Like my Porn and Share it on Facebook

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Brooklyn Decker with a facebook like button

Wouldn't you want to Like this and share it with your friends?

Facebook has worked on social share for a long time now. Facebook Connect has been the most successful venture within this effort.  Facebook Connect is essentially the Like button on your website – it is what allows someone to “like” one of your website pages.  This has been an entirely underused feature in websites in general; in porn it is a tool that is being completely wasted.

There was an issue with the Like button: when you clicked, it would show you liked it on that page and technically would get posted on your wall.  It was not showing up on the news feed at all, so generally it was not being seen. It is no surprise that most people did not see value in adding it to their sites, or only added it to their home page.

Facebook is seeing the flaw in their strategy. The are now making the like button more like a share button.  Now when you click it you have the option of adding a comment. So now you can share your thoughts on a page rather than being just a voiceless Like.  This means that comments will have a greater chance of appearing on the newsfeed, because this share is a more dynamic interaction, and has a higher chance of being seen by people’s friends.

Where porn is missing out on this is the general lack of Like buttons on porn sites.  Yes, Facebook discriminates against porn. But when someone Likes a page on your site, Facebook cannot prevent that from being posted in the newsfeed. You are not violating their terms of service because it is not you posting it.  Now with the changes in the Like button, the tool is becoming more powerful. Now your viewers can say something and share your adult content on Facebook.

You can even track your Likes by adding Insights to your website. Here is a great post that will tell you how to add Insights to your website.

When someone clicks the Like button and comments, that comment and a link to the website goes on their wall and the news feed.  If you have a Like button for every page of your site, think of the potential exposure. If you do not, you may be missing out. Plus, it is exposure that Facebook can’t stop.

Facebook: censoring your wall, not your porn

Woman with her breasts covered by a bandeau top that says censored

This photo was taken at the 2004 Adult Expo, and featured in Life Magazine!

Since the release of the new Facebook Fan Page updates the glamour of the cool changes are wearing off and some of the problems are starting to come to light.  The biggest problem is the wall, which is no longer showing all your posts.  Facebook has added an algorithm to the wall that prioritizes posts by popularity.  Beyond that, it chooses which ones to show and which ones to hide.  Interestingly enough, this has nothing to do with content.  Porn on your wall? Sure, it is a problem for Facebook but not for the algorithm.

Page owners and fans are noticing that not all posts are showing up on the wall. Unfortunately there is not much that can be done about it.

There are 2 setting for viewing posts on your wall:

1. Everyone

Posts by everyone means that posts by you and by your fans will be displayed on the wall.

2. Fan Page

Post by Fan Page means that only posts made by the Fan Page admins will appear on the wall.  If your settings allow comments, fans will still be able to comment on your posts, they just won’t be able to make their own posts on your wall.

I generally encourage pages to show posts by everyone. Allowing your fans to participate on your page gives you more chances for engagement.  I’m not changing this recommendation. Although the new algorithm is affecting the effectiveness of this setting, it is not negating its effectiveness entirely.

The other problem with the algorithm is that your most recent posts may not be showing up on the wall. This means that timely updates are not as successful.  When you make a post it will still show up in the newsfeed as usual, but its presence on the wall is up to the algorithm.  This is a big source of frustration for pages that specialize in time sensitive updates.

The good news for the adult industry is that the algorithm does not seem to discriminate based on content.  So if your posts are not appearing on your wall, it is not because of the content.  Essentially you can post as much adult content as you want and the algorithm won’t care. Of course if your content is rated higher than PG-13 you are at risk of violating Facebook’s terms of service and having your account deleted.

So Facebook still has its own forms censorship, but they are not related to the shift in its algorithm.

New Fan Page; Good for the Adult Industry!

The Facebook logo on top of a diamond engagement ring

Facebook is getting engaged. Now you can interact as your brand! Will the adult fan page become useful?

Facebook is getting engaged! On Friday the new Fan Page design was released. The biggest news from the announcement is the ability to use Facebook as your Fan Page. For the adult industry, getting the full benefit out of the Fan Page has been a challenge.  However, things just got a little easier.

Adult industry Facebook sites have been relegated to posting only on their Fan Pages, and even then they tend to get deleted because of these posts.  Often times, people’s admin profiles get deleted as well, if they have used their admin profiles to network on Facebook on behalf of their Fan Page.

