YNOT Magazine, Issue Y21-02 by YNOT

CONTENTS

The State of the Adult Affiliate Game

Is Adult Still a Viable Vertical for Affiliate Marketers?

Building a Content-Rich Destination Site

Savvy Cam Models Get Paid More by Joining Affiliate Programs

Rising Adult Verticals: A Look at Growth Areas in Adult

How to Succeed with White Label Cam Sites

Strategies For Buying Ads in the Adult Space

PAGE

Featured Article

The State of the Adult Affiliate Game By Gene Zorkin

In recent years, the growing sectors of the online adult industry haven’t been difficult to spot. Much of the industry’s recent expansion has come from cam networks, fan sites and other platforms that leverage the popularity of adult performers to generate revenue in a more direct fashion than ‘traditional’ adult video productions have, historically speaking.

From the perspective of those of us who have worked in the online adult industry for 20+ years, it’s a remarkable change – one that leaves us wondering: Are there still opportunities for adult affiliates to earn money the “old-fashioned” way, earning sales commissions by driving traffic to thirdparty properties?

Along the way, the once-dominate adult affiliate space has changed. Gone are the days when adult affiliate programs were competing to see which one could offer the highest per-signup payout to affiliate marketers. Many of the “whale” affiliates who once drove hundreds of thousands of dollars per month to major affiliate programs have moved on, either via a lateral move into mainstream spaces, or leaving behind their affiliate marketing work entirely then launching companies, projects and platforms of their own.

To answer this question, YNOT reached out to a variety of adult companies to get a measure of where the opportunities for affiliates and webmasters can be found in the current market. In an upcoming series of feature articles, we look at a broad selection of options available to adult webmasters and how to make the most of them. In creating this article series, YNOT queried adult industry experts for their advice on challenges ranging from building sticky destination sites through great content to how to tap into the industry’s

creating this new article series, YNOT hopes to shine a light on the best opportunities, resources and avenues of exploration for a new generation of adult webmasters – and maybe inject a sense of hope and enthusiasm into experienced adult webmasters who may not see much cause for optimism in the current market.

rising verticals like adult video games, VR content and cutting-edge offerings like non-fungible tokens (NFTs). And since being a performer and an affiliate aren’t mutually exclusive possibilities, we also looked at how cam performers and content creators can earn income as affiliates, promoting adult sites and products to the well-targeted audience of their fans and followers.

It has long been said that in order to survive in the fast moving, ever-changing adult internet space, it’s crucial that companies, webmasters and performers be able to adapt to the evolution of the market around them.

Are white label cam sites a good option for affiliates? How does one optimize the marketing tools offered by the sites and platforms across the breadth of

While he said it in the context of creating high-quality adult content, an observation from MetArt co-owner Jonathan Krogman rings just as true when applied to any other pursuit – including carving out success as an adult affiliate.

the industry? Equally important, what are common pitfalls webmasters should avoid when using these tools? As has always been the case, drawing and referring traffic is a constant challenge for adult affiliates. Is purchasing traffic from adult digital advertising networks a good approach? How does a newcomer to buying traffic avoid breaking the bank while they learn the ropes? While there was never really an era of “easy money” in the adult internet sector, few would argue that the challenge for webmasters and affiliates isn’t greater now than it was in the late 90s or early aughts. In

“There’s no better way of developing your own skill than studying other people’s work, thinking critically about what you like and dislike, and then trying to do better,” Krogman said. And once you’ve studied deeply the habits and practices of the market leaders? Then it’s time to “practice, practice, practice” what you’ve observed. The precise solution to any challenge as significant as crafting success as an adult webmaster can’t be found conveniently in any article or report, of course. But overcoming obstacles has to start somewhere, and there’s no better roadmap to success than the path already followed by the successful. That path will, necessarily, involve lots of hard work. As such, we hope that in this issue of YNOT Magazine, in addition to information to guide your optimization, you will find inspiration to fuel your perspiration.

About the Author Gene Zorkin has been covering legal and political issues for various adult publications (and under a variety of different pen names) since 2002.

Interviews

Is Adult Still a Viable Vertical for Affiliate Marketers? By Dennis Taylor Adult entertainment began its migration to the internet in the second half of the 1990s, before behemoths like Google, Facebook and Twitter even existed. Amazon was just a fledgling online bookseller with big dreams. Many people still used telephone lines to connect to the internet and browse the web. Smartphones didn’t exist. It was a period often compared to the “wild wild west” because most marketers and developers were operating in an environment with few established rules or norms. In this dynamic time, technically savvy entrepreneurs looking for a quick path to riches online would often turn to adult since it was the biggest game in town. It sometimes took affiliate marketers and developers only weeks, not months, to start earning 4-figure payouts — shortly followed by 5-figure payouts and sometimes even more. Affiliate programs like SilverCash, TopBucks, Maximum Cash, CE Cash and others were giants in the business. The annual “IA 2000” tradeshow (which

eventually became Internext Expo) attracted thousands of participants and filled Las Vegas expo halls with expensive booths and enthusiastic attendees. As the industry matured though, some of the top players started to “win” the game — which made large payouts a bit more work for the smaller affiliates. And then the “tube sites” happened. MindGeek (previously known as Manwin) started to buy up many online adult properties. Their signature sites like PornHub and RedTube gave away for free what previously was sold: hardcore adult videos. And it wasn’t just them, as sites like XVideos and xHamster also thrived. Porn fans found fewer reasons to pay for video with so much available for free, and many of the former giants disappeared from the industry. Others simply evolved, moving into more interactive adult services that didn’t rely on pre-recorded video.

