Bars not Posting Updates: Our Loss or Theirs?

[bumblebee]

There is an obvious lack of bar participation on the forum, the exceptions being La Bamba when there is a party due, and until recently Obsessions, plus Duke helping C & D out now and again.  Not sure if it concerns too many of our members, most of us being regular visitors to Los we have our favourite watering holes by now and will sniff out something new when on the ground.

 

So do you guys miss the bar photos?  You might want to know if a certain girl is still there to make a visit worthwhile or does the lack of pictures add to the mystery of not being sure who is working in a particular venue until you get there.  Personally it does not bother me as I seldom visit LB bars anymore, unless there is something special on to drag me out of my quiet life there. 

 

Maybe you feel it's the bars loss as they are missing out on free advertising to their target audience, out of sight being out of mind and all that.  I know if I was a bar owner I would saturate a forum with as many updates and photos as possible, isn't that basic marketing?

 

So what say you guys?

[globetrotter]

Agreed BB, marketing 101

[RocketSquirrel]

I do not frequent the bars with any regularity but I do enjoy the photos, the gossip, and updates on activities.  I would continue happily as a member here with or without bar postings.

[rxpharm]

One of the challenges is that some bars focus only on one forum thinking they get enough coverage that way, as it does take some effort to post to multiple sites. That is not the best approach as the most popular forum does not necessarily translate into the most visitors to your bar as that particular forum may have a lot of dreamers who never visit LOS.

 

Kudos to Duke007 who updates C&D regularly, but for the other bars that don't update regularly, it is their loss.

[JaiDee]

I agree 100%.   Nobody ever would have found the first Guess Bar if they didn't advertise on the Ladyboy Forums and the LB69 forum; it just wasn't a place you would simply walk by. So someone who had a connection to the bar owner posted photos and updates almost daily, it's what made that place take off. It's also good for the forum owner because it keeps people coming back to check those threads; certainly a win-win for both parties.

 

   Some people may not want to bother here because this forum isn't as large or well-visited as the forum for Pattaya Ladyboys,  but from what I can see this forum has a much higher percentage of people who would actually VISIT these bars and not just sit at their keyboard dreaming about it from London or somewhere in America. As  BB said, if I were a bar owner I'd be posting stuff nearly every day, it certainly can't hurt and it takes very little time.

[pdogg]

Btw, it's not just Ladyboy Bars that can benefit from free publicity on LBR.

Little Mermaid is an excellent Italian restaurant in Jomtien that used to post here.

http://www.ladyboyreview.com/forum/index.php?/topic/1899-little-mermaid-italythairussian-kitchen/?p=39295

So restaurants and guest houses in Thailand are more than welcome to promote their business on Ladyboy Review. we don't ask for anything in return.

Bars all over the world can benefit if they promote theirTransgender Nights and other special events

In general, any business in Southeast Asia or any ladyboy related business worldwide would benefit. it probably is not worth the effort if you have a pastry shop in Budapest.

Facebook marketing can't hurt either and LBR has about a dozen Groups and Pages. but Facebook clearly reaches a different demographic, with a small percentage getting on a plane to Southeast Asia.

[Eroticadventurer]

Whilst it does not make sense to me that bars do not take every opportunity possible to take advantage of very powerful free niche advertising,I do feel that it is a loss to the forum as well.

Whilst knowing very little about how these sites make their money my impression is that quite a lot of revenue can be generated via business's paying for advertising to websites with large volumes of traffic/visitors.

The Forum should play a large role in attracting visitors but will only do so with an ongoing range of topics and for newbies those bar threads are invaluable when they plan their first trip to LOS.

[bumblebee]

In fairness guys like Bkkldby and Mardhi help out Darkside and Check In respectively also which helps keep those bars in members minds.  Perhaps some bars are not aware of us.  I remember the time when Ezy bar regularly updated their thread and those great photos made the place a must visit when in Pattaya.  With low season here it would make sense to search for as many outlets as possible to get those valued customers to your business. 

[Guest JustSumGai]

I don't know...I know the biggies. Guys talk about em here. I used to like those posts but I just don't care at this point.  I suppose it brings in business, but for me usually I scroll past such posts.  And sometimes they can be too much with too many of the same looking pics of the same girls.  I DO like reports and pics from FM's but for someone involved, hmmm, dunno.  Lately I don't really see anything in the bars I'd be moved to visit them for. PLUS the girls change out SO often nowadays geting revved up to go git ya THAT one will often end up in wasted time as she ain't there anymore. Or "went home" or some such. Mostly feels like bait and switch to me. 2 yrs running I went to Darkside to see Gigi and 2 yrs running no one knew where she was and now they have an ersatz Gigi. 

