In a few recent threads, I noticed some comments such as this one: "...this place has become a forum for SP and agencies to promote and invade our discussion...". On the other hand, I noticed that when an SP or an agency operator joins a thread, she usually generates a lot of interest/responses.
Finally, many hobbyists have probably noticed that SPs are a lot more active on TERB than here on MERB. TERB has become a true Community of Interest for both hobbyists and the supply side of the biz. For instance, I recall a thread last fall initiated by an SP following the murder of a fellow sex-worker in Toronto: within a few hours, there were at least 2 dozen sps posting. In contrast, MERB is still very much the domain of hobbyists. I suspects this is probably because of language: most Montreal ladies are Francophone whereas a large proportion of johns are US or Ontario unilinguals.
Whatever the reason for this difference between Mtl and TO, I see both pros and cons to having SPs actively participate:
Pros:
1 - I get a supply-side perspective on the various issues.
2 - I get insight into a particular SPs personnality/offering. This puts texture on the otherwise rather interchangeable text I read on their websites. If this is self promotion, I don't mind it at all.
Cons:
a - Negative reviews are as useful to hobbyist as positive ones. Although this has not happened to me, I would probably find it difficult to post a negative review of a high-profile SP, even if it is carefully worded. Anybody who manages staff knows how difficult it is to give poor evaluations to the face of the employee. I think this phenomenon leads to some autocensorship on the part of hobbysts, which defeats the purpose of this board.
What are your thoughts ?
BTW, this has nothing to do about their undeniable "right" to post, but about whether hobbysist appreciate it.
Finally, many hobbyists have probably noticed that SPs are a lot more active on TERB than here on MERB. TERB has become a true Community of Interest for both hobbyists and the supply side of the biz. For instance, I recall a thread last fall initiated by an SP following the murder of a fellow sex-worker in Toronto: within a few hours, there were at least 2 dozen sps posting. In contrast, MERB is still very much the domain of hobbyists. I suspects this is probably because of language: most Montreal ladies are Francophone whereas a large proportion of johns are US or Ontario unilinguals.
Whatever the reason for this difference between Mtl and TO, I see both pros and cons to having SPs actively participate:
Pros:
1 - I get a supply-side perspective on the various issues.
2 - I get insight into a particular SPs personnality/offering. This puts texture on the otherwise rather interchangeable text I read on their websites. If this is self promotion, I don't mind it at all.
Cons:
a - Negative reviews are as useful to hobbyist as positive ones. Although this has not happened to me, I would probably find it difficult to post a negative review of a high-profile SP, even if it is carefully worded. Anybody who manages staff knows how difficult it is to give poor evaluations to the face of the employee. I think this phenomenon leads to some autocensorship on the part of hobbysts, which defeats the purpose of this board.
What are your thoughts ?
BTW, this has nothing to do about their undeniable "right" to post, but about whether hobbysist appreciate it.
