I'm working on setting a meeting up with my first provider, and am talking to a couple of ladies who are open to seeing me.

One of the ladies has a single review, however the reviewer has over 20 reviews dating back to 2003.  She asked several questions for verification.

The other lady has 4 reviews since December 07, but none of the reviewers have more than 4 past reviews.  She is willing to schedule time, however has asked me nothing about myself; does that seem normal?

Lastly, is it appropriate to perhaps post the providers TER handle on the local discussion board to see if others have perhaps seen, but not reviewed them?

Long winded, I know, but I'm really trying to do my homework and be cautious.

Thanks.

I'm not sure that either provider sounds like an ideal first taste of the hobby, but the one who screens is better.  Plus, it may be a little rude to not go through with an appointment after an independent provider has taken the time to screen you.  

To answer your last question, it is perfectly fine to post a 411 on the ladies on your local board.  However, know that 411s from guys with no reviews may not draw many answers.

most care you can put into it.  You seem to be choosing between a lady with one review and one with four reviews, neither of which may have enough reviews for you to pull the trigger.  Every provider is unique, but there are enough heavily reviewed providers out there so that you can find one that closely matches the two ladies that you have narrowed your decision to.  

If you are still going with the two, then read all of the reviews, including the other reviews written by the reviewers.  You will be looking for credibility issues.  For example, does the reviewer of the lady with one review seem to be giving the same high scores to all of the ladies without variation- he may be a shill or someone who trades good reviews for discounts.  Do the reviewers for the non-screening lady agree on their experiences?  Are the scores about the same, and do they reflect what is written in the review.   Are the other reviews of the other providers consistent with the reviews of those providers.  There are about a thousand other indicators which you will begin to see with experience and reading lots of reviews.

Unfortunately, the reason you want to go with the more heavily reviewed ladies is that providers have figured ways around the system.  Some have two computers and will use one as a provider and one as a reviewer, and will write fake reviews to build a reviewer rep so that the review they write of themselves will carry more weight.  Some are actually part of an agency putting themselves out as Indy's, and the agency will have someone that reviews all of the girls favorably.  There are other ways also, but you should get the idea.  

Screening is up to the provider.  Providers should screen better than Coppertone, but a lot don't.  You don't want to go to just anyone, but the screening aspect should be low on the list of factors to consider.

Good luck with the hobby - it's the best one to have.

-- Modified on 1/23/2008 11:47:33 AM

I was recently with a provider who mentioned that one of her TER reviews was fake. The giveaway was that the reviewer described her as wearing an outfit that she didn't own.

Other than this one fact, there was no way whatsoever to tell that the review was fake. It read very much like her others, although the score was a little lower. I figured someone wrote it who was trying to get free VIP privileges on TER, but your explanation perhaps makes more sense. She thought a competing agency had posted it to knock her down a bit. Bottom line is that there are multiple reasons for false reviews and one needs to be very circumspect with reviews.

You might want to go back to square one.  Multiple reviews from established reviewers is a key to success.  The minimum for each should be 4-6.

I'm new to this myself, but I'm thinking I read in one post that some providers don't want to be reviewed.  Does that sound right?

Yes, but you should probably stay away from those for the first one.

I feel kind of obligated to the lady that went to the trouble to do the screening, as we have been exchanging emails for about a month now.  

As I indicated earlier, she has one review, however the reviewer has reviewed many other providers over the years; some good, some poor.  His reviews closely match the other reviewers of these same providers.  He also indicated that she suggested he have some wine on hand when she arrives; she did suggest this to me yesterday, after emailing to inform that I passed screening, and to set up the final details.

At this point, we are scheduled to meet for a drink in the bar of my 5-star hotel, so that we can get acquainted; my suggestion...not hers; I will not be carrying the donation at that time.  
My primary concern is LE, which I don't think is an issue here.

It's about 5 days before the meeting, and I've posted a 411 on the local board, to see if I can get further info.

If all goes well, you'll read about it in the reviews; if things don't go well, you can read about that instead.

In for a penny............

Your attitude sounds great.  You should not have any problems.