Sex Work 101

History
When I wrote my post What Is A Provider? I briefly mentioned reviews boards and hobbyists. Review boards made their debut in the late 1990s. The largest reviews boards are The Erotic Review and Big Doggie. From these two large entities, smaller regional boards were started and focused on specific regions (ASPD, Companion Review) to more state specific boards (Utopia Guide, The Other Board).

Definition
Reviews boards were created for people, mostly men, to leave written accounts of their experiences with sex workers (usually escorts who advertise their services online, whom they often refer to as providers).  These accounts are descriptive stories on what transpired between them and the person they hired for services. Their stories could be simple notes saying, “I met Krista for drinks and a date and had a wonderful time,” or they could be much more sexually explicit, “Krista provided oral sex without a condom”.

Review boards have different formats for stories. To me, the term “review” was really coined by boards using a rating system. With this system, men are able rate their experiences, services and looks of the provider on a scale of 1 to 10.

Review Pros & Cons
The majority of providers today have reviews on multiple boards about their services with links to their contact information.  Many of these women rely on these reviews in order to make it as sex workers. A provider with great reviews is guaranteed appointments from men in his/her area because of positive comments.

Review boards allow the board members to know which providers gave great service and which ones are scams or rip-offs.

Reviews are not always a positive marketing tool though. The negative things about reviews are:
1.    Unreasonable expectations: If a provider provides a service for one client, and he writes about it, the next client might expect the same thing and the provider may not want to give that service to the next client. That client might then write a negative review of her.
2.    Maliciousness: Some clients who are “hardcore” hobbyists won’t leave good reviews no matter how hard the provider worked to fulfill their requests because of what we call a “God” complex. No woman can meet their expectation, short of 8 positions, the blow job of a lifetime and no condom – of course.
3.    Negative reviews: Negative reviews can kill a provider’s business.
4.    Legal ramifications: Sexually explicit reviews are admissible in court if a provider is prosecuted for solicitation.
5.    Rating systems: One client’s “8” is another client’s “4”. The system is not balanced and there is no standard. It’s based on preferences and appeal, or to use the phrase so often used on the boards: your mileage may vary (YMMV).

Does A Provider Need Reviews?
The answer is NO. The only reason a provider has to have reviews is if he/she wants them. Once a sex worker becomes established in this industry, a lot of them realize that they can survive without reviews. They have to increase their web presence, invest more money in advertising and network a bit more with other providers.

What Happens When A Provider Pulls Reviews?
If a provider finds that being rated like USDA Beef is not such a great thing, she can request removal of reviews on some boards. Then the emotional up and down caused by reviews disappears. They also find the quality of his/her clients increase.  But there are some that find they can’t make it without reviews, so they have to have them reinstated (this is largely dependent on their market).

–Callie Simms