I completely understand your frustration and anger. I am so embarrassed by this. Yes I understand that the damage is done. We were promised something and inturn in became something else. I am seeking legal advice because we were not suppose to be exploited in that manner.
This is a fuck-up on an epic scale. Wow.
So I am very unhappy this evening... I come home from work today to find a direct mail advertisement from Elite Playmate Companions in my regular USPS mail.
First, I find it amazing that an escort service sends out direct mailing to consumers?
Second, where in the hell did they get my legal name and address? The only people who have this (in association with the hobby) are TER billing, RS2K, and P411. Are these companies really selling their mailing lists?
Watch out... your names could be on their lists too.
And btw... I have never done business with these people.
-- Modified on 10/26/2011 7:00:33 PM
First of, has anyone else received a mailing from this agency? If not, then consider this possibility. If you do not use a hobby phone, it is possible that a provider obtained your personal info and put you on the mailing list.
Have you had outcalls done to your home? Have you left your wallet in close proximity of a provider when you take a shower at the incall? I've heard stories of ladies going thru coats/pants while the client is in the shower.
If more folks have received the mailing, then it is important to find what the association is. I can't believe a business like RS2K, TER, or P411 would be dumb enough to give their customer info to another party. That would be a quick way to lose customers.
Let's wait and see if others have received the mailings.
All good points, but...
1. I use a hobby phone for all communications
2. My clothes always accompany me when I leave the room (taught to me by my first provider)
3. Have never had out calls done to my house.
And I am most interested to see if anyone else has received the same mail.
Have you had outcalls done to your home? Have you left your wallet in close proximity of a provider when you take a shower at the incall? I've heard stories of ladies going thru coats/pants while the client is in the shower.
If more folks have received the mailing, then it is important to find what the association is. I can't believe a business like RS2K, TER, or P411 would be dumb enough to give their customer info to another party. That would be a quick way to lose customers.
Let's wait and see if others have received the mailings.
This is horrible! Its hard enough being an agency in this day even if you try to make evryone happy its impossible to do but to send out mail to someones home?
I do not believe any of the businesses you mentioned are stupid enough to do business that way.
They have been around a long time and know better.
I am also very curious to see if anyone else has recieved mail from them?
I am very upset and cannot apologize enough for what has occured. We are a very discreet company and operate on a very professional manner. We do not disclose any information to anyone when an appointment is scheduled. This has been a huge embarrassment to the people that have recieved these mailings as well as to my company. Please know that I have contacted the company and will do so again tomorrow to try to resolve this horrific situation. If you have ever spoken with me or have ever scheduled an appointment, you will know that we have ALWAYS handled things very discreetly and will continue to do so. Again i can apologize enough.
Alexis
It could be that they have sold your info. Just a thought!
No... And even when I had in the past, I had never been solicited by an escort agency.
Again, I would like to think that these people would not sell customer lists, and even more surprised that an agency sends unsolicited ads.
We'll see...
That agency accepts credit cards so it's possible your CC info was sold to this place. This is horrible, what a lousy thing to do to someone!
-- Modified on 10/27/2011 9:45:56 PM
I will let you know that we do not disclose you information to anyone, nor have we ever. We have always conducted business on a very private manner. I am completly horrified and upset about this USPS MAIL to your direct home. I cannot apologize enough for the embarrassment this has caused everyone. Please know that I am dealing with the company that has issued these mailings. If you have questions or concerns about my company please contact me by email or call me.I will answer you questions freely. I will do what ever I can to restore faith in my company after the diaster that this company has done.
Good afternoon and good evening to everyone. I want to apologize on behalf of our company. We were told it was going to be a very private mailing list sent out only to single men. It was a list conducted from the census bureau ( that is where the names and addresses came from)We do not keep records nor do my models disclose any information to anyone. I am horrified and completely embarrassed by this. I had contacted the company that sent our information out early this morning and will give you my word that your name and address will be terminated from any list they may have. Again I can not aplogize enough for the embarrassment that this has caused you. We are a very discreet company that has just been exploited in a very wrong way. If you have any questions or concerns you may email me or call me.
Alexis
First, I find it amazing that an escort service sends out direct mailing to consumers?
Second, where in the hell did they get my legal name and address? The only people who have this (in association with the hobby) are TER billing, RS2K, and P411. Are these companies really selling their mailing lists?
Watch out... your names could be on their lists too.
And btw... I have never done business with these people.
-- Modified on 10/26/2011 7:00:33 PM
But the damage is done. I for one would never use your agency ever! Even if the guy was single, you ever consider that he may have children or a girlfriend living with him?
This is a fuck-up on an epic scale. Wow.
you send out direct mailings to anybody? That seems pretty high profile to me, and would eventually attract unwanted attention.
No we did not personally sent them out and this is not the attention that we have asked for. I cant not apologize enough for the embarassment this has caused everyone.
In your response above you make it sound like you didn't authorize ANY mailings, yet in your other posts you apologize for what happened.
It sounds like you hired a company to make these mailings for you, which is definitely not discreet, IMO.
So which is it? If you didn't hire anyone to do these mailings, nor made them yourself, then there is no need for apologies. Otherwise you hired someone to do the mailings, or did them "yourself". Your company - your responsibility.
It is not my intent to beat you up here but to elicit some clarity on exactly what happened.
I completely understand your frustration and anger. I am so embarrassed by this. Yes I understand that the damage is done. We were promised something and inturn in became something else. I am seeking legal advice because we were not suppose to be exploited in that manner.
This is a fuck-up on an epic scale. Wow.