    Maybe you can tell I don't miss bars posting.  Not to mention if the owner is posting no one is going to say anyting that might get him bent outta shape, They'll just say wow, that's a hottie, I gotta get by your place sometime soon".   

[Jimslim]

Everybody's loss would be my answer .

 

That said I can understand why people don't bother posting pictures anymore .

 

If someone posts a pic they should be encouraged not pulled up because their photography skills aren't great or they haven't got an expensive enough camera .

 

Secondly when you have a thread about a popular bar people use it as an excuse to bitch and moan about the girls like it was your local bar back home .

 

All those "Well I bought her a drink and she ignored me " or "I came looking for xxx but she was sitting with another guy " posts must annoy the owners when they have to deal with guys who need their hands held on holiday . 

[Guest sustra]

 will sniff out something new when on the ground.

 

 

You have already answered Your question!

this is the way to talk for a real ladyboy lover.....

[bumblebee]

You have already answered Your question!

this is the way to talk for a real ladyboy lover.....

I reckon you are right Sustra, guys who have been around the scene for a while just do their own thing for the most part and pop into the various LB bars as the mood takes them.  Exposure on the forums may not influence their decision making too much.

[mardhi]

Online marketing for a bar is a no brainer IMHO.  Jai Dee already pointed out the exact example of that for the original Guess Bar.  

 

Jim has also pointed out some of the pitfalls in doing this kind of thing and it can often open up negativity for all manner of reasons.   I think this is one of the main reasons, the bars are moving more onto social media although nobody should overlook forums, but their 'influence' in getting new customers is diminishing.   Its diminishing as threads get cluttered and lets face it, most of the guys who have been around a while, already know of the venues. But where this comes across badly is if its a venue he does not like, for whatever reason.   Obsession in Pattaya is a prime example - way too much negativity from folk who freely admit to never going there.      

 

What i do find amazing is how guys are glued to these threads though.    Its almost like they have no other life and seem to be online continuously and to keep posting comments.    Its just a picture of a girl working in a P4P bar.   

 

The forum activity  has a tendancy to cause issues and allow opinionated posters a window to make sarcastic comments even on threads/venues they freely admit to never visiting.   That is hysterical IMHO and again will be raising questions in owners minds as to what is the point of it all.    Same question could also apply to forum owners and their eagerness to get involved or even too involved for the greater good.    Its a fine balancing act but blanket updates everyday are frankly, overkill.    A bar does not need it and the danger is that the bar is accused of hype by the very people who spend their life absorbing the updates.   As I say, you could not make this stuff up - nobody would believe it.      One thing that does make me laugh out loud is people saying the "hype" did not match the experience. I have no idea what they expect from this.   I swear some guys are so taken in with this stuff, they expect the exact same thing to be happening in the bar at the very moment they walk in.   Kind of like, a picture gets taken of girls all on a pool table.  The guy has an expectation when he walks in, that the girls are really sat on the pool table seductively waiting for him to walk in.   

 

But does it work for the bar benefit?  Yes and no. aside from this above, I have been asked to slow right down on CIB updates.   June is now getting hacked off at the sponsors who keep sponsoring the girls out after seeing their pics and then facebooking them etc etc.   Again, its almost make believe how seriously some people take this.     Forget blogs as well - while being done with the right intent to entertain and communicate with the community at large, you just get the usual suspects bitching on and on. The same guys who are glued 24/7 desperate for new content, or at least content they feel is what they want to read.  Unfortunately, for many, they cannot seem just to skip over things/places they do not like/frequent.  Maybe its as much a jealousy issue in so far, as when great nights are talked about (by the people who were there), you get some poster sat back somewhere in Farangland trying to rubbish it.  same with big check bins and bell ringing - people seem to resent other guys being able to do it.   For all they know, this guy may have saved up the whole year to have one blowout 2 week holiday.   But no, he is online ridiculed as a mug for ringing the bell.   His money, his choice is my simple view.

 

But lets never forget, all the updates can do, is to encourage a visit to the bar.   its then down to the girls within the bar, as to the chances of that customer staying/returning based on how they find the place.   

