Hi everyone, thanks for checking this out. Last year I made a post giving some valuable info for those who were interested. The thread is here: http://www.gofuckyourself.com/showthread.php?t=558484
The post was very well received so I thought I?d make another one to kick the year off. This year?s post is a little different but applies to everyone - not just pay site owners. Hopefully, it will help you too.
Biggest Secret to Our Success? Working Hard and Sticking to OUR Unique Vision
--Part A--
October 10th 2006 marked the 5 year anniversary of the day we started Twistys. And let me tell you, what a grueling (and highly rewarding) five years it has been. We are proud because every year has been better than the previous one. The steady growth of Twistys continues to blow me away to this day. The interesting thing about our site is almost everything we?ve done to build it up is what most webmasters say would NEVER work. Here are a few things that are top of mind:
1. We started a site with oversaturated, non-exclusive content
We started Twistys mostly with Matrix and other popular, heavily sold non-exclusive content. Yes. That is what we did 5 years ago but even then people said it would NEVER work. We proved them wrong.
2. We concentrated on the members area over the tour
We spent the first year and a half working almost exclusively on the members area. The goal was to create a site with very strong retention. One key thing in business is that gaining a new member is three times as difficult as keeping a current member (happy.) This is the philosophy we still live by.
3. We stuck with a tour that works
Four years ago we came up with a tour that did well for us. We?ve used the same tour (with minor updates) to this day. Most people would expect the conversion ratio to get worse every month, right? Wrong. In fact, our conversion ratio in 2006 was our best conversion rate to date and we still have exactly the same tour. We DO have new tours in the works for those that want something different. However, my point is if you have a tour that works - stick with it.
4. We stuck with just ONE pay site
We?ve had the content, domains and plans for new sites for many years now. We have not developed any of these sites yet because we did not feel we had the pieces in place to create and maintain them up to our standards. Our first step was to make sure we had an amazing staff to handle Twistys. All new site development would come once we had Twistys 100% covered and kicking ass. Now, with these critical pieces of our success firmly in place for 2007 we are now ready to expand. The interesting thing is this: the fact we didn?t expand sooner doesn?t necessarily mean it cost us money. Twistys exploded last year so how can we gauge our success otherwise?
5. We took the time to build up a brand in the adult market
Most companies choose to ?whore? out their sites by picking generic site names and not bothering to build up a brand name to represent their content. The reason they do this is because they are in this business to make a fast buck, site after site. But we took the time to create and build an entirely new brand while sticking to one (1) site, doing it right.
-- Part B--
There is another point I?d like to bring up and it involves over-saturation of any particular niche. In each one of the last 3 years we have heard people say that Twistys is over-saturated. They have said that our content is everywhere and this is the reason (some webmasters) will not promote us. But we do not agree. Because if we truly are/were over-saturated then we believe our signups would have hit a plateau and either dropped off or remained stable. The surprising thing is that this has not happened. One reason may be because we are continually improving our product. Another may be because we?ve built a very solid brand and surfers know they can trust Twistys. To illustrate this point I decided to dig up the last 3 years of stats. Check this out:
As you will see from these three charts we have by no means hit a plateau. In 2006 we had month after month of record sales, re-bills and revenue. Since January 2004 to December 2006 our sales are up more than FOUR TIMES and our revenue is up close to FIVE TIMES. Hard work and a quality product go a long way. Back in 2001 when we got our first Twistys signup we had no idea we would get to where we are today. We stuck with it and never stopped working hard and focusing on delivering an ever improving, high quality product.
The beauty of building a quality product is that it is very difficult to copy. It has very stable long-term success attached to it. If you look at other companies who are doing the same thing (showcasing quality content) you will notice a trend. Here are some sites that come to mind as sites that decided to build a kick ass product from scratch: TheBestPorn, FreeOnes, Karups, Videosz, Ftv Girls, Matt?s Models, Sapphic Erotica and Simon Scans to name a few. As a direct result of their hard work, each of these sites are very successful and also own something huge. They Own Value. They are all quality-driven products suited perfectly to their members.
Major Secrets to our Success
Our hard work and commitment to a quality product is definitely the #1 reason for our success. No question. We figured saying this isn?t enough to help everyone so we came up with a few others for you. Here they are in no particular order:
Secret #1 We treat our sites as we would any long-running, traditional business.
Our industry is very casual to say the least. A lot of webmasters work from home. A lot of webmasters are very young. A lot of webmasters do this part time. Whatever your situation, the most important thing to remember is this is a REAL business. Treat it that way. A lot of people think this is a game. They make complete jackasses of themselves on the boards and at the shows. Whether you are a huge program owner or a gallery maker, there is no reason to treat our industry or your site(s) like a half-assed attempt to make money. Because that is exactly what you will get out of it. Half-assed returns on your investment! Follow our lead and have pride in what you do. Look your product square in the face and ask yourself honestly: ?Would I buy a membership to my site?? Start acting and thinking like you are confident in your product and the money will follow. We challenge anybody reading this to do a little research. Find any webmaster who is very successful and does NOT treat this like a business. You won?t find a single person. While some guys sit on GFY playing ?lap dog? and wasting time posting idiotic remarks, others are making really good money. The money makers are setting themselves up for the rest of their lives. So the choice is yours. Do not be one of the people here that looks back in 5 years and thinks ?DAMN I really blew my big chance.?
