Imagine this: You’re hanging out with your friends and you notice one of them has a cool new cell phone that you’ve never seen advertised – no commercials, no magazine layouts – yet you can’t resist asking about it because you just have to have it. It turns out the phone’s popularity is spreading like crazy and it’s actually one of the most popular models.
Fortunately, you don’t have to imagine such a scenario because it’s already happening all around you without even realizing it. The latest and greatest products and services are very likely not the ones you see advertised on TV or blared at you from the radio. They are more likely to be gently “pushed” in your direction through less conventional and more direct techniques. Welcome to the modern age of guerrilla marketing, a term originally coined in the ‘80s by mainstream marketing pioneer Jay Conrad Levinson to describe how today’s most successful companies are attracting customers. It’s a concept that’s spreading like wildfire throughout the online adult industry and attaining success in an oversaturated, spam- and ad-plagued, free porn cyber marketplace.
So what exactly is guerrilla marketing? “Guerrilla marketing is a no-nonsense, results-oriented approach to marketing your business,” explains Holly Moss, owner of adult marketing firm HMOSS Consulting. “It works because it's simple to understand, easy to implement and far more inexpensive than traditional ways of marketing your product or service. You are able to reach your target audience and get your message across without big, expensive campaigns.”
Aly Drummond, director of marketing for AVN.com, adds further insight. “In the early years of the online industry, competition was far from fierce and marketing budgets were very flexible,” she explains. “We hosted indescribably extravagant parties, gave away pricey 'rewards,' made as much noise with as many flashing lights as possible, and when it really came down to it, exercised very little marketing creativity. We simply weren't required to.”
However, times have indeed changed, and today’s Webmaster must use new strategies to break through the competitor ice shelf. Drummond adds, “Program marketers are under a lot of pressure to differentiate their program from a growing crowd and break through the clutter -- while establishing tight marketing budgets at the same time. As a result, certain online adult companies are demonstrating very impressive marketing creativity in order to achieve conventional goals by unconventional means.” Indeed, it’s these “unconventional” means that tend to be elusive – they require originality, creativity, and a leadership mentality – things not always present in the adult industry. But do all techniques need to be original or have original twists? Or can the old standbys like message board posts and TGPs still work?
BATTLING THE BOARDS
There’s little doubt that much of the online adult industry centers on message boards, which provide a gathering place to share ideas and talk about anything and everything. And they’ve long been touted as a low-cost way to spread the word about your offerings, mainly through buying “signatures” in others’ posts or including them in your own. But what was once long ago an innovative and effective technique is simply more online chatter blending into the background, without any added twists. “Everything is saturated,” explains longtime adult marketing guru Jonathan Silverstein, owner of www.thecontentstore.com. “But with enough push and energy anything can still work. There are more people online today than ever before trying to make money, and on the surfer side there’s a huge appetite for content. From a Webmaster or affiliate program standpoint, message boards are still a huge way to generate profits. People bought lots of sigs at one point and boomed. A prolific poster with the right approach can still get lots of clicks.” While clicks are desirable for any site owner, it’s the additional benefits that tend to matter most, like branding and profits. As Silverstein adds, boards are great for that too. “Lots of single-girl-site owners who run their own programs have built up their names on boards, met at shows, and parlayed that into a networking opportunity using boards to send traffic. Vanilla Deville, for example, has taken “fansigns” – she writes what a fan wants to say, holds the sign up and takes a picture,” explains Silverstein. Naturally, those pictures can spread like wildfire in the online community, not to mention add a valuable personal touch and foster connection with fans, leaving them hungry for more.
In another innovative example, Silverstein recently ran a “content blowout” campaign that had never been done before, selling his content library for 95 percent off. He sold over 200 packages, mostly through the boards, in a very short period of time. As Aly Drummond recalls, “I remember watching, awestruck, as Jonathan racked up tens of thousands of dollars in a matter of days without spending a single penny on promotions. He sat at his laptop, tactically battling on the Webmaster boards and made sale after sale after sale. It's a brand of marketing brilliance that would be lost on the average MBA!” Board drama, real or imagined, is a powerful marketing tool when used with caution. Silverstein says that his campaign was copied but with less success – a reminder of the need for a leadership mentality rather than that of a follower.
PUBLIC RELATIONS NEVER GOES AWAY
While some may question whether public relations even belongs in the same category as guerrilla marketing, its ability to have great impact at minimal cost, especially through the “viral” nature of the media, makes it a cornerstone of this topic. “If you have something unique enough to get media attention you don’t need to pay for placement,” explains Silverstein. But how do you accomplish this in a world where media outlets get hundreds of pitches a day? “You do need to push a story to the media or have someone in place with a relationship with a big news outlet for the best results. A press release alone can work, but the impact is much stronger if you take a more proactive approach. If you’re savvy and smart you don’t need a lot of money to get attention. Watch the market and current trends, and always follow the money trail,” he says. Moss adds, “Press coverage in trade magazines and media outlets allows you to reach a large audience, and coming from a third party it doesn’t sound like you are pushing a sales pitch.”
Public relations is not limited to media coverage and press releases alone. Often combined with promotional techniques, good word of mouth about your offerings can be spread a variety of ways. As Drummond explains, “LightspeedCash simply wouldn't be as great a success as it is today without the unique marketing efforts they employed to break through the clutter early on. They strategically chose industry notables to participate in very well-branded and heavily promoted events. The pre-event and follow-up promotions included branded images and video clips that were aggressively circulated throughout the industry and created a character for the company that was hugely appealing and made them very popular.”
