The week ItsBen turned 18, he jumped headfirst into a full-time adult entertainment career. Inspired by watching his favorite industry stars, he felt confident in making what he viewed as a life-changing decision. Looking back on that choice for this interview, he expressed satisfaction: “I’m very happy that I did. I love what I do.”
“Everything was scary and uncertain when I first started,” he recalled. “I just did what I liked doing, which is to interact with my fans, produce quality content and be consistent.”
...one video of mine is a nighttime hardcore glory hole video and another video is an intimate softcore video in bed with my best friend.
Even as his fan base went through the usual ups and downs in terms of subscriber count, he stayed unflappable and kept his nose to the grindstone.
“The thing that I see a lot of my fellow models do is give up when their fans go down, and accept defeat,” he noted. “I do the opposite. I never let numbers get in my way. Whether I have one or 5,000 fans on my premium sites, I will always be consistent and produce high-quality content. It’s almost guaranteed to be successful if you put in the work.”
That dedication has netted ItsBen more than 117,000 likes on his premium OnlyFans page, 10,000 subscribers on his free OnlyFans, 61,000 followers on Twitter, 25 million views on Pornhub and a fast-growing official site, BensBoys.com, which boasts a growing library of scenes with other talent.
ItsBen reached a newfound peak of success at the 2022 XBIZ Cam Awards, where he was crowned Best Male Premium Social Media Star and forever immortalized the moment with a surprise marriage proposal to his beloved boyfriend as the crowd went wild. Now, as XBIZ Creator of the Month, he discusses his professional journey and how he aims to unfold an ever-brighter future.
XBIZ: Describe your approach to work/life balance given the many demands of content creation, editing, selling and marketing.
ItsBen: Consistency is key. The hardest part for me is turning on the camera. I try to keep a routine to motivate me to work. I commit myself to a posting schedule on my premium sites, which requires daily engagement. It’s really a 24/7 job, though. If I’m not talking to a fan or editing a video, I’m scrolling through Instagram finding inspiration for my next video or photoshoot. But just like a regular job, everyone needs a break. I try to, at least one day a week, turn my phone off. It’s great for my mental health and keeps me grounded.
XBIZ: What are the biggest similarities and differences for fan engagement on traditional social media vs. premium social media?
ItsBen: My fans are the heartbeat of my career. Without my fans I wouldn’t be where I’m at now. I offer my fans free content on my traditional social media platforms and they always have the option to pay for my top-quality content on my paid platforms. One way my fan engagement is similar on my platforms, paid or free, is that a lot of my fans always want to chat with me and they love it when I chat with them back. I find my fans become more devoted once you interact with them. They get to know the real me and are likely to become a long-term fan.
However, I do carve out more personalized time on my premium social media accounts to chat with fans via direct message. And because of that, one major difference between my free and premium social media is earnings. A lot of my fans just want to tip me for chatting or posting a hot picture. My fans can’t do that on traditional social media sites, but they can on my premium sites. It’s definitely a nice gesture when my fans do that and I usually send them a personalized message and picture for that.
XBIZ: Which platforms are you most active on and what kind of content do fans most often request?
ItsBen: You can find me everywhere, basically. However, the platforms I’m most active on are Twitter, OnlyFans, JustFor.fans, Pornhub and Chaturbate. I also have my personal website, BensBoys.com, where I have more freedom in what I can post. My fans tend to be wide-ranging when it comes to their desires and I’m so glad I’m versatile and into most of what they want. I’m glad to fulfill most fans' fantasies and, in doing so, I get to fulfill my own personal fantasies too.
XBIZ: Describe your workflow when it comes to offering a blend of free-to-view posts for subs, monetizable DMs and fulfilling custom video requests.
ItsBen: I am always open to trying new strategies when it comes to distributing my content. I found what works well is creating free little clips of your premium content and advertising it on your free pages to direct fans to your premium page. Whether on my free or paid media, I always offer individual fans custom personal videos for a separate fee. However, if I have a similar video I already made for my premium content pages, I definitely let them know that beforehand. I am not in the business to rip people off and I’m always very open with my fans.
XBIZ: What is your brand, in a nutshell, as far as style, personality and the kind of content you make?
ItsBen: That’s a hard question for me because I’m very versatile in what I do. For example, one video of mine is a nighttime hardcore glory hole video and another video is an intimate softcore video in bed with my best friend. The No. 1 reason I like my job is because I can be creative and do whatever I want. I even listen to my fans, do videos they have in mind and put my twist on it. I guess my style is all over the place as I have a little bit of everything for everyone to enjoy. I’m very real and down-to-earth, and I’m a good listener and talker.
XBIZ: Tell us a few unique facts about you, such as special hobbies or hidden talents, that everyone may not know about.
ItsBen: Outside of work I love nature! I even try to incorporate it in my premium videos by shooting outside. Hiking, kayaking and fishing are some of my favorite things to do.
XBIZ: What was it like winning Best Male Premium Social Media Star and then proposing to your significant other?
ItsBen: It felt unreal, but it was very reassuring to me that my hard work is paying off. It was really meant to be, proposing to my boyfriend then. We’ve been together for almost six years and we built all of this together. He deserved to accept that award as much as I did. He’s a very special and kind person and I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. Also, he has a butt sculpted by the gods so I definitely had to lock that down!
XBIZ: Discuss your professional and personal goals for the coming year.
ItsBen: I definitely want this year to be the best year ever. I feel like my content-producing skills are getting better and better. My fans should look forward to me collaborating with a lot more hot guys and interacting with them on another level. I’m 23 and I have more steam in me than I have ever had, so I can’t wait to let it out.