New Year’s is a time to reset, reflect and take action. A resolution is the act of resolving to do something, but if your resolution is to better your business, you must first evolve. In this article, I explore five ways to help you rejuvenate your cam shows and set a strong intention for the year ahead.
CHANGE YOUR ROOM DESIGN
Set goals based on your previous year’s earnings, look at what you earned month to month and aim to increase it slightly. It will give you a challenge and help you focus.
When fans enter your cam room, the first thing they see is you, but the second is your surroundings. One of the key components to having a successful cam show is having an eye-catching cam space. Reorganizing your cam room is a great start to reinventing your look.
From angles to décor, there are many cost-efficient ways to jazz up your environment without blowing the budget. Remember, if you feel good in your room, your broadcast will reflect that. A workspace is always a reflection of the worker, so think of your cam space as an extension of your brand.
Having good lighting, as well as positioning it well, will make a major difference. And while fluorescent neon signs are great, multi-colored strip lights are much cheaper and you can change the color and mood with the click of a button.
If you are broadcasting from your bedroom, new bedding and fun accent pillows can make a world of difference — the fluffier the better. Curtains can make excellent room dividers as well as change up your background in a pinch. Also, be sure to prepare for upcoming holidays and special occasions in advance, with Valentine’s Day a perfect opportunity on the horizon. It’s cheaper to buy decorations at the end of each season, when things are on clearance, so planning a year ahead is key.
ADJUST YOUR SCHEDULE BASED ON LAST YEAR’S EARNINGS
Start your New Year off right by scheduling all of your cam shows for the month of January, and stick with it. Keeping a consistent cam schedule will not only bring in higher viewer counts, but more viewers also means more tippers. Whether it's specific days or specific times, by creating a schedule you ensure that your regular viewers will always know when and where to find you, as well as make it easier for new viewers to discover you.
A helpful pro tip: figure out where your money comes from. Doing this can help you target specific regions by adjusting your showtimes to accommodate those time zones, whether North American or international. Set goals based on your previous year’s earnings, look at what you earned and aim to increase it slightly. It will give you a challenge and help you focus.
GIVE YOUR SOCIALS A MARKETING MAKEOVER
Since one of the quickest ways to build your following is by utilizing social media — think of this as your personal hub for everything you have going on — go through your DMs to respond to messages you may have forgotten about and clean out your inboxes. Utilize the option of pinned tweets too, as this is the prime spot to post your broadcasting schedule as well as any important future updates.
One of the more interactive ways of engaging with your followers is by creating weekly polls. It's a fun and effective way to include your audience and help them feel more connected. Consider polls based on specific toys, themes, kinks, etc. Running Twitter competitions is also a great way to increase your following and increase engagement with your tweets. For example, have your followers retweet a specific tweet, post a specific hashtag, or follow a certain account.
Ultimately, you should always be thinking of ways to encourage followers to complete a series of actions for maximum engagement. Also, it’s important to note that with the constant changing of rules and guidelines on social media, NSFW content is being flagged more frequently regardless of “sensitive content” labeling. So it’s always smart to create an SFW backup account, which has the added benefit of preventing “shadow-banning” — a platform de-prioritizing your content or hiding it from search algorithms and browsing.
FRESHEN UP YOUR PHOTOS WITH CURRENT ONES
Nothing changes your overall look and profile appearance better than uploading and posting fresh images and content. Leave those mirror selfies in 2021, and invest in a tripod with a ring light and remote camera shutter. Trust me, you will be happy you made this purchase. This will give you the opportunity to create fresh exclusive photo sets that you can sell or unlock with specific tipping or token amounts.
Give your fans something that will keep them coming back, and something to look at whether you are online or offline. Photoshoot ideas can be anything from renting an Airbnb for a fresh interior location, to simply scheduling an outdoor shoot when the sun is perfect. Who doesn’t love free lighting? It’s also smart to create shoots based on specific holidays in advance, to promote future themed shows. Be sure to switch up your wardrobe, as outfit changes are important; plus, who doesn’t feel better in a sexy new look? Just because the holidays are over, doesn’t mean you can’t treat yourself.
PREPARING FOR TAX SEASON
Last, but not least, is the dreaded task of filing your taxes. Stay up to date with your finances, be organized, and you will be prepared to file with ease. As a broadcaster, you are responsible for filing your own taxes. Tax laws differ from country to country, but you are often considered “self-employed” or an “independent contractor” regardless of where you reside. It is important to keep track of how much money you cash out within your taxation year. A new year also means claiming, as a business expense, what was spent during the previous year. This is your chance to gather all your receipts. As a small business, you can claim certain necessary costs as tax write-offs. For example, receipts for your internet bill, toys you use on cam, makeup, or other things that you need.
Think of a new year as a new beginning and a fresh start. Look at any obstacles and challenges you had in 2021 and figure out how to make them part of your success story in 2022. Wishing you, your fans and followers a prosperous, epic and very happy new year.
Johnny Diamond is senior account manager at camming platform CAM4. Follow him @JDiamondXXX on Twitter and contact johnny@cam4.com for more information.