The rule of thumb for having an adult site on Facebook is: keep it rated PG. Other people are posting PG-13 and R rated content, but if you are in the adult industry you are going to be scrutinized more heavily. So tread lightly and you will be fine.  The real purpose of your Fan Page is to get people off Facebook and onto your site, so use it to transition platforms and as a way to engage with your fans.

The new engagement ability makes this last part much easier to do. You no longer have to network with your personal profile; you can focus all your engagement efforts onto your Fan Page.

What this means

When you go to your Fan Page, in the right hand menu bar, at the very top, there is a line that says “Admins”. This shows you who the administrators are for your site, and is only visible to them. Fans do not see this. Directly under that line is a list of Fan Page operating options:

The menu to help you use Facebook as your Fan PageThe first line says “Use Facebook as…”. This allows you to operate Facebook as your Fan Page. You can post comments on people’s posts, “Like” other pages and post on walls as your Fan Page name. You can do nearly everything you would do as a profile.

This means you can use Facebook as your business or brand, while keeping all your brand activity tied to your Fan Page.

Previously, if you wanted to comment on pages or posts as your brand you couldn’t do it. Many people would create additional profiles for their businesses just so they could talk to people on Facebook in a location other than their Fan Page. There are many businesses who opted to only have a profile instead of a Fan Page because of this limitation. However, this limited them to a fixed number of friends. They also risked being deleted, because you are not supposed to use personal profiles for business purposes. That is why Fan Pages were created .

How it affects engagement

The simple Facebook rule for business is this:

If you want to have an effective Fan Page, you need to talk to your fans.

If you talk to your fans you will increase your reach. You will be passively networking through your interactions with people. This was easy to do with a profile and hard to accomplish with a Fan Page. Now you can post everywhere! You can put your business page in front of as many folks as you are willing to talk to! You just increased your capacity to network infinitely.

Where Adult has to be careful

The new engagement puts you at a higher risk for being flagged for spam.  Just because you can now post anywhere, it does not necessarily mean you should. You can still be marked as spam if you are not using your new communication channels with care.

Remember, engagement is about talking to people, not about putting your link out there as much as you can. If you join conversations, and have something interesting to say, you will get people to your page and your website.

Adult Fan Pages cannot have profile images that are too provocative or sexy.  Make sure your comments are not just limited to posting links or photos – in fact I would avoid this. Join conversations and try to encourage people to visit your Fan Page, then make it easy for them to find your website.

Does the New Facebook Fan Page Help Porn?

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Woman in red dress holding her head and screaming

Most of the changes are good. One change is bad. You'd better know which one!

Most of us have just gotten use to the last batch of changes on the profile. Now Facebook has just done a major overhaul on the Fan Page. Last Friday, Facebook announced they have made changes – not just to the layout, but to the functions of the Fan Pages as well.  Many people in the adult world have had a lot of challenges using Fan Pages, but many of us still use them.  This new functionality might help get the word out about your page without having to rely on advertising (which is basically impossible) or posts, which are not necessarily shared because of content.

  • Profile style layout

    The layouts now share the same style as the redesigned profile. This streamlines pages and profiles, making them easier for people to use, because they share similar features.

  • Posting as a Page

    You now have the option to post comments on other people’s pages and profiles as your professional page name. This is a big benefit for increasing engagement for your page.  As an adult page, you can now comment as your “brand” name on others’ posts or walls. This allows for increased visibility for your page while you interact more with your fan base. But you still have to be careful of being flagged for spam!

  • Photo Strip

    The photo strip we have become accustomed to seeing on our profiles is now on your page. Instead of the photos being the most recently tagged images of you, they are the five most recently uploaded photos. This can only be done by the admin, but if you post your pics carefully you can create a really nice photo strip that helps your branding.

  • Change your Category

    You can now change the category of your fan page. It used to be that once you picked a category for your page you were stuck with it. Maybe you set yourself up as entertainment, but now you want to switch to personality or to a brand. Now you can!

  • Featured Likes

    A page can now Like another page. These Likes are featured on the left side panel of your page. Beyond that, you can assign “Featured Likes”, meaning you can designate special pages you want to focus on. This is a fun way  to show favor to another page by giving them what amounts to prime passive advertising real estate on your page.