According to Jager, affiliates will succeed or fail over the years based on their ability to adapt to regular changes in the business environment. “With [the] proliferation and rise of free tube sites, the market has changed with some players leaving … but many new players popping up,” he added. “Affiliate marketing is still big, especially in the adult industry.

Courtney Rudolph of FriendFinder Networks

Those who remember this “golden age” are sometimes angry and upset at how much the industry has changed. There is little denying that the volume of affiliates isn’t the same now. There is also no denying that many adult companies are nonetheless thriving in 2021. Today’s winners have succeeded by adapting to modern conditions. Given how the industry has evolved so dramatically in the past 15 years, many wonder if a skilled affiliate marketer can still earn big payouts promoting adult entertainment verticals? Courtney Rudolph is Business Development Manager at FriendFinder Networks, one of the companies that adapted to adult’s changing landscape by focusing on dating and live webcams. She says plenty of opportunities remain for affiliates who focus on these lucrative verticals. “Dating and live cams … are still going strong in the affiliate world,” said Rudolph. “Yes it’s more difficult than it used to be, but if you are making sure to adjust your strategies with the changing times you will be successful.” Martin Jager is Head of Products and Sales with AWEmpire, or AWE as it’s more commonly known. AWE is the affiliate program behind popular live cam products such as LiveJasmin, BimBim and (most recently) Oranum. ”I cannot count how many times affiliate marketing has been called ‘dead’ in the last decade, and not just in the adult industry,” said Jager. “The mainstream market has also declared affiliate marketing dead and gone a few times. It’s a catchy punchline because it’s polarizing, but nothing more.”

CrakRevenue is another company that has thrived in the new affiliate world and is now one of the most successful CPA networks in existence. According to Maxime Bergeron, who serves as Affiliation Sales Director for the company, conditions have only been improving for affiliates in recent years. “I’ve been with CrakRevenue for more than six years now, and I have to say adult affiliate marketing have never been better,” said Bergeron. “In fact, the past year has been the best for us by far.” Bergeron acknowledges the pandemic was probably a boon for online marketers, but says the positive trends pre-date the start of the lockdowns. He largely attributes the upswing to a change in focus, with less emphasis on ‘lead generation’ and more emphasis on customer long term value. He believes the newer approach creates better returns for advertisers and bigger payouts for affiliates. Is it all sustainable? “Unless human beings stop being interested [in] sex, I don’t see why adult affiliate marketing would slow down,” Bergeron adds. Affiliates can choose from a number of verticals. Adult video games and VR videos are on the rise, and retail products are also a popular choice. There is pretty broad agreement though that the live webcam and adult dating verticals are the consistent money-makers for many affiliates. “The ‘live cams’ vertical is undoubtedly a great market,” said Bergeron. “It’s been on the rise for a while, and the pandemic has skyrocketed the numbers. There are

more models and more spenders than ever. But not all typical adult affiliates can get in and start pushing a crazy amount of leads, as we often see on the dating vertical.” Rudolph for her part agrees that dating is big and says the vertical puts some marketing channels in play that are less accessible to affiliates marketing services that are explicitly adult. “Being that ‘adult dating’ is our bread and butter I always recommend it,” she said. “Dating sites straddle that line of adult and mainstream, so we are still able to tap into SEO and SEM. Focusing on more PG and mainstream style pags has proven to be key in recent times.”

you won’t know enough about your customer to target them the best way. Here, your advantage is that you offer free content, and you get tons of users but it’s difficult to convert them. If we compare the conversion of a webmaster, we always try to find other webmasters with the same prerequisites.” Bergeron too admitted that the “how much can I earn” question has a complicated answer. He pointed out that traffic quality, proper traffic ‘match’ to the offers promoted, and funnel consistency are all factors in conversions and payouts. He also said the type of payout can impact the end results. “You’ll get completely different results if working with a PPL / DOI than if you’re working on PPS,” said Bergeron.

Jager says quite a few affiliates choose to specialize in live cams and many are quite successful at what they do. He pointed out that live cams also make a good supplementary income for companies who run their own content-rich destination websites. “The fact that cams are a great supplement has been noticed by many paysite [operators] whose main focus is selling their own content,” he added. “This might sound cliché, but we are very far from something that could replace the personal touch a cam session offers to both parties, thus the experience will remain sought after for a long time.” Affiliates often want to know what’s the best offer they should promote and what kind of conversions they can expect, but the answers to these questions aren’t always simple to provide. Bottom line, how much can affiliates earn with popular adult verticals? Things get pretty murky when you consider all the variables involved in affiliate marketing. “Everyone wants an answer to that, but it’s not that easy,” said Jager. “A short and unhelpful answer would be: ‘Well, it depends!’ At first glance, you would think that this answer is not helpful, but indeed it varies so much that it’s difficult to give a clear answer.” There are good reasons why Jager can’t give a simple answer to how much the average affiliate makes. There are all kinds of factors that impact payouts, including the type of websites being promoted, the quality of the affiliate’s traffic and even the GEOs in play. For these reasons and more, different affiliates can see wildly different results even when promoting the same offers. “To give an easy example: if you are a webmaster who is focusing on Google Ads with very expensive keywords, you will need a decent conversion rate,” explained Jager. “If your conversion is low, you most probably won’t be profitable. On the other hand, if your traffic is mainly referral traffic from tube sites for example,

