Overwhelmed... but Excited to Dig In! Any Advice?

[trueblue]

Quick Background: Have run a successful marketing company for years. Came out in February ("Hey, I think I'm gay.") and I'll be divorced (I'm praying) in a few more weeks.

Am now looking into making back some of the money I'm going to lose in the divorce by setting up a gay membership site. My business partner and I have been looking into creating a paysite like Corbinfisher.com and seancody.com

However, after much research, the task looks daunting. I'm definitely up for it. I love the challenge of conquering a new challenge... but I'm just a bit uncertain about where to start.

Any suggestions for a newbie in this field?

What is your best advice for getting started? Best sources for hosting, content management, billing, etc.? The top thing you've learned in the adult industry that you wish you knew when you got started?

Any advice or great sources you can give me would be incredibly, amazingly appreciated!!!

Thanks in advance for your help.

Best,
trueblue

[gaystoryman]

Welcome Trueblue and good luck on your endeavours...

Personally I'd suggestlooking into getting your own merchant account for processing but its not an easy task for certain.

There are many things to take into account and perhaps my only valid advice would be to crawl before running... test the waters with some minor stuff that doesn't cost an arm and leg like free sites, affiliates stuff, avs/aen sites.

Get a good lawyer who knows the internet like chadknowslaw who is on this board a fair bit. (least talk to him about the pitfalls and stuff)

I'd also say that you need to have reasonable expectations. The internet isn't a get rich quick business and certainly not the adult industry.

Content is still what's gonna make or break you so you'll need to spend a lot of time on that end of things as well.

Anyhow, just wanted to welcome you to the board, others will have better and more salient advice than I can give.. so WELCOME!

Ian

[Xstr8guy]

Welcome!

As far as finding sources for learning the biz... this place is it!

Gaystoryman gave you a wealth of advice in a few paragraphs. But what we need to know is; how much do you know? What are you experiences so far? Do you know web design? Do you know adult? Do you understand what the different terms mean i.e. AVS, TGP, etc?

I'm not trying to put you on the spot, but we just might confuse you and scare you away by throwing around terminology that you might not understand.

And , I'm also a formerly married straight man, hence the name xstr8guy. Good luck with your divorce and discovering your new life... I love mine

[Jasun]

hmm.diving into the deepend before learning to swim.

Great idea.

i'm kidding.

I'd suggest starting out with getting some hosting, buying some content, setting up some free sites or some AVS sites and becomeing an affiliate of pay sites that float your boat. Get to understand what works, what doesn't, what you like doing... make a bit of money that way without mortgaging the farm setting up a membership site.

starting with no experience in the adult world with no experience is a recipe for disaster. But we can help you out.

start small, then get big.

We've got people here who can help you like designers, content providers, custom content creators, video editors, vendors, hosting companies..

you name, it, we got it here.. and if we don't, we'll tell you where to go to get it.

Welcome, though... you've come to the right place if you want to get good advice frmo people who can help you out.

[Xstr8guy]

Originally posted by Jasun
hmm.diving into the deepend before learning to swim.

Great idea.

i'm kidding.

I was going to say something similar but then I thought about my one big regret in this biz. And that is not taking those big leaps. Sure, I've learned a lot but sometimes I think that holds me back. "Oh I can't do that, that'll cost too much" Lol

[graphicsbytia]

Hiya trueblue!

Your post made me smile, I love seeing someone being true to themselves .. it's such a waste of precious time doing anything else

Your success with your marketing company is going to be invaluable to you in this business. Take your time and learn the basics, then go for something that interests you. There are many many ways to make money in the adult business.

Myself, I decided to concentrate on webmaster services. I like dealing with people one on one more than selling to surfers.

My best advice to you is to
1. do what's fun for you
2. leave yourself open to opportunities, and try to recognize them when they come your way

You stick with these two things and you'll do well

[Chilihost]

first off congrats and welcome!!! You have found **the** place for help, you will get lots of good advice here so don't be afraid to ask any questions.

Now, onto your plans, I am assuming you are just starting out in the adult industry? If yes, I would have to agree with Jasun on this, you should learn the industry, learn all about tgp/avs/freesites/seo/etc... before jumping in with a full on paysite. Even if you just spend your first 6 months doing this, it will prolly be the difference between making it and you having to bail after your first year.

