Someone is trying to ruin my business.
I have a feeling it's a bitter client I pissed off.
Someone has been posting fake reviews so that when you google my work number, that's all that shows up. They've also been paying to put up Backpage ads that announce that I have HPV/genital warts and I'm dangerous to see. They post these ads in all the cities that I tour, throughout the day, and every single time I advertise on Backpage as well. I've contacted the admin of Backpage to no avail.
As it stands, my booking requests have been cut in half. I am used to being fully booked on tour and unable to take anyone else, and now I hear crickets. I was charging above average rates for the cities I was in, but agency prices for the city I live in (Montreal, ugh). I even had a regular client cancel a multi-hour call on me after seeing the ads. I explained the situation though and we met up.
Unfortunately I have a lot of tattoos and an average body, but a beautiful face, so I've used that to my advantage and all my pics have my face in them.
im wondering what to do now. Do I start over? Do I make a new alias and blur my face and tattoos? Do I charge the same rates or go lower? If I go lower, do I respond to my regular clients if they msg my new alias or ignore them so they see me as my old persona at my 300/hr rate?
Ive never really escorted at 300/hr without my face pics!! I'm really nervous!!! This is a nightmare. Help.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Could it be a jealous girl, an ex-friend, an ex-boyfriend, or a pimp you refused to deal with? I had a guy do this to me years ago because he was a self-styled pimp & he freaked out on me big time when I hung up on him.
Make a new name, and travel to another nearby city. Explain the truth to your clients. Most of them have known a sociopathic male or two in their lifetimes so they can believe someone would attack you that way. Honestly escorts NEED to change up everything every 2-3 years because guys associate a high miles girl with...bad things.
I don't have better advice. I do know some long term escorts have dual personas all the time- one high end, one for massages & short visits. Just ask around & see what they think.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
No harm in creating another persona til you can get a better handle on this situation.
Sucks but I had a girl do this to me years back and it all stemmed from this bullshit client running back and forth gossiping between us. Id never said anything about any other girls and he kicked up this shit storm that left me with bizarre fake ter reviews etc.
I agree with Snuffle that most clients will sympathize and understand. Maybe do a damage control email?
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Talk to a lawyer. You can sue for libel.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
This will sound bonkers but can you cover the tats with a catsuit & some Dermablend?
I've seen a lot of high end girls only advertise with fully clothed modeling shots & pics of them in fur coats (seriously) so it's not always essential to show everything to get the emails coming in for bookings.
Good luck & talk to a lawyer about this situation.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
He will recognize my face, though, won't he? And continue to attack me? I have a photographer who is really wonderful at editing, so I was going to make a persona with some tattoos removed and face blurred.
All the ads are taken down already, so I'm not sure how I could sue. Not to mention, would the courts even take me seriously as an escort? How do I find out who he is, his real name, etc.? It might cost me more money than it's worth.
I am trying to become a bit more anonymous anyways, escorting creates too much interpersonal drama in my life. I want some privacy when it comes to my love life. Maybe this is the kick in the ass to do it.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
It is better to be anonymous as an escort. Lots of reasons.
It definitely cuts down the amount of clients who get unhealthy fixations on you. Trust me.
TER might turn over the info the stalker provided. I can't guarantee they'll be helpful. You could trick this guy into admitting he is harassing you & record him saying it (I know Canada has different laws for these situations than the U.S.) It might not be worth the bother. He could become violent.
Only you know. A Private Investigator might have some better ideas.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
I charge 350, dont show face or tattoos, and live in a cheap as hell market. Ive seen women charge far, far more than that and not show face. Actually, I think that it sends a message to guys that you take privacy and discretion seriously when you dont reveal your own face, and that ito them is worth the rate.
But yeah, Id say this is a good reason to rebrand...tell your regs whats going on so that they can still see you and know its you when you post ads etc. But it seems that its time to start fresh and this time be a lot more discrete about what you reveal.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
When it comes to escorting the possible threats of who can take you down the list is actually pretty huge
it was one of the things I hated the most about the work. felt like no matter how great of a provider I was and how much I was available and provided for my clients in a blink of an eye someone could be out to get me.
When it comes to showing your face or not. it's really now down to personal preference. but once you show your face you can't go back to not showing your face.
You could wait out this storm; take a break and then come back to work. that is generally what I end up doing when things are too wild around non-sense in the industry.
Changing your name, persona or images is not going to help because a hobbyist will post what you are up to in a blink of an eye. You need to hold down with consistency. and make a plan for slow times. It's one of the hardest industry to balance consistency in the sense that someone can post something about you and gossip will take hold and spread it. and you have no control over it. So you need to find control in other things, how you advertise, what services you provide. build regulars and even hobbyist who are your favorites so they can depend for you on the boards. It's a false sense of certainty and security but it works.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Bambibabe
He will recognize my face, though, won't he? And continue to attack me? I have a photographer who is really wonderful at editing, so I was going to make a persona with some tattoos removed and face blurred.
All the ads are taken down already, so I'm not sure how I could sue. Not to mention, would the courts even take me seriously as an escort? How do I find out who he is, his real name, etc.? It might cost me more money than it's worth.
I am trying to become a bit more anonymous anyways, escorting creates too much interpersonal drama in my life. I want some privacy when it comes to my love life. Maybe this is the kick in the ass to do it.
