There seems to be an ongoing trend with newer cam models or people thinking about getting into camming that all you need to do is look good, sit in front of a camera and tips begin to stream in; unfortunately, it’s not that easy. But as we know, no job is! Taking the time to learn and putting in the proper amount of effort will increase your tips and maybe land you a few giant tippers.
Let’s start off by pretending that you are the viewer. Consider why someone might tip or why they might even seek out the company of a cam model. Camming is all about the visuals and the one-on-one experience that you’re giving to the viewer. People don’t always love giving their money to strangers and the same goes with cam viewers. Taking the time to learn who your audience is, what interests they have, what really turns them on during camming and building a fan base can make or break a camming career.
When you see a user come into the room, send them a little private, “Hello,” to get a conversation going, letting them know you are friendly, welcoming and acknowledging they are there.
When viewers enter your room, don’t immediately ask for tips or seem uninterested, ask them questions, show off your personality and get them to come back for your persona and not just your body. I think the cheesy quote we all put into our high school yearbooks is really relevant here: “They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” Make your viewers feel special and you’ll see your fan base growing and your tips increasing. This has been a significant trick for most successful performers out there.
A great way to build rapport with viewers is through private messaging. When you see a user come into the room, send them a little private, “Hello,” to get a conversation going, letting them know you are friendly, welcoming and acknowledging they are there. There are many models that charge for private messaging and it does work for some, however, from my experiences with models, it tends to limit their scope of fans.
Make sure to remind your viewers to subscribe to you; even if a viewer doesn’t tip once during a show, it doesn’t mean that you won’t persuade them to tip in the future. Another tactic with private messaging is that it’s a great way to speak personally to multiple viewers at one time, thus increasing your chances for more subscribers, private shows and tips! Once you begin forming friendships with viewers, you’ll notice tips flowing in much more frequently.
Stay chatty and stay positive while you are broadcasting. If you feel like your energy levels are low or you aren’t in a good mood, turn the webcam off and take the night off. Viewers go to cam sites as an escape from their everyday routines, to unwind, relax and have some fun. Negativity will only turn viewers off from watching your broadcast. Just like any other job, you can take a sick day or put on a brave face not allowing your bad day to bring others down. Negativity can certainly impact your camming career.
Last year, I had the awesome opportunity to experience Exxxotica in Miami with CAM4; it was an amazing time with some great people! One of the nights, we hit up a local strip club and there were a few dancers that just kept circling the premises directly asking customers for money without any context, conversation or interaction. I think it would be safe to say, the dancers that put in more energy and tried to give their customers a fun experience were the ones that left with a lot more money. The same goes for camming; when you turn your webcam on, be ready to have fun and be in the mindset of being interested in other people.
Now, for a little bit of outside the box thinking. Using unique ways to engage viewers is a great way to get them to tip. This takes a little more time and in most cases it ends up panning out in the long run. I bet the question you are asking is, “But what can you do to get new viewers to tip now?” Well, I have seen a tremendous growth in performers initiating games and raffles. This is an awesome way to get a viewer to check out your room, stay in your room and tip! Keep in mind that complexity is not the way to go; keep the games simple and easy to understand. This will save you a headache and will interest a larger span of viewers. Some examples are dice games, card games, spinning wheels, etc.! Connected toys are another fantastic way to get more tips. I recommend investing in a Lovense product, they have so many toys to cater to different wants/needs and it takes your intimate experience with a viewer to the next level. If they want to see a reaction … they’re going to have to tip! Buzz buzz.
One of the most important suggestions I have for making even more tips is to stay and be consistent in every performance you do. The higher the number of viewers that are seeing you, the more likely that you end up with viewers who tip; we generally call these tippers. All popular cam models have one thing in common and that is perseverance. They have worked hard to gain the followings that they have and earn the tips they do. Keep in mind, like everyone, we all have bad days and good days. We all have rough starts, but work to turn those negatives into positives. At the beginning, it won’t be easy and there will be times that you question whether or not it’s worth it. Don’t give up, because with dedication will come results, success, money and fun!
Vicki Gray is a CAM4 account manager who can be followed @VickiGrayxxx on Twitter and contacted by email at Vicki@CAM4.com.