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Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 11:11:57 AM   
love2tieup


Posts: 20
Joined: 2/10/2007
Status: offline 		Are there any collarme.com members out there (I saw Eve Ellis on here once) that have their own fetish websites, particularly (but not exclussive to) bondage? I have hired many models and taken thousands of bondage photos and am building my own sight now, also plan to have lots of extras on my site, but have wondered what kind of money can be made.

Actually, I'm not into it for the money because I love bondage so much, but have wondered if I can quit my job and do this full time, IF my site is successful. What does a successful site produce in revenue?

Also, when I register my site with an on-line bank (for credit card membership purposes) where do I go and what name do I use?  Thank you anyone who's willing to share their website experiences!
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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 11:26:56 AM   
meatcleaver


Posts: 9030
Joined: 3/13/2006
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: love2tieup

Are there any collarme.com members out there (I saw Eve Ellis on here once) that have their own fetish websites, particularly (but not exclussive to) bondage? I have hired many models and taken thousands of bondage photos and am building my own sight now, also plan to have lots of extras on my site, but have wondered what kind of money can be made.

Actually, I'm not into it for the money because I love bondage so much, but have wondered if I can quit my job and do this full time, IF my site is successful. What does a successful site produce in revenue?

Also, when I register my site with an on-line bank (for credit card membership purposes) where do I go and what name do I use?  Thank you anyone who's willing to share their website experiences!


Online banks are a tough one. I had a business for a few years making bespoke toys-come-jewelry and banks weren't happy to accommodate anything of an overt sexual nature ie. nudity, particularly American online banks which are the main ones. In the end I gave up online because of this, I wasn't turning over enough money to have my own credit card system facility which was the alternative option. Whether things have changed, I've no idea.

I made some money by having several advertisements on the site and it is surprising how much you can earn from these. I'm sure if I had erotic photos on the site I could have generated more advertisement revenue but here is the twist, if I had nudity on the site, the bank would cancel my account. Being a small operator I was in a catch 22 position. If you could find a bank that won't mind nudity on your site, you will be surprised by how much money you could generate. You won't get rich but you could probably cover your living costs. Most of my income however was generated by offline activities such as at fetish fairs and bazaars.

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 11:37:23 AM   
Master96


Posts: 593
Joined: 2/13/2006
Status: offline 		How do professional fetish web sites deal with banks then? They have nudity....

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quote:

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 11:51:04 AM   
masterdstar


Posts: 160
Joined: 1/1/2004
Status: offline 		Yes they do...if you got into them about 7-8 years ago :-)
Good luck

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 12:15:31 PM   
proudsub


Posts: 6142
Joined: 1/31/2004
From: Washington
Status: offline 		There are so many free sites out there that make their money from advertising that personally i wouldn't pay to join a site.  If you do want to charge you might want to look into using Paypal.

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 12:50:16 PM   
meatcleaver


Posts: 9030
Joined: 3/13/2006
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Master96

How do professional fetish web sites deal with banks then? They have nudity....


If you turn over enough money you'll be able to afford to have your own credit card facility on your site, which means your customers don't have to pay through PayPal or WorldPay so you don't have their name on your site. Neither of which will allow their name to be used on a site with nudity or at least they didn't use to.

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 1:14:57 PM   
PONYSEEKER


Posts: 364
Joined: 9/11/2006
Status: offline 		If you have a good idea then you can find an Angel Investor to help you out.  This can come in many forms but you can find companies that have there own web servers and merchang account that will front your business in exchange for a percentage of the take. 

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 2:14:13 PM   
Padriag


Posts: 2633
Joined: 3/30/2005
Status: offline 		Paypal can also allow you to take credit card payments.  The standard fee for most is 2.9% of each transaction plus .30, there is no fee for the account itself.  If you pay for commercial web space (as I do), most will also provide you with a shopping cart system as well as a merchant account that can handle credit cards for an additional fee.  Expect $400+ to set up such a merchant account.  Personally I would recommend Network Solutions, I've had no problems with them and they put almost no restrictions on the content I can include on my site (as long as I don't break any federal laws, they basically don't care what I do).

