The advent of the Internet marked the end of the days when shopping for smut in a hooded sweatshirt and dark sunglasses was the only way to go. The advent of Good Vibrations, however, has made public purchasing of adult paraphernalia not only acceptable, but chic.
In 1964, Good Vibrations founder Joanie Blank realized that a safer, more conservative forum for distributing adult materials was needed and desired. Both Good Vibrations' physical and virtual stores "normalize" the experience of shopping for sex toys by treating the customers with open, accepting respect - and a keen sense of humor. According to Good Vibrations spokesperson and resident sexologist Dr. Carol Queen, humor is a powerful tool for creating a comfortable, friendly environment.
"Our displays are often sort of cute and funny. It's not just a mound of pocket pussies in their boxes with porn stars on them mounded up to the sky, like you could find in some shops," says Queen.
A lot has changed about the company since 1964, most notably, the Internet revolution. Since the company first launched its online store, GoodVibes.com, in 1996, a competitive portion of the company's business has happened online. Today, approximately half of the company's estimated $14.5 million gross annual revenue can be attributed to Internet sales.
Amidst the debris of the countless bankrupt dot-coms of the day, how does GoodVibes.com continue to flourish? Their method is simple: Make the customer comfortable and give him or her exactly what s/he wants, thereby earning loyalty that no amount of brightly-colored packaging could buy.
Loyal customers have always been Good Vibrations' best source of advertising. Not only do satisfied shoppers return to the stream, they also bring their partners, friends, neighbors, and even family. Just as personal referrals are capable of bringing pedestrians clamoring to Good Vibrations' store fonts, online referrals attract masses of Web surfers to GoodVibes.com's front page.
"Word of mouth has always been our most effective form of advertising," says Thomas Roche, marketing manager of Good Vibrations. "But the term 'word of mouth' has taken on an entirely different meaning with the birth of the Internet. Fans of Good Vibrations post links to us. We actually get traffic from unsolicited referrals."
Endorsements from notable superstars such as porn star-turned-professor Annie Sprinkle - who labeled the link to GoodVibes.com on her personal page as "the best place to buy vibrators or any other hot sexy material" - sure don't hurt. And she's not the only person with good things to say.
Good Vibrations customers regularly report their delight at the customer service available both online, over the phone, and in store.
Each Good Vibrations employees goes through a minimum of 21 hours of training before spending time behind the Good Vibrations counter or at the phone lines. The educational preparation employees undergo ensures customers can receive accurate sex information whether they are purchasing a product in-store, through the catalog, or online. In-store customers have the benefit of being able to chat about the pros and cons of a product with trained sales representatives; catalog clients and online shoppers can call the Good Vibrations customer service line (1-800-BUY-VIBE).
The fact that Good Vibrations staff is knowledgeable about the products they are selling is certainly noteworthy, but the fact that employees seem to genuinely love their jobs is extraordinary.
Barbara Garcilasodelavega, marketing assistant of Good Vibrations, explains that the staff members become staff members because they earnestly care about the company and its mission.
"People self-select into Good Vibrations. A lot of people want to work at Good Vibrations because they want a sex-positive environment and because they themselves have been touched by their experience shopping in the store, or by something we published," says Queen. "They want to join up."
Like the storefront displays, the Website also utilizes humor to make shopping for a little smut less uncomfortable and more enjoyable. To celebrate the striking of the anti-sex toy laws in Alabama, for example, GoodVibes.com offered a 15 percent discount to any resident of the state who purchased toys online or through mail order.
Like storefront shops, GoodVibes.com is also designed to present Good Vibrations products in a safe, non-threatening mode. Product information is non-intrusively offered to the customer. There are no lewd pop-ups, no banner ads depicting libidinous women in lingerie, and no distasteful flashing text. GoodVibes.com does not associate itself with any affiliate programs, nor does it advertise through bulk e-mail.
During the past year, Good Vibrations advertising has gotten louder. Although the company had placed print ads in smaller sexual health-related publications before, they placed their first ad in a full-fledged mainstream publication, Cosmopolitan. In June, they shocked San Francisco pedestrians with their month-long bus shelter advertising initiative to celebrate Pride Month.
"The response has been huge," says Good Vibrations publicist Andrea Burnett.
Getting traffic to the site is one thing, but - as any Webmaster knows - keeping it there is another issue. Good Vibrations manages to keep shoppers coming back for more by providing them with a bountiful selection of high-quality goodies and accurate information; Good Vibrations assures their customers top-notch merchandise by intimately examining each and every product before it's stocked.
"We read every book, we watch every movie, we try out every toy," says Queen.
Each commodity that GoodVibes.com stocks is tested and selected by at least one member of the Good Vibrations staff. After the product is tested and a written evaluation is composed, the co-operative decides democratically whether or not to carry the product based on two specific criterions: The product must be safe and of high quality, and it must satisfy the demands of a large number of customers.
To satisfy customer demands even better, Good Vibrations carries over a dozen items designed specifically for their needs. One of their latest creations is a jazzy, pink twice-as-nice vibrator call the Hip 'N' Hop. Unlike other twice-as-nice vibrators on which the clitoral stimulators are often awkwardly placed, the clitoral buzzer on this Good Vibrations version is movable.
"We'd gotten feedback from a lot of our customers that they liked the twice-as-nice vibes we carried, but the design was awkward," says Crissy Kano, Webmaster of GoodVibes.com. "This new vibrator [the Hip 'N' Hop] was designed to be adjustable, so it fits every woman just right."
The online store at GoodVibes.com is divided into specific categories and subcategories, so users can easily locate exactly what they are seeking. The item descriptions also incorporate the Good Vibrations rating system. Each vibrator is assigned a 1 through 5 rating in two categories: strength and volume. The more powerful the vibe, the higher the strength rating. The more likely the vibe's motor is to wake the neighbors, the higher the volume rating.
The rating system ensures customers get exactly what they're promised. Various other keys help shoppers with their decisions. Staff picks are highlighted by small "thumbs up" icons, while new items attract attention with red stars. Best sellers are appropriately labeled with a happy face.
In addition to the toys, GoodVibes.com also carries a wide selection of books and videos, many of which are made by the same cooperative. Open Enterprises, Inc., the "very official-sounding corporate name" of the cooperative under which Good Vibrations operates, also runs Down There Press, Passion Press, and Sexpositive Productions.
Products and product information are only part of what GoodVibes.com has to offer. In addition to housing an online store, GoodVibes.com also accommodates Web surfers in the market for sex-related information and resources. The Website houses an online collection of antique vibrators amassed by founder Joani Blank, Good Vibes Magazine, and information about Good Vibrations' educational seminars and outreach programs.
All of Good Vibrations care and good work has not gone unnoticed. The unique approach of the women-owned cooperative is attracting more than just female customers. "All men are not necessarily attracted to the old mode of selling sex toys. Plenty of people are not comfortable there, and there is a whole different level at which sex can be approached in the marketplace," says Carol Queen. "We're filling that gap."
As Good Vibrations customer base expands, their name becomes better known. The Good Vibrations name is rapidly becoming synonymous with sexual education and pleasure. Their business model is unique, but it has served them well thus far.
"We're getting to a degree of name recognition, where people in the adult industry are beginning to know who we are and to take seriously that we have a unique point of view about the customer base to which they might want to pay attention," says Queen.