Maxime Bergeron of CrakRevenue “For the same traffic source and quantity, you will get a much lower CR if you’re on a pay-per-sale model.” There are however some clear things that successful affiliates do on a regular basis, as well as mistakes that less successful ones tend to make. Rudolph said that FFN’s most successful affiliates stay informed about the latest trends in online marketing. She said they have a good understanding of traffic and how to adapt from one source to the next as conditions change. “Our most successful affiliates understand and know how to adapt to new regulations from mainstream and adult traffic sources,” she said. “Along with that, they are focused on following trends that we see in the affiliate game.” For Bergeron, traffic is also central to the success of adult affiliates. He believes the most successful affiliates build content-rich websites that produce a steady flow of organic traffic. These affiliates have more control and better sustainability. “The most successful affiliates we see nowadays are the ones building organic traffic,” said Bergeron. “They are usually also the ones promoting the greatest content.

Their users are, most of the time, better qualified and will have a greater long-term value. These affiliates usually generate fewer clicks, but their EPCs will be 5 to 10 times higher. Plus, they are most likely to receive payout bumps and bigger caps and be able to negotiate special requests for custom ad tools, custom sales funnels, promo codes, etc. Testing, tinkering and evolving are all key activities for successful affiliates. “The biggest webmasters focus on optimizing their conversion by trying different ways of promoting offers,” explained Jager. “It’s not about having tons of ads on your sites; it’s about how smartly you advertise them.” Jager points to pop-up ads, which annoy and harass users but are nonetheless popular tools for affiliates. He said alternative ad tools like AWE’s ‘Video Promotion API” helps affiliates get offers in front of audiences without annoying them in the process. “All in all, the most successful webmasters focus on quality of integration rather than quantity,” he said. Which means affiliates who bombard their audience with promotions are going to be less successful both in the short term and the long term. “Less successful affiliates do not think about their customer journey,” added Jager. “The biggest mistake is to think that adding tons of pops, banners, header links, etc. will automatically result in good revenues. You should not count on earning big money on day one. It is important to look at user behavior, offer clear benefits for the customer of your website, and choose

quality sponsors that you focus on optimizing.” Bergeron agreed the affiliates trying to rush things are just going to get frustrated. “The least successful affiliates are the ones taking shortcuts,” he said. “They are the ones using other people’s content to build a website or an IG account quickly. They are the ones buying cheap traffic from untrustworthy sources. Creating great content and great traffic IS hard work. It requires time and effort. If you’re not 100% dedicated, you will fail. At best, you’ll have a good 3 to 4 days run with SOI offers, and you’ll get paused after a week.” For those affiliates who remember the “golden age” of adult and lost faith somewhere along the way, Rudolph wants them to know they can be successful today if they update their tactics. “What worked in the 90’s and early 2000’s does not necessarily work anymore,” she said. “Yes you can still make money doing TGP’s or tubes, but you are not going to see a great free-to-paid ratio. With that being said, smaller affiliates are just as important as the bigger guys and it’s usually the mistakes they learn from that helps them grow into a whale.” “From that point it’s really about how successful they want to be.”

About the Author Dennis Taylor Dennis Taylor is a freelancer writer and regular contributor to YNOT. He’s a tech enthusiast and amateur coder who occasionally offers his unwelcome opinions on politics and religion.

Interviews

Building a Content-Rich Destination Site By Gene Zorkin

When it comes to making your adult site “sticky” – the kind of destination to which surfers will return and members will renew subscriptions – you’ve likely been told that the key is to offer great content. It’s good advice, but what does it mean? What constitutes “great content,” exactly? To address that more-complicated-than-it-sounds question, YNOT reached out to both the creators of MetArt – a site renowned for the quality of its photographic and video content – and Porn Dude, an experienced site reviewer who has pored over

countless adult sites, evaluating their content under a wide variety of both objective and subjective criteria. “Technical excellence is always appreciated, but truly great content inspires an emotional rather than intellectual response,” Jonathan Krogman, co-owner of the MetArt Network, told YNOT. “So, you can look at a technically perfect image and admire it, but subjectively you may prefer one that has flaws but produces a visceral response.” Krogman emphasized that while providing quality content might start with basic technical considerations,

to have a strong appeal to viewers and consumers, content must provoke more than appreciation of an image or video’s technical excellence.

associate high price tags with high quality, it’s absolutely possible to film subpar fap fodder even if you’ve rented out a mansion and hired some big-name talent.”

“Passion, seduction, flirtation, intrigue – great erotic content captures a mood and conveys it in a way that provokes a reaction in the viewer,” Krogman said. “So, while the key technical elements – sound, lighting, composition – are all important, artistic vision and the ability to tell a story are possibly even more so.”

“With porn, the quality of the sex can really make or break the product,” Porn Dude added. “If the participants look good, hump well and really seem to enjoy what they’re doing, you can make fantastic flicks on a shoestring budget. Lackluster sex is only sexy if that’s your particular kink.”

Porn Dude said there are “definitely some technical considerations I look for, including basic factors that I think even casual observers would notice.”

Whether you’re shooting on a meager budget or blessed with plenty of cash to throw at your productions, shooting quality content is not easy, Krogman said.

“In 2021, the videos better be in HD at the very least, and I do think it’s fair to expect 4K from the bigger operations,” Porn Dude explained. “The quality of the camerawork itself is also important, as porn fans aren’t going to be happy with sloppy shots where you can’t see the action or shake so much they’ll make you nauseated before you have a chance to finish.

