl is okey with the set appointment. They will be paying for the advertising, paying for the web host ect, ect.

 

Their first goal is to make the girls who work for them happy. Low cut, having their own black list. They would rather a happy girl than deal with a client who is upsetting or hard to deal with. Even I get a bad client from time to time.

 

For their reputation it would be smart for them to adapt good customer skills. It is important for any business to do so.

 

I can only know how it's really going to be until I work for them.

 

I can always have a trial run and if I don't like it I can be indi again. I will still have my web host and my website backed up. I still have to think about this.

[etasman2000 15994]

One additional aspect to consider, if it applies in your situation:

 

We do not allow agencies (or ladies who work for agencies) access to the SP ONLY area (The current providers have asked to have it this way).

[Guest]

So I have decided to stay indi. If any changes are ever made I will announce it first.

[Luckyme 41401]

Thank you for informing us of your decision, Peachy. I for one appreciate it very much.

[Nicolette Vaughn 294340]

I'm not a guy and I know you've made your decision but here's my advice from someone who is very acquainted with this industry or other ladies attempting to make the same choice strictly from wanting someone else to manage their business for them. I'm not referring to new SPs looking to be hired by an agency. Most girls go to agencies when they are new in the business to get a grasp on things and most often branch out or quit based on their short term or long term goals.

 

Being an independent SP means you are working for yourself. Only you have to answer for yourself. If you don't want to work, you don't have to work. You also accept the consequences for what you do or don't do. Work for someone else and you have to cater to the fact that they also want to make money and sometimes although an agency may have the best of intentions for the ladies that work for them, at the end of the day it's a numbers and dollar equation. Sorry but that's the bottom line. Although they are there to manage things for you or say they will protect you, is the booking agent going to think someone is creepy? Or because he/she doesn't think they sound bad doesn't mean they won't be. Those people aren't there on that appt when things go wrong.

 

I worked for an agency for 2 months and said screw it. I had more bad appts and was put in bad situations than I was ever was on my own out of my whole entire SP career. And no I'm not critisizing agencies as a whole as there are plenty of good ones but there are also bad ones with pimp like tactics.

 

As an independent, I chose who I wanted to see and I would go with my gut instinct especially when I spoke to clients on the phone. If something sounded off from their tone of voice or the questions they asked me, those alarm bells go off instantly. Intuition is your right hand man or I should woman in this industry. One bad client can ruin it all. No one else can save you in these situations in time except when you use your own judgement from the get go.

 

Yes, handling all these things such as phonecalls, emails, annoying emails, emails/calls from nice clients to pricks or even just in general can be a pain in the ass when we are trying to live our lives outside the business, make money and pay our bills. I've done it all but it comes with the territory. I just accept it for what it is and it gives you pretty good business skills that will help you in the future when dealing with people and different situations. It's all about multi tasking and doing it with ease without being stressed out.

 

Best of luck to you!

[Studio 110 by Sophia 150333]

I have experience in being both INDY and also represented threw an agency.

 

Years ago, I would have not the skills and wisdom that I have now, on confirming, screening, how to manage responds to some inquiries, how to deal with an unhappy client, time management, etc....I think if had started off INDY and not had the teaching I had received by working for other's. I am not sure if I woud have the success I have now. I am not sure if would have been a possitive outcome.

In this case I think perhaps it may be safer with agency. BUT as with all things, check and double check references and reputation of the business. And stay within your own ethics with your work.

 

But if you seem to have a good handle on your bookings, and you feel you are working safely, and efficiently then why bother?

 

But if you are traveling, and never been to a particular city, an agency may be a wise choose too, as you may feel more safe, and have more of a guarantee of volume in bookings??

 

I am sure how ever you decide to work, you will do fine:) You have a great personality, professional and kind:)....sexy helps too, lol...

[cat 262460]

It is a personal decision and I can understand fully you considering this. I would give my left nut to work for a good agency, even now. I always made more $ with an agency per hour of work involved and I loved having a life where I didn't have to deal with administration or even think about my business. As it stands now, there is not an hour of my life where I don't have thoughts of "what needs to be done?" or "did I do...?" or "what about...?" A good agency is hard to find but is always welcome. I'm glad you've made your decision and happy to hear there may be a new player in town!

cat

[Guest ****ven]

This is totally a dilemma I've faced as well. Ultimately I decided to maintain independence but only because of my hectic school schedule. Being able to control all of my bookings precisely was what ended up being best for both me and my clients.

 

However this decision ultimately comes down to you. If the service you offer doesn't change working for an agency can ensure that you have more calls and not having to deal with bookings etc.

 

Good luck with your decision to stay indy!

 

Kisses.

[Gemini 1320]

I have never used an agency, and I can't ever see doing so. Not having any experience of agencies I can't really comment on their service, but my main reasons for not using them are the same as others have mentioned. Less chance to get to know the provider before the appointment, and the feeling that the agency will try and substitute another girl if my chosen one is not available, whereas with an independant I will wait until our schedules mesh.

 

Just my 2c