Food for Thought....
 

What do you think?

Last week I asked a model with a site to come out and shoot with me. I live in Vancouver, Canada and she lives in southern states. The trip was going to cost a few hundred dollars that she didn't have. I proposed to pay for it by having her do a custom shoot for me for one of my fans and also having her doing some shoots for a multi model site that I am partnered with. (www.cinnamyn.com) That money would pay for her trip and maybe even give her a little bit of cash to take home with her.

It all sounded great until her webmaster/photographer, who we have other business with, contacted me on MSN. He was upset that 'his' model was coming out to do work with someone other than him. He told me that her doing work, even less revealing work, for other sites would hurt her site and that her affiliates would leave her if she did that. He said that he would have to approve any work that she does for other sites.

Personally, I appear on lots of sites. I don't shoot for just anyone, but girls with sites that are similar to mine and with photographers I know. I don't just shoot random content. It works great to promote myself. It gets me traffic while it also helps out the other webmaster with a little content. I can make a buck or two at the same to help pay for my trips. It's probably the best form of promo that I have.

What do you guys think? Would doing work for another site cost her affiliates and make her make less money?

Jen,

There are 2 ways of thinking about it. Some people think that it is a good idea to shoot everywhere because that gets your face out there and you are introduced to more potential members that way. And others think that it is more beneficial to only model for your own site so that when people want to see you, they have to come to you. While I don't know of this girl that you are speaking of and what arrangements she has made with these affiliates, I do know that I've often pondered what the best way to go about my own career was.

I've been offered shoots with most of the big glamour sites out there. And while the money is tempting plus you get content for your site that you don't have to pay to produce, I still hesitate. I've actually worked with very few of these sites. Even though the pay and deals that they make are good, I've been pretty tight about shooting for other people.

A friend of mine has recently been shooting for all of the glamour sites out there. I talked to her boyfriend about it and I was like, "How's that going for her? Is she doing well with that?" I was curious because I always thought that it wasn't a good idea to shoot for everyone else and "play yourself out" all over the net. My theory is that why would people want to join your site if they can go everywhere else and see you there instead? And most of the time these sites are cheaper to join than your own official site. I sometimes wish that I had never modeled nude for any other website but my own but it's too late for that now. I really haven't done that many shoots for other people so I don't think it's hurt me much. And I wonder if my friend's decision to model for all those sites will turn out to be a good thing or a bad thing. Only time will tell. I do know that she is moving up in the ranks on alexa. But I'm not sure if that's because they have been linking with a lot more sites, or because she is getting more exposure by appearing on all these other sites, or a combination of both.

My friend's boyfriend says that he thinks that it's going to help her out. He said that she gets paid for the shoots plus she gets to use the content for her own site. So it saves them money as far as producing the shoots are concerned. Plus he said they do all the retouching etc. And he said that he is still producing exclusive content of her. So if people join a glamour site and fall in love with her, they will still get exclusive stuff thru her own site. So he doesn't think it's going to hurt her. But when is the fine line where you spread yourself too thin and oversaturate your own market?

Thoughts on this anyone? Great subject Jenn! :)

XoXoX,
BB

I was in a COMPLETELY different niche, lol, but that was something I had to decide, too.

I decided that shooting for other people was worth it, in the beginning, and in moderation, to get my name out there, and to make contacts with other industry people.

Had I stayed with it long enough to reach the point where anyone in my niche probably knew who I was, I probably would have stopped shooting for other people, so the only fresh content was on my own site.

Right on Chase! That's where I am at right now... Although I'll probably always shoot for Mac&Bumble because it's my favorite glamour site to work for. And I'd also consider Mystique Magazine if they are even still around.

Yeah, I hear ya...I loved shooting for ButtJungle so much that I'd shoot for them anytime they wanted me. :)

Thanks for replying to my thread guys.....

It is good hearing your thoughts on this topic. I understand what Bobbi is saying about spreading yourself too thin. I get a lot of requests to be just content on random sites which I have not heard of and I am not interested in that. What I do like to do is shoot with other models who have a site like mine or if I am friends with a photographer who has a cool multi-model site. If someone just randomly approaches me wanting to be on some site I am not really inclined to do that. When I shoot for other sites I also never do anything sexier than you would see me do on my site. I use the sites to get more people interested in my own site. I can totally see how if I were to shoot for everything and anything out there how it would make my own site work less valuble. They could just find me on a million other sites before even getting to my own site.