“New contributors are always surprised by just how tricky it is to create great erotic content,” Krogman observed. “Not only do you have to master all the technical aspects of lighting, focus and composition, but you have to find glamorous locations, develop superb styling skills – and all while ensuring your model feels beautiful and desirable.”

“As someone who’s been reviewing smut for years, I also tend to be aware of how many cameras are rolling and whether they’re handheld or stationary,” Porn Dude added, “but the best stuff is put together in such a way that the average viewer is never going to notice or think about it. Everything should be edited so it flows together in a smooth and natural way.”

It’s also crucial not to let your backdrops and environments steal the show or distract from the performing talent, Krogman cautioned.

Porn Dude also noted that while “there’s a tendency to

“It’s important to keep the composition uncluttered, to let the model take center stage,” he said. “Lighting needs to be flattering, but bright enough for viewers to enjoy the detail of the model’s face and

body. Understanding what the viewer wants to see and discovering how to show it in a tastefully sexy way is a lifelong process, and sexual tastes are constantly evolving, so even the most successful artists can’t rest on their laurels.” Whatever producers may think constitutes great content, hitting the mark with your audience also relies on absorbing and meeting their expectations, Krogman and Porn Dude agreed. “Understanding your members and what they want to see is of prime importance, as is understanding your own brand identity,” Krogman said. “We move with the times in terms of styling and technological advances, but our core value of high-quality content featuring naturally beautiful girls is set in stone. Sure, we like to explore different themes and diverse models; we have artists all around the world so we’re always trying to expand our boundaries, but without compromising our standards. “Brand loyalty is created by treating our customers with respect,” Krogman added. “We don’t palm them off with sub-standard content and we pride ourselves on our superb customer service, with a dedicated team to respond to members’ issues.”

Porn Dude said that beyond “meeting the basic expectations of your genre, I think it’s a good idea to listen to fan feedback.” “I recently launched PornDudeCasting, which is a typical porn casting site in a lot of ways, but with the addition of a big-headed, foul-mouthed, porn-reviewing mascot in lieu of the usual anonymous male ding-dong,” Porn Dude explained. “The response among PornDude fans has been great just based on their expectations of both the character and casting flicks – and it excites them even more when we’re shooting exactly the content they’ve been begging for in the comments and my inbox. With anything on the web, everything boils down to the user experience. If they have a good time, they’re going to come back.” Understanding what constitutes great content is one thing – but how does an aspiring content creator go from the desire to create compelling content to delivering it, consistently? “There’s no better way of developing your own skill than studying other people’s work, thinking critically about what you like and dislike, and then trying to do better,” Krogman said. “Take classes to learn the basics, then experiment with different techniques. Practice, practice,

practice! We love to see new ideas and innovative approaches to creating content.” Along those lines, in addition to sites like MetArt, Porn Dude pointed at sites like Blacked and Tushy, noting that while all the sites offered by Strike 3 (the company behind Blacked and Tushy) “have high production values and high-end talent,” Blacked and Tushy stand out because they are “shot in the modern reality-porn style while the OG sites release movies with more ‘traditional’ porn filmmaking.” “That slight difference in scenarios and shooting styles is important to a lot of porn fans, even those who may not be consciously aware what the difference even is,”

Porn Dude explained. “I sometimes refer to reality porn sites as ‘pseudo-amateur,’ because they appeal to folks looking for something that really feels like it could be a spontaneous hookup with beautiful chicks, captured on video by some friend who just happens to have a really expensive camera in their pocket.” It’s also important to accept that whatever commonalities there may be among the various examples of great content cited here, there is no single approach, style or presentation that can guarantee your target market will consider your content “great.” “At the end of the day, content quality is a really subjective thing and that applies whether we’re talking about family-friendly cartoons or the filthiest pornography ever created,” Porn Dude observed. “Porn consumers do have expectations about their preferred genres, so that’s something I take into account when I’m reviewing material. Expectations need to be at least met, if not exceeded.”

About the Author Gene Zorkin has been covering legal and political issues for various adult publications (and under a variety of different pen names) since 2002.

Featured Article

Savvy Cam Models Get Paid More by Joining Affiliate Programs By Dennis Taylor

Successful cam models and content creators have learned how to market themselves and earn consistent revenue. Their processes usually involve some form of jumping in front of a camera and then pointing fans at the results. It’s through webcam platforms, fan sites and clips marketplaces that models usually monetize their content, whether it’s via live shows, video clips or custom pictures.

on top of any direct sales. Affiliate payouts happen whenever a model refers a new customer to these platforms, regardless of whether that new customer buys the model’s content or another model’s content.

In other words: models make money when fans purchase their content directly.

“Chaturbate was the first camming platform to allow broadcasters to be affiliates and earn extra cash,” explained Lara.

Not all models understand though that they can also make money as an affiliate for these platforms they use, which adds an indirect and potentially passive income

Shirley Lara, COO of Chaturbate, told YNOT that her company wants to make it simple for its models to generate this additional revenue as affiliates.

