What porn business advice would you give to rawTOP?

[SoNofSaTaN]

No disrespect intended, but ease up on the censorship re: 999, s-a-t-a-n-i-c stuff...... there are a lot of dudes into this. I pay good money on other sites to be able to hook up with my kind of men, 999.... I'd pay money to be here, but only if that means I can expose myself to the type of men I want 999 men.

[rawTOP]

No disrespect intended, but ease up on the censorship re: 999, s-a-t-a-n-i-c stuff...... there are a lot of dudes into this. I pay good money on other sites to be able to hook up with my kind of men, 999.... I'd pay money to be here, but only if that means I can expose myself to the type of men I want 999 men.

Those words are blocked because they were used by a number of creepy psycho members. That group isn't really one I want to encourage here. There are variations on the terms that aren't blocked. Use those. (But if they're abused, they'll be blocked too).

[SoNofSaTaN]

Maybe more long haired men, they float my boat!!

[fillmyhole]

Using everyday looking men for porn, not the sculped muscle boys who all lokk like clones of one another. Also CONVERSION videos should be a high priority gangbangs etc

[Guest MusclepigcunT]

Ok, ja I am a slut, but also have my MBA.

Diversify and find a niche market that is not currently being served. Learn and understand exactly what is your core business. Then focus on that. Too many irons in the fire doesn't allow you to concentrate. Maybe your core business is NOT porn, but it is the buzz regarding the entire bb thing. Your core may be your brand. You get there through this site and through some shooting of porn, but the "brand" RAWTOP is the core. License it so nobody takes it. Advertise, t-shirts are great. So are tank tops, socks, and jock straps. You will have captured a wide net of guys. I wore a jock with Dick Wad on it at underwear night. I got a lot of attention. Guys knew what I as into. Make yours a unique design. Guys will come up and ask and that is free advertising for you. Another way to advertise is to do "soft porn" - the stuff that can be played at bars. You will get exposure there. Cut out the fucking scenes and focus on making out, dancing, whatever will get you in a bar w/out compromising the liquor license.

Currently, the porn biz is fragmented. Too many people are doing porn. I dated a former porn star. Porn stars are paid nothing today because many companies struggle financially. Porn companies struggle with competition from xtube and cam4 among others. You may drive people to these sites. Agree to get a cut of $$ if they are making money. Many just post and want the notoriety. So many guys would be willing to do it for free (mostly bottoms), the cuts your costs significantly. You may not get the big stars, but many people just want to see the everyday guy. Do polling to find out WHAT guys want to see. WHAT do people want to see that they are not seeing now. Also, you may have to educate the consumer. People may not know they want something until you tell them they need it. You can create the demand. You may very well be surprised. Don't do a fancy set. Most guys just want to see the fucking. Scenes are so contrived and costly. If you start shooting porn, find a market that is currently not being served. If you are first to enter, you win.

Decide to keep your costs down. So establish that you won't pay - at least not the bottoms. So many are willing. Then focus on paying tops if that is what you have to do to attract big dicks, if that is necessary.

The core is RAWTOP and you get $$ from selling t-shirts, jocks, cum rags, socks, etc. The money is most likely there (I haven't done an analysis, but anecdotal guessing). Remember, your core is your brand. Have others make the socks, t-shirts, jocks for you. Manufacturing in the US is costly. Central American nations with a free trade pact with the US will cut cost significantly. My guess is that your core is your "brand" - RAWTOP.

Sponsor bar nights in major cities with your "stars" wearing clothing with your brand. Have them go-go dance and hand out clever cards for easy ordering. it will drive "eyeballs" to the site and you can make money as they watch the porn. But you have to drive people to the site. Supposedly, IML doesn't allow sponsorship of bb sites. Not sure if this has changed. But if you have some hot guys that have done porn willing to wear your jocks and t-shirts, hanging around, that does the trick and you don't have to pay.

Anyway, hope it helps, just some ideas from a pig slut with an MBA and an eye for porn and marketing. Contact me if you want other ideas.

Best,

a big fan of yours.

[rawTOP]

Using everyday looking men for porn, not the sculped muscle boys who all lokk like clones of one another. Also CONVERSION videos should be a high priority gangbangs etc

I've actually been thinking lately of doing a series of videos with neg bottoms and poz tops. Show the bottom taking an OraQuick test at the beginning then show him get fucked by a bunch of poz tops and at the end say "What you just saw was SAFE SEX. The bottom was on PrEP, and the tops were undetectable. Change how you think about risk reduction!"

Diversify and find a niche market that is not currently being served. Learn and understand exactly what is your core business. Then focus on that. Too many irons in the fire doesn't allow you to concentrate.

See the contradiction in what you just said? Diversification = "too many irons in the fire". But I do get what you're saying. And it's exactly right, but it's also my primary problem. I have too many irons in the fire, but I need to find the time to diversify. Finding good workers to help is hard.

Maybe your core business is NOT porn, but it is the buzz regarding the entire bb thing.

Yes and no, but again you're really close to the truth. I've run the numbers - and the porn blog is what makes me the bulk of my money. BUT I wouldn't be successful that that if it weren't for you guys - the community that I've fostered and built. I see my role as a facilitator and instigator.

