Keeping The Customer Happy
Customer acquisition is an expensive process in any industry, and the adult arena is no exception. Successful webmasters strive to keep the members they already have, rather than shoulder the financial burden of continually refreshing their customer base. Smart webmasters know this means offering a steady stream of fresh, engaging content. It also requires keeping an eye on a site's usability as well as maintaining a low level of broken links and other nuisances.
Customers with connectivity issues are likely to be vocal, but surfers that simply aren't finding quality content are more likely to go to a competitor without a comment (and thus, without a chance to resolve their concerns). By taking a proactive stance against user attrition, including a strong content development and deployment strategy, your member count will remain stable.
Content becomes "stale" after only a few days. By this time, customers have seen the offerings, downloaded it (if you allow this), and are looking for something new. Keeping them engaged (and actively paying) requires refreshing your library on a more frequent basis.
Unless you are blessed with a generous investor who is willing to fund weekly shoots, plug-ins may be your best bet for supplementary video and images. Many providers exist to facilitate this need, offering packages ranging from five users to five thousand. The vast libraries of content these companies offer ensure that your user base will never run out of opportunities to make withdrawals from the spank bank.
Customer Service Strategies
Your moment to shine the brightest is when a customer contacts you with a concern. By aiding them in a prompt and professional manner, you will make a lasting impression, and cement the relationship.
Hours of operation are critical to the perception of good service. By implementing a strategy of multiple individuals having responsibility for customer interaction, 24-hour service is possible. In extreme cases, try not to let a support request sit for over four hours without a reply. Even if the response has to be, "we're looking into this problem, and will have an answer for you shortly," the key is to make contact as soon as possible.
It's a Wrap!
This installment concludes our series on Adult Webmastering Basics. The key to the title (aside from "Webmastering," which, incidentally, isn't a word) is "Basics." If this series has inspired you to step into the shoes of an adult webmaster, you are strongly encouraged to research the topic further before you get too far. This guide is designed to be a broad-stroke overview of the options available, rather than an exhaustive resource on the practices and procedures of this industry. There's much more below the surface, and while it's certainly cliché, but you've only seen the tip of the iceberg.
Good luck, and be sure to post your progress on the XBiz boards!