There is so much money to be made in our industry. And the inspiring thing is that it?s yours for the taking if you reach for it. I started off as a webmaster doing this part-time while living with my parents and going to university. Here I am 10 years later with a wife who is my partner and a 20+ person company packed with some of the most talented people I?ve ever met. It?s been a real learning experience every step of the way. I?ve made a lot of mistakes. But the most important thing is that I have learned from my mistakes. Do the same and you too, will be successful.
Secret #2 We respect our surfers/members. We treat them the way we would want to be treated.
One of the keys to our success has been treating our members and surfers with respect. Put yourself in your surfers?/members? shoes and think about how you would like to be treated. I know some people try to milk the surfers for every dime possible. But this has never worked for us. Being honest and treating your members and surfers with respect is the only way to go.
Secret #3 We respect our affiliates. We treat them the way we would expect to be treated.
As obvious as this may seem, most companies do not practice this. We were TGP webmasters before we started Twistys. I believe this gave us an edge. Why? Because we built our affiliate program based on the idea that we would treat affiliates the way we wanted to be treated. Take our advice and do the same. I?ve seen a few posts lately by people suggesting affiliate programs should not allow smaller affiliates. We completely disagree with this idea. We value every business relationship be it big or small. Every signup counts. Every member counts. Every affiliate counts too. Any person willing to promote our sites and send us traffic (legally) is graciously welcomed in to our program.
I also know a lot of companies try to find ways to make more money for themselves and do not worry about affiliate sales (hence: shaving.) We do NOT support this method of business at all. We firmly believe that more signups and more money we can pay out to each affiliate ensures a strong and long standing partnership today, tomorrow and even 10 years from now. The fact remains that if an affiliate makes MORE with us than any other program, the more traffic they will send us. The same goes for you and your program/surfers. We all want as much traffic and business as possible each and every day. So in order to prove this it is important to show affiliates as many signups as possible. If a webmaster trusts you enough send you their traffic, it is always in your best interest to do everything you can to make them the most money. Period.
The post was very well received so I thought I?d make another one to kick the year off. This year?s post is a little different but applies to everyone - not just pay site owners. Hopefully, it will help you too.
Biggest Secret to Our Success? Working Hard and Sticking to OUR Unique Vision
--Part A--
October 10th 2006 marked the 5 year anniversary of the day we started Twistys. And let me tell you, what a grueling (and highly rewarding) five years it has been. We are proud because every year has been better than the previous one. The steady growth of Twistys continues to blow me away to this day. The interesting thing about our site is almost everything we?ve done to build it up is what most webmasters say would NEVER work. Here are a few things that are top of mind:
1. We started a site with oversaturated, non-exclusive content
We started Twistys mostly with Matrix and other popular, heavily sold non-exclusive content. Yes. That is what we did 5 years ago but even then people said it would NEVER work. We proved them wrong.
2. We concentrated on the members area over the tour
We spent the first year and a half working almost exclusively on the members area. The goal was to create a site with very strong retention. One key thing in business is that gaining a new member is three times as difficult as keeping a current member (happy.) This is the philosophy we still live by.
3. We stuck with a tour that works
Four years ago we came up with a tour that did well for us. We?ve used the same tour (with minor updates) to this day. Most people would expect the conversion ratio to get worse every month, right? Wrong. In fact, our conversion ratio in 2006 was our best conversion rate to date and we still have exactly the same tour. We DO have new tours in the works for those that want something different. However, my point is if you have a tour that works - stick with it.
4. We stuck with just ONE pay site
We?ve had the content, domains and plans for new sites for many years now. We have not developed any of these sites yet because we did not feel we had the pieces in place to create and maintain them up to our standards. Our first step was to make sure we had an amazing staff to handle Twistys. All new site development would come once we had Twistys 100% covered and kicking ass. Now, with these critical pieces of our success firmly in place for 2007 we are now ready to expand. The interesting thing is this: the fact we didn?t expand sooner doesn?t necessarily mean it cost us money. Twistys exploded last year so how can we gauge our success otherwise?
5. We took the time to build up a brand in the adult market
Most companies choose to ?whore? out their sites by picking generic site names and not bothering to build up a brand name to represent their content. The reason they do this is because they are in this business to make a fast buck, site after site. But we took the time to create and build an entirely new brand while sticking to one (1) site, doing it right.
