What I find amusing are the number of so-called verified ads where it is clear that the Leo list sign has been photo shopped onto the picture so that isn’t even a guarantee that what you see is what you’re going to get. Or they get somebody else to hold up the sign and it’s not actually them who you will meet at the door.
It is very difficult for new providers who are legit to prove that they are trustworthy, but just as there are many ads that are scams, many of the inquiries are also scams. There’s no way to tell whether or not the person messaging you is actually going to show up especially when they are using a text app number. Another red flag for me is when somebody offers me a deposit without me asking for one and insist that I have to answer a security question even though I have auto deposit. They will often tell me it’s because they have a business account or some other bullshit because they want me to click on a fake interact page and put in my financial information to accept it, and then gain access to my account. So as much as clients need to be wary of fake ads and scammers, so do providers.
Also, since this board is no longer moderated, it is a free-for-all. I used to have access to be able to advertise and I can no longer advertise. So like others on here, The most I can do is make an announcement in the general area, which I hesitate to do because there is not a lot of traffic on here for Burlington and I am also in Ottawa now and can’t even change my information. So someone like myself who is legitimate has a difficult time to prove who I am when I can’t even post a real ad in the city that I live in or am visiting.