She said it’s a simple process for models to sign up as affiliates too, they just need a Chaturbate account. This

account lets broadcasters earn tokens as always through live shows, but also to participate as an affiliate in either the pay-per-lead program or the rev-share program. The latter lets them earn recurring income for the life of any new Chaturbate customers they refer to the platform, while the former pays a large one-time bonus for each new customer created — even if that customer never spends a dime.

to participate, not all broadcasters know these options are available to them. “Most of our models focus on creating a unique experience for their customers,” said Tanferri. “The customer

“Any affiliate, including broadcasters, can share their affiliate links on their social channels, their personal websites, OnlyFans, or wherever their audience is,” added Lara. “We want to empower our broadcasters and help them earn passive income.” Guillaume Tanferri is Marketing and Communication Manager with Jasmin, the company behind popular live cam platforms LiveJasmin and BimBim. Their affiliate program AWE lets affiliates earn income from any customers they refer to the camming platforms, and models are invited to participate in that revenue stream. “Not only do we allow this, we actively encourage it,” said Tanferri. “All models are welcome to use all available channels to promote themselves. Many of our models have an incredible follower base on social media, and if they use it to their advantage, both sites profit. Therefore, we do not have any restrictions on that: models can promote themselves on social media and even create their own website or whitelabel with the help of AWE.” It’s a similar story over at Flirt4Free, where company representative Carlos Diaz explained the affiliate revenue options available to cam models. “All of our models have an option for referring users through a traditional affiliate account, for those who want to promote their own branded white label,” explained Diaz. “Or, we have a built-in program called ‘Member Bonus’ that credits their broadcast account for referring new users and converting guest users.” So while cam platforms tend to encourage their models to take advantage of these programs for extra income, and many go to some lengths to make it easy for models

Carlos Diaz of Flirt4Free relationships they build on our sites usually carry over to their social media profiles. While many studios are simultaneously affiliates, it is true that only a few models take advantage of the opportunity to participate in our affiliate program.” According to Lara, it’s not uncommon for Chaturbate’s most successful models to also earn income through affiliate links. “We find that a majority of full-time broadcasters utilize the Chaturbate affiliate program and we encourage all broadcasters to sign up,” said Lara. “It’s a great way to make passive income along with uploading content, creating fan clubs, and earning tips from broadcasting.” In a sense it’s extremely common for Flirt4Free models to be affiliates, even if they don’t yet know it. That’s because the company automatically activates this revenue stream for models once they sign up for live shows. “We created this program as a simplified way for models to earn as affiliates by referring new members over to our site through their social media accounts,” explained Diaz. “With ‘Member Bonus’ models earn double on everything referred users spend on them.” Flirt4Free is high on its ‘Member Bonus’ program, and wants models to know how easy it can be to earn big bonuses without any extra work. Models just have to

Flirt4Free Corporate Offices in California make use of their custom affiliate URL when sending fans to their shows, this way the system knows who to credit for any new users generated. “Any new customer who signs up through your link, you’ll receive 100% bonus credits on whatever amount they spend on you,” said Diaz. “If someone registers through your custom link, and spends 1000 credits on you, you will get a bonus 1000 credits.”

multiple accounts so that your fans can view your content,” said Tanferri. “Make sure to have an active presence on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok. If you already have these channels, make sure you frequently update your content by posting pictures and videos as often as you can. Don’t forget to reply to your messages and interact with your loyal customers. Last but not least, use a linking tool like BeMyFan in your bio. You’ll give your fans an overview of which channels they can subscribe to for more content.”

For those programs that offer different types of referral payouts, does one work better than another for models? “It depends on your needs and payment strategy,” said Lara. “For long term growth, our rev-share program is ideal and allows you to earn 20% from every purchase a user makes over a lifetime on Chaturbate.” She did caution though that rev share payouts can take some time to generate a lot of revenue, so for models looking at maximum short term gains it might not be the best choice. “If you are looking for immediate payout options, our payper-lead offers immediate payout on each genuinely free sign up,” Lara said. “For you to earn, your lead just needs to create a free account with no credit card or email for you to get paid out.” According to Tanferri, models can max out their affiliate payouts by simply promoting themselves properly on social media channels. “If you are not on social media already, then create

Shirley Lara, COO of Chaturbate

About the Author Dennis Taylor is a freelancer writer and regular contributor to YNOT. He’s a tech enthusiast and amateur coder who occasionally offers his unwelcome opinions on politics and religion.

Because

Featured Article

Rising Adult Verticals: A Look at Growth Areas in Adult By Michael McGrady The adult entertainment industry has always been on the cutting edge of new and exciting technologies. In fact, it had long been held that many of the innovations mainstream web platforms enjoy today were pioneered by enterprising entrepreneurs and innovators who developed these technologies to modernize the delivery of adult films. History recalls George Harrison Marks, the revolutionary glamour photographer from Tottenham in Middlesex, England. In 1958, Marks began shooting short films of his models stripping and posing topless on 8mm film. Soon, these films were popularly referred to as “glamour home movies” and were sold at camera shops and through specially designed discreet mail

order services. Marks later began producing porno flicks, setting the standard of 8mm in the adult industry.

Changing with the times After the Golden Age of Porn, the internet permitted the industry to reach new heights. Since the internet is now virtually accessible on any smart device in the world, adult entertainment providers have found new ways to market content that is designed to boost traffic, generate revenue, and keep consumers coming back for more. From gaming to virtual reality, the industry has made noticeable inroads into new and exciting entertainment avenues.

Gaming Adult, Magrat was clear. “Users are now looking for free content. They want to see quality and make sure the content is worth their time and money,” she said. “It’s true for the adult industry and for the gaming one. All our games are free and the players get to decide if they would like to make in-game purchases. Of course, we make sure that the in-game purchases are easy and secure. Because of our unique content, positive spin on hentai, loads of humor and focus on community, we have some of the best conversion and retention rates on the market. We have more than fifteen million registered players and over 300,000 daily active users.” YNOT reached out to some of these players to learn more about what it takes to stay relevant in an everchanging, digital-first segment and a global economy.