  • Featured Page Owner

    Just like Featured Likes, you can feature a page owner. This will also appear on the left side panel of your page. This is a great way to draw attention to a specific person.

  • Filtered Wall

    This is the big bad! Facebook is now filtering your wall posts. You have 2 choices. One is to only display the posts from your page, which will show chronologically. The other is to display all posts. Facebook is filtering the “everybody” setting by popularity. So, not all posts, tags or mentions will be displayed on your wall. Plus, to be even more frustrating, they are not being shown chronologically either. Posts from today might be directly above a post from last week, or a post from three weeks ago might be at the top of your wall!

That’s the overview of the latest changes. I will explore these a bit further and give some tips on how these can work to the advantage of your adult fan page! Stay tuned!

My, What a Sexy Twitter Voice You Have!

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Paris Hilton tied up in a microphone cord

Anyone can be sexy. What makes your voice unique in the Twitterverse?

Finding your voice is an important part of the social media process. It seems like this should be easy, especially if you are in the adult industry, but it is not. All you have to do is be sexy, right?  Maybe not.  Crafting your online personality is an important part of your branding.   Thousands of people in the Twitterverse are sexy, so how are you different? What makes you unique?

The crafting of your personality needs to be carefully based around your objective and your audience. Although you may have an idea of who you are online, that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be what elicits the most responses from your audience, or drives the most click-throughs.

Are you a dom? Do your followers want to be bossed around? Are you a vixen? Do you need to be coy and illusive? Are you a Diva? Do you need to be strong and demanding?

You not only need to figure out who you want to be, but you need to figure out who your audience responds to strongly.  For some people, primarily talking to other porn stars works for them. Their fans want to see the behind-the-scenes of the porn life.  For most, this is not enough.  You have to actually talk to your fans and relate to them.

When I first start working with a client, I take a splatter approach to posting. I experiment with a variety of posts, with different tones and content. I do this to begin establishing what their audience will respond to. Your online followers are a unique group, thus you cannot base your communications on the success or failure of someone else.

If our online personalities are a product of our branding, they can also be extremely formative to the evolution of our branding. Pay attention to what your audience responds to, because if your goal is to reach them for sales, support or awareness, you need to know what approach and tone will engage them. Remember, you can’t just bat your eyes on Twitter and get people to do what you want, you have to offer substance and make that substance uniquely yours.

Doms on Twitter: I don’t follow you, you follow me!

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Profile picture of Joe Lusty

Does your Twitter Strategy include who you follow and why? Branding extends to how you manage your social media.

 

When creating a Twitter strategy, always  keep your audience in mind. Generally speaking, I tell people to follow their followers. After all, following doesn’t cost you anything and it helps grow your network faster. It also aids in social proof. However, it is not right for all people.  If you are in the BDSM community, following back might be counter to your image.  

When you start on Twitter you need to decide the personality of your account. This is a key part of your branding. If you are a dom, and use your tweets to continue that persona, then following back might be the wrong solution for you, especially when it comes to following clients.  As a dom, you might need to work a bit harder for your networking while telling your audience, “You follow me! I don’t follow you.”  

The important part of this is consistency.  If you are going to not-follow as a Twitter strategy then you need to stay true to that. You will also need to find other ways, such as engagement, hashtags and content as primary ways to grow your network.  

Not following can be as much a strategy as following. You just need to make sure your strategy is in alignment with your branding.  


The image used in this post was provided by Joe Lusty. He is a producer, director, photographer and performer.  A full-time photographer, he has some beautiful xxx photographs that are both provocative and artistic. Visit Joe’s website at www.joelusty.com

Paid to Tweet: Did you just sell out?

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Twitter bird holding a dollar bill in his beak

Is being paid to Tweet a great way to earn some extra money doing what you already do or are you selling out and compromising your Twitter integrity?

Everyone wants to know how to make money online and with their social media accounts. You are using them anyway, why not get paid for it?  Well, there is such a thing as getting paid to tweet; sponsored tweets are probably the easiest way to get paid for tweeting. But what does it do to your credibility? Does getting paid to tweet an ad affect your authority, or public opinion? Did you just sell out?

There are many services out there where you can sign up to become a sponsored tweeter.  What happens is: you sign up, they analyze your Twitter account for reach and influence, and then they create a pay range based on these criteria. The range is anywhere from $0.50 to $10,000 per tweet.

