TER rules expressly state that subject lines must be kept "clean and tidy" i.e no all caps or Backpage type stuff is allowed.

I am not asking anyone to breakout their dictionary or notebook from English class. That being said, here are some tips with how you can help.

1. If you are a touring provider, please include dates you will be visiting in the subject line. Dates must be specific. Vague dates like this week, this month or this year are not acceptable. It is not necessary to include your location in the subject line but it might be helpful for your clients.

2. If you use the number format for your dates, please use the backslash "/" to separate the month from the day. You may use a "-" to indicate a range of dates or and "&" for two consecutive dates. A comma "," may be use to indicate a series of dates. If you use a backslash, hyphen or comma for your dates; be sure to use appropriate spacing to make your ad more readable to viewers.

Examples:

Dates (numbered format): 8/9

Range of dates: 8/9 - 8/12

Consecutive dates: 8/9 & 8/10

Series of dates: 8/9, 8/10, 8/11, 8/12

3. A provider may also use the month in word format or an abbreviation followed by a period at the end when including her dates of touring.

Example 1: August 9

Example 2: Aug. 10

4. It is not necessary to capitalize the first letter of every word in the subject line. The first letter of a word to start a sentence or phrase is always capitalized. Other times capitalization may be used are as follows:

Months: June, July, August

Days: Monday, Tuesday

States: Maryland, Virginia, Washington D.C.

People: John, Jane, Mike

Places: Baltimore, Columbia, Ocean City, Annapolis

Nationalities or ethnic groups: Asian, Indian, Hispanic, French

Letters like "a" when alone or words like to, and, this, that, for, from, of, with are never capitalized unless you use them to start a sentence.

5. Symbols like an exclamation point "!", question mark "?" or period "." are generally used at the end of a sentence or phrase and are to be used sparingly i.e once.

6. Any other symbols like @, #, *, ~ are not necessary for posting ads and using them will be considered to be in violation of ad posting guidelines.

7. Acronyms are always capitalized in their entirety and are acceptable in the subject line.

Examples:

Hobby: GFE, CBJ, FS, DFK

States: MD, D.C., VA, NJ

Highways: I-90, I-270

What happens if I don't obey the rules?

I might have to bring out my ruler and give you a spanking. No, only if you ask for it. ; )

Actually I will make minor corrections at my discretion if I don't have a trainwreck to deal with, ask you to make corrections or hold your post until corrections are made. In the unlikely event anyone seriously breaks out the Backpage stuff as shown in the TER ad posting guidelines, I might have to moderate you for a period of time to be determined.