LAS VEGAS – The marketing seminar titled “If You Build It, They Will Come: Marketing and Advertising to Grow Your Business” must have struck a deep chord with AEE attendees. The hall where the seminar took place was standing room only and the crowd was engaged and lively as the panel offered advice and wisdom gleaned from years of experience.
Sitting on the dais were Alison Vivas of Pink Visual, Joy King of Wicked Pictures, Bob Christian of Adam & Eve and P.R. maven Brian Gross.
Billed as a seminar to allow attendees to discover new ways to reach customers through advertising, the event drew in primarily retailers.
One of the things that come up early in the program was that adult entertainment has, for some time now, become mainstream…to an extent anyway. Gross pointed out, “Even if porn is mainstream, now what? To survive, you need to diversify and establish brand recognition for yourself. You have to be smart in getting your message out.”
Wicked’s King was succinct. “You have to identify your customers. If you don’t know that, you can’t market your product.” King also noted that a great way to identify these customers is through the use of surveys. “They’re an effective tool for discovering exactly what the cutomers wsant. Wicked has used them and will continue to do so. They are a great tool.”
Christian of Adam & Eve emphasized the changing nature of business and technology. “It’s all about the marketing of the Web,” he said. “You’d better at least be aware of it, and use it to tell about yourself. People expect you to have a website these days, even if all it does is give your location.”
Vivas of Pink Visual also commented on using technology to reach a wider audience. “Utilizing e-mail is perfect for reaching a lot of customers,” she said, but also cautioned the audience to be sure they familiarize themselves with CAN-SPAM requirements.
Even older ways of getting the word out are not to be overlooked. According to Christian, “Radio worked for us. Then it didn’t. Now, it seems to be working for us again. We just kept testing it. That was the important thing: not giving up and to keep trying.”
Working with the studios is also an option. King added, “The studios are willing to help stores. But you have to be proactive and not rely on your salespeople. Just call the studio itself and talk to the publicist. They’re going to help you.”
The crowd in attendance was appreciative of the information, and took copious notes. “It’s like being in school again,” said one faux-hawked attendee. “Got an extra pen, bro?” he asked.
Pleasure
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