Escort Seeks Advice...

[Dave]

i know this is the "ask an escort" section, but i also want to ask clients on this topic.

 

i may be in las vegas in july for a conference, and i'm wondering if i should stay on and advertise my services there for several days. i've just come off of two trips - one in san francisco, one in ft lauderdale - and have mixed feelings about doing another. i love the travel aspect, and meeting new people... but financially, i am having trouble justifying trips. between the cost of hotel, airfare, car rental, ads, etc, it seems that my goal of working just a few appts per day is unrealistic if i hope to actually make money. i worked way less in san francisco than i do back home in dc. and ft lauderdale was better than sf, but i still make more money in dc for the same time period. i don't want to give up the travel concept, but i'm honestly having trouble making it financially viable. this whole thing is kinda freaking me out because since i started escorting six years ago, i've been very fortunate in dc to have a steady stream of business.

 

i could use some advice from escorts - i guess some travel cities are better than others, but which ones are really good markets? and - is vegas a place to skip for working travel?

 

also, i would appreciate any advice from clients - ie, your own perspective on this (hiring traveling guys, or anything else that may be insightful.)

 

thanks, men, in advance...

[NYTomcat]

Dave. Clearly the traveling escorts are the best source of info on this. However. I would believe that as long as you are already in Vegas the cost of traveling is assumed already. So all your really talking about is a couple extra night hotel bills. Which if done right on Vegas is really nothing. So this trip it would seem like a no brainer to extend a little and see what happens. Worst case your clientele just pays for a couple extra days of sin city. Best case you make a boat load of money and go home the big winner from visiting the strip and know you have to go back.

[+ purplekow]

Dave, Vegas really doesnt have much of an escort selection. There area a few well established guys, but as a client, when I was in Vegas, the supply was very limited. So, as Tomcat stated, the hotels are very cheap now, the airfare is already a done deal and competition is not great, it would seem to be a well advertised trip to Vegas should get you some fun in the sun and some money.

[Dave]

well, the problem is that if i extend but end up only having a few appointments, i am losing the work i could have had at home during that time. and i don't gamble

 

because i have kids, i have pretty high monthly expenses - including a separate private studio for work, plus childrearing expenses, etc. so i'm trying to see if this can really work for me.

 

purplekow, that is very helpful. after my trip, i concluded that sf is not so great to work in because of this combination: so many other guys work as escorts there, plus it's a city where sex and alt lifestyles are so open. dc is pretty discreet, and closeted i guess, and i think that may make it a better place to be hired. for me, i previously found philly to be like that, too. i'm curious what cities other 'scorts find good or bad, if they'd be willing to share that secret. and i'm still curious to see how other guys who hire weigh in, on which cities may need more choices for escorts.

[Kevin Slater]

i'm curious what cities other 'scorts find good or bad, if they'd be willing to share that secret.

 

Before I moved here, New York City was by far my best travel city. DC and Lauderdale are also very good for me. Boston is hit-or-miss, but mostly hit. I've never tried Dallas but am eager to do so. Flying into Boston, taking the train to NYC then flying out of DC makes for a good junket.

 

Kevin Slater

[+ David-SF]

Vegas a gamble

 

I have worked there many times but always had an anchor client that covered the cost of the trip via overnight /multiple night booking.

 

if your not already booked for appts. in advance i would not risk it.

especially since you are banking on there being tourists/residents there that hire when your there.

 

I have lucked out a couple times but certainly not the scale of business you would do in DC NYC or Chicago.

 

if you can afford to not get booked and have a back up plan to have some fun go for it

 

ACE http://daddysreviews.com/finder.php?loc=ace-0-1-10&who=ace_vegas resides there and can be a better gauge but I would stick with the places that the investment creates a little bit of profit not only cash but quality time spent in a city you enjoy.

 

personally Vegas just is not one of those places for me.

 

You could also try some advance advertising on Adam4Adam for 10 bucks m4rn travel ads and rentmen all allow you to place your ad in a city free in advance and see what the response is like

 

Many escorts I have spoken with over the years have all said Vegas is a slow market and not really worth going to if your goal is to earn a profit unless you are prebooked already

cheers & good luck

[raulgmanzo]

Ahh the anchor client, sounds nice, but for most of us mere mortals they are a rare thing.