Award-winning gaming studios Gaming Adult, a gaming and affiliate platform, is one such company. Described as a “friendly” competitor to MindGeek’s Nutaku platform, Gaming Adult managed to develop a twelve-year-long legacy of successful game design, platform hosting and affiliate marketing opportunities. “For years, we’ve been developing and improving our games based on the freemium model and for now we are happy with it,” Magrat, the communications director for Gaming Adult, told YNOT. “It has allowed us to create high-quality games, fund side projects and make us one of the best affiliate programs in the adult gaming industry,” Magrat said. When asked about the purpose and mission of

Such a hefty presence of users has paid off, it seems. Gaming Adult is behind popular adult gaming titles like Gay Harem, Hentai Clicker, and Hentai Heroes. “Gaming Adult has always been ready to adapt,” Magrat said. “Our motto is ‘make win-win deals.’ And when the situation allows it once again, attend events and conferences. Personal contact is priceless.”

Virtual reality frontiers Recent years have also seen substantial growth in consumer adoption of virtual reality (VR) entertainment technologies, which is proving a boon to the adult businesses who have moved quickly to tap into this growing market. “With the release of standalone virtual reality headsets, we’ve noticed significant growth in our userbase every year,” Lisa Moore, Chief Evangelist for VRPorn.com, told YNOT. “By lowering the threshold required to experience great VR porn, these headsets are catalysts for the VR segment of the adult industry.

The growth driven by the recent arrival of the Quest 2 has been especially notable.” Exploiting the opportunity presented by the growing market for VR entertainment presents a different set of challenges from other mediums for adult entertainment, at least from a content production standpoint. “The rules of content production in VR are different from those of traditional media,” Moore said. “Things that are fine in 2D can be disorienting in VR. Performing is also completely different. As video cuts can break immersion, the talent needs to get explicit instructions from the director before shooting. Stitching the video correctly after shooting requires a strong understanding of VR post-production.” Fortunately for aspiring adult VR producers, companies that have already conquered the learning curve can offer the benefit of their experience to those following in their footsteps. “VRPorn.com has extensive expertise in this area and we are happy to help out,” Moore said.

The VR market is far from done growing, too. Just as with every new entertainment and communications technology that preceded VR, the maturation of the market will be a gradual process – but that process is coming along nicely. “VR technology is improving exponentially,” Moore said. “It’s like the early days of smartphones. There has been huge progress already and it continues every year. As VR gets easier and better, mass adoption increases – and what’s good for VR is good for VR Porn.” As an early adopter of VR, it’s no surprise that VRPorn.com is well-positioned to take advantage of the emerging adult VR market and has a solid strategy for continued growth. “Whether it’s content from the best studios, WebXR content, or groundbreaking PCVR games, we’re always at the cutting edge of this emerging technology,” Moorse said. “We’re looking to bring our users the best adult VR experiences possible through our VRPorn.com Premium service, the best product on the market with everything in one place.”

Other industry developments of note Outside of gaming and VR, content creators are also adopting brand new strategies to monetize their content. Take Adult Time starlet and OnlyFans model Siri Dahl, for example. In recent months, Dahl has made headlines for minting several non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Similar to the concept of cryptocurrency and blockchain infrastructure, NFTs are a unique digital unit and cannot be interchanged. NFT file types thus far have included visual art, audio, video and other creative works.

video, and/or audio. Models like Dahl are cashing in on the new technology, and it’s likely here to stay. At a time when consumer entertainment and communications technologies are emerging and evolving at a rapid pace, adult studios and content creators are, in many ways, spoiled with a wide array of new and exciting avenues to generate traffic and revenue. Tapping into these new markets and revenue streams will be central to the success of adult performers, studios and content distributors alike in the years ahead.

Tokens are auctioned off to the highest bidder who pays out with crypto like Ethereum. The marriage of blockchain and the porn industry has the potential to be a huge business. NFTs, as a new kind of ‘digital collectible,’ could serve as the next generation for distributing media like a virtual Pokémon card, a rare comic book or a traditional artwork, painting, a photo,

About the Author Michael McGrady has an interest in the politics and the business aspects of the adult entertainment industry and covers these topics for YNOT as a contributor. He is a member of the Association of Health Care Journalists and the Society of Professional Journalists.

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How to Succeed with White Label Cam Sites By Gene Zorkin

It’s no secret that over the last decade, the adult webcam sector has been one of the fastest growing and highest revenue segments of the adult industry. If you’re not a cam performer, site or network, tapping into the camming revenue stream can be a bit of a challenge. Launching a cam platform of your own is no minor undertaking, after all, and opportunities to promote popular cam performers are limited, from an adult webmaster’s perspective.

This is where white label solutions come into play. If you’re not familiar with the term, in this context “white label” refers to when a company removes its branding and logos from their products, replacing it with the branding and logos of affiliates – or in the case of brick-and-mortar businesses, distributors who offer the same products under a different label. (Trader Joe’s grocery stores are chock-full of white label products, for example.)

