As this year closes out, I've started looking at where we've been, and where we're going. One of the places that I've used as a barometer is the Article Dialogs board. As I peruse the past posts, one thing is apparent: There's gold in them thar boards!
The Article Dialogs message board is a place for XBiz reader's to share their thoughts and opinions on the various articles we run here. Sometimes these thoughts are truly amazing, thought-provoking tidbits that deserve a wider audience. Today's the day that I bring these nuggets to light, so that more of you may benefit and profit from them. Enjoy!
In response to "Branding: A Promotional Pay Off" I received comments from DinDallas that were so in-depth and on target that they became a whole new article. Now that's feedback! jamiej also had an innovative approach to promoting her amateur site: "A few weeks back, I went out to a local nudist resort and wrote my URL on my body. This drew people attention, and I also handed out business cards "just in case" they forgot!"
In response to "Adult Trade Shows": A Waste of Time?, a particularly important article for those making last minute decisions on whether or not to attend InterNext, toson responded "To meet the different companies that we all deal with on a daily basis is so invigorating. To put a face to the people that we are working with is a great experience. Most are more than willing to give you "insider" tips and tricks, and the knowledge base that you come away with is worth more than three colleges put together. Almost any of them will sit down with you on the convention floor and talk business, and if for whatever reason they are not able to at that moment, most will be more than happy to sit down after show hours over dinner or a cup of coffee and chat."
Or as SeeSea opined: "This article just oozes with enthusiasm. I was not convinced that spending $500-1000 or more of my meager earnings on an event was justified, but after reading the article I almost believe it is imperative!"
In response to "Getting What You Paid For", junkiefred commented that "One of the most important things I've found in the adult business, is that you have to be honest. Honest to your members, honest to your providers, honest to your peers, and on and on and on. All of you folks in this for the quick fix, have a long hard lesson to learn. Make friends, treat them right, and you'll go a long way in this business. Screw people over, and you'll be scratching your head wondering why you can't seem to make a dime." Words of wisdom indeed...
Remarking upon "Selling Yourself for Fun and Profit", Cyndalie commented: "In this industry I have noticed that, at times, people are often judged for what they have done in the past (before knowing any better) or for whom they are associated with, rather than what they are persuing at present or have accomplished. I think as this industry has grown, so have the people, and our mentality must as well. The honest truth is, you never know quite whom you are dealing with, and being polite and professional can never do you wrong." Amen.
After reading "My First TGP: End Game", TheMack asked "How are you getting fresh traffic to a new TGP? Are you pushing it on other sites? I am starting to use some taffic trading scripts to send the surfer to another site in return for some fresh traffic, however its building up slowly."
To which I responded: "There are several ways that I've considered: 1) Submitting my site to the "TGP" lists at the major webmaster resource sites 2) Participation in Webmaster banner exchanges 3) Listing my site with the most popular auto-submission services These methods rely on receiving traffic from webmaster's who submit TGP galleries, carrying my recip link I will also build some galleries promoting my other sites / sponsor sites and include my own recip on them, then submit them to other TGPs using LinkUp PRO as well as listing my galleries on XBiz' "Gallery Booster" Consider that I also build AVS sites, and could easily toss an exit console or back button redirect off of the "Join" page to capture freebie surfers."
Several readers had comments on Ayrora's insightful "Do Marriages and Porn Mix?" article. Since Dawn aka Ayrora is MY wife, I dearly hope so! I think TheMack summed it up best, though: "I think its a per couple question. What works for one marriage may work horribly for two other people. There are a few people out there who can deal with the fact of what we do for a living, however there are even more than are repulsed by it. I think that each partner needs to be open and understanding for it to work at all."
This is a small sampling of the many fine posts and thoughtful commentaries made by XBiz' readers in response to our articles. Some will help me to refine our editorial focus for the New Year, others will help us all to increase our profits.
The next time that YOU read an article here at XBiz, why not click on the link below it, and share YOUR thoughts? You may just help yourself while helping others. ~ Stephen