Again, caution signs appear around every corner. Drummond warns about piggybacking on others’ popularity to achieve success. “One of the biggest marketing faux pas today, which wasn't considered quite so overtly evil in the distant past, is companies promoting themselves at others’ events. This behavior is considered very “uncool” and tends to lead to more of an undesirable notoriety than additional sales.”
FROM OFFLINE TO ONLINE AND BACK
As any savvy marketer will tell you, it’s always a good idea to combine online marketing techniques with noncyber ones for combined impact. As Moss puts it, “If you want to expand your product and brand in a more long-term way, expanding offline would be a wise choice. One effective approach I have seen to make customers remember you is through smart event marketing. Throwing a fantastic party where everyone talks about your company for weeks after the tradeshow and posts about it all over the boards can sometimes be more effective than having a booth. An event that ties in both branding your name and providing a fun environment where everyone can network and enjoy themselves can be quite powerful. This doesn’t always have to be expensive if you bring in the right elements and get sponsors to help fund it.” There are few better examples of this than Shane’s World, famous for throwing campus porn shoots with real college students. Members of ShanesWorld.com even get the possibility of actually having sex with porn stars, showing how far a bit of creativity can go.
Moss has further insight into taking your venture offline. “A good example of an adult crossover from online to offline is Vivid Video,” says Moss. “They have successfully expanded their brand by providing sub-brands with complimentary products such as their Vivid Herbal Supplements, Vivid Condoms and most recently the Vivid Club in Vegas. They have strategically made an online brand into offline products and are slowly moving their brand into mainstream markets with their apparel and their latest club opening.” She adds that product placement in offline adult productions is becoming more popular, a trend paralleled by mainstream marketing.
A BIT OF COMEDY IS A GOOD THING
While at first it may seem like a silly idea, adding a bit of comedy to your efforts can be a great low-cost way to stand out in the crowd. One example is the plus-size, large-breasted-women site OgrePorn.com. The splash page features the green, large-breasted Shrex, a takeoff on the Shrek film character. The viral nature of the page has led to more than a few sales for the site, and provides a unique angle that stands out from other sites. If you choose to use spoofs or puns, they should be humorous takes on your service or brand while tying into popular culture. Include a “send to a friend” link on your spoof and distribute it everywhere possible – boards, fan sites, Yahoo groups, P2P networks, blogs -- even give it to your affiliates as a marketing tool.
A BAG OF FAMILIAR AND UNFAMILIAR TRICKS
Other more common marketing techniques are still proving effective. “Blog spamming is quite popular – it’s not my personal preference, but I know that it works,” states Jason Tucker of Playa Solutions. “I preached geo-targeting three years ago and we are now seeing it take shape and become a must-have tool for marketing,” he adds. Indeed, geo-targeting has been around for a while, but could just be one of the most successful marketing techniques in use today. New innovations are constantly popping up, such as Silverstein’s new venture www.geocise.com, a turnkey solution that delivers dynamic text, banner ads, and images to the surfer based on his or her location. According to Silverstein, sales in direct side-by-side comparisons of “Geocise-targeted” vs. nontargeted campaigns have produced as much as four times the conversion rate at a very minimal cost.
Spreading content on P2P networks, however, is not quite as lucrative today as it has been in the recent past. “P2P was very profitable at its peak for smart Webmasters who got in early enough to take advantage of it. Several Webmasters early on dropped content onto networks and made good income. It’s not as viable now since so many people have followed the path, saturating it. TGPs are the same way. But remember that it’s all still a numbers game no matter what technique is used,” explains Silverstein. New developments such as DRM also have a way of becoming tired too quickly if not used correctly and cautiously.
Another marketing approach to consider is setting up reseller channels for products and services that have not traditionally used them. “Many people in the industry have this notion that you can only have referral programs with membership sites,” states Moss. “What if you are a credit-card-processing, content, web-hosting or even a design company? All of these businesses can offer monetary incentives for lead generation.” Other developments are also on the way. “We are about to see commercials injected in between video clips and feeds,” adds Tucker.
All good marketing techniques must be used with caution though. “Spamming is not the answer,” sums Tucker. “Spamming newsgroups, boards and blogs has a tendency to upset consumers. Treat others with respect and they will follow you. Once you have their attention you can open the floodgates.” Tucker adds that “spyware deployment is at an all-time high and there is a spyware war taking place. A war not just between the producers and the anti's but also amongst spyware companies themselves. Consumers are getting slammed and Webmasters are losing out.”
A FUTURE OF POSSIBILITIES
No matter what guerrilla marketing techniques you use, always keep in mind the importance of leading rather than following. As Moss advises, “Don’t lower your prices just because others are doing it. Instead create a better quality product that your customers are willing to pay for. The benefits of your product or service outweigh the savings they would receive with your competitors.” On this point, Silverstein adds some sage advice: “It’s not necessary to reinvent the wheel, but maybe add a spoke or something. Copying can work.” The temptation to copy is always there, but the true successes go a step beyond and create their own following. It’s a matter of how successful you want to be.
And don’t necessarily use guerrilla techniques at the exclusion of a broader marketing vision. A strategic, comprehensive plan using multiple elements, both traditional and nontraditional, creates greater impact as long as the various elements prove cost-effective, of course. So the next time you’re out with friends, you just might be the one with the cool new gadget that everyone else has to have.