For adult affiliates, in market with so many platforms that offer some manner of white label solution, the crucial first step in establishing a white label cam site is deciding which company’s white label offering is for you. “Since a white label cam site is actually a leaner version of the main platform/branded webcam company site, I would say that the first, important thing on the list is to check out the ‘mother platform’ to make sure you like the product, the different features, the selection of performers, the billing options, and the general reputation of the platform in our industry,” Shay E, an executive from ImLive, told YNOT. “The affiliate will most likely send traffic from his own adult online assets, so he’s well aware of the nature and sort of his traffic, and therefore should look for a platform that can provide a webcam experience to his kind of traffic.” This is particularly important if you’re a webmaster who operates niche sites or caters to an audience with a specific focus or interest. “If I have an ebony member site and I’m looking for [a white label] to provide my members a cams experience, the first thing to look for on the mother platform is that it features enough ebony performers to support my own users’ quests,” Shay said. Once you have decided which platform to use as the

source for your white label, the next considerations are largely marketing-related, Den, an Affiliate Manager for BongaCash explained. “If you have already decided which affiliate program to work with, the correct start would be a selection of the right name,” Den said. “After all, choosing a name that is too complex or irrelevant in terms of subject matter can repel the visitors and negatively affect both direct and organic traffic.” Coming up with a good name for your white label site isn’t just about marketing considerations, though. Den cautioned that affiliates need to be mindful of the same sort of restrictions they would face if they were launching a full platform of their own. “It is important to remember that the domain name cannot include prohibited topics, as well as other trademarks,” Den said. “If you already have your own brand, it’s a good idea to take the name as a basis and just add keywords that match the white label theme. For example, if you are creating a BongaCams white label the presence of the corresponding ‘live webcam’ keywords in the domain name will play a highly positive role – cam, webcam, chat, and so on.” One “super crucial” question for affiliates to consider, Shay said, is whether the source platform employs the ‘freemium’ model, or a more restrictive, strictly ‘payto-play’ approach. Beyond that, Shay noted there are many other potential features that some companies offer, but others don’t. “For example, if the affiliate bills his own users with the SegPay billing service, he needs to make sure that the white label company he chose to work with works with SegPay as well – and therefore will offer him the ability of 1-click user billing flow from his member areas to the cams white label,” Shay said, noting that ImLive/WebcamWiz offers affiliates the ability to do the billing entirely on their own end of things. For his part, Den noted it is “still worth paying attention to … how much the white label is indexed by the search engines, since if it is not SEO-friendly, the likelihood of generating search traffic drops dramatically.”

Shay E, Executive at ImLive

“BongaCash affiliates can not only launch their white label quickly, but also easily customize it: upload their own logo and favicon, completely change the color design, fonts, prescribe unique SEO-texts, META information, and headings in each of 34 languages and in almost any website page,” Den added. “In addition, we are offering an opportunity to upload your own banners, which can be linked to absolutely any site for additional earnings. Our white labels are

well-indexed by search engines and with the correct approach, you can generate a huge amount of organic traffic that is considered to be of the highest quality.” ImLive offers a lot of flexibility in its white label solutions as well, Shay said. “A few years ago, we started offering our ‘Full API’ solution that basically takes the white label platform to the next level and offers the affiliate/partners to ‘pull’ all the webcam stream from our servers, along with other features, while designing the whole webcam experience within their own core product,” Shay explained. “By doing that, they’re keeping their members on their URL all times, keeping all their members’ info without sharing it with the white label/cams platform, keeping on their side their own business logic, keeping the ability to do the conversion and retention flows, while doing all on their own billing and compliance abilities.” Shay noted that while the “overall income Full-API affiliates can reach are much higher than white label affiliates, in general,” utilizing the Full API solution may not be as practical for individual affiliates as it is for well-staffed companies. “The Full-API solution is suitable for companies who can do all of the above on their end, from development and maintenance abilities, through billing and compliance/anti-fraud abilities, to the knowledge of conversions and retention flows,” Shay explained. In a sense, it’s after an affiliate has established a white label cam site that the real work begins, both Shay and Den observed. “Regardless of whether you have a white label or you just use your affiliate link, driving the traffic and marketing will always remain one of the main tasks,” Den said. “However, speaking about white labels, once

you’ve got it set up, the main challenge would be not just finding traffic and generating some profit, but making this exact website brand itself recognizable and as unique as possible – both in terms of SEO and visually.” For this reason, Den advises that affiliates begin working on their marketing and promotional strategy before they launch their white label cam site. “Before creating a white label, it is worth considering a promotion strategy,” Den said. “Will you advertise your site by buying advertising spots or will you focus on SEO and will work on filling your website with texts and generating backlinks? Fortunately, there are many different resources on the Internet with guides and information and affiliate program managers will never refuse to help you – at least those who work at BongaCash.” Shay noted that as the company providing the white label solution, it’s reasonable to assume the affiliate knows something about driving traffic, if not to a white label site specifically, how to do so in a more general sense. “Without these skills, why would an affiliate ask to have a webcam white label in the first place?” Shay asked rhetorically. This is not to say ImLive isn’t there to help their affiliates with their white label solutions, however. “It’s not just the ‘kind of promotion-tool to use’ sort of advice that we provide our affiliates,” Shay said, “it’s mainly to share with them our 19 years of knowledge of where to put what, how to convert users to the max from every page. And we do that while keeping in mind that in most cases, it’s extremely important for the affiliate to keep their core member areas and sites as clean as possible from aggressive promotions – and we have enough knowledge to guide them in such way that won’t just benefit the white label

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resource, then besides the fact that it will negatively affect organic traffic, there are also risks that this will alienate the user when he gets to a site familiar to him, which is located on a different domain,” Den observed. Shay concurred with Den on the importance of affiliates establishing a brand identity for their white labels, in part to avoid creating the impression among end-users that the white label is simply there to hand off customers to a third-party. Affiliates should have their white labels on their own domains/subdomains, Shay said, and “design it with the ‘look and feel’ of his own core site, helping him to give his own users/members the feeling that this webcam service is native to the site and not just an ‘up-sell’ to a different platform.”

numbers but will also extremely benefit their core sites and traffic sources, as well.” Perhaps just as important as the question of what you should do in operating a white label cam site is the list of things you shouldn’t do – the chief thing among those “do not’s” being don’t lazily slap up your white label cam site and expect it to generate revenue without any further effort on your part. “It is a highly common mistake of the affiliate to ‘rest’ after the setup of the white label, thinking that the earnings will come without any work or efforts from their end,” Shay said. “But we assist them right from the beginning in order for them to understand what they’re getting into and what are the crucial action items they’ll have to maintain in order to be successful.”