 

But for the forums - perhaps they should be asking themselves why posters stop posting and also why bars have mostly given up. And what are they planning to do about it? I see all the forums are dropping in terms of content and replies.   Many posters who have neutral opinions have basically just given up and let the online bullies rule the roost, although that may reflect other forum and not specifically this one.    I can think of half a dozen expats alone in BKK who no longer post.    To me this is water of a ducks back and I will happily give as good as i get but for many its just falls in the too hard basket as they realise its just an internet forum talking about guys wearing a skirt and makeup.  

[pdogg]

His money, his choice is my simple view.

But lets never forget, all the updates can do, is to encourage a visit to the bar. its then down to the girls within the bar, as to the chances of that customer staying/returning based on how they find the place.

Lots of food for thought here but just want to touch on two things that I agree with 100%

I never understood why guys care so much about how other guys spend their money. It's their money, up to them whether they are a Cheap Charlie or LDOP using the pejorative vernacular.

One of my best friends really enjoys splashing the cash around in GG gogos and tipping the girls way more than he could "get away with". But he is having a great time, he can easily afford it, wants the staff and management on his side, and is also a genuinely nice guy. He is no dupe. Even though he is quite wealthy he says he could not afford to have these wild times in a bar in Vegas. Spending 10K baht for a great time works for him but he wouldn't feel right spending 10K dollars even if it was possible to get that same experience in the States.

OTOH, I'm careful with what I spend, and try to have a good time in a much more cost effective manner.

Why should anyone give a fuck about how my buddy or I spend our money?

As far as online promotion, the goal as Mardhi said is to get a customer to check out the bar, and then it's up to the bar to deliver an experience that keeps people coming back. For most customers, that probably means friendly, attractive ladyboys. Although some customers are looking for an overall good vibe where they can hang out with their mates that also has some eye candy around.

Since each customer has his own list of what matters to him which can change on a nightly basis, no bar is going to please everyone.

[bumblebee]

But for the forums - perhaps they should be asking themselves why posters stop posting and also why bars have mostly given up. And what are they planning to do about it? I see all the forums are dropping in terms of content and replies.  

Some good points above Mardhi and this particular one is quite true.  Bar threads tend not to generate many replies here, it appears most of the guys who post here have been around the scene a while now and just don't get too excited about seeing what girls are working in the bars at any given time. 

 

So maybe it's not such a big loss here if the bars don't post too many updates as they don't really excite the core posters it seems, but there again I have a hunch many of the silent lurkers are more interested in photos than debates, opinions, views etc but I may be totally wrong on that one.

[Hard1]

I think that most of the bars have realised that posting on the forums is useless businesswise. Their posts mostly attract idiot comments/questions like "What's the name of that girl?", or even unjustified criticism about silly things. Furthermore, what to say about another forum, where, if one just says that he does not like the ladies of Sensations, he will be immediately insulted by a gang of drunkards?

[Guest JustSumGai]

"One of my best friends really enjoys splashing the cash around in GG gogos and tipping the girls way more than he could "get away with". But he is having a great time, he can easily afford it, wants the staff and management on his side, and is also a genuinely nice guy."

 

ok, I know many times I've seen reference to the Japanese spreading big dough and how if they are there, you might as well just leave. PLUS you KNOW how these girls think. Everytime some guy does this they tell all their friends and ALL will start dreaming about getting these kind of cusomters, nevermind if those are few and far between. SO, why would anyone care? because it raises the bar so high that I"d say near half can't play that game, the girls start asking stupid amounts. or giving lackluster performance in half the expected time.  I stopped going to bars looking for one to pull.  I think this translates all the way back to Issan and explains a seemingly larger flow of new talent. Cuz every time one tells a friend back home, THAT experience becomes legend and then fact as it makes the rounds. The girls get even MORE fantastic expectations (is that from the same root as the word fantasy?) and new guys to the scene probably quickly turn off in many cases. Probably you get more doing it for the curiosity factor now than before. I know I've seen the crowd get younger over recent years.

 

I now await those in denial that'll say a "few" guys spreading big dosh does not have any real effect.  But to those who are not rich or well off, it's the same effect as going into a bar full of Japanese and being ignored.

 

oh, and another thing, if the bulk of bar goers were not well under the level of the big spender, big spender would not get the desired effect.  In a way they depend on average spender being carefull with their money.  So then all they have to do is spread some paper and get all that attention.  I guess basically it's inflation. That don't help if you get ignored because you don't want to pay $100 for a short time.  I'd say the big spender phenom also spins off causing the "I'm a superstar" phenom. 

