Maybe you have you felt that way before. Maybe you even feel that way now. After all, this is not just the critique of one individual.  It’s a lot bigger than that. This view arises out of the serious a lack of information, resources, and connection in our community that has allowed us to buy into harmful ideas like this for too long. 

 “I don’t have to manage my money, I’ll figure it out later.”

 “I already know it all, there’s nothing someone could teach me.”

“All this self-help stuff is a scam. A waste of money.”

 “This is a hustle. I just have to get him drunk, lie, steal, whatever. It’s what the top earners are doing.”

 “I can’t make money because someone else is selling full service.”

“There’s too many dancers, that’s why I can’t make money.”

“Customers are cockroaches.”  

These beliefs aren’t just in our industry. They’re a serious conversation in any business development space. Because there are educators, and then there are hacks. There are scammers, and liars, and lazy “mentors” who will sell you snake oil and leave you high and dry. They’re in our space, just like they’re in every other space. 

And it’s not just in the teaching space. It’s happening in the club, too. There are industry “veterans” that believe they’re entitled to more money because of how long they’ve had a locker room- who will go out of their way to bully less experienced entertainers. There are dancers who will complain, whine, and sit in the locker room- while telling everyone about how a few years ago “there was so much money in the club. It’s really gone downhill.” 

Art by Exotic Cancer: https://www.exoticcancer.com

It can feel stifling, stressful, and extremely frustrating to deal with this atmosphere in the club day in and day out. Especially when it feels like these beliefs are the majority opinion. 

Thankfully, that isn’t the whole picture. Because for every one of these folks, there are plenty more who are out here doing their best. There are industry leaders offering value, support, and resources to their communities. There are platforms, podcasts, apps, websites, directories, unions, and friendships that have risen out of the amazing and ceaseless work of adult entertainers. 

There are incredible salespeople that bring value to their clubs, their customers, their co-workers and themselves every day; who are thriving at a top level and bringing others to the top with them. There are supportive, kind, and loving strippers all over the world, creating a culture of respect and appreciation for all sex workers. There are investors, business owners, PhDs, supermoms, providers, healers, teachers, and adventurers in our community. There are even superstars that started out as entertainers and leveraged their beginnings in this industry into massive earnings and fame.  So, if you have some amazing idols in the community it’s not hard to see why!

And as the level of professionalism, skill, and potential grow for our industry, we’re all starting to figure out just how much how tools like sales training, personal financial management, sales psychology, negotiation techniques, and community support can make a MASSIVE difference in our earnings and experience. This conversation is relatively very new to the industry, though. How new? To my knowledge, there is no other comprehensive sales training manual for strippers —until now. By the way, there are lots of amazing products, services, and ideas about sales in our community. That comment is not to take away from the amazing work that sex workers have done since time immemorial to teach each other. That has always been around. 

What makes this product unique is a direct focus on the connection between sales education and the specific techniques, tools, and practices that you can bring into the club. And because this field is still relatively new, it’s extremely fair if you’re wondering what in the world stripping has to do with sales! So, in case you’ve never bought a product like this before, and because you might be wondering what the whole sales training this is about—here’s what sales education has to do with stripping, and what sales training looks like in the Racks to Riches world.

Why Sales Training Matters

At the core of any job in the adult entertainment industry is one factor: we get paid for our labor.  

There may be a lot of things we do at work that we do at home- dance around in our underwear, film cute videos, practice pole tricks, masturbate on camera, have sex with someone, give a massage (erotic or otherwise), hold space for someone else to process their feelings, or act out a fantasy….

But unless we’re getting compensated for it, it’s not work.

It would be nice if work was just showing up and getting to do the paid part of our job right away. You sign on to your livestream, and the room is full of customers handing over cash.  You log on to your Seeking Arrangement account, and there are fifty well groomed, rich, and very generous men waiting to give you an allowance and put you in their will. You show up to the club and from the moment you step on the floor every customer takes out every cent in their bank account and throws it on you.

Sounds. Fantastic.

And if you’ve ever worked even a single day as an adult entertainer, you know that couldn’t be further from the way it goes. Because in any area of the industry, you are not the only person in the game. There are plenty of other options for your customers to buy from- whether that’s other models, other strippers, other escorts, or other sources of entertainment (how many customers have stayed at home instead of playing with us because a new video game came out or they had a fantasy football night with their boys?). Here, income is guaranteed to no one.

Post by @mollysnacks on Twitter. From the club to digital sales, lots of folks find out the hard way: it's not as easy as it may seem.

The truth is we’re not competing against each other—we’re competing with every company on the market that’s out there trying to sell our customers something. And these companies have two things that we need if we want to make money: marketing and sales.

Marketing is the process of getting customers to come to you.

Sales is the process of getting those customers to pull out their money and trade it for a good or service.

These two go hand in hand.

Without marketing, you don’t have customers who show interest in buying. For example, let’s say you want to buy a brand-new television. You’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks but haven’t found the right one. Even though you may be ready and able to purchase, if someone approached you when you were out and about and said, “I sell televisions do you want one!?!??” you’d have some serious doubts!

What happens if the TV breaks?

What quality is this TV?

Where did you get it from?

How much does it cost?

What if I’m not satisfied with the service?

What if you just take my money without delivering the TV?

