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Articles by Domenic R. Merenda

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Community Appeal

Affiliate programs with exciting new sales pitches and tremendous offers come and go — just a quick flash in the pan for industry veterans. New webmaster resource sites with far-reaching plans and great hopes pop up every couple of days, and many fizzle after just a few short weeks. What separates the wheat from the chaff? What makes some sites take off and grow prodigiously, and others languish and sputter, grasping for even a few steady bookmarkers?

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Raising Investment Capital

A wealth of books have been written on the subject of attracting investors to a mainstream business idea – be it a lemonade stand or a fleet of airliners. Searching for venture capital to grease the wheels of an adult enterprise not only limits the potential field of candidates, but frequently requires an in-depth plan, admission to the "club" of the adult community, or both.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Alternative File Protection

The process of linking directly to an image, or hot-linking, can be a serious drain on a webmaster's hosting bill.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Another Look At .XXX

The much-debated .XXX top-level domain has found patronage within the adult-industry camp, as well as on Capitol Hill.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Bad Publicity Lies Ahead

It's likely that the media is getting ready to launch a shit storm of bad publicity targeted at the adult industry in the next few years. This smear campaign will assault the morals of the industry, its perceived (and a fairly correct perception, at that) inability to prevent minors from accessing sites, and how its rise to power on the Internet endangers our culture as we know it. Why? It's the money, stupid.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 18: Wrap Up

As our series on adult webmastering draws to a close, a word on customer retention is necessary. Keeping the customers you have is always preferable to going member shopping, but actually working towards this goal is infinitely more important than just acknowledging it.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 17: PPC

Last week’s installment strove to hammer home the advantages of hiring a professional to perform SEO work on your websites. The following piece outlines the PPC process and the role experts play in its success. The main contrast in the pricing for an expert’s time between SEO and PPC is that SEO hours are typically billed as a line item, while PPC efforts are built into the price.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 16: SEO

Surfers looking for adult content will employ a number of methods to find the material they seek. Some may look on P2P networks. Others, in the newsgroups. A large number of individuals, however, will seek out the search engine as their first source when looking for an adult site.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 15: Promotion

After the onslaught of TGP and MGP posting, I’m sure you’re ready for a little human touch, right? Get your mind out of the gutter, we’re talking today about the personal communication behind the scenes that is often the life blood of traffic generation. Reaching out and touching your fellow webmaster brings together shared ideas, strategies, and cross-promotion opportunities. For the time being, we’ll focus on the traffic aspect of a little friendly “coopetition”.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 14: TGPs

Hopefully you’ve had some time to digest our little talk on ethics, and are ready to approach the problem of getting traffic with honesty, good communication, and an eye towards your reputation. If so, read on.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 13: Promotion

The site is uploaded, you’ve tested it for problems, and you’re ready for the flood of traffic. Unfortunately, you’ll find out that opening the floodgates requires turning on more than a few faucets first. This week, we’ll look at promotion methods and getting visitors to your pages:

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 12: Going Live

We've taken you from start to finish, A to Z, soup to nuts. After all of this hard work and perseverance, you might be wondering, when do I get paid? The quick answer is "maybe never."

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 11: Legal Issues

Staying out of jail is a worthwhile pursuit. While this worst-case scenario only befalls a handful of careless webmasters every year, the current administration’s Justice Department would like to see more individuals put out of business. You can minimize your exposure to not only jail time but to other forms of harassment by being responsible, being prepared, and being honest.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 10: Hosting

In this installment of our ongoing series on Webmastering Basics, we'll take a look at choosing a Web host – often the most important decision you'll make regarding your site:

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 9: Pro Design

Perhaps you don’t feel comfortable diving into design work, or maybe you just don’t have the time. Either way, if you’ve decided to hire a professional designer, you’d better make sure they’re looking out (at least partially) for your interests. Good communication throughout and a few simple clarifications before the project begins will go a long way towards getting the job done right.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 8: Design

The design of a site is a Webmaster's first opportunity to make an impression, for better or for worse. As with all of the areas we've previously outlined, striking a balance between looks, layout, speed of loading, and ease of use is critical to ensuring your first impression is the right one. In this article, we'll take a look at the options for a "do it yourself" project and address hiring a designer in the next installment.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 7: Content

Surfers don't drop by your web site to admire the masterful design or the skillful placement of your sponsored banner ads. They come for your content, and stay for the updates. The challenge of content lies in striking a balance between quality, freshness, and an capital outlay. Several methods of procuring this material provide adult webmasters with the ability to find a mix they're comfortable with.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 6: Fetishes

Don’t say we didn’t warn you! There’s no lifeguard on duty when it comes to treading water in the fetish market. These categories range from the tame to the extreme, and encompass everything in between. Let’s dive in, and find out if you sink or swim.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 5: Choosing A Niche

So far, we’ve set up a strong company foundation, laid out our workspace, and picked an overall strategy, for better or for worse. It’s time to apply those new business models to a specific area of focus within the industry...

Domenic R. Merenda ·
opinion

Adult Webmastering Basics: Part 4: More Business Models

Last week, we took a peek under the hood of the free site and AVS program business models. This week, we’ll test drive the pay site and link directory options. These sites generally require more work on user retention, as your repeat customers will comprise the majority of your traffic and monetization.

Domenic R. Merenda ·
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