United We Stand: It's Time to De-Segregate the Industry
A State of the Industry Commentary by Kath Blackwell, of Klixxx Magazine
2002 was the year of the webmaster message board. Everywhere you went - from webmaster resources to sponsorship/affiliate sites - new boards could be found. Some sites just popped up simply as message boards - nothing more, and nothing less. Companies were unsure of how many places to spend their advertising dollars - and most are still uncertain as to where the best places are to get the most "bang for their buck." Sure, there's now a little something for everyone - but at what cost? The "Big 3" message boards of yore - YNOT, Netpond and WebOverdrive - were soon surrounded and inundated by a literal WAVE of competing boards and resource sites, further segregating and separating the webmasters who used to come together to discuss industry topics and information.
So what happened? Did everyone suddenly wake up and decide that they were going to run a webmaster resource or webmaster message board? It should be easy to do, right? Just throw up a script and if you build it - they will come. The thousands of webmaster community members separated into hundreds - the hundreds into dozens - and the dozens into handfuls. How many boards do you need to visit today to read all the big names in the industry? How many affiliate programs spawned their own webmaster message boards to save on advertising costs and get a little "piece of the pie" for themselves? And the biggest question of all - how many of those boards are even worth their weight in bandwidth? How much do you get out of them anymore?
The worst thing to ever happen to the adult Internet industry was the message board boom. Never before was it more apparent that we are existing in an industry rife with cliques and clubs - hip crowds and wannabees. But is that any way to do business? Sure, say some webmasters. The boards still have their value - you just need to dig through the chatter and clutter to get to the real substance.
The next worst thing to happen was the webmaster conference boom. It used to be Internext and Cybernet - maybe a few little local parties that became glorified as gatherings. Then all of a sudden there were yearly local events that blossomed into full-fledged conferences. In 2001 alone there were more than 13 different large, medium and small conferences and expos just scattered between the US and Canada - not to mention all the European shows and island-type events that began to grow in popularity as well. Who could get to all of them in the name of networking and business promotion? Who could keep track of what city they were in by the end of that fateful year?
The phenomenon that surrounded the over-development of the webmaster resource, webmaster message board and the webmaster conference was the beginning of the end for the adult webmaster community as it once was. All things need to change in order to grow, but the changes that were made here due to the overwhelming amount of places to go and places to post, communicate and network - did more harm than good. Solutions like AllofEm.com - a Web site that recaps the day's posts and goings on at the major, most posted-to, webmaster message boards - were a big help, and an excellent step in the right direction - toward bringing the core community back together. But more still needs to be done if we are to return to any semblance of the awesome network of webmasters, sponsors, content providers, hosting companies, billing solutions and industry personalities that we once enjoyed.
Here are a few simple ways that you - the webmaster - can help to rejoin the community and get others to do the same. We can't undo what has already been done, but we can find new ways to come together for a common cause.
- Work with EVERYONE! - More often than not, people "lose touch" more due to politics than time constraints. Try to free your mind and open your business up, by working with as many respectable, like-minded people as possible.
- Explore New Boards! - Most webmasters stick to one or two message boards as their home base. Unfortunately they are missing out on the opportunities that come from meeting more and more people in the industry. Sheltering - or limiting - yourself to just one or two locations is really cutting you off from a large demographic of webmasters - one of which just might be the one you're looking for, to partner with on that next big project!
- Attend Live! Online Radio Events - Nothing brings a community together more than one of Dokk's webmaster parties on Albumside.com, or a heated topic talk show on Script School or Talk Hard Radio. Get out there and have a good time - meet other webmasters in real-time chat - and network your butt off! If you haven't ever attended one of these online radio show/chat combination programs - you should!
- Make Traffic Trades - Traffic trades are beneficial in more ways than just traffic. Traffic trades help to build relationships between webmasters, companies, services and web traffic resources. Getting you and your site or service "known" through trades, branding and consistent visibility, will further the popularity and presence of your business. You'll get far more out of that front-page button trade than those 50-100 hits a day.
- Get on ICQ, AIM, Yahoo Messenger and MSN Instant Messenger - Real-time conversations can be time consuming, but making yourself available for late-night chats when you're up working anyway, can help build new relationships and reinforce old ones. Sometimes instant messaging is even better than picking up the old-fashioned telephone and making a call - it's quick, it's easy and you can readily see if the person or persons you want to chat with are available and online. It's a great way to keep in touch and begin initial conversations regarding new projects, ideas or opportunities.
- Write Articles for Industry Publications - Print magazines like Klixxx or AVNOnline are not the only places that you can get published and get your name, face, ideas and business "out there" to the webmaster public. Webmaster resources are also a great place to get your works printed and your thoughts shared. Try to include a photo of yourself and/or a button advertising your company or business with your article - and a well-written (descriptive, but to the point) bio on your industry experience makes an excellent first impression. You are not only building a business - you are also building an image and a reputation within the webmaster community as a whole. Klixxx and Klixxx.com consider all submissions for publication, online and in print, and those pieces submitted with 300dpi logos and pics receive priority consideration.
- Get Involved in Community Service Projects - ASACP.org, FreeSpeechCoalition.com, charity programs, parties and dinners. There are so many ways that adult webmasters can get involved with industry do-good projects and programs. Your company can sponsor in - or you can also donate time and services to help further the cause. Either way, the contributions you make will not only benefit the industry but your web presence and involvement as a contributing member of the community.
- Attend Webmaster Conferences, Events and Expos - Networking in person is the equivalent of a picture being worth a thousand words. One-on-one networking is even better. Industry conferences, events and expos often offer many opportunities for one-on-one time - if you plan it right. But what you really want is some quality time with a large dynamic group of webmasters and industry businesses in order to get in touch with the most people possible.
TOP TIPS:
DO plan meetings and schedule dinners/luncheons during industry events.
DO make sure to get out to as many webmaster boards as is possible.
DO attend those online radio shows - or sponsor in if you don't have time.
DO increase your circle of friends and business acquaintances.
DON'T be afraid to meet new people or try new things.
DON'T limit yourself to just one platform of communication.
DON'T ever think that you don't need other people - we all do.
DON'T ignore opportunities to build new relationships.
Hopefully this article will encourage you to get out there and become a bigger part of the industry community. We all need you. We need your input, your influence, your participation and your support. Whether you know it or not - you need us too. That's what it's all about. The guys who are out there hoping to shut us down or run us off the Internet all work together for a common cause. The least we can do is communicate, share information, get involved, and watch each other's backs a little more often.
It's time to join forces - work together - and bring this industry back into the caring, sharing and supportive community it once was. The "Golden Days" of yesteryear don't have to remain a memory. There are still enough of the old veterans around to see it done right. Don't let a hundred message boards - and a dozen or more conferences stand in your way. Never forget - united we stand, divided we fall.
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