When ever I am going to be away for some time, I will mention it on my profile so that my regs know to get in there before I am gone
Well that's essentially what I'm doing. I took the 'moving, never coming back EVER' out of my profile, and simply said that I'm going abroad for awhile. If a client asks, I'm doing a house swap with some people I met on a message board in London (hey, dreams can come true, maybe? anyone interested? lol)
But, I still feel I HAVE to do this. I've added a new pic, but the suggestion by someone who said it's like passing by a high-end store with the same manikins dressed in the same gear...it can get stale. I do realize my pictures need updating as many are over a year old, the newest being only about 6 months old, except the body shot I took the other day.
But in truth, it's really more than just the pictures need changing. It's down to psychology. These guys know if I change pictures, I'll still be the same guy with the same phone # that's been here forever and always been here forever. There's a saying: men want what they can't have. Sometimes you have to shake things up to get them to do right.
There's 1 regular that I have known for over 3 years, who used to book me often. Then, overtime he started wanting to pay less and less. However, at the start, he was already talking my rates down as it is. Well, 2 months ago, he was hemming and hawwing about booking me. He started asking if I was moving. When I told him I would be returning the following month, he was like, "oh okay...well I'll just catch you when you come back". And never booked.
I believe if I would have told him I was NEVER coming back, he'd of had a sense of urgency and moved forward with it. But being I've always been here, guys have become complacent and take me from granted. They won't know what they've got until it's gone.