I think it’s extremely important that sex workers have resources inside our own community, because far too many companies are happy to use the demimonde to boost their growth, then suddenly become all pious and kick us out when they decide they don’t need us any more. Regular readers know that I’ve featured sex worker-owned web businesses before, so when I saw Estelle talking about her company online, I invited her to introduce her service to y’all.
Before I tell you about Red Cloud Hosting, let me tell you about me. I’m a Muslim who’s been a sex worker for 11 years; I predominantly work as a private escort in Melbourne, Australia, but I’ve toured many countries and worked in an agency in Europe. From the beginning of my career, technology captured my interest and my curiosity led me to investigate its influences and how it can enhance our work. Sex workers have the right to practical, reliable, dependable and simple technology to build, organise, advertise and work safely online, so four years ago I created Red Files Inc, a digital space that allows sex workers to share resources and information safely and securely. I created this project as part of my wider sex work activism, and it’s a registered non-profit charity.
Now that you understand my background, it’s obvious why I created Red Cloud Hosting in May 2018, a digital solutions company with a strong focus on sex workers which started as a safe web hosting platform. As my activism primarily focused on local or national laws in Australia, I didn’t notice the sinister nature of FOSTA/SESTA until it was too late; I also could not have anticipated how pervasive these laws were, and how they threatened sex work advocacy efforts globally. While any laws or regulations that punish sex workers are horrible in of themselves, this law seemed particularly far-reaching and conniving. For example, I operate my business in the legalised state of Victoria in Australia, yet American laws continually curtail and hinder my ability to work safely. So I put my utilitarian mind to work and concocted a solution. One year after launch, Red Cloud evolved to provide further reliable digital and web solutions for sex workers. Through the course of my work I found too often workers kicked off web creation platforms, or swindled by self-proclaimed webmasters that overpromise, overcharge, and under-deliver; others are completely boggled by the complicated process of setting up a website for themselves. Red Cloud now offers simple, affordable web and technology solutions for sex workers wanting more personalised, secure and friendly services.
As I believe in self-determination, Red Cloud Hosting focuses on empowering workers to learn how to manage their websites in a clean, simple and supported manner. If I’m the brains of Red Cloud, then my work colleague and Webmistress Kim Cums is the brawn. There’s not much you can’t do with a website when you have Kim on your team; she’s a jill of all trades who learned how to set up shop online from the ground up. Her personal sex working website offer a variety of engagements from videos, images, member signup sections, a forum, mailing lists, sex worker friendly payment processes and more; she launched the sex worker focused Bumbershoot Creative and now offers her technological expertise to others. While Kim’s skills lay in website creation, I specialise in copywriting and editing. In my muggle life I’m a writer, and with my experience, I know exactly what content attracts clients. Much of my work with Red Cloud is writing up new, fresh copy for sex workers, because we all know how cumbersome it can be to write about yourself in a sexy light. I’m also socially aware of the sex work laws in different countries and can use language to circumvent legal issues. I have another sex worker colleague, Chelsea who is in charge of SEO Audits. In her other life she’s an SEO whiz and that’s all I’ll say about the mysterious woman to protect her identity. She goes over your website with a fine comb and teaches you on how to improve your SEO traffic. I haven’t been able to showcase much of our work in the area of image editing just yet but my little worker bee Finnley is well-versed in the area and I will be sharing some photos soon. While the rest of our services don’t have much to do with FOSTA/SESTA, I have found in my two years of running Red Cloud, that most people want everything setup in one spot. That’s why I added additional services such as Kim’s photography and videography for those in Sydney. When she resumes traveling interstate, I’m sure this will be applicable for the rest of Australia, although I’m sad to say you Americans might miss out until the pandemic fades out.
Our websites come in the form of Packages that are customised for the level of investment a sex worker is wanting to put into their business. They start from $490AUD setup fee, with an ongoing $30 monthly fee for maintenance, security plugins, updates and so on. All websites are FOSTA/SESTA consequence free. For every Package purchased with Red Cloud, a donation is made to Red Files Inc or to a sex worker organisation of your choice. Red Cloud can now offer sex workers in Australia and internationally:
- Dedicated and trusted servers for website hosting based in Australia.
- Hundreds of website templates specifically tailored and curated to appeal to the sex industry.
- Personalised domain (for example www.myescortwebsite.com).
- Domain email setup (for example [email protected]).
- Complete and customisable website creation and build-up on WordPress.
- Migration or replication of past website onto Red Cloud.
- A variety of website packages aimed at sex workers at any stage of their business.
- Add-ons to provide your website a personal touch such as mailing lists, blog, screening forms or tours page.
- Content creation, copywriting and editing that suit the legality of your country.
- General website tweaks and must-have plugin, security and SSL updates.
- Professional videography for escorts, porn performers and webcam models.
- Professional photography geared for content creation, escort portfolios, brand building.
- Professional editing of images including color correction, blemishes, body modification, lighting, facial blurring, tattoo removal and airbrushing.
- Dedicated sex working support team to help and guide you with quick responses.
- Individual, one-on-one website creation coaching and training.
- SEO audits and analytics setup.
Red Cloud is entirely sex worker-led and I aim to educate sex workers on technological literacy while I build their websites. If you want to transfer the hosting for your website to a sex worker owned company that’s FOSTA/SESTA proof, then I’m your girl. There are a few limitations: if you’re transferring from Wix or Squarespace their technology locks you into their services, and if you host pornographic material, Australian federal laws prevents me from hosting it. However, I have other solutions if you need. Red Cloud is also a great company to engage with if you want to rejig or refresh your brand with a new name or if you’ve just entered the industry. Our Add-Ons means that anything you want can be added on top of your Package so it suits your needs. I am not here to make big bucks off sex workers; I want to contribute to the growth and profit of sex worker businesses. I understand not everyone has a casual $500 to invest and that is why I often create flexible financial arrangements; monthly payments instead of once-offs. I would much rather see you maximising your earnings when you are ready and not have to wait for that initial investment to come in.
