I’m a cheap little Titmowse. I admit.
I hate spending money when I don’t have to. The Internet has been a wonderland for a miserly bastard like me. I’ve written many articles for Cozy Frog on the subject of success in this biz for zero down. I get positively wet when I find a new piece of software or some killer service that’s free to use. Nothing excites me more than being involved in an industry where thousands and thousands can start out with nothing and turn it into something. If I can find a way to do it for free, I am on it like cum on a bukkake model.
Sadly, there comes a time when money must be spent. Fees should be paid. The bill is super due. Eventually, even the cheapest of mowsies gotta give up the green.
Now that I have money, I’ve been spending it. Mind you, I’m not rich. I’m no mogul. I am comfortable. I’m in a place where I have enough to cover my needs with a nice bit left over for other stuff. My frugal sensibilities still come in handy because I still need to keep an eye on my expenditures. I buy stuff now but I spend carefully and with much research. I look and look for the absolute best prices in conjunction with quality. I know what’s good but I know what good is worth and I won’t spend one penny more.
If you’ve been at this for a while, you know eventually you have to drop some dimes or you’ll go nowhere. You will have to pay for hosting. You will have to pay for content. You will have to pay for link placement or traffic. You’ll have to buy software, hardware, services and supplies. At some point, you will have to spend money on your adult business if you want it to grow.
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Your task is to determine when that time has come. I’ve told you a bazillion times to wait until the time is right before you spend your money. What I can’t tell you is when that time will be. Each case is different. Each situation has it’s own set of circumstances. The gallery maker has to be able to afford the bandwidth if they buy a top spot on a TGP. The paysite owner has to be able to afford the Visa fees in order to process credit card payments. The content producer has to be able to afford to pay their models and buy decent equipment. On top of all that, the adult webmaster has to be able to afford it if they get screwed when they spend money. You must be in a position where you can afford to lose money before you can spend money.
For example, take my laptop. Some would say that a laptop in itself is an extravagance a cost-conscience mowse should avoid. But my laptop is very important to my work. I have a child and our desktop is the family computer. I don’t want the kid exposed to my job. I also don’t want to forbid my kid to stay off the comp. My child is a little design genius in the making. Free yet monitored- access to the puter is vital to my baby’s future. Besides, my back is all fucked up. The laptop allows me to shift postions whereas the desktop keeps me trapped on a chair. I addition, I can take the notebook with me wherever I go. I need my laptop and when I killed the keyboard a week ago, I had a major spending decision to make.
If I were a silly mowse, I would go out and buy the first shiny shell I saw on the showroom floor. If I were a fool, I’d fall for the bullshit prices retailers’ charge for laptop computers. If I were a hardware snob, I’d be shopping for the newest monster machine. Instead, I found what I needed at a humble online shop. I located a used older model laptop without an operating system and I bought it. I paid all the money owed up front, got the comp, put the OS on it and I’m sailing smooth. I got what I needed and I only spent what I could afford.
And there you have the germ of my advice. You’ll know it’s time to spend money when your needs and your ability to pay converge.