[RocketSquirrel]

Looking back, I have to say that the photos from Guess 1 were absolutely instrumental in getting me to venture over to the darkside and they were instrumental in getting me to visit the bar.  But what a shy puppy I was back then 

[pdogg]

 

 

I now await those in denial that'll say a "few" guys spreading big dosh does not have any real effect. 

It certainly does have an effect.

 

But IMO this effect does not hurt guys like you and me who live in Southeast Asia.

 

An alternative theory is that the big spenders actually help guys like us who aren't throwing around money.

 

The 80/20 theorem (one can tinker with the percentage) states that 80% of revenue comes from 20% of customers.

 

For a bar to keep their doors open they need to generate a certain amount of revenue.  Take the bell ringers out of the equation and the bars would need to figure out how to replace this revenue. perhaps with higher drink prices.  

 

The current system keeps drink prices low because our drinks are being subsidized by the big spenders.

 

Likewise with the girls.  If it weren't for word of mouth among the girls about big spenders and also for guys who wind up supporting the girls and building houses, there would be less incentive for the girls to work in bars and sleep with farang.  They might just stay home.  But while waiting for the whale, they catch lots of small fish, 1000 baht here and there which is good for farang and good for the girls.

 

Not everyone will agree with this line of reasoning but it's food for though which I believe has some merit. 

[Torurot]

Recent pictures of a bar and it's "contents" are a welcome amount of

comfort and security for someone who has never been & IS likely to

influence where they visit. Bars are missing out on a very cheap

amount of free advertising even if it has become a bit of a chore

for some of them to post regular updates. It's fine for "old hands"

as Bumblebee points out, similar to "old hands" picking up free

lancers which is probably not recommended for new visitors.

As for "cheap charlies" we can't all be high rollers on the drinking

front, and a busy, full bar always attracts customers over an empty

one. That's got to be a win for the bar owners and the girls.

bumblebee Posted 20 April 2014 - 04:02 PM

I reckon you are right Sustra, guys who have been around the scene for a while just do their own thing for the most part and pop into the various LB bars as the mood takes them. Exposure on the forums may not influence their decision making too much.

[pdogg]

Welcome aboard Torurot; glad to have you join us!  

[SiamSam]

Welcome aboard Tourot Torurot; glad to have you join us!  

 

I second that. 

[Torurot]

Thanks guys. With the boss, RxPharm pretty much moved over here full time it's hard to get any momentum going on the other forum, so time to move camp over to here too. Now where's the list of emoticons hiding on this forum, and the quoting thing. Whew I'll get it right in about a year....

[garrydirty]

I feel that the guys that have been around the LB bars a bit are not the target for LB bars  hence less pics on here i feel its the newbie they want coming to  the bar alot of these guys want to make an impression and be liked hence the ringing of bell etc now what a guy does with his money is down to him am sure if he is a regualar vistor to LOS then he will learn, the two week blow out guys come and go  what makes me laugh are the guys that may go for 3-4 weeks and only go to the same bar every night or barfine LB longtime and then starts to call her a girlfriend on another forum even when u try to talk with these guys they wont listen thats cause they left there brain at Swampy and are thinking through there cocks nowadays i just let them get on with it....i read the other day that a guy was on holiday and spent two weeks really at one bar falling for one LB there when someone posted about another bar with LB,s in it in the same beer bar complex he never even new it was there? Feck me talk about blinkers this other bar was 40 yards away!!!  some bars welcome even old hands turning up the thing is they are as clued up as some of us in what we spend what we like etc.. I remember walking into the new La Bamba when Nancy was in there having forgotten my face maybe from the old La Bamba she stared chating with Sindy in Thai sort of over my head sort of thing now my thai is limited but basically sindy told i mostly go with LB,s from soi Buckhoaw LOL must have been one of those trips when i was only doing FL and is funny as have never barfined any LB in the years i have visted La Bamba yet had a few enjoyable evenings there one with Swedeman when basically was told from Nok this not soi 6 bar that Swedeman and myself having some LB between us and pawing her all over but having a laugh buying drinks etc guess who got the big tip as we left well it was not the bar.... Regards Garry

[pdogg]

Now where's the list of emoticons hiding on this forum,

 

It's a bit tricky where everything is at first.  

 

As for the emoticons, there is a grayish area near the top of a new post that you're typing and to the right of Size and to left of My Media you should see a smiley.  Just click on that and the possible emoticons should appear below your post. 

 

Please let me know if you don't see them.  It might depend a bit on your operating system and browser.

 

I can't get to them on my IPad; not sure if others can or not.