I see a lot of ads for gorgeous ladies on TER and when I click on them I am surprised that the rates are sometimes about 2/3 or less of what I was expecting. And almost always it is an Agency girl.

My theory is that tipping is more common and expected with Agency girls, which I have no problem with, but was just wondering if that was true.

I could be wrong but some agencies operate much like pimps in that they do lower rates to drive up more volume in an effort to make more money.  From what I hear agencies push women to take on many appointments as they only get a percentage of the rate paid which is why in my opinion agency girls should have their rates set higher not lower than their independent counterparts.  Anything an agency can do an independent can do herself at the fraction of the cost.  

As price goes down, volume goes up.  

I'm basing the prices on my market, which is NYC.

For a girl who charges $1k/hr - high rate - let's give her 3 clients per week.  
Indy: will make $3k/week
Agency w/50-50 split: will make $1500/week from that girl
Agency w/60-40 split: will make $1200/week from that girl

For a girl who charges $500/hr - average rate - let's give her 6 clients that week.
Amounts stay the same

For a girl who charges $400/hr - mid-volume rate - let's give her an average of 3 clients per day, 5 days/wk = 15 clients/week (I worked at this rate when I was an agency girl, and I saw anywhere from 1-8 clients/day, with 3-4/day being about normal, 8 per day and 1 per day being equally rare. So this is actually kind of a low estimate of the amount of clients a 400/hr girl will see).  

Indy: will make $6k/week
Agency w/50-50 split: will make $3k/week from that girl
Agency w/60-40 split: will make $2400/week from that girl

For a girl who charges $300/hr - in NYC, this is a HIGH volume rate. Let's give her a solid 5 clients per day (which is a pretty conservative estimate), 5 days per week. That's 25 clients.
Indy: will make $7500/week
Agency w/50-50 split: will make $3750/week from that girl
Agency w/60-40 split: will make $3000/week from that girl

What if the $300/hr girl only sees 4 clients per day for a 5-day week (20 clients/week)?  
Indy: will make $6k/week
Agency w/50-50 split: will make $3k/week from that girl
Agency w/60-40 split: will make $2400/week from that girl

(If she's seeing fewer than 4 clients/day at $300/hr, the agency SURELY won't want to raise her rates.)

So, as price goes down, volume goes up. The agency will do better if they keep more people moving through the door.  

Theoretically, independents could also make a ton more money by lowering rates. And some do - however, they may limit availability by touring in short bursts, or only making themselves available on certain days. Or having set 'hours' or whatever. An agency won't necessarily lose income if a specific girl isn't working at a given time, because they will likely have other girls available.  

Also, (very generally speaking, and of course there are many exceptions) independents take the quality of their experience into consideration - not just the amount of clients they see on a given week. So, they may want to skew toward longer dates. Or, only take those dates that they truly feel will be fulfilling and positive experiences. And - although I'm sure there are nice agencies that will prove the exception to this - that was NOT the case when I worked with agencies. I saw some of the nastiest and most often-blacklisted names in my local area (these were reputable agencies highly reviewed and recommended on TER).

I scored 710 on my GMAT's but even I couldn't keep up with this analysis. Great intel though.

while you might say that if a girl's not bringing in volume, or isn't available often, it would be smart of the agency to raise her rates to maximize the profit from each date.  

However that would risk bringing her volume down even more.  

Also, with a $100/hr raise - the agency only gets $40-50 more per appointment. However, they'd get much more ($120-150) from a single additional client that a lower rate might bring in.

Like any business, an agency has fixed overhead they have to pay, much of it regardless of how busy they are.

So rather than a premium pricing model, where you are going to have lumpy income (some weeks more, some weeks less), keeping rates lower, where it's pretty predictable income stream has to be attractive.

The bigger question is what kind of girls stay with agencies. Starting with one I can see, to learn the ropes. But once you've been doing it a while and learned the ropes, unless you just hate admin of any kind, it seems to me almost anyone would be better off going indie and saving the 40-50% agency take. No?

The good thing about agencies is that they handle all ads, correspondence... some even provide a location, and photographer (although the girl might have to pay a small fee for the room, and pay back some of the costs for photos). And, they usually have a roster full of clients who are eager to see the new girl. So it's easy for a girl to start working and make hundreds of dollars, like, her first day. Being independent is more of a waiting game, at first.  

