hello, new looking for some advice!

webmiko · 02-23-2004, 08:27 AM

Hello, I am thinking about making a venture into the adult biz. I come from a software development/entreprenuer background so technology business is not a foreign concept for me. My girlfriend does porn for videos already and has been on several sites already. It only makes sense to try to somehow produce the content and profit from it more directly (albeit for alot more work), than her providing content which she gets no residual income from.

Im contemplating pay site simply because content providing from one girl doesnt seem like people would be that interested for one, and seems like content providing would whore out original content where as a pay site would keep it exclusive. Investment isnt too much of an issue, Im considering buying a canon xl1s, and some lighting equipment, some webcams.

Really my questions are, what are some gotchas, recomendations, warnings, that you all can provide me. Both me and my girl are prepared to work, invest some time and money (bringing in models etc)

I considered doing this a few years ago before I had the girlfriend that was into it, and got caught up in my software biz so Ive lost touch with whats going on in adult industry.

Please, any advice would be GREATLY apreciated.

thanks.

-C

Evil Chris · 02-23-2004, 11:44 AM

webmiko... first off welcome to the board.

As I see it you have many options in front of you. You could do an amateur site based around your g/f with exclusive material of her and her alone. Depending on how niche-specific your g/f is, these kinds of sites are hit and miss, but then again it's all in how you market her site.

You could build up a standard adult site as well, and get it started once again by using exclusive pics of your g/f and/or hired models for content.

It's really up to you what direction you want to take.

webmiko · 02-23-2004, 02:57 PM

Really what im curious about, is with the information available, a working site, fresh content, time spent advertising, how is the success rate? (i know this is highly subjective, but isnt everything)

I really only see warnings about opening paysites that people are getting in over their heads, and how hard it is to retain, convert, and build traffic. Its hard not to get discouraged with all the negative information about it. =^)

Mister X · 02-23-2004, 03:11 PM

Welcome!

You're right about content selling not being an option. You need a fairly broad base of models for that and there is a TON of competition in that field just now. The Canon 10D is a very good investment if you like Canon, and is actually overkill for web work at a good price. And for sure you need some lighting equipment and a decent mini-dv camera. Photos are great but you really need video as well to keep members.

Chris is exactly right about the site options. Single girl sites are very hit and miss and depend on the girl's look and/or the fetish niche(s) she is in, if any. But they do have an advantage in being easier to forge a unique identity. The same goes with the second option really. Using your girl as the focus and featuring others can be a good way to keep the interest of members but you will still have a unique identity to set you apart from the "super sites".

One thing to remember is that if you start either type of site with your gf as a focus it is VERY important that she continues to work for other sites as well. As well as bringing her money, anything that raises her profile on other sites can only help her own site. Plus it can often be possible for her to get a link to her site or permission to use the content from a session for her own purposes. You mention that she has done videos but you didn't say what kind. If they are dvd/vhs releases that can be a good way to get type in and serch engine traffic. Plus you can set up an affiliate store with PECash or one of the other companies and make money through marketing them.

At least you have the right attitude and realize that it will indeed be a lot of work.

Mister X · 02-23-2004, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by webmiko
Really what im curious about, is with the information available, a working site, fresh content, time spent advertising, how is the success rate? (i know this is highly subjective, but isnt everything)

I really only see warnings about opening paysites that people are getting in over their heads, and how hard it is to retain, convert, and build traffic. Its hard not to get discouraged with all the negative information about it. =^)

There are no statistics kept for success rates but I think that first sites probably succeed less than half the time for sure. Mostly because of inadequate preparation and unrealistic expectations. Definitely it is hard to retain, convert and build traffic. Nobody is going to succeed the first week. And it might take 6 months to really get some money flowing. But it is possible. And sometimes you get lucky and have a big hit in a short time. Most of the first sites that fail are from guys that think it's easy money and buy a bunch of good or shitty content and put up a site that looks like 10, 000 sites that are already out there.

It's like any other business, including the software biz. You need a product that people want to buy. And it has to be better or cheaper than the competition. Of course it's pretty hard to make money by selling yet another new and improved popup killer so it only makes sense to try and market a unique product. Because little or no competition is best.

Panky · 02-23-2004, 08:17 PM

Welcum to XNations webmiko!

webmiko · 02-24-2004, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Mister X
There are no statistics kept for success rates but I think that first sites probably succeed less than half the time for sure. Mostly because of inadequate preparation and unrealistic expectations. Definitely it is hard to retain, convert and build traffic. Nobody is going to succeed the first week. And it might take 6 months to really get some money flowing. But it is possible. And sometimes you get lucky and have a big hit in a short time. Most of the first sites that fail are from guys that think it's easy money and buy a bunch of good or shitty content and put up a site that looks like 10, 000 sites that are already out there.

It's like any other business, including the software biz. You need a product that people want to buy. And it has to be better or cheaper than the competition. Of course it's pretty hard to make money by selling yet another new and improved popup killer so it only makes sense to try and market a unique product. Because little or no competition is best.

Yea, that was my impression of most of the people that want to open a site. Delusions of gradeur, or underestimating that a small business no matter what industry is ALOT of work, and takes creativity.

Well, I was just hoping for some slightly positive feedback to put my mind at ease a bit. =^). With all the "dont open a paysite" propaganda floating about, it just makes one be a bit cautious.