Comments on: interesting thing about review sites.

By: maestro

maestro — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 06:22:41 +0000

I for one didn’t know there was that much grime behind TER. I usually read the reviews and stay away from the boards, have better things to do with my time.

But like more than one commentor, I need to know what is a possible sting and what is not. That is my number one reason for being on the site and in addition to that; I want to know who is a good provider or not. Of course you have now pointed out fake reviews but when it comes to getting an escort its caveat emptor. A girl may advertise GFE but give you the total opposite, so we would rather read reviews and save our time and money.

Now if only a credible and balanced site could begin……..

By: Callie Simms

Callie Simms — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 12:35:45 +0000

Being a Los Angeleno girl, this is all I hear about these days. There are miles of posts on boards here full of jokes, banter and speculation, esp. since the story in the Times came out. It only leads to one thing. More publicity and membership for TER, I said in on forum, “How about not writing and talking about it, that would hurt membership sales.” Whether Mr. Elms runs it or someone else I highly doubt TER will fall. But consider Karma is a bitch and what goes around comes around, Mr. Elms is not excluded.

By: pj

pj — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 00:40:22 +0000

Dave’s extortion of sexual favors is pretty common among review sites — at least where there is one person known to run it. It reminds me of the old BigDoggie with “Charles” and the requirements for making it to the the top of his “list”. The new Doggie (post Operation Flea Collar) doesn’t have anyone associated with it. In fact, the ownership is secret and buried under layers of foreign corporations.

One other point, Utopia Guide has been remarkably free of claims of favoritism — maybe it is because the basic gestalt of the board is one of equal opportunity misogyny. Although IMO that perceived misogyny is really just a NYC attitude.

By: Tryingtolearn

Tryingtolearn — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:34:23 +0000

Systems tend to self-correct over time but it takes people with self respect and fortitude (such as yourself Debauchette) to point out the flaws so it can improve. As a male I am disappointed but not wholly unsurprised by the opportunists who would attempt to use the system to their own ends. In business I have been too often been taken advantage of, but over time have found that perseverance and alertness always trump those who are schemers.

A peer system such as mentioned by Thais where mutual respect and understanding are core values would be in everyone’s best interests. However, the very nature of the business lends itself to an air of the forbidden…a big part of it’s allure but also makes it awkward to “regulate”.

By: collegehookerboy

collegehookerboy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 16:07:46 +0000

Bree – Well, trashy as it sounds, sites like craigslist are actually a great way to bring in buisness – even higher end stuff over $400 an hour. But you’re right, TER is the biggest of the sites. But Utopia is pretty big too.

By: Athena

Athena — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:40:14 +0000

I’ve stayed away from review sites so far, but I consider my personal expierence to be a very lucky one. These sites are probably where I’m going to end up if I don’t keep my current clientelle.

By: Thais

Thais — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:40:40 +0000

The only alternative I could think of is encouraging review boards with a different culture. A culture of mutual respect and understanding, as opposed to rampant mysoginism so often present and perpetuated.
I’ve seen this happen in my city on a local board. There is still a guys-only section, so they do have an avenue for the locker-room talk; but everything that is public has been extremely provider-friendly and as fair to all participants as possible.
This, like any change, can only happen with the right leadership.

By: Derek T

Derek T — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:02:48 +0000

I’m in agreement with Just some dude… TER provides a useful service for johns, primarily in telling providers from police and spammers. Aside from TER and Craigslist (which is mostly spammers these days), how else would you find a provider? A random website you find through Google could be posted by anyone. Ironically, TER has legitimacy, because of its presence in the news, and the diversity of writing styles in the reviews.

But I’ve been disturbed by the postings about Elms’ behavior I’ve seen this week, and you’re right about too much detail in the reviews. But what are the alternatives?

By: Bree

Bree — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 19:36:01 +0000

There are many other review board sites. Unfortunately, many of them are even more virulenty misogynistic than TER. SF Redbook and Utopia Guide, just to name two.

No other site has the market share and reach of TER. Just look at the Alexa ratings. I’d be curious to see what the newly launched Google Ad Planner service reveals about the site.

The point is, it’s not so simple as just going somewhere else. For many escorts, TER is it.

By: collegehookerboy

collegehookerboy — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:13:31 +0000

Escort review sites are usually really helpful, but sometimes they can actually do more harm than good. This guy sounds like a real anus – you should just avoid his site all together. There are many others besides TER.