For my own part, good ideas are a dime a dozen; it’s the execution and follow-up that prove problematic given the number of hours in a day, let alone the many other factors that weigh on lone adult operators, circa 2007; many of which I’ve already discussed.
After my lovely wife and partner Dawn and I carefully evaluated our existing business and marketing plans with an eye on not only where the current market is today but where it will be in five years and beyond, a few problem areas emerged where it became really obvious that some changes needed to be made. Not making any changes, while leaving open the opportunity for further profits from existing properties, would do so at a point where the return on investment and risk-to-reward ratio were both unacceptable for us.
Beyond the market pressures, the legal ones have also taken a toll; 2257 presents ongoing challenges to many small operators, especially the home-based ones such as us that must reveal their physical location to all and sundry. It’s not just the disclosure that’s an issue, it’s the ongoing changes: for example, the latest 2257 revisions, if enacted, would require that I (once again) re-encode all our video clips to feature the new statement, adding more time and money to our investment; of course, such problems are the tip of the iceberg…
These burdens have become too much to deal with or worry about; so going forward, we will not publish any sexually-explicit material, as either primary or secondary producers, that is covered by 18 USC 2256 / 2257; initiating immediate cut-backs in our online adult offerings – measures that also guarantee us freedom from obscenity prosecutions or other headaches that are easily predictable in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election cycle.
For us, “producing and publishing porn” is a thing of the past; our remaining properties sanitized of covered materials; the two gallery post sites set to auto-pilot, “cron jobs” automatically updating the submitted text links they list on a daily basis – providing a temporary reprieve for these “hands off” sites that require no further attention but that will still provide us with affiliate payouts.
While this wholesale elimination of risk and responsibility is welcome on some fronts, my personality won’t let me rest; I need the challenge of learning new technologies and the ‘enjoyment’ of having a website to work on. As I’ve said before: being a Webmaster isn’t a job, it’s a lifestyle – and with that in mind, I’ve turned back to my mountain of good ideas, looking for something new that meets my current and future market needs, profit requirements and safety level. I’ve chosen an idea that I previously did not have the time to implement; but it’s the best idea of the bunch, IMHO, and one whose time is finally here – after spending over a year on the “how about we…” pile.
So I’m trying not to focus on the huge amount of time, money, love and effort that I’ve invested in my previous programs; and instead, I’m focusing on bringing something new, unique and potentially very big to life. It’s no longer “business as usual, circa 1996” but the culmination of everything that I’ve learned in adult and where I see the market headed; fueling a project uniquely suited to my talents.
Stay tuned to see what I’ve come up with…