 

When traveling I tend to book one maybe two clients a day for one or two hours which usually is enough to make it work.

But lately there have been so many cancellations be it heart attacks or family emergencies that I end up losing money on trips.

 

But hope springs eternal.

 

I have worked there many times but always had an anchor client that covered the cost of the trip via overnight /multiple night booking.

[NYTomcat]

Perhaps if Vegas is not the hopping place for hiring but you already on the left coast the better choice would be to make a junket of it with another city. While I am loathe to suggest more travel expense perhaps a trip to Los Angeles. , God forbid, or perhaps San Diego or another would be a better idea. While I highly doubt LA to be a great choice there are a number of other markets. Perhaps Denver or even one of the Texas markets to be hot on your way back. Houston's or Dallas perhaps.

[raulgmanzo]

While I highly doubt LA to be a great choice there are a number of other markets.

 

Actually I think L.A. is a great market. I used to travel there monthly to visit my grandmother when she was in a convalescent hospital. Its why I got into escorting, I could finance my visits and not need a day job so I would have the flexibilty to get out there. I always did well there, though as I've mentioned my needs are pretty simple.

 

I fell out of the habit of going there after my grandmother passed away and I started instead going to NYC regularly but I think it time I start going to L.A. again. As a 7th generation Los Angeleno I still have a ton of relatives out there so don't know why I've not been back since August.

 

The thing most surprising is how rarely I needed to rent a car while visiting L.A., only three times in 30 something visits. Most of my appointments were Downtown, Silver lake, Mid-Wilshire, Hollywood, and West Hollywood, all easily accesible by transit. Though admittedly I do enjoy walking, especially up and down hills, something sadly missing here in flat Chicago.

[Guest Spanky]

Dave,

 

If you heed the advice of some of the other posters and run some pre-advertising spots, perhaps you'll get lucky and generate interest from some locals. This might make sense in the long-term, since they could end up being a regular client base and you could make a Vegas a regular (maybe even lucrative) destination in the future. Who knows, maybe you'll even find that elusive anchor client...

 

But as a businessman, it seems to come down to your bottom line (no pun intended). If you can generate more net income in DC for the same time period then it probably makes sense to bag the Vegas idea.

 

Good luck.

[Epigonos]

Dave since you asked for the opinion of clients here is my two cents worth. I am going to start with some personal background in order, I hope, to clarify my position on this issue. I have been hiring escorts now for almost eight years. I am fortunate to live in an excellent escort market – the greater Los Angeles area. As I have refined my hiring practices I find that I am hiring fewer and fewer traveling escorts.

 

You are, I think, correct in stating that for a traveling escort to meet expenses and make money he must see more than one or two hourly clients a day. When dealing with traveling escorts, in the past, I have often had the feeling that I am just a number passing through a meat market. 8inchtool makes an excellent point about building a trip around an anchor client. The initial problem is finding that anchor client. In order to do so you just might have to bite the bullet and decide on one or two cities in which you want to attempt to build a clientele. Announce in the escort travel section of the site where and when you will be visiting and see what happens. If you get a positive response make the trip. If, on the other hand, you end up with only one or two appointment cancel and apologize to the guys who booked you. If I were you I would select cities in your part of the country. Try places like Philadelphia, Chicago, Nashville, or St. Louis for example. If you want to go further a field you might consider Portland or Seattle.

 

The problem with Las Vegas is that it is primarily a convention town and from what I understand it is very difficult to establish a regular clientele there. Several very successful escorts I known I have told me that in order to be successful in the greater Los Angeles area they had to divide the area into two markets. They have found that the L.A./West Hollywood/Hollywood market to be flaky as hell. Potential clients make appointments and all too frequently cancel at the last minute or simply don’t show. Orange County appointments, on the other hand, have proven to be very reliable. Frankly I would stay the hell out of the Southern California market all together.

 

Your problem appears to be that you really can’t take the chance of a failed trip. You need a regular income. If that is indeed the case you just might want to stick to your local area and attempt to expand your radius on a VERY limited basis.

