LOS ANGELES — The adult entertainment industry is no stranger to hard times, fending off a prolonged decline in revenues driven by a variety of factors beyond its control, as well as by some handicaps of its own making.
Outside influences include everything from economic uncertainty to rampant content piracy and a glut of free porn that makes paying an option, not a necessity; as well as growing restrictions on access and public campaigns of “slut shaming” against consumers, all taking their toll.
From within, over-promising and underdelivering, shady billing practices, purposeful malware installs, identity theft and disclosure, resulting extortion attempts, and a whole horrible host of intentional or merely inept sins are causing consumers to pause when pulling out their purses.
Despite these hurdles, professional content creators persevere in their pursuit of profits from porn and other forms of entertainment.
The question remains, however, of “How to get paid for your art?”
Enter gifting and its prospect as adult entertainment’s best revenue stream.
The original point of this article, that gifting could be adult entertainment’s newest revenue stream, was not spot on, since “gifting” for sexual favor goes back to the first lovin’ in exchange for a shiny rock or pretty seashell — and extends through time to today’s tip-based live cam shows and Amazon “wish lists” — so there’s nothing “new” about gifting as an income source.
Where it becomes “best” is because rather than slick marketing and a sexy sales pitch, the revenue only flows as a reward for excellence. The customer doesn’t have to pay, and so avoids “buyer’s regret” over a poor-quality product or service — but with gifting, he or she may elect to pay regardless of any need, extending appreciation for the satisfaction they received from their patronage of the offer.
If you do a good job, you’re rewarded. If you do a bad job, you’re not rewarded. This makes gifting the ultimate performance-based incentive, causing the cream of any art to rise to the top, creating a much better representation of any given product or service across the board. A rising tide lifts all ships, or so they say.
This is great for consumers, and for quality-driven creators as well.
It’s also great for the adult entertainment industry, where the many examples of excellence could thrive if only there was a better way to solicit payment, such as in the form of patronage — a time-honored way for the wealthy to support the arts.
As with all things, technology has touched even this ancient form of expressing culture and gratitude for something that does not provide life’s physical essentials, but its higher essentials.
Enter Patreon, which calls itself the “best way for artists and creators to get sustainable income and connect with their fans.”
According to the company, Patreon allows creatives to receive a paycheck from their fans while having the freedom to create more and to give their patrons “special stuff.” As the site does not carry outside advertising its content flexibility may make it more open to adult content from responsible erotic artists, for a truly beneficial opportunity.
“Harness the power of your biggest fans by letting them fund your ongoing content creation with a monthly subscription amount of their choice,” explains a Patreon rep. “With less focus on the dollars, you’ll be able to spend more time doing what you do best; making awesome stuff. Now that you’ve found your most devoted fans, you’ll be able to repay them with unique rewards that you decide.”
Patreon claims thousands of creators make more than $25,000 annually from the service, noting that “fans pay more on a monthly basis than consumers pay for Netflix, Spotify, or Amazon Prime,” and citing stats such as its 52,639 current creators serving 867,473 Patrons, with more than $100M in payouts, for which the company takes a small five percent cut.
For savvy adult content creators with a focus on excellence, Patreon could be the difference between success and failure as an artist — while providing motivation for upping the creator’s game in a way that all creators and consumers can benefit from.
To learn more, click here.
