Backpage is what we want and miss. The sweet world of escort services has never been the same since those harsh new laws swept through it, leaving our hands as empty as our loins as we search for something to replace that discreet hookup we so desperately want. The sex industry was severely hurt when Backpage vanished.
But does the end of Backpage signal the demise of the book's oldest occupation? New websites like Bedpage promise to close that gap. But is it legitimate, or is Bedpage just a time waster?
First impressions
Oh, the memories. When you first see Bedpage, the internet in the mid-2000s comes to mind. I genuinely adore it. You only need to click on the city that is closest to you to begin exploring thanks to the extensive list of cities that are arranged by nation, state, and region. This website, which more closely resembles Craigslist than Backpage, appears innocent enough, but don't be duped. The devil is in the (sexy) details.
Features
Although there are a lot of different features on this website, it can be difficult to determine which ones are real and which ones are merely storefronts with empty interiors. For instance, you can find advertisements on the home page for child care, musicians wanted, services, real estate, and accounting jobs, to name a few. However, clicking on anything other than, well, sex-related links results in almost empty pages. Some of them are completely empty, such as the ones advertising administrative positions and gardening services.
However, romantic searches are a completely different matter. Look under "Adult" and look through various search categories to find what you were really looking for when you arrived at Bedpage:
1. Body Rubs for Adults
2. Escorts from Dom & Fetish
3. Men as Escorts
4. Websites & Phone Sex TS
5. Strip Clubs & Strippers
These are overflowing with opportunities for connection, as opposed to the other "ghost town" areas. Advertisements include contact information and an overview of the services that each provider provides. Feel free to browse the "personals" section to find the kind of romantic connection you want to pursue if you want to have even more fun.
The fact that there are few or no restrictions on what a provider must post on their ad is one annoying aspect of this website. Contrary to other websites that require advertisers to provide details, a picture, or even rates, most ads have ambiguous language and poor spelling and frequently lack even a picture. This reminds us in some ways of the heyday of Craigslist and the mystery surrounding personal ads. On the other hand, you wonder why anyone would choose the ads that make you wonder if the posters are sex professionals or just horny randos when we have access to sites like Switter and Tryst that provide more details.
Read More: Affairalert: A Trend in the Online Dating Industry
Membership
What could be disliked about a little unrequited love? Like Backpage, there are no fees associated with this site, so if you just want to have some fun, you're free to do so. Everything for potential customers is anonymous because sites with such sensitive information are vulnerable to hacks and danger, so all you have to do is call the number in the ad to set up a time and price. You can be sure they won't ask you for your credit card information if they value your anonymity.
But if you want to post an ad, get your wallet ready because, according to the sex workers' Reddit, Bedpage is expensive and offers little to no benefit.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Free is pretty amazing, and it's nice to have risk-free access to the pickins (as long as you keep your browser incognito). A website that doesn't require you to register is also one that respects your privacy. Best of all, Bedpage exudes the same sense of security that Craigslist Personals did in the first place by keeping more, ahem, personal options under wraps and tucked away among other innocent offerings like job postings.
Cons
The divisions by region were one of my first complaints about Bedpage. Are you not willing to travel for the right connection? Finding the dream dominatrix can be challenging when a site separates San Francisco from Oakland, which is only 20 minutes apart. After all, what if my ideal dominatrix posted in a city that isn't the one I'm looking in, even though she lives only 40 minutes away?
Additionally, despite the fact that this website is free, it has a lot more shoddy-looking ads than other escort websites like MegaPersonals and CityxGuide. This makes it a little challenging to sort through and identify the real deal. Get ready to complete your homework. Ask the person you're interested in to send you links to their other ads or Twitter accounts so you can verify that they are a real person and not just a catfisher.
Finally, Bedpage practically begs escorts to get caught in a sting by asking people who post the ads to sign up for a Gmail account, provide a phone number, and even provide a physical address. Bedpage is generally a pretty disappointing website due to this complete disregard for worker safety and anonymity. How much can employees rely on the preservation of their jobs and safety when all of their personal information is linked back to their ads?
Conclusion
I hope you will like Bedpage. However, you have to question whether you're actually going to find something worthwhile on this site given the complete disregard for professionals' privacy on the site, the disorganized ads, and the excessive organization of their cities. Although it offers a Backpage alternative, it is still far from the sex workers' paradise that Backpage offered.
I wonder if clients can find escorts on Bedpages because the sex workers whose opinions I've read claim that they rarely meet clients there. Just in case, it's worth looking through Bedpage in your city, but don't have high hopes.
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