 

GOOD LUCK

[+ Ace]

Hey Dave;

You've gotten a LOT of very good advice here! (These guys KNOW their stuff)...

As a WORKING Las Vegas escort, I can tell you that if you're planning to come here, "set up shop" & KILL, it's NOT going to happen....(that's not to say that you won't make any $$)..

What I would recommend is going for the expense of travel ads a week or so ahead of your actual arrival & see if you can get a few "set" appts. (I generally do this, if I'm going to a new town & don't have the anchor client needed to "crack my nut").....

Hotels are pretty reasonable in July.....(REMEMBER this IS the desert, so it's gonna be like the Devil's anus during the day!)...

If you have any further questions, my info is below......As working boys, we have all found our strong travel markets by trial & error...Good luck!!

[+ David-SF]

let me clarify

 

An anchor client is someone that invites you on a trip for a day or 2 they dont just appear out of thin air.

 

it's usually someone that has hired me before. They may be a resident of a city or want to be accompanied to a city.

 

I split the cost of the airfare with them and pay my own hotel after the appt is finished. i usually dont stay more than 2 additional days unless i am in NYC or chicago or DC where i know it is a much better chance of being booked

 

I advertise ahead of time and prebook clients in advance.

 

i put my schedule in my signature here

 

I use daddys travel section about a week to 2 weeks in advance

 

rentmen.com 30days

 

rentboy.com a week

 

adam4adam.com post one travel city with date usually about a week in advance

 

m4rn.com who knows a week or 2

 

This is a good way to help save your self and your client a little money on a travel appt. its always worked well for me and actually happens a lot more than one might expect.

 

some escorts use priceline and have a good system down for getting really great deals on hotel rooms i believe Romann is good at that but i cant remember.

 

communication is key here be very upfront (as you seem to be already) and politely ask if they mind you staying on a couple extra days.

 

Gentlemen that hire for travel appts are generally very open to this idea as travel appts can be costly. These clients are always open to hearing ideas on how to make the trip work best for all involved.

 

dont worry too much about cancellations or no shows its been my experience that when it rains it pours sometimes it happens a lot and sometimes you cant keep up (or it up) with the amount of business inquiries

 

Have faith in the service you provide, and know you will always get out of it what you put into it.

 

maybe not when and where you want it but i found this to be the only secret that consistently rings true in this business.

 

I wish you the best of luck keeping it fresh and new is not always easy so hitting conservative towns seems to work out fine but you must advertise and get the word out that you are coming even if god forbid you have to hit craigslist. a lot of places dont know about rentboy and the others so if just for some exposure you place a very simple ad on CL you will get lots of inquires and a few appts. That can benefit you too

any way that's my 2 cents.

xo David

[+ Charlie]

Cities like NYC, Chicago and LA have a large, stable group of resident clients, who are often looking for traveling escorts. On the other hand, Vegas escorts have to depend on tourists who want to do something that stays in Vegas (to a lesser extent, SF has the same situation), so it is hard to predict long in advance whether there will be dependable clients there at the same time that you are visiting. If you are able to be flexible on your hotel and plane reservations, you may want to advertise that you will be there for those extra days, but cancel if you don't get any firm advance bookings, or too few to make it worthwhile to stay on after the conference.

[doitb4ugo]

Not Las Vegas but....

 

i know this is the "ask an escort" section, but i also want to ask clients on this topic.

 

also, i would appreciate any advice from clients - ie, your own perspective on this (hiring traveling guys, or anything else that may be insightful.)

 

thanks, men, in advance...

 

 

Dave, While fairly new at hiring, I am quite pleased when escorts travel to Boston. It gives me an opportunity to meet some top quality guys who have a positive set of reviews (unlike most of the Boston local escorts who are mostly not reviewed). I also prefer incalls which is something that travellers provide. I can't say whether Boston is a good market or not. That would be best answered by some of the escorts who travel here but we seem to get our small share on a fairly regular basis...If I were the Chamber of Commerce I'd invite you to our fair city to check it out. Sorry for the shameless plug.