So even if you want a TV, you might not want that one. It has nothing to do with the product- and everything to do with how it was being marketed and sold to you.

Now, let’s say there’s a big company that sells televisions and it’s looking for customers like you. That’s where marketing comes in.  They’re going to run ads showing you great TVs. Tell you about their fantastic customer service. Remind you online and in person that they have a great return policy. You’re going to see YouTubers and Instagram Influencers using their TVs and talking about how great this brand is! You’ll see some great reviews about their store when you look them up.

So, you decide to come in and check some TVs out. So far, they’ve spent a lot of money and time to get you to just stop by! And you haven’t spent a dollar on them yet.

That’s where the salesperson comes in.

Even though this person may not even be making commission, they’ve gone through at least a few weeks of training to sell you on this type of product. They’re taught how to interact with customers, what they can use to get customers to buy more, and what to do if a customer objects.  

By the way, this salesperson is getting paid no matter what. They’ll get paid even if you don’t buy, and they still have to train for their job. 

They’ll greet you, introduce themselves, and ask if you need help. Then, they’ll tell you about the features of the TV- all the great things that the TV has. And they’ll also tell you some reasons to buy now. “We’re running a sale until Friday for 40% off!” If you have any objections (“what? That’s way too much for that TV!”) they won’t go cry about it in the stock room. They’ll offer you other options or tell you more about why that TV is so expensive. 

“You can’t put a price on great picture quality,” or “don’t you want to watch every detail of that Sunday football game? I see you’re wearing a team jersey.”

They’ll look for ways to relate to you and listen to your issues:  

“My last TV was way too small.”

“Well, let me show you over to our bigger models.”

“That other store had cheaper TVs”

“I understand- we believe you get what you pay for- and that’s why our new TVs come with a year of customer support. No other store can say that.”

“I can’t afford it.”

“We understand- we offer great financing options. Do you want to apply for one of our credit cards today and finance the TV that way? You’ll only pay $45 a month!”

This is what you can expect at a well-run department store. Now, let’s say you’re buying something more expensive. Way more expensive. Something like a house. 

Now, because a house is such a big purchase, the salesperson has dedicated their entire career to helping buyers like you do business. They’re marketing their business too, by the way. You likely found them through a friend, on the internet, or through a local ad. And now you’re in their office to make a big purchase. 

This agent will make you feel like a million bucks!

They’ll walk you through properties describing all the great features.

Do the paperwork for you.

Ask what you need, what you want, and listen without judging you or balking because you want a condominium, but they only sell houses. If they can’t help you, they’ll refer you to someone who can or ask you more questions about what you need. They’ll follow up with you after you buy- to make sure you had a great experience- and so if you’re ever in the market again you’ll go back to them. They’re likely making a few thousand dollars from that transaction and putting in dozens of hours of work for it. 

And why does a real estate agent go through all that?

Because they know that if they become a top salesperson, they can run a multi-million-dollar business. They can have financial and personal freedom. They can get pickier about who they do business with, and start expanding into other markets, or into other businesses that will support them for the rest of their lives. And they know that you will not help them accomplish that goal unless they can give you something you want: the chance to live in your dream home. 

Those big goals? They can be yours too. You can take control of your career, make decisions that put you at the absolute top of your field, and secure your future and the future of those you care about through this industry. It comes down to the decisions you make right now. 

Because in this industry, you are your own business- and you’re not selling a house or a car. You’re selling your most valuable resource: your time.

Are you marketing your business? If you’re at a club, they may do the majority of that. But as an entertainer your marketing is also your presentation, your approaches, your social media presence, and your ability to work well with management. 1/10, how much are you maximizing the marketing opportunities for your brand?

Are you selling a great product? Other entertainers are working out, caring for their skin, hair, nails, and makeup at a top level. They don’t spend their days smoking weed and watching TV- they’re busy growing businesses, working on creative projects, building additional streams of income, educating themselves, and overall becoming fascinating and driven people that are fun to be around.  They keep their energy and their attitude up- and they don’t walk around complaining, coming up with excuses, fighting with a toxic partner, or always “tired” or “bored” with their life. 1/10 how much are you valuing your own time outside of the club?

Are you selling at a top level? Because your colleagues are doing more than working out or getting mani-pedis. They’re studying sales literature, meditating, writing down their goals, studying other industries and business models to bring new techniques into their game, taking pole lessons, practicing their lap dances, roleplaying common scenarios to bring fantastic responses to their customers, learning about the interests your customers have to connect with them, and learning how to verbally and non-verbally convince your customers to buy. 1/10 how much effort are you putting into your sales game?

In the Racks to Riches world, when we talk about sales it’s a lot more than a few lines or “tricks” to put on customers. To really be at the top of your game takes more than confidence, or one book, or one day working on your sales skills. As a professional it’s up to you to get absolutely everything you can out of your time in the industry. No one else is going to do it for you. This stuff takes work.

If you want to see results from buying a product like this, it’ll take more than one read-through. 

Take notes as you go along. 

Actively go over exercises and try out new lines or skills at the club. 

Learn to get in control of your emotions and to put your business first.

The goal of this product is to start or to supplement your journey as a salesperson—but it’s not the only resource for this. Getting curious about your sales, your money, and your success is the only way that a product like this will give you the long-term effects you’re looking for.