Your core may be your brand. You get there through this site and through some shooting of porn, but the "brand" RAWTOP is the core. License it so nobody takes it. Advertise, t-shirts are great. So are tank tops, socks, and jock straps. You will have captured a wide net of guys. I wore a jock with Dick Wadd on it at underwear night. I got a lot of attention. Guys knew what I as into. Make yours a unique design. Guys will come up and ask and that is free advertising for you.

Right now that feels like another iron in the fire. I want to, but don't have the time. Doing branding/marketing is competing with getting new things built.

My number #1 desire is to get a hookup site built on BBBH.com, but I have to keep my existing stuff running smoothly to keep money coming in.

Currently, the porn biz is fragmented. Too many people are doing porn. I dated a former porn star. Porn stars are paid nothing today because many companies struggle financially. Porn companies struggle with competition from xtube and cam4 among others. You may drive people to these sites. Agree to get a cut of $$ if they are making money. Many just post and want the notoriety.

Getting money for sending traffic is something I do pretty well. But a lot of the popular sites don't convert very well. My traffic is better sent elsewhere or kept on my own sites.

And yes, porn production is a dicey business. Most are failing, but a few are doing really well. But some of the big names haven't cut the fat out of their organizations. Honestly, I worry about companies like TIM. I don't feel they've fully adapted to the new business environment in porn and they could fail if they don't get their act together and run a tighter ship.

So many guys would be willing to do it for free (mostly bottoms), the cuts your costs significantly. You may not get the big stars, but many people just want to see the everyday guy. Do polling to find out WHAT guys want to see. WHAT do people want to see that they are not seeing now. Also, you may have to educate the consumer. People may not know they want something until you tell them they need it. You can create the demand. You may very well be surprised. Don't do a fancy set. Most guys just want to see the fucking. Scenes are so contrived and costly. If you start shooting porn, find a market that is currently not being served. If you are first to enter, you win.

Decide to keep your costs down. So establish that you won't pay - at least not the bottoms. So many are willing. Then focus on paying tops if that is what you have to do to attract big dicks, if that is necessary.

My boyfriend keeps telling me to get into production, but what I do know is I don't want to do it unless I do it well. You're right - keeping costs down to a bare minimum is critical. But right now, there are bigger priorities (like BBBH.com), and once that's up and running well I don't know that I'll have the time. Plus, shooting porn is a lot about herding cats (getting flaky porn stars to show up is one of the hardest parts - not that all are flaky, but enough are). I don't think I have the temperament to deal with all that…

The core is RAWTOP and you get $$ from selling t-shirts, jocks, cum rags, socks, etc. The money is most likely there (I haven't done an analysis, but anecdotal guessing). Remember, your core is your brand. Have others make the socks, t-shirts, jocks for you. Manufacturing in the US is costly. Central American nations with a free trade pact with the US will cut cost significantly. My guess is that your core is your "brand" - RAWTOP.

The problem with the rawTOP brand is that it's too closely tied to me as a person. I was talking to Tyler Reed a few months ago about doing a promotion where I get a bunch of bareback top porn stars to put on a rawTOP t-shirt and say "I'm rawTOP!" Then I'd edit 50 or 100 of those into a video for YouTube entitled "Who is rawTOP?" The idea that I don't want to be the only person carrying the mantle - I want all bareback tops to see themselves as rawTOP. Until I can accomplish that, the rawTOP brand is limited.

If you notice I've taken the rawTOP branding off this site and Raunchy Fuckers (for the most part). I'm really seeing those as separate brands. Ditto for BBBH. But then the question is whether having multiple brands is a bad thing or a good thing.

So you've hit on a lot of truths, but the key issue is time required to maintain stuff vs the time needed to build new stuff.

[AgentColby]

A lot of reading and a few things came to mind.

Bareback is becoming gay mainstream. In the past 2 years I have noticed the topic has become less and less taboo. In addition, I have found that a lot of gay men practice it. Most partice safe sex but a lot partake in the action. With that said, I think there is a lot of opportunity to do business considering the growing popularity.

I think breeding zone is a great start but in my opinion there should be some changes. I have referred friends to the site and all said the same thing, "it just not for them." Like many guys, my friends like BB and pratice it but they do not buy into the whole "poz" fetishism or the HIV fetism or the "chem talk". The guys that I have referred to breedingzone have found it to be a bit to much. I think a lot of BBers just like BB, that is it. They like raw sex but the HIV fetism takes it a bit far. Such things I think are a niche and do not speak to most guys who BB. You may be turning off a lot of people off the site because of that.

As for porn. I do not pay for it. Porn doesn't excite me that much b/c a lot of what I see seem unrealistic. For ex: I love the original HDK. It was a studio that was different from all the others but now it is just like all the others. Treasure Island is boring. It is the same scene and action each film but just a different guy. If I do watch porn, I watch it for free.

[rawTOP]

I think breeding zone is a great start but in my opinion there should be some changes. I have referred friends to the site and all said the same thing, "it just not for them." Like many guys, my friends like BB and pratice it but they do not buy into the whole "poz" fetishism or the HIV fetism or the "chem talk". The guys that I have referred to breedingzone have found it to be a bit to much. I think a lot of BBers just like BB, that is it. They like raw sex but the HIV fetism takes it a bit far. Such things I think are a niche and do not speak to most guys who BB. You may be turning off a lot of people off the site because of that.

Was that before or after I made all the HIV fetish stuff opt-in?

I know what you mean though. I'm trying to understand the best way to really get at the mainstream bareback market. One thing I know is Breeding Zone will never be the site that does that.