For those who do have the infrastructure, or are willing and able to acquire it, smooth sailing isn't guaranteed. Sure, you can build a website, find a reliable web host, develop a relationship with a billing company, and worry about customer service and support; but all of that takes time, money and energy. And this just gets you to the starting line: Remember that just because you build it, it doesn't mean they will come. Marketing and traffic development will consume much of your time, and soon you will realize that all of your efforts are being spent on "running the business" instead of "building the business."
But wouldn't you rather focus on doing what you do best and enjoy most — shoot and/or perform in adult content — and not just any old content, but the types of naughtily compelling specialty erotica that consumers are still willing to pay for?
If you answered "yes," then Clips4Sale.com might just be for you.
You don't need to be a content producer, or even "a small studio," however, to enjoy the many benefits that the Clips4Sale program offers; as licensed rights holders and even the largest of studios could find that the site offers an excellent incremental revenue stream. Affiliates will also soon be able to get their share of the money from Clips4Sale's unique blend of micro-niche content as well, with the upcoming launch of its new affiliate program.
Here's an inside look at some of the program's details:
Unlike typical streaming video-on-demand or other pay-per-view services, the Clips4Sale website allows for direct downloads of individual video clips through a shopping cart interface. Its sister sites, Videos4Sale.com and Images4Sale.com, offer full-length VHS tapes and DVDs, as well as zipped photo sets, respectively.
For consumers, the site offers easy access to an enormous range of content, searchable by niche, studio and keyword. The most recently updated as well as newest studios are listed, along with the top studios, top clips and more. Comprehensive support offerings, including various free video player and zip file management software download links, help customers make the most of the site's offerings.
It's the site's appeal to studio owners, however, that really sets Clips4Sale apart.
Setting up a studio account with Clips4Sale is easy, free and quick — taking less than 10 minutes and requiring no setup fees. Owners then upload their content and descriptions through the online interface and upon approval, the clips will become available for download by the site's customers. Studio owners receive a 60 percent monthly royalty payout on all sales.
While some prospective studios might feel that offering their content on their own website in order to be able to "keep all the money" is more profitable, the 40 percent that goes to Clips4Sale is quite reasonable when you consider that the company hosts the clips on its own servers, using OC-192 high-speed Internet lines. Clips4Sale also handles the processing fees (which can run as high as 15 percent for those doing it themselves), provides all the customer support, and delivers the traffic to your clip store.
Other services are optionally available; including digital rights management (DRM) encoding to help protect your clips from unauthorized "sharing." Video editing and encoding from mini-DV and Digital8 tapes, with uploading of the finished clips to your store is available, as are DVD creation and bulk duplication services.
Detailed traffic and sales stats are provided to studio owners, as are customer email lists. Clips4Sale will even make a banner for you if you don't already have one.
Among the potential concerns that prospective studio owners may have are copyright ownership and any exclusivity requirements. According to Clips4Sale Owner and President, Neil Orkin, there are no limitations on what else studio owners may do with the content they market via their Clips4Sale store. For example, studios may watermark their clips with the URL of their choice.
"The content owner is always the copyright owner, but they grant us resell rights. Sort of like an online consignment shop," Orkin said. "Store owners retain all rights and can sell their clips anywhere they wish."
Those resell rights do not extend to customers that download clips, however.
"Customers cannot resell clips," Orkin said. "They only have the rights to watch them."
Copyright also rears its head in connection with all user-upload sites, but Clips4Sale takes a proactive approach to the problem by making uploaded clips undergo an approval process before they become available for sale on the site.
"The studios are checked to make sure the clips are legal and the store owner agrees that they own all rights to sell the clips according to the agreement they agree to when they signup," Orkin offered.
While much is made of the impact of free "tube" sites on the adult marketplace, Orkin sees benefits to Clips4Sale and the premium content it offers that consumers cannot obtain from tubes.
"The #1 advantage to our site over a tube site is that all the content is original," Orkin said. "Some is even custom made for the site, so tube sites would never see these clips."
As for what the future holds for Clips4Sale, the company is planning the release of MYC4S — which Orkin says will change the way customers buy clips from Clips4Sale.
"It will give the user complete control over what he searches for and wants to buy," Orkin explained. "They will have the ability to basically bring the content directly to their own admin, and search and buy at will."
An affiliate program is also in the works, Orkin said, with a targeted two-stage rollout; with the first stage set to come online in early 2010, with a full launch in mid 2010.
All told, Clips4Sale.com allows studios to enjoy a no-hassle distribution channel that allows them the maximum amount of time to generate more and better material. For other operators, it might simply be another piece of the distribution chain puzzle. For anyone looking for an easy and profitable way to sell adult content online, especially for amateur producers, Clips4Sale.com is a website worth looking into as an outlet for your wares. Try it and see for yourself!