Being independent IS hard work. I remember one former poster did some screening for a girl, and expressed surprise at how much time it actually took up. I agree with you that the benefits outweigh the downfalls, but it's definitely not for everyone.  

Some of my co-workers were extremely disorganized. And unreliable. These were not girls who could maintain a business long-term. They didn't have their acts together. They'd basically just call in one day, and say they were working. They'd promise to work for the whole week, or every Wednesday from now on, or something. But they'd work one day and fall off the face of the earth. The booker wouldn't hear from them until the next time they popped up on the radar, and it would be the same thing all over again.

Some girls were chronically late. Some would say they were going to work the next day - the booker would update the site w/their availability. Then, the girl would never show up.  

I tried to help one of my agency friends go indy. I answered her emails for a while, thinking that she'd gradually take over as she learned the ropes. Nope!! I quit doing it when she forgot to tell a regular she was going on vacation to Florida. She texted me that he was at the door (mine, she was using my incall), and could I please tell him that she was sick?  

Even when I was trying to "help" her with her emails - well, one time a guy requested a combo dinner date/overnight. He was p411 verified and sounded great! Really nice. He asked her for some recommendations about places the two of them could eat. And some things to do in the city. She was like, 'What am I supposed to say to this shit?' I had to walk her through the process of doing some research on a few different restaurant/event options, and composing a nice, appropriately conversational email. Seems like it would be easy (just plain old common sense, really)... but, apparently it isn't for everyone.

This is a great question. Not only are the rates lower, the agency takes a large cut..which I refuse to work for an agency. Also, I noticed a lot of the agency websites post pictures of girls who are social media famous, models etc- basically not the actual escort.

To be an independent lady, you have to be avid, smart, have your head together, be organized, resourceful, learn about marking, putting yourself out there, you have a business, you are the boss, you manage everything. It is a lot of work. It is not just set up a location and take appts. It's learning screen, many ways to do so... (I'm not going into details in here)... and the most important... you cannot be lazy.  

Great post Voo-doo

Downward sloping demand curves!

I put in 12-16 hour days, easily. I had to get a website set up, write copy for my site/ads, take photos, join all the important sites, write board posts, read the PO board, figure out how to reply to emails, etc. I was on my computer breakfast 'till bedtime.  

It's not so many hours per day now that I have things set up - plus, I've been at this for a while and have my routine down - but screening can still be time-consuming. Not to mention all of the emails we get. Plus, the constant push-and-pull of extraneous issues (dealing w/boundary pushers and over-attachment, tactfully neutralizing and firing problem clients, etc.) not directly related to session activities can be quite exhausting, to put it mildly.

Believe me, as a business owner myself I really and truly feel for what you guys go through.  

And as a client, I'd like to say Thank You for the services you provide. Done right, escorting can bring happiness into the world.

Great magazine by the way. And very pro legalization.

(which probably means it is in the next post I read
 
is the thought of both fixed operational costs and the impact of apartment based locations versus hotel. Agencies will be able to support the apartment based approach better than most indies -- until they've become well established.

The "back office" type costs are probably largely fixed costs (web site, info sources for screening, phone, admin support) so again the agency has an advantage as that is spread over all their girls while the indie is likely the only income paying for that.

What all that over head really is and how much it changes prices I'm not sure.

The other thing is the assumption of some commodity type market where one expect the prices to be pretty much the same. I suspect some of the pricing here reflects not only the volume aspect but also some price discrimination such as airlines engage in. The people in sardine class (coach) are not getting that lower price due to the high volume they provide to the carrier

I'll ignore the price-quality element as I think it does sometimes show up but there are a lot of high quality providers who operate in that lower end of the spectrum.

Maybe because they are servicing gents for 10 or 12 hours a day at lower rates to keep their bosses happy. Generally speaking, more trafficking with them than independent ASPs IMHO.

So far nobody has addressed my theory about tipping. I've always thought that with independents they set their own prices and never thought a tip was necessary. With an agency it feels like maybe that would be much more appropriate and I don't want to walk away from being served a delicious full-course meal if that is expected.

