It is really nice to know the mistakes before you make them. Here is a list of things that new adult webmasters make as they start their journey in the adult industry. Every new affiliate should avoid all these things. If you have anything to add to this list then post them in the comment section.
You Do Not Need To Plan Every Last Move
It can be overwhelming at first to achieve success. Do not try and do it all over night. A business plan is good, but it is easy to get dogma and over shoot yourself. Make simple easy goals for yourself and your site that are realistic. And then make them more and more adventurous as you gain experience.
Do Not Just Go With The First Webhost You Come Across
This is an important one. A lot of companies seem very legit, powerful, and cheap. Only to find out down the line that it is some guy with the one dedicated server on his cable modem. Most companies are not going to be there for you when the shit hits the fan – take the extra time and research the host you plan on using. Cheap is not always better – I suggest spending a little extra and getting a reliable server and service that will be there when you call them. Most companies want you to submit a support ticket – and it sucks ass when you need to fix something as soon as possible.
Do Not Steal Anything – Not Content, Not Designs, Not Scripts
You may not think of it as stealing. I have noticed a lot of people do not think taking a porn picture from another site or copying a design is stealing, but it is. These things are intellectual property, so it is illegal. But also it is not ethical and not smart. If you want to work with other webmasters, copying another webmaster’s terms and conditions, warning page text, gallery design – you name it – is not legal, it is not nice and when it comes out, it will keep you from trading links, getting advice and generally hanging out with your fellow webmasters.
Also keep in mind that if you use someone’s content without their permission, you will not have the legal documents to prove the model or models are of age and agreed to do the shoot. You also will not know for a fact that those models who look 20 or 21 are not actually 16 in makeup, and you can be sued not only by the content owner but also possibly by the models.
There are many places to license content for surprisingly little money, and many many sponsors allow you to use their content 100% free to promote their site. So protect yourself – only use licensed or sponsor-provided content and always check your legal paperwork.
Do Not Cover Your Site With Banners And Ads
A lot of new webmasters figure that more banners means more clicks, but often you will just confuse your surfers and they will hit back or close the browser. A few good well-placed ads will outsell tons of banners all over the page any day.
Do Not Keep Starting New Projects And Giving Up
Anything worth doing is worth learning, and if you quit as soon as something is not working, you will never learn. There are adult webmasters all the time who try a TGP, a blog and a few other things, and whenever things do not go the way they want, they immediately move on. Months later, they have left a bunch of abandoned or unsuccessful sites and pages all over the place where had they stuck with their first attempt and learned about it, they would be making money and could take the knowledge they gained with them to the next project.
Do Not Make Changes Without A Plan
Another thing a lot of newer webmasters do is jump every time someone has a criticism of their site. Do not make changes till you understand WHY you would make those changes and be sure that you do want to make them. Make one change at a time. That way you will know which change had which affect – if you make 5 changes, you willl never know which one caused your traffic to drop or increase or if they all did.
Do Not Start A Paysite When You Are Starting In The Business
A lot of new adult webmasters feel a paysite is the best site you can own, and a surprising number of not-so-new webmasters feel the same way. The truth is that without either lots of knowledge or a very knowledgeable project manager, your paysite will fail. This is not field of Dreams – if you build it, they probably will not come.
Do Not Try And Figure It All Out Yourself
No one can do everything – the most successful people I know know when to ask for advice and when to hire outside help. Hell, I am writing this entire site full of advice, and yet when I hit a snag in my work, I do not torture myself trying to make things work – I head on over to my favorite sites and ask questions. Spending five hours trying to figure out a line of code or how to cut up your graphic – and yelling and hitting your head on the keyboard – is not time well spent when you can get the answers you need in 10 minutes.
Do Not Forget To Wait
Heed these words. OK, you built a site, feel great about it, have been submitting to tgps, linklists, toplists, buying traffic, doing everything possible and still no traffic right? Well before you think it is all hopeless – wait. Before you jump in bed with someone else because there is no traffic or sales – wait. Before you give that 30-50% of your site to someone because your desperate for sales – WAIT. Let the work you have done take effect. I made the mistake of not waiting – and thought all my efforts were not working but they were. It just took a while – after I started paying someone to bring me traffic – I started to see all my traffic come pouring in – and the guy I was paying was trying to tell me – “look at all the traffic I am bringing you” but it was all from my months of work prior to hooking up with him. Traffic and sales take time – build your sites followings yourself and WAIT.
Do Not Be Rude To Other Webmasters
Those of us who have been in the industry – ANY industry, really – have seen it happen. A new webmaster asks for advice or for comments on his/her new site. When they do not like or do not understand the responses they get from experienced webmasters, they feel personally attacked and attack back by being angry or insulting. Most of the time, they were getting genuine helpful advice, but because they worked so hard, they felt like they should get a pat on the head. So be courteous and remember, when other webmasters do help you, they will probably tell you things about your design or theme you do not want to hear. Keep an open mind, and if you get really pissed, take a break – a long one – before responding.
Do Not Start In The Industry Without Talking To A Lawyer
It amazes me how many webmasters start in the business and think that it is like the wild west. In reality, many countries have many laws regarding what you can and can not do in adult, and also HOW you do it. You can go to jail without knowing about these laws – protect your freedom and talk to an attorney. And not your family lawyer, either – I am surprised how many of my friends got VERY incorrect legal info regarding adult from non-adult attorneys. Talk to an adult industry attorney and protect yourself!
Do Not Assume Everyone Is Cool
I am way too nice and I think everyone is just like me – unfortunately, not everyone is your friend in this business. And it is very easy to assume that people have your best interest at heart. Thank god there are places like MrAdultAffiliate. Make sure you have some leg to stand on when it comes to who you listen to and work with.