Ultimately, what white label cam sites are not is some form of “easy money,” or something for an absolute newbie to try to tackle. For more established webmasters seeking a means of generating cams revenue that’s less complicated and less costly than leaping head-first into the market by taking on the immense cost and effort of launching a platform of their own however, white labels are great tool to do so. “White label is a superb option especially for those who already have an established traffic channel,” Den said. “If you already own a tube site, a social media channel, or purchase traffic from an ad network, then you are golden. In such scenarios, you only need to point your traffic to the white label and you can just reap the fruit. In other cases, it is always good to keep in mind that it demands time and dedication to generate a stable fan base on your cam white label – but hard work pays off.”

Den noted that it’s important to remember that any white label is “a copy of the main resource” and it’s therefor “very important to do everything on your part to make it as unique as possible, from changing the logo and customizing the design to adding unique texts to each page and language subdomains.” “If your white label is absolutely identical to the main

About the Author Gene Zorkin has been covering legal and political issues for various adult publications (and under a variety of different pen names) since 2002.

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Strategies For Buying Ads in the Adult Space By Michael McGrady Digital media is now the dominant standard for all advertising campaigns currently running. As is the case for any industry, the advertising vertical in the adult entertainment industry is a unique mistress that requires specialized knowledge and awareness of the specific business to consumer markets. Since the dawn of the internet, advertising and ad tech has evolved to accommodate the changes in customers, the needs of businesses, and the maturation of new economic ventures. YNOT recently asked leaders in the digital advertising space about the strategies needed for an effective campaign that will yield lucrative monetization, high-quality traffic and strong user engagement. For example, Juicy Ads is a monetization solution targeted at most publisher websites that include

tubes and studio platforms. The company has one of the largest digital ad networks in the industry. “We pride ourselves in being one of the most trusted ad networks in the industry, and with a minimum deposit of just $500 to work directly with an account manager, we believe we provide the best value for access to quality guidance, which can profoundly affect the ROI on a campaign,” Juicy Jay told YNOT. Jay is the CEO and founder of Juicy Ads. “We also offer an experienced support team available to everyone to assist with any questions our publishers and advertisers may have.” Asked to describe more the mission and vision of Juicy Ads and what makes them stand apart from other advertising platforms in the adult entertainment space, Jay explained that “JuicyAds is a proprietary platform with all of the ad-serving technology created

in-house over our 15+ years of operation. We also use a combination of proprietary in-house and outside third-party fraud detection to protect both our advertisers and publishers.” With this legacy Jay described, he offered a brief look at what’s coming down the company’s pipeline and what he sees as developments that can significantly improve his company’s services, reputation and attractiveness to clients. “We are constantly analyzing and modifying our systems to stay up-to-date with new trends and technology,” Jay said. “In fact, we’ve released our biggest platform upgrade ever with what we call UX13. Clients will find a complete overhaul of the platform including an intuitive, sleek new look.” Another company, Clickadu, has similar strategies to boost advertising traffic. Clickadu’s senior marketer, Anna Shazh, told YNOT the practice of Juicy Jay, CEO of JuicyAds content monetization and advertising in the adult vertical requires an extreme degree of flexibility and adaptation. “What can we offer for the industry? Our in-house ad platform, our exclusive publisher’s traffic, our tech solutions and features for advertising and of course – personal assistance,” Shazh said. “As we cover different niches and offers verticals, we can offer a wide range

CLICKADU TARGETING OPTIONS DIAGRAM of approaches for pretty much any client regardless of the size of the business.” Clickadu, like many of these firms, developed boutique and self-serve advertising solutions. Shazh explained that the company’s proprietary platform could accommodate a variety of advertisers, including cam models and indie producers. “After that we can think of some sort of ‘funnel’ and apply ad formats which can perform best,” said Shazh. “If you’re a cam model and the only thing you want is to bring a fresh audience to their room or fan page – then go with pop’s flat direct link. We don’t make any drastic preferences between big and small names, brand affiliates and solo media buyers – providing the same level of support and efforts.” Shazh also described the optimization characteristics of the platform. “There are different ways to optimize your working campaign – you can change your creative approach to bring higher CTR, narrow or widen your targeting options to get specific users or all possible audience, language options (can help to find native speakers in

other countries), different OS versions or browsers and many other ways,” she added. “We have different ad formats and ways to advertise with almost any adult offer/product in the business. We’re happy to share our expertise and provide assistance for any size of a client, as well as different approaches to ad campaigns.” Optimizing adult advertising campaigns can be a tricky business. Fortunately, adult-friendly ad platforms like Juicy Ads and Clickadu are equipped with flexible systems and tools, detailed stats reporting and knowledgeable personnel who can help adult affiliates, companies and platform operators navigate the highly competitive and crowded digital advertising space.