As far as business names go, you can use your own name for banking purposes if you are a sole proprietorship.  Or you can spend about $200 to form a corporation as a LLC or S corp, which can be nice for some personal protection (grants you some immunity regarding your personal assets, some tax advantages, etc.)

If you go with using advertisers to pay for the site, then be prepared to spend several hundred more for placement in search engines.  You'll need a lot of advertising to cover that.  But it does make profit/loss analysis easier, just find out what various ads are paying, figure up your monthly costs, do the math.

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A stern discipline pervades all nature, which is a little cruel so that it may be very kind - Edmund Spencer

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 2:50:52 PM   
SLAVEBOY32


Posts: 122
Joined: 2/26/2007
Status: offline 		I own a small business, not sexual in nature, anyway,  got set up 3 or 4 years ago to take credit cards. I became friendly with the guy who worked ther and we had a BBQ coincidentally he lived a couple streets way from me in my neighborhood. Now, at the same time, the Domme i was with, we were really close to starting a sextoy site. Had suppliers lined up, narrowed it down to what program for our site and format and shopping cart etc. Without going into details with this guy, made it to be just off the cuff convo, i brought up similar questions. Asking him if sex toy sites had trouble getting CC machines,  and planning on using my machine for both businesses.  I know it is hard to get licensed for an adult toy store in our town, but it is no big deal to get licensed for an adult toy website, if you are licensing the business out of your home.  Basically he told me noone would ever cetch it. If both businesses were licensed, and i did seperate tax returns for both businesses, yes it is illegal to use the same machine for both businesses, but since both businesses would be sole pro. licensed, it was unlikely anyone would make the connection.  He did suggest giving my first business a more generic name, or a looser fitting name, like xyz industries or xyz incorporated, and using the same thing for the sex toy site. He told me he could set the site up to route the sales into my account when i was ready, made it sound like no big deal? Never got the site up and running though, the Domme and i split up and i dont have time to get it up and running by myself right now. One other thing i might mention, over the years, every now and again, ive run transactions for close friends wanting cash back off their credit cards to cover bills and never got questioned on this. granted it has only been like 3 times, never for more then a grand.  Many locl banks can route CC sales right into your business checking account. Sometimes banks handle the whole transaction, some banks will give you a routing number from your business account to give to the CC company you choose, the CC company you choose, typically uses another bank to receive the sales, then that banks reroutes it into your bank. I use the second one i described, now that my probationary period is over it takes me 48 hours to get cash in business account, excluding weekends.  But during probation it was 7 days. Go get a business license using a generic business name, xyz enterprises or whatever. I would tell the license bureau you are setting up a web based business from your home, and that you are going to sell videos and books, like amazon or like netflix. Get out your phone book and call around and find a bank that has business checking accounts that can accept CC sales,  typically you only need business license in hand to get  a business checking account, occassionally you will need a DBA but not usually. Then go find a CC company that can set you up with a machine, they are cheap, like 200 bucks or less and a processing fee per transaction plus a 30 to 50 dollar a month service fee. But you will have to sign a service contract usually 3 years long. prices and rates vary ALOT so shop this alot, everybody and their brother sells CC machines.  Tell the CC company it is for  the machine is for your website for internet sales, and when you sit down to talk to the sales guy i doubt hed care that it was for a fetish site. Most CC sales man are as bad, OR WORSE then used car salesman when it comes to morals and making money. All the ones ive dealt with usually dont care what it takes to get a deal done. I may be way wrong here, i dunno, but i was told it was fairly easy to do if you set it up just right. Hope i helped you a bit.-john

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 4:57:51 PM   
wfsubseeking1


Posts: 88
Joined: 4/1/2007
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: proudsub

There are so many free sites out there that make their money from advertising that personally i wouldn't pay to join a site.  If you do want to charge you might want to look into using Paypal.


i defnitely would not use paypal.  i have known too many artists who have gotten their monies taken from their account because PayPal has viewed their art as something it wasn't.  i know there is a service similar to that but is more geared towards adult entertainment.