But if you are absolutely keen on getting the ball rolling with a paysite, you have to think of something unique and its best if you have your own source for exclusive content, esp if you are trying to go the way of those sites you mentioned.

Specific recommendations as you requested:
hosting - get in touch with me sales@chilihost.com
content - ounique.com and maxpixels.com are both fantastic for gay content
content management - I am assuming you are not talking about cms systems but just managing your own content. You will need to learn html, you will need a basic html program (NOT frontpage!) like Allaire homesite. You will also need some graphics program like adobe photoshop. Plus a hand full of other programs like an email client (outlook), an ftp client (cuteftp), maybe a video editing program and others depending on what you chose to do.
billing - if you do go with a paysite, I recommend ccbill (US or EU) or epoch (US only)

I hope these suggestions help, like I said please feel free to ask any questions as they come up!

cheers,
Luke

[basschick]

luke is definitely a rockin' host. so is isprime. it is definitely worth talking to any host before you sign up - sometimes you can either get better deals financially or help getting your server (or servers) set up best for your needs.

ounique has some great content, but imo they do not have the type of video you will need. also - since you are new to the biz - some of their content is pretty exposed. if you have money, getting exclusive content shot would be a solution to consider. that way, no other paysites, free sites or avs sites will have your content. maxpixels and ounique have good gay content, and if you talk with the folks at worldwidecontent, they have MUCH more than what they show on their site.

content management - lessee, there's mas by the folks at mansion productions. they also make mpa3, one of the pre-written affiliate suites. there are too many cms to list, and you also might consider getting one written to your needs. NATS is another ready to go affiliate system, and it's pretty good.

if you decide to go with your own merchant account, i have heard only good things about using netbilling as your gateway and member support. if you decide not to go with your own merchant account, ccbill is possibly the best processor if you want to get the most affiliates. epoch (paycom) is also very good, and has more features if you plan to host your own join page. both have a good reputation in our industry, and both will pay your affiliates for you if you wish.

as far as the rest, if you're set on starting a paysite before you have learned through doing other things, perhaps you could hire a manager - someone with experience in adult and paysites. they would have the specific knowledge you lack, and can bring you up to speed while finding you designers, content, programs, etc.

mostly i recommend that you and your partner spend some time going through the business threads on this board. there was a recent one about cms which includes some links. there are several about designers and content in the last few months.

[basschick]

btw, if you are planning to do your own work instead of paying someone to do it, you'll want photoshop (as luke said) and a video editing and encoding program like video vegas, video edit magic or ulead video studio.

i have never seen a paysite made by a newbie that was very good - i'm sure a few must exist, but i haven't seen them - so it would probably make sense to have your tour and main member area graphics made by a pro. just my opinion...

[Dawgy]

there is no money in porn.

[basschick]

well, there can be money in porn... but all too often isn't

i personally know several guys who have spent more than $50,000 on their paysites, and are still way in the red and getting further into the red every day.

on the other hand, i know several people who spent $10,000 and are in the black.

you need knowledge, or you need someone who has the knowledge. this business isn't as simple as a lot of people figure - most people figure "sex sells - i'll make a fortune". but three years later, they're still working their day jobs.

[Xstr8guy]

Originally posted by basschick
most people figure "sex sells - i'll make a fortune". but three years later, they're still working their day jobs.

Lol, sounds like you are talking about me

[krusher]

I wish I could not work and just do this, but I guess it wont hurt to try!
The extra money is always nice....

[cj.]

Originally posted by basschick
well, there can be money in porn... but all too often isn't

i personally know several guys who have spent more than $50,000 on their paysites, and are still way in the red and getting further into the red every day.

on the other hand, i know several people who spent $10,000 and are in the black.

you need knowledge, or you need someone who has the knowledge. this business isn't as simple as a lot of people figure - most people figure "sex sells - i'll make a fortune". but three years later, they're still working their day jobs.

So true BassChick

In the early days, you could just throw up (and some look like they were thrown up) any content and stick a join form in front of it and you would make money.

It lasted for about 5 years ... but ended about 3 years ago.

The best advice I can give you is to keep your day job until you are making some money. There really is no guaranteed plan to success in this biz anymore ... just jump in ... or you'll never know for sure.

[Lee]

Damn we go away for a few days and people start dispensing some great advice without us :thumbsup:

Thats why we are lucky to be able to call you guys our friends

Regards,

Lee