-- Part B--
There is another point I?d like to bring up and it involves over-saturation of any particular niche. In each one of the last 3 years we have heard people say that Twistys is over-saturated. They have said that our content is everywhere and this is the reason (some webmasters) will not promote us. But we do not agree. Because if we truly are/were over-saturated then we believe our signups would have hit a plateau and either dropped off or remained stable. The surprising thing is that this has not happened. One reason may be because we are continually improving our product. Another may be because we?ve built a very solid brand and surfers know they can trust Twistys. To illustrate this point I decided to dig up the last 3 years of stats. Check this out:
As you will see from these three charts we have by no means hit a plateau. In 2006 we had month after month of record sales, re-bills and revenue. Since January 2004 to December 2006 our sales are up more than FOUR TIMES and our revenue is up close to FIVE TIMES. Hard work and a quality product go a long way. Back in 2001 when we got our first Twistys signup we had no idea we would get to where we are today. We stuck with it and never stopped working hard and focusing on delivering an ever improving, high quality product.
The beauty of building a quality product is that it is very difficult to copy. It has very stable long-term success attached to it. If you look at other companies who are doing the same thing (showcasing quality content) you will notice a trend. Here are some sites that come to mind as sites that decided to build a kick ass product from scratch: TheBestPorn, FreeOnes, Karups, Videosz, Ftv Girls, Matt?s Models, Sapphic Erotica and Simon Scans to name a few. As a direct result of their hard work, each of these sites are very successful and also own something huge. They Own Value. They are all quality-driven products suited perfectly to their members.
Major Secrets to our Success
Our hard work and commitment to a quality product is definitely the #1 reason for our success. No question. We figured saying this isn?t enough to help everyone so we came up with a few others for you. Here they are in no particular order:
Secret #1 We treat our sites as we would any long-running, traditional business.
Our industry is very casual to say the least. A lot of webmasters work from home. A lot of webmasters are very young. A lot of webmasters do this part time. Whatever your situation, the most important thing to remember is this is a REAL business. Treat it that way. A lot of people think this is a game. They make complete jackasses of themselves on the boards and at the shows. Whether you are a huge program owner or a gallery maker, there is no reason to treat our industry or your site(s) like a half-assed attempt to make money. Because that is exactly what you will get out of it. Half-assed returns on your investment! Follow our lead and have pride in what you do. Look your product square in the face and ask yourself honestly: ?Would I buy a membership to my site?? Start acting and thinking like you are confident in your product and the money will follow. We challenge anybody reading this to do a little research. Find any webmaster who is very successful and does NOT treat this like a business. You won?t find a single person. While some guys sit on GFY playing ?lap dog? and wasting time posting idiotic remarks, others are making really good money. The money makers are setting themselves up for the rest of their lives. So the choice is yours. Do not be one of the people here that looks back in 5 years and thinks ?DAMN I really blew my big chance.?
There is so much money to be made in our industry. And the inspiring thing is that it?s yours for the taking if you reach for it. I started off as a webmaster doing this part-time while living with my parents and going to university. Here I am 10 years later with a wife who is my partner and a 20+ person company packed with some of the most talented people I?ve ever met. It?s been a real learning experience every step of the way. I?ve made a lot of mistakes. But the most important thing is that I have learned from my mistakes. Do the same and you too, will be successful.
Secret #2 We respect our surfers/members. We treat them the way we would want to be treated.
One of the keys to our success has been treating our members and surfers with respect. Put yourself in your surfers?/members? shoes and think about how you would like to be treated. I know some people try to milk the surfers for every dime possible. But this has never worked for us. Being honest and treating your members and surfers with respect is the only way to go.
Secret #3 We respect our affiliates. We treat them the way we would expect to be treated.
As obvious as this may seem, most companies do not practice this. We were TGP webmasters before we started Twistys. I believe this gave us an edge. Why? Because we built our affiliate program based on the idea that we would treat affiliates the way we wanted to be treated. Take our advice and do the same. I?ve seen a few posts lately by people suggesting affiliate programs should not allow smaller affiliates. We completely disagree with this idea. We value every business relationship be it big or small. Every signup counts. Every member counts. Every affiliate counts too. Any person willing to promote our sites and send us traffic (legally) is graciously welcomed in to our program.
I also know a lot of companies try to find ways to make more money for themselves and do not worry about affiliate sales (hence: shaving.) We do NOT support this method of business at all. We firmly believe that more signups and more money we can pay out to each affiliate ensures a strong and long standing partnership today, tomorrow and even 10 years from now. The fact remains that if an affiliate makes MORE with us than any other program, the more traffic they will send us. The same goes for you and your program/surfers. We all want as much traffic and business as possible each and every day. So in order to prove this it is important to show affiliates as many signups as possible. If a webmaster trusts you enough send you their traffic, it is always in your best interest to do everything you can to make them the most money. Period.
Those links still don't load for me. I don't know, it might just be me. 
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