seeking

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/9/2007 7:46:35 PM   
MstrssPassion


Posts: 2444
Joined: 1/1/2004
From: West Palm Beach, FL
Status: offline 		that is pretty much what I was going to say... I think you missed that window of oportunity

now hiring the model, doing the rope work & inviting amatuer photographers to come in & photograph the scene for a small fee might still present a marketable venture



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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/10/2007 10:40:40 AM   
PONYSEEKER


Posts: 364
Joined: 9/11/2006
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: MstrssPassion

that is pretty much what I was going to say... I think you missed that window of oportunity

now hiring the model, doing the rope work & inviting amatuer photographers to come in & photograph the scene for a small fee might still present a marketable venture





Didnt Betty Page start out that way... :) yum

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/10/2007 10:57:01 AM   
stef


Posts: 10215
Joined: 1/26/2004
Status: offline
quote:

ORIGINAL: Master96

How do professional fetish web sites deal with banks then? They have nudity....

They use a third party such as CCBill to handle the payment processing. 

~stef

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/10/2007 12:28:17 PM   
Missokyst


Posts: 6041
Joined: 9/9/2006
Status: offline 		Paypal is very anti kink, porn, nudity, adult themes, ect.  You can't even buy anything in the adult section of ebay using paypal.   There are a few sites which allow payment by credit card, but it goes through a credit card redirect, and is billed using very non descript names.
We have an odd society where you can buy weapons without issues using any type of credit.  But OMG perish the thought if you have any desire for abberant sexuality!
Kyst

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? -Yes and No - 4/10/2007 7:14:45 PM   
sirmagicky


Posts: 15
Joined: 6/12/2004
From: Lexington, KY
Status: offline 		As a web designer who has done adult work you'll find it a bit challenging to get CC processing but not impossible.
 
However, I hope this is a labor of  love because it will be a long while before you make any money since the market  is saturated.
 
Contact me directly and I can get you hooked up with credit card processing.  I've dealt with CC Bill by the way and I found them to be a pain in the ass.
 
Sir Magic

--
"The problem with the Internet is there are so many people
consumed by searching for a dream, that when they eventually find
it they don't want to believe. They realize they'll have to live up
to their expectations of themselves. They begin to fear that
the reality will not or can not meet the fantasy. It is here
that many discover it is safer to search for a dream they can
not have, than to live a reality which can fail."

                 ~ Sir Magic ~


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RE: Do fetish websites make money? -Yes and No - 4/11/2007 2:48:02 AM   
MistressDiane


Posts: 334
Joined: 2/5/2004
Status: offline 		I used to use IBill for credit card processing. They did one time and recurring billing as well as handled online checks and phone charges for those who wanted to pay by phone or have charges put on their phone bill  BUT that was before the government started cracking down on adult sites and before Mastercard and Visa wanted you to pay 700.00 plus monthly and/or yearly fees to handle you. Nowadays it's much harder to get processing companies to take you on if you're in the adult industry. I think most are using out of this country companies but don't quote me on that. I'd say to cruise adult sites and research who they are using or do a search for adult website processors.
PayPal is a definite NoNo. You may get away with it for a while but when they catch on to you they Will freeze your account. If you have money in that account that's just tough shit. It will be tied up for months while they *investigate*.

Back to your original question....it is possible to make decent money but as someone mentioned the market is completely saturated. You need to be different and in a niche market to really be successful.


< Message edited by MistressDiane -- 4/11/2007 2:54:11 AM >

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? -Yes and No - 4/11/2007 7:28:09 AM   
ExSteelAgain


Posts: 1803
Joined: 7/2/2006
From: Georgia
Status: offline 		I have no desire to start a website, but I did follow the links from Sirmagicky and Padriag to their websites and found both quite interesting in different ways. Thanks for nice sites to both of you.

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? -Yes and No - 4/11/2007 9:28:42 AM   
Lucylastic


Posts: 40310
Status: offline
Greetings,
I have an online BDSM Gear/Adult toy/lingerie/fetish store, and have come up against many problems regarding finding a host, a credit card processor and a host of other issues.