Actually, while you offer apologies they mean very little - at least to me.
As I mentioned in my original message, I can't believe that any agency would be dumb enough to send out unsolicited mail advertisements to consumers by the USPS service. First, the risks that you pose for gentlemen who may or may not have spouses, girlfriends, children, etc. It is unthinkable, and shows a complete lack of regard for personal privacy on your agencies part.
Second, when you look at the ad that was sent and then your website it seemed fairly clear you and your ladies aren't selling "time.". I hope that no LEO or postal inspectors received your mailing.
Again... Buyer beware.
I understand that my apolgy means very little to you, but we were promised something and in turn something horrific happened. I am so embarrassed by this. We do operate on a very discreet level we always have and this has been devastating to our company. I do not know if there is anything I can to reassure that we are not a company like this.
Sounds to me like they have apologized. Not once, not twice, but 3 times! There's no need to try to bully them into more. Maybe someone can let the agency know exactly what it will take because apparently offering a sincere apology for making a poor judgement doesn't seem to be good enough.
They're doing damage control. She made a conscious decision to target single men using the USPS by her own admission which shows a complete lack of discretion. Anyone with half a brain would never send information about an illegal activity through a government agency. You better believe this agency is on LE radar so good luck to any of you who have used them.
Your note states:
"We were told it was going to be a very private mailing list sent out only to single men."
So... you knew SOMETHING was going to be sent out with your name on it. So nope... sorry, this does not make sense to me. I see no 'exploitation' except by yourself to market your company.
Sure, the names/addresses were from the Census, but you still decided it was ok to contact these people to advertise your company.
Side note to all... wow, if this is what happens to your Census information... just another validation you should not be providing the Government any details of yourself.
I am now glad I only provided the number of people living at my address. FYI. that is all the Government is required to gather from you via the Constitution.
To honestly believe any of the BS that Elite posted as replies would take someone to such an asinine level of stupidity that clearly one would need to be "certified brain dead" to believe such a ridiculous story.
Direct mail is done with a thought process and is NOT cheap. I don't know the specific type of paper they used, but just knowing how much an average cost per piece is, this is an expensive medium to use for advertising this type of service (in a scatter gun approach as Elite would like you to believe).
And to honestly portray that this wasn't a list that was compiled from either providers or other agencies listings targeting specific hobbyists is so incredibly STUPID that would jeopardize both sides. And if one looks at their website (assuming they haven't already taken it down and run away) there are a number of gals that are ABSOLUTELY NOT with this agency.
So...does something stink?
You bet!
Thank you for the straight forward explanation that I had obviously failed to get through.
And I can tell you that the ad was 2-sided, 4 color both sides (with images of women pictured like their website), printed on heavy stock - so you are correct in saying that it wouldn't be cheap. I am surprised the USPS didn't notice them and say WTF.
I have a real hard time believing that this was from US Census data...But I don't believe a thing she is saying.
Enough said.
as long as they have some legal loophole (like paid for time only somewhere in the mailing) that says they did not participate in distribution of solicitation for an illegal activity they're in the clear. However, they don't even really need that. The Post Office is exempt from any responsibility for what they deliver.
Everyone is right that an inspector might notice the content and contact appropriate LE, they are in fact obligated to do that if someone could prove they did notice. But with the billions of pieces of mail, most of it really does go through their system unopened and unread.
Having said all of that, I agree with the poster that suspects this mailing went farther (in a marketing campaign) than was intented, but clearly the agency did not know to ask for ALL of the details of the project, and used poor judgement in hiring any outside marketing agency in the first place - unless they were only supposed to do a website - still it would be hard to believe that after payment for a website a direct mail would be 'thrown in' for free by the marketer ...
I am surprised if they mailed something like that as a postcard. If it is in an envelope, then USPS would have nothing to notice.
It seems like they hired a direct mail company to do the mailing. The direct mail company gets their data, in part, from the US Census. It seems like a very expensive way to advertise. I don't see how they could have narrowed the list down to a few thousand guys to keep the cost reasonable.
I can't see how they can use a direct mail company without offending a lot of people. What were they thinking? Just because a guy is single doesn't mean he wants to be solicited for sex, or that he does not live with someone else.
Whichever way you slice it I get the following impression:
1. You were hungry for new clients (needed money)
2. Decided to send out advertisements through a third party company
3. Contracted with that company
4. The mailings were sent out
Regardless of the level of discretion you purport, you have effectively now given your agency the same level of consideration a TER hobbyist would give to an "agency" that has people handing out cards on the Las Vegas strip.
I'm sorry you feel like you were used. Sounds like, in the best case, you were fed a story about how this will be great for you business and let simple greed take over. Being a victim of human faults, desires, and frailties is understandable. However, in the hobby this action has now marked you as "unsafe" and "lacking discretion."
I don't believe you used non-public information, but being misguided enough to feel that a public advertisement was a good idea is why people are so angry about this. Who knows, maybe you'll even get business after the mailing but probably not from any TER person who reads this.
There is absolutely no justification whatsoever for sending anything related to this business through USPS mail. Beyond the damage you may have done to individuals, you sent solicitations for an illegal activity through the US mail! Think about that. Dumb-ass move.
As posted on their website, here's their policy:
"Keep in mind that all the information that is disclosed to us will be kept to the the up most of discretion and it is strictly confidential. Once that appointment is complete we will dispose of all your information disclosed to us."
Which should be changed to:
"Keep in mind that all the information that is disclosed to us will be kept to the the up most of discretion and it is strictly confidential. Once that appointment is complete we will use all your information disclosed to us for our direct mail marketing campaign."