I certainly never expected a tip. Nor would it have been considered acceptable for me to imply that I expected one.

As with independents, prices are generally assumed to be all-inclusive (with the exception of Greek and some fetishes).

A tip is always appreciated, though. She'll certainly be happy to see you again (if she remembers you).  

While there are certain agencies for which the listed rate is just to get a girl to show up... those are generally not considered reputable operations (massage parlors being the exception). Those are the types of agencies that would engage in B&S or worse.

When I worked for an agency/agencies my rates were higher than they are as an independent.
But even with having higher rates by the time the agency gets their fee and the phone girl gets her tip I ended up making less than what my rates are now.Oh gosh...don't let the customer have a credit card he wanted to use to pay after the agency took cc processing fees the money left was a big difference.
Every agency is different I don't know if it is the agency setting the rates or the individual.

The agencies I worked for we set our own rates so there was a ladies at a lower rate and higher rate.
I worked mainly off of tips...the agencies here in vegas are different than the normal agencies in other cities.I am not talking about the agencies who are reviewed here.But I will say the agencies were more concerned with how fast could we get out of the call and onto the next one versus trying to cultivate a repeat customer.
So damn happy to be an independent!!!! My 7 yr anniversary as an independent just passed a few days ago

who wouldn't have you "on my mind" lol

https://youtu.be/y2Dna8dffc4

Many moons ago, I worked for an Agency. They let their clients know that tips would matter and almost all did. The rates were higher but they took a %. So at the end of the day I made about the same as an independent without the headaches of answering the phone and advertising.  

I did very well for them but I didn't like the rushing to leave for the next call and that I couldn't turn down clients that I wasn't compatible with. One time they had me see a previously BL'd client who was a boundary pusher. Nothing horrid came of it, but it left a bad taste in my mouth. Then they wanted me to keep seeing him because I was the only one he somewhat behaved for. The deal breaker is when they made it mandatory to work 6 days a week, with 12 hour shifts.  

If I can't get time off for Brewers games, travel etc, it is a no-go with me. What is the sense in making plenty of money but you can't go enjoy it!

Agency is a majorly different experience, because the lady isn't picking you. The booker also always calls five minutes before the date is up, which is so fking annoying and embarrassing.

I don't think I got one tip being an agency girl, and definitely never got gifts.

Now, some people may disagree - but here's my thing on having a scheduler.
Many schedulers and agencies I have had do not have a target market. They price themselves on the cusp of all markets so everybody can have a shot at seeing the girl they want. They open up the playing field and make it easy.

Guess why?

They get a cut of all of the dates. Sure, the girl could raise her rates, but the demand goes down significantly - meaning - adding 100 bucks/hour splits the interest in half. And so on.

It's much easier to pump the girl to high volume/low rates and make a lot of money off of the girl banging 5-10 guys/day. (Or hours.)

My old agency was granted $70/hour booked up to 4 hours. (Meaning if I did a 4 hour date, they still get their $70/hour, even though my rate goes down as the hours go up. I also paid for my own ads/travel/expenses.)

She does 20 days / 5 hours of dates (not 5 dates, 5 hours of dates, per day) thats $7,000 per month for the agency per girl. (This doesn't include the charge for facility if you use their facility, and other fees)

They have 24 women touring the US? That's $168,000 PER MONTH - when these agencies aren't even paying for the ladies' ads or facilities. And if the ladies are using their local facilities, they're paying $30/hour of use. So that right there pays a hella lot more than what the apartment costs per month.

So. You take that number, and let's say they raise each woman's hourly fee $100. They get 50% of booking interest from guys. It doesn't seem like a lot of money when it comes to 1 girl, because her rate is higher, and guys return, book longer, etc. but for that agency, that's 84,000 per month they're being docked.

This is just the "idea" behind it - the less she charges, the more inquiries the agency has. The goal would be to make hella more than $7,000 off the girl per month - they'd run her into the ground if they could!

Off of me, they were making maybe $3,000/month - because I had a bunch of "rules" - that were much easier than my current "rules". Ok, so I was paying them approx. 3,000/month and I was LOW DEMAND lol! (Short, blonde hair and my head was cut off on all of my pictures lol! And I had tons of rules, and needed a lot of time/days off / I couldn't tour, I needed 90 minute notice for every date, and so much time between dates, etc etc etc...)

