Quentin

I was talking about the "good ol' days" the other day with another industry old-timer, and we got on to the subject of marketing innovations - going all the way back to the first adult banners we ever encountered, the early days of "sponsor" programs, the first players in the live feed/chat market, etc.

What are some of the most innovative promotional campaigns, advertising techniques, marketing ploys, etc. that you have seen in this industry?

To get things started, here are a handful that sprang to mind when I probed my own memory. I don't know if the companies and individuals I name were the first to do the things listed - they may be simply the ones that I personally associate most closely with the innovation in question.

* The 'webmaster rewards' program - first I can recall was offered by ARS.

* Live feeds - the first compelling I did a 'test drive' of was for a gay paysite that I was helping to run back in '97; it was offered by a company called "Men of Steel," a venture that I believe was later rolled up into the giant known as VideoSecrets....

* Early TGPs - I don't think they called 'em TGPs back then, but the ones that stick out in my mind most from way back in the day are AdultBuffet, AL4A and (of course) The Hun

* The full page ad (FPA) - the first I remember seeing was for the old school paysite "The Lapis Lounge"... which would make it a marketing innovation of Bunky Rothschild, who later launched moved on to launching his own program (NicheBucks) and paysites (OlderWomen.com, Twinks.com, etc.)

So... who and what comes to mind for you?

The good ol' days aside, who are the 'modern' innovators - the people who have launched something truly innovative in recent months/years?

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Q. Boyer