XBIZ World is pleased to present “Execs of 2015: The Year in Review.”
Each of the executives we spoke to below has one thing in common — they are among the finalist nominees for the online industry edition of the 2016 XBIZ Exec Awards.
Year in and year out, with the combined effort of nearly all our CCBill employees, we produce, host and leverage the Phoenix Forum as our No. 1 sales and marketing tool as well as our No. 1 commitment to the adult industry. -Laurie Biviano, CCBill
XBIZ captures the thoughts of these influential and motivational leaders as we sought their take of the year 2015.
The following question about the year in review was asked to those running for the Marketing Executive of the Year:
XBIZ: What were this year's most effective marketing platforms for reaching customers? How did you utilize it for business?
Laurie Biviano
Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations, CCBill
“For CCBill, our most effective marketing platform is way more high-touch and tangible than a software platform: it is the Phoenix Forum. Year in and year out, with the combined effort of nearly all our CCBill employees, we produce, host and leverage the Phoenix Forum as our No. 1 sales and marketing tool as well as our No. 1 commitment to the adult industry. The Phoenix Forum is an effective way for us to connect with new and existing customers by hosting the industry’s most loved and popular shows, all the while presenting CCBill in the most true and real fashion. The beauty of this platform is we can present the dedicated and hard-working members of the CCBill team as not just ambassadors for this incredible event, but committed representatives of the leading payment services and webmaster resources.”
Jenny Gonzalez
Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Dating Factory
“Facebook and LinkedIn are my weapons of choice. Reaching B2B customers has always been a challenge, and with the increase of competition in the online industry, we now have more and more businesses trying to reach the same customers every day. Nowadays, the game is constantly changing. Personally, I am a huge fan of social media platforms, as they provide a little more context for the lead generation process and the customer communication strategy. By moving away from what used to feel very much like online calling and into using Facebook as a tool for business contacts, I have managed to expand my network and create deeper relationships with business partners in 2015.”
Kimi Graffin
Affiliate Manager, Flirt4Free
“Regardless of the product, mobile is the only effective avenue for a marketer to turn to if they want to ensure new engagement, growth and exposure. Of course, there’s a curve here, which we’re continually trying to overcome. But every time we’ve put energy into mobile, it has made us back returns in excess. The question — at least to me, anyway — isn’t what platform is effective, but in what ways do we monetize the effective parts we already have? Even though I am an advocate for mobile, building the backend for things like that can necessitate heavy upfront costs without the guarantee of a speedy return — not to mention, the time between design and implementation can be a lot longer than first anticipated when you start a project. Why not look at what parts of your site can generate income within that design/launch interval?”
Jimmy James
Vice President, Huge Ape Media
“The most effective marketing platform this year which has been effective has been social media outreach. We’ve always pushed social media as a part of our marketing strategy in all forms, and this year more then ever. It’s promising because so many porn stars these days value their brand and now more then ever, realize that it has a direct impact on their earnings as a performer. It’s not uncommon to see a model with 200,000 followers engaging them on a daily basis. Porn stars these days have to work harder then ever to be booked, and that means actively engaging fans. These are the girls we want to market and in turn, get booked because of exposure to the brands. We effectively utilize social media for our business by leveraging data tools and analytics, which tell us which models to focus on and even, which girls to recommend to directors and production teams.”
Denise Kraft
Owner, Naughty PR
“Both social media and event marketing have been very effective platforms for reaching customers this year. Social Media has always been a great tool, but the explosion of Instagram has really given businesses the opportunity to reach the masses in a new and creative way with targeted content, for free with limited restrictions. Free is really the keyword; most social media platforms are free, so everyone has an equal opportunity to reach millions and millions of potential customers. Spending the extra cash to have a few extra graphics, banners or additional shots so that you have the content to make a great social media campaign is an important part of the overall success. Additionally, this year, Twitter started allowing advertising from companies selling sexual wellness products. For us, this has been a huge change and offered some of our clients the opportunity to reach entirely new markets at a price point that they feel comfortable with.”
Lauren Macewen
CEO, 7 Veils Media
“The platform is as good as the audience. Twitter remains the strongest network for traffic in social media unless you are a mainstream crossover, in which case, Facebook could give Twitter a run for its money. Instagram has shown a lot of potential over the past year, with many brands screaming its praises. However, due to constraints on the site with linking and content, it often remains a difficult one for adult companies to use. Twitter and Google have gone through a lot of changes in the past year, including integrating tweets into Google search. These changes are just beginning and are showing Twitter as a rising star in social media. Engagement on the network is up with change of ‘favorite’ to ‘like,’ aka. ‘star to heart.’ And social SEO has demonstrated that it is a important factor in overall site SEO strategy.”
David Strauss
Media Buyer, Cam4
“The webcam category is a truly an exciting space in which to be a marketer. Our customers can be viewers or performers, and more often than not, they’re both. At Cam4, we leverage a variety of marketing platforms to reach our customers. Social media remains one of the most effective platforms for performers, as it allows them to interact directly with their audience, share content and keep their fans informed about upcoming shows. Digital media buys are still the best way to reach viewers at scale. Through partnerships with brokers, networks and publishers, we’re able to execute highly targeted campaigns at a fraction of the cost of traditional media channels. That said, whatever platform you take advantage of, content needs to be at the forefront. Content is king, and when it comes to adult that’s never been more true. Finally, Cam4 is making a big push this year at trade shows. There’s simply no substitute for good, old-fashioned, boots-on-the-ground, face-to-face communication.”