A lawyer could request a judge to subpoena backpage.com for his personal information. They should also have the information for the ads that were posted, even if they were taken down. If you don't have HPV/genital warts and someone posts on a public internet page that you do, you could sue him for libel. It doesn't make any difference if you're an escort. If that's something you want to consider, you could talk to a lawyer to find out what would be involved and how good of a case you have. If might be worthwhile just to find out who is doing this.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
If you have a firm idea of who this client might be, can you put him on VerifyHim or Bad Boy List? Just suggesting it. Unless it would rule out a lawsuit.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
SnuffleUffleGrass
If you have a firm idea of who this client might be, can you put him on VerifyHim or Bad Boy List? Just suggesting it. Unless it would rule out a lawsuit.
yeah i would do that ^
People are assholes. maybe sue for slander?
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Violethollywood
yeah i would do that ^
People are assholes. maybe sue for slander?
Making a law suit will put you at more risk since escorting is not legal in majority of the USA.
So your only option to use verifyhim and other bad date client list networks.
You have to look at the risk of exposing yourself, and also be able to keep a sane mind to work. in an industry that has poor or no regulations.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
minniesoporno
When it comes to escorting the possible threats of who can take you down the list is actually pretty huge
it was one of the things I hated the most about the work. felt like no matter how great of a provider I was and how much I was available and provided for my clients in a blink of an eye someone could be out to get me.
When it comes to showing your face or not. it's really now down to personal preference. but once you show your face you can't go back to not showing your face.
You could wait out this storm; take a break and then come back to work. that is generally what I end up doing when things are too wild around non-sense in the industry.
Changing your name, persona or images is not going to help because a hobbyist will post what you are up to in a blink of an eye. You need to hold down with consistency. and make a plan for slow times. It's one of the hardest industry to balance consistency in the sense that someone can post something about you and gossip will take hold and spread it. and you have no control over it. So you need to find control in other things, how you advertise, what services you provide. build regulars and even hobbyist who are your favorites so they can depend for you on the boards. It's a false sense of certainty and security but it works.
Dang. You bring up some good points. Its true though, so often when a lady changes names / persona its not long before shes known as Abby aka Brenna aka Charlotte... these guys keep track, things go down in the backchannels. Kinda laughing at myself now at my idea that she could confide in her regs while picking up new clients with a new persona. That assumes the regs wont talk..and omg they do and will.
Yeah...certainly sounds like its time to lay low for awhile til things blow over. What a situation...
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
minniesoporno
Making a law suit will put you at more risk since escorting is not legal in majority of the USA.
The OP said she's from Montreal, so I'm guessing she works in Canada. Backpage no longer allows escorts to post ads for American cities.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
How can you put "him" on a blacklist if you aren't 100% sure who is responsible? You risk blaming an innocent person which will put someone in the exact position you say you're in.
I'm thinking like blk sharpie mentions to lay low for a while and/or like eagle mentioned consult with an attorney. You might not want to sue for monetary compensation but you could get a lawyer to subpoena records from backpage to figure out who is responsible and have a lawyer send a warning letter.
Also it's possible court records can be sealed where details won't be available to the public or names could be anonymized. Just have to mentioned your desire to protect your privacy. But this is all stuff a lawyer would know for sure.
Just do what you feel is right for you though.
Sorry to hear you're having to go through a tough situation.
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
I can definitely sympathize with you on this. I used to think that if I avoided conflict with people and never had any disagreements with anyone(even when they are clearly in the wrong), that no one would ever bash me online or try to ruin my business. But, sometimes, it is inevitable. After seeing so many girls online being slandered by someone, I thought, 'wow, I have to try really hard not to piss anyone off!' Unfortunately, in our line of work, we come across some crazies, whether it is someone that we have encountered on a call or a random caller who got butthurt when you didnt respond to his text, or an ex/current boyfriend, or another girl who is trying to knock off some of the competition.
I googled my number one day to find that someone had written: "Not the girl in the pics. fat, outta shape girl, shape like a cupcake" and "pussy was stank. DRAMA. I fucked for $40", "pimp hiding in the bathroom will rob you. Be awaere", along with a few other insults that werent true. I am not sure if it has affected any of my business, but Im sure that it has discouraged some nice guys from calling me who I probably would have loved to see. I already blur my face and tats, but I thought about changing my name, too. But I think that a lot of guys wont believe that kind of stuff, especially if it is in a post from a random person online. Even when I read on escort message boards that a guy has found a post claiming that an escort has HIV or has passed around some other STD, all of the other guys are like, yeah, probably fake/disgruntled pimp, and they are not discouraged from seeing her. I know it sucks, but I wouldnt change a thing about your online persona...show everyone that you have nothing to hide. If it is an ad, it will get removed pretty fast, and if it is a phone number report, you can either get it removed, or make your own comment on it if that is not an option(thats what I did on mine) Good Luck <3
Re: Someone is trying to ruin my business.
I had an ex client spreading bad reviews about me as well. All because I refused to see him again. His behavior after that was borderline stalker-ish. I had to get stern with him & let him know I won't be afraid to go to the police or lawyer up if I have to. A lot of these dudes think because you're a working girl, you won't go to the police for help, out of fear of self incrimination. Not me, I won't hesitate to tell them i'm a hoe lol. But after reading your OP & responses, you're not exactly sure yet who's behind it. So I think it's to reinvent yourself. New ads, new number, new name, new everything.