When it comes to making money online, one area frequently receives little attention yet is consistently one of the most profitable. That adult industry.
Studies show that the industry has global revenues exceeding $100 billion, and working in this area would be any guy’s dream job.
Working in this industry means that you would be constantly surrounded by gorgeous ladies while earning a highly lucrative paycheck.
Despite all the perks, some people, like Rob Simyar, have decided to exit the industry after a decade of making millions of dollars and serving hundreds of thousands of consumers through his website, FTV Girls. Here’s why.
How FTV girls came to be
The website started as a hobby. While still in dental school in Hawaii, Bob had a photography hobby, and he would take photoshoots mainly in fashion.
One day, he met a girl with whom he became kinky and began making adult videos of her, such as public nudity. It was just for fun. She referred him to another friend, and it was like a chain reaction, and he started photographing these girls for fun.
Since he didn’t have enough money and time to start a website while in dental school, the idea to start a website waited until he graduated.
After about two years into his dentistry career, he had made enough money to launch a website.
In 2002, people wanted high-quality photos and videos, and because they didn’t exist, he quickly became famous for his high-quality content.
How he stood out
Back then, there were numerous companies producing photos and videos, but there was no actual good niche in the industry.
People on pornographic websites were generally doing boy/girl or Bang Bus-type stuff, which was extremely popular at the time, but he decided to look at females from a new perspective.
Rather than demeaning them, he showed them in a classier light, and there was a market for that. And because there was nothing like that at the time, he stood out.
How customers find the site
When the site launched in late 2002, it received traffic from banners on free picture sites. The enticement was that FTV offered something different, kinkier, and a lot of footage, which was unusual at the time.
Banners are no longer effective today, but social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) is an excellent place to start.
Up until roughly 2011, affiliate programs were the way to go. FTV has over 10,000 affiliates promoting the site, and they receive 50% of all sales, including rebills, as long as the user is active.
This means some affiliates still profit from sales made a decade ago.
Lately, due to a general fall in sales for all adult sites, Bob has formed partnerships with other sites. It might be a simple banner within the members’ area or a cross-promotion in which the member receives a crazy FTV Girls discount or two sites for the cost of one.
Doing it all alone
Unlike other companies that have teams of people working on each production, Bob worked and still works most of the time alone. According to him, there are no chefs in the kitchen. It’s only him. He has no assistance. No webmaster.
While this means that he has to work harder, it also means that he has no one to pay, which keeps the costs low. Unlike other companies that have huge teams on salary, he is a one-man show, which means that he gets to keep most of the money, which, as you can tell, makes him rich.
How he used to do and still does it is to have a gal come down the night before. When she wakes up the next morning, they shoot all day.
He would then begin editing at night and continue till the following day. By the time he finishes, another girl will be on the way.
Costs involved in the production
After producing girls for more than ten years, Bob has developed a highly efficient system that is fast and cost-effective.
Bob pays models and everyone around $1,000 to $3,000 for the session. He pays for Southwest Airlines aircraft tickets, which may be $200 sometimes, or $600 if the girl is from Florida, and that’s all.
As you can see, the costs are pretty low.
Most companies in the industry charge up to $50,000 for each shoot, which is on the high side. Besides Bob not paying too much for the models, he also updates the website just once a week, which may seem infrequent, but there is so much in the updates that people keep coming back.
When you compare him to other firms that have to make two, three, four, or even ten updates per week, they pay between $20,000 and $50,000 per shot, which adds up to around $100,000 in costs just to run their websites each week. For him, the cost is $3,000, which is highly sustainable.
How free porn sites are killing premium content
The impact of the free porn sites can’t be ignored. According to Bob, since early 2008, his income has plummeted by approximately 50%, if not more.
The reason for this is that people don’t find the need to pay for content when they can obtain it for free and have access to a wide range of content without having to use their credit card.
Advise to those looking to get into the porn industry
Bob discourages anyone from trying the adult industry at this time. He believes that the golden years are gone. According to him, the decent years ended in 2010.
If you are looking to get into the industry, you should aim to make it through webcams and adult dating services/apps.
Essentially, anything you cannot steal or download is a legitimate product that will not lose money. So, if you’re looking to start something in the adult niche, it’s not in the content production industry.
