The Price Wars: When Desperation Drives Rates Down

Posted by Julia | 5 min read

There's always some girl willing to work for less money. Always someone more desperate, more new, more willing to undercut established rates.

It's frustrating and destructive for everyone in the business.

Last year, several new girls started advertising rates 30-40% below market standards in my city. Clients started expecting everyone to match those prices.

"But Sarah only charges $200 for two hours," became a common complaint during rate discussions.

This creates a race to the bottom where everyone makes less money to compete with the cheapest providers.

The girls charging ultra-low rates usually can't maintain those prices long-term. They burn out, leave the business, or raise rates after learning the real costs.

But the damage is done. Clients get used to lower prices and resist paying market rates.

Experienced providers end up losing income because desperate newcomers destroyed pricing standards.

The worst is when established girls panic and drop their rates to compete. That just makes the problem worse for everyone.

Better strategy is maintaining your rates and focusing on quality over price competition.

Clients who only care about getting the cheapest option usually aren't good clients anyway. They often have boundary issues, safety problems, or unrealistic expectations.

The clients worth keeping understand that quality service costs money.

But watching your booking volume drop while cheap competitors get busy is stressful. Takes discipline to stick with higher rates.

Some providers try to justify low rates by claiming they're "just starting out" or "building a client base."

That's short-sighted thinking. Starting with low rates trains clients to expect bargain prices. Hard to raise them later.

Better to start with reasonable rates and provide excellent service that justifies the cost.

The escort market can only support so many providers at sustainable rates. When too many people enter the business, competition gets destructive.

That's part of why screening clients for quality matters more than quantity of bookings.

One good client paying fair rates is better than three cheap clients demanding bargain services.

Price wars hurt everyone except the clients who benefit from artificially low rates.

Providers need to resist the temptation to compete purely on price and focus on value instead.

The market usually corrects itself when desperate providers leave and rates stabilize.

But it takes patience and financial cushion to survive the price war periods.