[dapurplebear]

I cant contrinbute here except to say that I have been looking in Philly - for my visit and there doesn't seem to be a lot that most of the people who post in the forum would partake of -- so Philly might be a place to see if your shingle flies -- all the best at this!

[+ Charlie]

Philly has never had many independents, and offhand I can't think of any who made names for themselves as established escorts with more than brief local reputations. Premier has dominated the market for years, at least partly just because of excellent service.

[dapurplebear]

they tried to accomodate -- but just didn't have what i was interested in --

[scottspearsxxx]

I have had a few clients take me with them to Vegas to have a great time gambling and enjoying the shows or I have even worked out being in a porn video there, but have not actually just gone there and booked in as an escort waiting for clients. I think Vegas is a hard market to crack as most guys go there to gamble and there seems to be such a small gay crowd there anyways. San Francisco is the same way I feel. I have gone with clients or shot a porn scene there but that is about it. I have heard great things about you, so know it is not you, it is just the areas I think. NYC, Chicago, Atlanta, Key West, and DC are all great places to go and have lots of fun! Enjoy!

[+ purplekow]

purplebear, give me a private message and I might be able to make some Philly suggestions as we have similar tastes in escorts I believe.

[JackTwist]

No Safe Bets in Vegas...

 

Hi Dave,

If making a significant income is of upmost importance, you would be wise and prudent to skip Las Vegas. I travel there often for work and have hired many escorts there. I've never had even one working guy tell me that Vegas was a profitable "travel" city for them. Bear in mind that Las Vegas has taken one of the hardest hits of all U.S. cities during the recent recession. In Sin City, Unemployment is at a record high of 13.1 percent and one in every eight homeowners are at least one payment behind on their mortgages. July is considered a slow period in Vegas--the hotels have fewer business conferences that month and are occupied mostly by families vacationing with school-aged children. My advice: have great fun attending your Las Vegas conference, then quickly head home to D.C. where you have a steady flow of clients. Unfortunately, there are no safe bets or "sure things" in Vegas. I wish you the best.

[instudiocity]

DC has government which is about the only growth industry in the country right now. Heck, I heard the other day that over 2,000 employees of Congress earn over $100k per year. Between the lobbyists, lawyers, gov't employees, and the Visitors to Our Nation's Capitol you've got a chance to make a buck.

 

Vegas is on Obama's shitlist and business is way down all over the city. There's 30% foreclosure rate there too. So you've got to make money on the out of towners in Vegas.

 

My business in Cali is down 66% in the last three years. Hiring isn't in my budget right now. As to SF and maybe even LA, the economy added to the more permissive lifestyles make me tend to think this isn't a great time to hang out a shingle or whatever else on the Left Coast.

[Dave]

wow - thanks alot, men. all of your advice has been incredibly helpful. i've never really thought, for example, about the devil's anus. being someone who is naturally interested in anuses, and being a bit of a devil myself, and liking to be with devislish people... well, i have to admit - i'm curious!

seriously, i am rethinking my trip. i've been asked to present at the Desiree Alliance - a national sex worker conference. the "activist/educator" part of me would like to do so, the "responsible dad" part of me is questioning the financial feasibility of it. by the way, if anyone is interested, info on that conference is at http://www.desireealliance.org/conference.htm

i haven't been to it before... it seems well attended... may be more women than men... i might be able to make up my mind on this if someone from here hits me up and says he's going, too...!

 

one thing you guys have shown me is how lucky i am to be based in dc. i've known its pretty recession proof. and that trip to SF last month was a real eyeopener with usa economics. i met SO many people in SF who've been hit hard, at various economic levels - and we just don't encounter that so much here. but your various comments have shown me that it's dc that's the anomaly, and not necessarily SF.

dapurplebear, just want to say, if you're interested, i can get to philly quite easily from dc, without a significant increase in cost. not sure when your trip there is taking place, or if i'm your type... but i have worked in philly before and liked it.

scottspears, thanks for the kind words!

 

still mulling this thing over. i need to shit or get off the pot, i don't want to screw up the conference schedule. an anchor client would make this work... hmmm, i know someone who has talked with me about a trip to vegas, i think i'll contact him, although i hope it doesnt seem tacky to do so...

 

thanks again, guys!