You know, just because I live and breath Internet porn, that doesn't mean I'm completely removed from the outside world. I go out. I talk to actual humans in physical settings. I have friends. I have family. I also commune with non adult types on non-industry message boards and social networking sites. I listen to what they say. When the subject of "porn" comes up, I pay extra special attention.
| "In the past I've told you that the average porn surfer is getting savvier and in some ways they are smarter about certain aspects of our business... Unfortunately, their wisdom is in the areas that hurt us the most. Surfers are very very good at finding free porn. Lots and lots of free porn." |
In the past I've told you that the average porn surfer is getting savvier and in some ways they are smarter about certain aspects of our business. Yet when it comes to other aspects, surfers are still as clueless as they were in 1998. They have no idea how affiliate-sponsor programs work. When they open an affiliate-built page, they think that affiliate is actually the paysite owner. Despite the fact that we've washed our industry of despicable practices such as auto-install dialers and other malware, they still blame their spam, computer and browser troubles on us instead of realizing they're probably contracting those nasties from free wallpaper sites and by taking those stupid online quizzes.
Unfortunately, their wisdom is in the areas that hurt us the most. Surfers are very very good at finding free porn. Lots and lots of free porn. Blame the TGPs and the MPGs and the Tube sites if you want but the worry remains. I've stopped counting the times I've seen someone write:
"Nobody Pays for Porn anymore."
Ouch. Double ouch because it feels true. I mean, we know people are paying for porn because if they weren't then all of us would be out of business. Just the same, I still have to wonder how much of this nobody-pays-for-porn jazz is bravado and how much of it is fact?
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First off let's get real. There's a hell of a lot of people that have never paid for porn and never will pay for porn. There have always been freeloaders. Our sales ratios prove that. When you get 50,000 hits to your gallery and only 1000 users click your sponsor banner and out of that, only 3 of them pay for a membership, you have to accept that the odds are against you. This is a numbers game and don't you ever forget it. The more traffic you get, the higher your chances for signups. The same goes for building sites and pages and posting to blogs. Consistent output is the only way to make it.
Traffic rarely comes "just because". You have to work for it. You have to fight for it. And once you get it, you have to be clever enough, creative enough and aggressive enough to get that surfer to click you sponsor ad. And then, you have to depend on the brilliance of your sponsor's tour page in order to close the deal. Making a living selling porn is mind-numbing drudgery and the only people who think it's easy are those assholes that laugh about never paying for porn.
So yes. It is somewhat true. "Nobody pays for porn anymore". At least, not the majority. We have to depend on the numbers and the eventuality of coming across that willing surfer with the open mind and open wallet. When we get them, we have to give them a sell that is the best sell they've ever seen. We have to show them the value in the investment. That means we have to sell sponsors who give their members everything plus the kitchen sink - Hundreds of thousands of images. 24/7 live streams. Full-length movies. Social networking. Free email. Classifieds. Exclusive imagery that isn't found on any other domain. Free t-shirts. High Def movies and a bag of chips. And we have about 56 seconds to make our case before those willing surfers hit the back button an run off to a competitor's page.
Do people still pay for porn? Of course they do. The thing is it's time to stop fooling yourself into thinking that it's ever going to be a simple process. Oh sure, you'll eventually find your niches and sponsors that you can promote successfully. You'll figure out the site formats that work best for you and you'll learn how to lay out a marketable page. What will never be simple is the work. That never stops and neither does the endless search for new content, new niches, new technology and new trends.