So the goal for them is for the girl to have as many hours booked in a day she could handle. ($70/hour) She was using the facility if she was in her home city. ($30/hour).  

This was an expensive agency. Some agencies pay all the expenses and charge 50%. I think that's actually cheaper for the girl than the 70/hour paying all expenses. Some agencies take 25%. Some want $30 per hour and that's it.  (That's not normal, but I've seen it.)

Brilliant for them, works for them, but not for everybody - and for sure, not for me.

People say "Oh, this agency girl is hotter than you Courtney, and you charge this much?" Yes, I do, but it's not all looks for some people (though I have them nowadays lol).  

It's that knowing that a provider is specifically targeting a certain type of client. (For me - returning, makes good money, a gentleman, likes extended outings, wants a connection, likes conversation/intellect/humor, etc etc etc)

I've tried to join other agencies in the past when I was newer, and I was told "I'm sorry, you're just not an agency girl - I think you're going to develop something completely unique to how you want to do this." I was pissed, because I thought they thought I was ugly, but looking back - I see their point.

And that point is, "You're not going to make me a lot of money, and I'm not going to make you a lot of money - two different styles."

At the end of the day, it's about money for everyone everywhere.

Some are lucky enough to pursue a job/their job in such a way that it becomes a tolerable, or even a wonderful, part of their life. Some people don't give a shit, and go to work to make a buck. Agencies are great for that.

Others, however, want more meaning to what they do, and I just don't feel an agency will cut it for those people. Especially if they're looking for a niche market.

There are some "elite" agencies I've seen where the ladies are like $1000-$1,200/hour.

Totally different ball game. But the OP was asking about the ones where agency girls are much less expensive than indy.

My short experience with an agency was the worst...like you mentioned being asked to rush calls and then telling a client I'll be there at such and such time when they know I had another appointment at the time just so he wouldn't call someone else and be waiting on me.  I refused to put up with that BS for so long including being awake at 3 am for calls and they stopped putting up my ads so I quit and figured out how to do things on my own.  Their cut was only 25% and I was making a lot more money than I am now (from sheer volume alone) but I'm happier and less stressed out.

I totally agree with breannabreeze, agencies tend to push as many appts. as possible on the girls (and some don't fully screen properly) for more money. Its sad but true, but hopefully not as common as it appears. On the flip side, some providers don't mind quantity as some are looking to make some quick cash and leave the industry, so an agency is good option for them as many have a large built- in and ready client database.

If you are just wanting to make a good amount of money in a short amount of time a reputable agency is a good choice...However if you are planning to stick around for longer than six months learning the ropes and going indie is your best bet.  I think most end up leaving agencies and become independent anyways as agencies seem to have a high turnover rate.

Can you graph this in Powerpoint?

Well done. I do not understand it, but well done.

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One (the first one) was outcall only. It was actually a B&S operation (I was new, and didn't know any better). It was literally the first search result on google, and I was able to start working the same night.  

At other agencies, they told me I'd have to pay for pics, and/or that my current pics were not good enough - but this agency was like, 'Oh, honey, we'd never post YOUR photos. That's dangerous, you could get into trouble! We use models.' Needless to say, that agency was NOT on TER. It wasn't GFE, either. Hours were 7PM-7AM (nope, not a typo) and the girls were mostly Russian and Brazilian w/the odd grad student or Asian thrown into the mix. I didn't last too long there.

The second agency did have an incall, but it wasn't what you'd think. Small, dirty, shabbily furnished. A very small TV that might have had rabbit ears. An old sofa/futon with lots of pills. The bathroom shower caddy had a sea sponge in plain view. Girls sometimes would stay there in between apartments, or if they lived elsewhere (NJ, LI) and wanted to try to pick up last-minute bookings. The girls were reviewed on TER, but not very frequently.  

The second shut down a few years back. I started in 2008, which was a bad time for such agencies. They were struggling, and kept apologizing that things were so slow for me. Really nice people, and a great place to work. But basically their entire clientele had been wiped out by the crash.

Not sure if the first is still in business, or not. Apparently, they have, like 10 sites and 10 times as many 1-800 numbers. So I wouldn't be able to tell.