HOLLYWOOD, Calif. - The first full day of the GAYVN Webmaster Retreat began with the Newbie Panel: The First Step On the Yellow Brick Road. Moderator Patrick Curran from Epoch led panelists Albert Lazarito of Silvercash and Silver Sinema, Rainey Stricklin of Epoch, Angel Benton of JustUsBoys.com, Amy Kehoe of Playgirl.com, Scott Rabinowitz of Traffic Dude, and Don Mike of Max Pixels through a discussion on the best ways for new webmasters to gain traffic, build relationships, woo advertisers, and adapt to changes in trends, among many other topics.
Kehoe pointed out the importance of learning from other people, whether reading webmaster boards or going to conferences such as the GAYVN Webmaster Retreat. Rabinowitz supported that, saying, "As grassroots as it seems, going around making introductions is important.... I welcome introductions and treat each one as an opportunity to gain an additional perspective I didn't have and also to gain new business.
Mike stressed the importance of getting a company's name into the consciousness of its targeted market, saying that nontraditional advertising can work in a company's favor. He said, "A lot of people do things on MySpace, not in-your-face promotions, but they put the product name out there, and all of a sudden people remember who you are without feeling like they've been looking at an advertisement.
Rabinowitz added, "I don't believe that any single method, no matter how it's preached by any one person, is the best way. There are many methods."
The second seminar was Shooting Content: The Producers. Curran moderated a discussion with panelists Andy Fair of DirtyBoysVideo.com, GAYVN columnist Harlan Yaffe of PrideBucks.com, Karl Edwards of YouLove Jack.com, and Brian Randall of GunzBlazing.com. The men covered issues such as the importance of models having a valid U.S. ID, auditioning models, why you must shoot stills, and why you should shoot your own content.
When asked about the relevance of being gay and shooting gay content, Randall pointed out that he knew a straight man who had a great eye for shooting gay sex, and Yaffe noted that it is harder to have a woman shooting a sex scene than it is to have a straight man shooting it, because some models are OK with men being there, but they balk at having sex in front of a woman. Edwards reminded the audience that for as much as they are filming for members of their site, they are also filming for their affiliates and that it's equally as important to please them.
The third seminar on Friday was Online Piracy: The Plagiarism of Pornography at which moderator Trevor Hennig questioned leaders in the adult gay community on topics that dealt with file sharing and how to combat it. Panelists included Caryn Goldberg of Global Anti Piracy Agency, Greg Piccionelli of Piccionelli and Sarno, Jasun Mark of Fratmen, Mark Kliem of Lavender Lounge, and Jason Tucker of Falcon Enterprises.
When the panel was asked if DRM is effective in fighting piracy, Jasun Mark said, "DRM is supposed to do two things: allow members to view content and stop non-members from viewing that content. But DRM is not working. If people are unable to access content on your site that they want to see, then they go and get it for free. Anything that is stopping people from viewing your content is a big problem." He said that when his site got rid of DRM, the phone calls from members who were having problems stopped and memberships rose.
Piccionelli retorted: "It's shortsighted moneymaking that is crippling the industry. If you don't let people know that you're going to go after their heads, then what's going to happen to this business is, it's all going to be free."
Goldberg added, "People don't expect the adult industry to do anything [about piracy].... I think there is a belief that peer-to-peer file sharing is not illegal."
When Hennig wondered if there was an upside to piracy, Tucker said that if you watermark your photos and put ads at the beginning or end of the movies, when the content is stolen, people will still know it's yours and may go to you for more.
The fourth and final seminar of the day, State of the Industry: Where We Are Now, was moderated by Morgan Sommer of Cybersocket. The panelists were Ron Cadwell of CCBill.com, Jeff Thayer of Epoch, Mitch Farber or Netbilling, Scott Rabinowitz or Traffic Dude, and Tim Valenti of NakedSword.
When Sommer queried about upcoming trends, Valenti said, "One of the most challenging issues we face, one of the most fun issues to address, is the content itself. Putting together the right combinations of content for the various audiences. And maintaining a level of creativity so that we're always increasing. It's always about reinventing yourself, knowing what the market is looking for."
Farber added: "I see a lot of cross-sales between companies with similar content to give members a full spectrum of what's out there to keep them subscribing."
Thayer said, "There are a lot of people putting videos for free on the Internet, so finding material that doesn't work well in that environment [is an issue]. It's only going to get easier and easier to get your content for free."
Cadwell added, "It's about retention now, what you can do to make members stay."
They covered issues including how to protect content from thieves, billing issues, cross sales, and the importance of customer service.
The seminars were followed by a low-key mixer sponsored by the title sponsors at the pool of the Hollywood Renaissance at dusk where revelers watched the hunter's moon rise over the Hollywood hills.
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