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I’ve had the privilege in my adult career to get to know many influential members of the industry. Being friends with them has given me the chance to get truly honest and priceless insights. To say that this industry is all about fantasy is a given. But, it’s also about exaggeration and hyperbole. So with those conditions, it’s hard sometimes to know when you’re reading sales-speak and honest-speak. That being said, I’m excited to share with you this interview with an owner of a large DVD and internet company. I will not name this person, because that was the trade-off in getting raw and candid opinion. So without further delay:

Nate: Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to talk with me.

Owner Guy: My pleasure, I enjoy reading your site, it’s nice to read stuff that actually matters to our Industry.

NATE: Thanks, we try to bring information that people can really use.

So, I wanted to sit down with you and pick your brain about trade shows. How many have you attended in your Adult Career?

OG: Hmm, about 14, roughly.

NATE: That’s quite a few. I remember my first show was the 2005 Vegas show. I went there like a giddy fanboy, and literally no one knew who the hell I was. I went up to everyone, handed out my card, and then gushed about just meeting so-and-so. It was a memorable first show for me. What was your first one?

OG: Well, I started on the Web side of the industry, so I believe it was the 2002 Internext in Vegas, and then stayed for the AVN/AEE show to see what it was all about.

NATE: Those were such better times, business was booming! What did you think of those shows back then? Were they all about business, and did you get results?

OG: They were great, jam packed with people who were all about business. I made a lot of business deals and new business relationships.

NATE: Do you feel that back then you made your money back, as far as what you spent compared to how much you made with the deals you closed?

OG: I always made a lot more than I spent to attend.

NATE: How about now? What was the most recent Trade Show you attended and how did you do there?

OG: The last one I attended was AVN/AEE show last January in Vegas and it didn’t do so well by me. We spent probably close to $110,000 for a booth upstairs in the Convention Hall and a small sales booth downstairs. It wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t very good either. The sales booth downstairs almost paid for the whole show, and we had some great meetings with distributors and stores down there, but there really wasn’t that many of the trade people in attendance, as compared to years past. Worst of all, no profit from all that work at the show. Now a days, you need as much ROI (return on investment) as you can get. The scene upstairs was pretty bad. Attendance was nowhere near what I expected. I don’t think customers or fans find it as alluring or appealing as it once was, and a lot of studios either were not there or had scaled back their presence quite a bit. It’s a sign of the times.

NATE: Yeah, it seemed way scaled back. I saw a teeth whitening booth, and a booth selling massage chairs, it was clear that the show wasn’t as big as it once was. What about Internet Trade Shows? What was the last one you attended?

OG: I believe it was last years’ Xbiz show in Vegas at the Hard Rock. That one was a complete waste of time. I spent a lot of money and did pretty much no business. It was a lightly attended show and was mostly other sponsors, very few webmasters or traffic guys. I was really upset that it was such a waste of money. I tried one more, Internext in Miami the next month and that was just as bad. People always say “Well, you’re branding” Yeah, I’m branding to other web companies/studios, that’s not my target audience. I need to target the customers, stores, distributors and affiliates, and that’s what I’m now doing.

NATE: Sounds like you got burned by those experiences. But you learned from it, did those shows convince you to just stop advertising entirely?

OG: No I am still advertising, but I’m very selective about how I do it. I now research the company before I spend my money, I don’t just advertise with the most well known outlets. I’ve also started developing my own in-house advertising strategies and going directly to the customers. I still attend smaller more focused shows like Store Erotica in Vegas I believe that’s in August and ExpoMark in September. Those are both DVD sales shows, I doubt that I will be attending an internet focused show anytime soon. If I do have any kind of a presence it would just be one of our Web people attending, sending one person can be justified since the cost is very minimal and there is always a small chance that they might find a good business deal.

NATE: Yeah, I’ve attended the Expomark show as a buyer and I really think it’s a great format. You can actually get business done there, and the way everything is scheduled makes it so much easier for everyone. You mentioned the in-house advertising, care to elaborate on what you’re doing there?

OG: Sorry, Trade Secret. Don’t want to give out all my ideas.

NATE: Awww, well that’s understandable I guess. This industry is notorious for taking others ideas and copying them. Provided they are good ideas of course. Are you finding success with your new direction?

OG: Very much so, I am spending less per month than I used to and seeing much better results. Once I realized that most of the places I advertised with were not going out to my target audience, I stopped wasting my money and started finding ways to get to that target audience myself. I believe in this day and age and economy, that it’s the only way to responsibly spend your advertising dollars.

NATE: We’re all operating on much smaller margins these days, so lowering your cost while increasing your sales is the right way to do it. Well, what do you see for the future of this Industry?

OG: I think this Economy is going to clear out a lot of the saturation in both the Web and DVDs. Those companies that find a way to diversify their income will be able to ride it out and will be the ones thriving in the end.

NATE: A lot of the retailers I talk to mention the oversaturation as well. So thinning the herd is a good thing for our industry. I know our readers would like to see the results you are getting, are you sure you can’t give the audience a little tidbit on your strategies?

OG: Well, let’s just say if you want something done, do it yourself and leave it at that.

NATE: Fair Enough. I’ll let the readers extrapolate their own conclusions from that.

OG: Oh, and I’ll add, research the hell out of any place you decide to spend even $1 in advertising, you would be amazed at who they market and brand you to, it generally just gets sent to your competitors, not your target audience.

NATE: Allow me to be sarcastic here for a second. Are you saying that all these studios are paying large sums of money to advertise their ideas to their competitors, and that the stores and customers don’t even see it? Say it ain’t so.

OG: Like I said, you’d be amazed.

NATE: I’m sure some of those studios would be amazed to see what they are getting for their money. Well, this has been an eye-opening experience, thank you very much for hanging out with me today.

OG: My pleasure, and keep putting up those stories that matter. The funny shit is good too!

NATE: Oh you like the humor? I think some people in this industry take themselves too seriously. We like to poke fun, but it’s all in good spirit, and it’s pretty much all rooted in some truth. We also like to have fun and I’m glad to see there are people like you out there that ‘get it’.

OG: I love it, keep it up and check back with me in a few months and we can talk about how business is after the summer.

NATE: You gotta deal. Care to tell our readers who you are?

OG: Ummm…I’m Batman.

NATE: Does that make me The Joker then?

OG: Ha! I guess…take care!


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