The girl who I wanted to come out to shoot is a friend of mine and she does topless stuff on her site. The www.Cinnamyn.com site that I do does sexy stuff, but not anything topless at all. I thought it would be more of a promotional thing to get people to go to her site to see her sexier work. Do you think her shooting for another site would actually cost her affiliates? I thought that was a bit extreme of the webmaster to say...

Yeah, I mean I think that it would help her get members to join her site especially if you added a link or something but I have no clue what this webmaster promised these affiliates. Maybe he sold them on her by saying that contractually she can't model for other sites and he's worried that they will drop her if they find out about your site. I don't know.

XoXoX,
BB

I don't have any affiliates for my site so I don't always know how they would think. I know the girl didn't sign any kind of contract though.

So when you shoot for something what helps you make that decision? There are always things you have to be careful about. Exposure? If they are friends? Money? ....I think there are so many reasons..

maybe her photographer/webmaster thinks she is exclusive property....

Unless she is the next piece of sliced bread, forget her and find someone else. why have issues pop up later.


Bobbi, I hope that you dont mind, but I am going to fall in love with you, and marry you. At least in a dream or 30

[QUOTE=pornguy]Unless she is the next piece of sliced bread, forget her and find someone else. why have issues pop up later.

That is a good point. We are totally not on the same page now and it doesn't seem like that is going to change. I have pretty come to the conclusion that is isn't going to happen........which is fine. :)

Is it normal or common for photographers/webmasters to feel that way?

I would agree; we can't really blame for acting such.

So this guy is her webmaster but she never signed a contract with him? That sounds awfully strange? And what is the girl telling you about it? Is she like, "Sorry, I can't do anything. He told me I can't." ...Or??? And I agree with everyone else. There's other chicks you can work with so just find someone else. I can't really speculate because I don't know what sort of deal the webmaster and this girl have, nor do I know what sort of agreement the webmaster has with the affiliates.

I agree pornguy! :)

Woohoo! I'm getting pretend married! Where's my pretend ring? :winkwink:

XoXoX,
BB

They're all different. Some'll rip you off, some will dictate like a m.f'er, some are impossible to get a hold of and slower than mollasses. I don't know much about webmasters anymore... It's been forever and a day since I had one. My experience with it wasn't that great. He ripped me off and supplied me with fake iBill stats before I knew what real iBill stats were supposed to look like. I finally figured it out and kicked his sorry ass to the curb and haven't looked back since. I had no clue what the hell I was doing, but I figured that knowing nothing and learning was a hell of a lot better than getting screwed over like I did for a little under a year.

Anyway, back to the point here. He never told me who I could and couldn't shoot with... if he had, that shit wouldn't fly with me anyway. But they are all different and I don't know enough about these things to really give you an answer to that question. I know how I am with the girl who's site I run... I let her do what she wants. I'd give her advice if I thought she was making a mistake with something, but I don't boss her around and I'm not much of a whip cracker. But maybe some of these webmasters are powertrippers and dictators. I'm not too sure...

I'm more and more impressed with you every time you post. :2 cents:

Thanks Chase!! :) Mwaaa! :winkwink:

I'm looking for a model to shoot. Wanna hook me up with one?

Yah, I help run a few girls sites and I could never see myself telling them who they can shoot with or since they are professional models telling them they couldn't shoot for anything but their site would be totally ridiculous. The model and I were excited about shooting together and then her webmaster/photographer messaged me all pissed off. I just thought it was kind of wierd behavior because it was never that big of a deal to me. There are other models who I would love to get to know and shoot with...... :thumbsup :)

Did you talk to her afterwards and ask her what was up with the webmaster guy getting involved?

My opinion, he should have let her do it. Lot's of girls do shoots with girls with other sites/programs.

where's the food for thought? I feel I have been mislead. :(

Sorry you feel mislead my the thread! I was having some issues that I wanted some feedback on. :)

I forgive you! :)

awesome :thumbsup *happy giggles*