My first concern would be to consult an attorney regarding the legalities of the kind of site you are looking at building, especially regarding the 18 USC 2257: law, in which you have to have the models sign a release confirming their age(over 18) and keep records proving such with their names, addresses and other details in case of problems with the "authorities" and that you have the copyright over their pictures. There is a website that covers a lot of the legalities at http://www.adultinternetlaw.com/
Have a look at their "Articles" "Content" and "Newbie" sections

Paypal, is definitely a no-no for any adult related site, once they find out (and you can bet they will) they will shut you down so fast you wont see the dust, or any money that is in your account for whatever reason.

CCBill and IBill have been up and down regarding what is and is not acceptable and have heard a few horror stories, but I have never used them. Many problems regarding VISA credit cards have cropped up lately too with them charging exorbitant amounts of money for adult orientated sites.

ONe of the best resources I have found for any questions I had, to be the YNOT website (http://www.ynot.com/) They have a good message board with lots of advice for newbies, covering everything you could think of. Also they have links to a lot of adult orientated hosting companies, Age verification companies, CC processors etc.. They also keep up with what is happening out there in the adult entertainment world regarding laws etc.

Whatever happens, cover your a$$ legally, expect to spend a lot of money setting it up and waiting time for it to get known and hit on. Advertising is another kettle of fish, again YNOT will give you clues on how to get the most out of your advertising dollar.

Web design is obviously another aspect you have to look at, if you have the time, energy and knowledge it can be very rewarding to put up your own site, on the other hand it can be a complete pain (and not the good kind) in the rear end to update and upkeep. If you have the money, hire a web design company to take care of it

Good Luck with your site.
Best Wishes
Lucy

< Message edited by Lucylastic -- 4/11/2007 9:31:36 AM >

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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/11/2007 12:50:44 PM   
littlesarbonn


Posts: 1710
Joined: 12/3/2005
From: Stockton, California
Status: offline 		I run the website for a brick and mortar bdsm company. There are a lot of little, and sometimes huge, obstacles and hoops you have to jump through and around. Paypal is a horrible partner. Unfortunately, a lot of the better alternative require already having somewhat of a success to begin with, like being able to take your own credit card processing rather than rely on attitude changing companies. Also, SERIOUSLY read through the fine print of every company you do business with because even if a salesperson tells you there's no problem, you are going to be devastated when your whole site goes down completely because an Internet service provider has suddenly got a bug up their ass about what is "allowable" and what is not, and rather than discuss it or give you a time frame, they go on a moralistic bent and just cut you off completely, destroying all revenue that you have going through your company as a result. Make sure you back up EVERYTHING.

Nowadays, there are massive amounts of anti-child pornography regulations that make it really difficult for someone doing business with no intentions of ever doing anything of that nature. Model proof, and all that sort of stuff just means you have to jump through a few more hoops as well.

As someone previously said, make sure you've covered yourself completely, because when the law comes down on you because some moralistic person thinks that making up laws or interpreting them in arbitrary fashions, you are going to become your very own island. Oh, people will talk about comraderie and support, but unless you're a known entity, or a hot dominant woman who people already respect, people might talk all nice and friendly about you, maybe even write an anonymous letter on your behalf, but you're going to be completely on your own. So cover yourself for that contingency. I've seen highly respected people in the industry that once ANY problem showed up with the law, suddenly the peanut gallery started making their own accusations and "questioning" practices that they never questioned before, creating motives that were never there for the person now under fire by the law.


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RE: Do fetish websites make money? - 4/11/2007 7:51:11 PM   
WhipTheHip


Posts: 1004
Joined: 7/31/2006
Status: offline 		A female friend bought a $4,000 computer using Pay Pal.  The guy ran off with the money, and Pay Pal did nothing to help my friend catch the guy.  Pay Pal protected the thief.  Pay Pal is owned by Ebay.  I was going to buy a car on Ebay. The seller was local.  When I went to look at the car, it was nothing like the car described on Ebay.  I don't trust Ebay or Pay Pal for any purchase over $200.

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