However, only people like Kim Kardashian are getting paid $10,000 for a tweet.

Paid to tweet or paid for a tweet

Wondering what the difference is between being paid to tweet and paid for a tweet? I don’t blame you.  Plenty of people are paid to tweet. What this means is they work for someone like an individual client or a business and they are paid to take care of their Twitter account, including making posts.  They are acting as a representative of the person, company or brand. This also means they can promote their own products without it being considered an ad.

A person who is paid for a tweet means that their tweet is an advertisement.  It is not something they would normally post, it’s like a commercial in the midst of their Twitter stream. It is something they are getting paid to tweet, but not paid a commission or bonus for sales.

I’m in Porn

Excellent!  Don’t worry, you are not excluded.  Porn stars can get paid to tweet! You can become a sponsored tweeter or an advertiser.  Twitter continues to be a place in social media where porn is not totally back-listed, even with sponsored tweets.

Rules of Engagement

Yup, there definitely are.  If you are a sponsored tweeter you have to make it known that your tweet is an ad.  Oftentimes, the hashtag #ad is used.  If you use a service that pays you to tweet, like SponsoredTweets.com or PaidPerTweet.com, they will give you parameters for your tweets: the appropriateness of your phrasing, not slandering the client, not using swear words and making it clear that the tweet is an ad.

Ultimately even if you don’t use a service, you have to mark a paid tweet as an ad. The FCC is regulating this and they will fine you.

I want to make the big bucks

If you want to make the big money with sponsored tweets, like Kim Kardashian, then you basically need to be famous. Oh wait..you are famous!  Well then, you will want to go to either SponsoredTweets.com or Ad.ly – these work with celebrity clients and will be able to help you command a high price.

Your Reputation

From an advertiser: As an advertiser it is in my interest to pay someone with good reach and influence to tweet my ads.  I will reach an audience I don’t normally reach and generate leads I would not otherwise be able to create. The better your reputation, the more I want you to tweet for me.

From a Tweeter: This is a great way to make some extra money. Most of your tweets are your own but then maybe 1 out of 50 you are paid for.

From a Follower: Most of the time I don’t mind seeing the very occasional ad.  But I do wonder, when I see one, if your Twitter is about making money or about engaging.  I question the integrity of your feed.  Do I understand it? Yes. But I also know about sponsored tweets. What about the people who don’t?  Did you just sell out?

Did I just sell out?

Since the ability to make money with sponsored tweets is based on your influence and your reach, if you are a popular and engaged Tweeter then you will be able to command a higher price.  However, if you are exceptionally engaged, you might be compromising your authenticity and integrity. It may seem a bit extreme to say that if 1 out of 50 tweets is an ad you have automatically compromised your integrity, but remember, it may be an issue for your followers.

The conclusion

Once you get your first payday your 1 in 50 tweets might become 1 in 20, then 1 in 10. So be careful; making money is addictive and getting paid to tweet is simple.   Before you know it you may have compromised your entire account, lose followers, lose influence and now your Twitter isn’t good for anything. You are just another spammer.

So keep your end goal in mind;  your Twitter is ultimately about you and putting forward your message. You could be ok inserting the occasional ad.

As a follower I prefer that my tweeps don’t ad.  It bugs me.

As a Tweeter, I decided not to ad because it bugs me as a follower. However, I understand why people do it.

As an advertiser, I think it is a good opportunity to expand my reach.

Do you think you will become a sponsored tweeter?

**Side note, 7 Veils was not paid to mention any link in this post. We do not blog for money.  There are many pay-for-tweet companies out there, we just listed a couple of reputable ones.

Create your own Banner Ad on Facebook

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Facebook has a new profile layout.  It is designed to make your experience more YOU-centric.  An interesting discovery has been made with regard to the photo strip at the top of your profile.  It can be made into a make-shift banner ad.  Oh yes, it’s true!

The top of your profile now has a photo strip that shows the images you have most recently been tagged in.  Seems pretty innocuous, however clever internet advertising people have figured out a way to capitalize on this space.

If you create images and tag yourself in the proper order you will be able to create what appears to be a banner ad.

Regular Profile

This is what a regular profile film strip looks like:

Facebook Film Strip

This is what most Facebook profile film strips look like.

Pretty simple. A series of 5 photos that you or your friends have tagged you in, meant to give people an idea of your recent photographic activity.

“Banner Ad” Profile

This is what a film strip tagged to look like a banner ad looks like.

The photo strip on facebook profiles creating what looks like a banner ad for Justin Bieber

It can't be linked. It can't be searched. But it can be seen when people land on your profile. Of course, these sections would contain images of Trevor... How would you turn your photo-strip into an ad?

*Image courtesy of Inside Facebook

Essentially images were tagged so they would appear sequentially in the film strip to look like a banner ad. Instead of having pictures that show tagged images of your life, you create a mini-mosaic creating a singular image out of 5.

If you click on the image it will take you to that photo, or segment of the banner ad. The caption could potentially have information about a website, product or promotional message.  But the picture itself would not link to any outside website.

Benefits of Tagging a Banner Ad

  • Another location online for putting your business message forward
  • Additional branding
  • Free
  • Tag your own profile
  • Tag and put a banner ad on another person’s profile*

*Read the disadvantages to see what can happen if you do this…

Disadvantages of Tagging a Banner Ad

  • It does not link to an outside site
  • CTR – No tracking of click-through rate – without a link there is no click-through
  • No metrics to analyze its effectiveness
  • Spam – you could get flagged for spam. If you tag someone else in your photos, to create a banner ad on another person’s profile page, you could get flagged for inappropriate activity and have your account deactivated. This is definitely a violation of the Facebook Terms of Service.
  • Spam? – if you tag your own profile you may still be at risk for being flagged for spam.  Even doing this to your own profile could be considered an abuse of the feature.  However, the likelihood that you will be noticed is much lower, because it is not like you are going to flag yourself(!)

How to do it

It is not as easy as it looks. Facebook does not put your full image in the tagged boxes. It takes a skewed thumbnail, most likely as a way to try to prevent this. However with a little perseverance you can figure out how to create a series of images that will line up.

If you are thinking of doing this, I would not suggest adding urls, business names or brand message. Basically anything that could be blatantly categorized as an ad should be avoided. Stick to an image, maybe even a name. Have something like “Welcome to…” “Your name here…with picture”

The question that remains is: will Facebook change this feature to prevent homemade banner ads? The spam possibilities are endless, but the potential for passive promotion on a personal page is huge.


photo of Lauren MacEwenLauren MacEwen is the senior strategist at 7 Veils Media, Inc., a premier social media firm for the adult entertainment industry.  She is a speaker at the upcoming AEE on the Selling through Social Networks panel and blogs regularly at www.7veils.com.  You can follow Lauren on Twitter: @7_veils

The Facebook Reveal

A woman slowly revealing herself naked from behind drapes, vinage 1920's photo

We have been using the slow reveal as a way to intrigue and tantalize people forever. Now you can use it on Facebook.

The landing page on your Fan Page is your first impression on Facebook. What if you could have a slow reveal on your page?  What if you could use your page to tantalize potential new fans and give them a little thrill right from their first encounter with you?  The Facebook reveal allows you to do this. Be mysterious. Be seductive. Be intriguing. And be effective at converting lurkers into fans and clients.

Most of us have seen the landing pages on Facebook Fan Pages. They look like a mini website inside a fan page that you usually only see when someone comes to your page for the first time. Once  they have “liked” you, they are directed to your wall.

For a one time show, Facebook landing pages are highly influential in getting people to like your page. If you have a really good one, you might get someone to like your page; then they may be more inclined to go to your website, sign up on your mailing list, or just start engaging with you right off the bat.

The landing pages are what make Fan Pages so influential.

There are a lot of great examples of strong landing pages: Red Bull and Gap.

There is a code that you can use to keep a portion of your landing page blurred out to non-followers.  Then when someone clicks “Like” it is revealed to them and the image/text is no longer blurry.

The Big Reveal

Here is an example of the reveal:

Facebook Reveal

Can you imagine what you could put on your landing page that is hidden behind a blur? You can be highly provocative and use the desire to see what is there to convert people into fans.

“Like” me and I reveal a little more…

Now you can offer the promise of even more on your page with special links and content just for fans.

How do I do it?

Well if you are the one creating your landing page then you are familiar with FBML and how to code for Facebook.  Click here and you will find the code to make your page a reveal.

If you are not a FBML wiz kid, (really, how many of us are) then you can talk to a FBML designer who can create this for you. Click here to talk to a designer.