I don't think this is a joke thread at all, but I do think it epitomizes WHY Hustler, Playboy & Penthouse are not the largest adult membership based websites (and I stand firm in my belief that they should be) on the 'net today.
All 3 have unlimited content and unlimited funds, yet 10 man companies with folks in age ranging from 22-35 are giving them a run for their money and in some instances - kicking their ass - in memberships using purchased content (and in alot of cases not even exclusive) and leased feeds....
- Hustler: Of the 3, they are the definite leader in hardcore material. If you want to see a chick with a dick in her ear or good spunk shots, they've got years and years of content to use. They've got plenty of "Chester The Molester" and other cartoon content to use and their monthly "Hustler Honey" contest can be used to spawn hundreds of single girl websites to add to their portfolio. Out-takes, behind the scenes and much more make them an obvious leader in the hardcore adult market.
- Playboy: Not as hardcore as Hustler, but more explicit content than Penthouse. Their appeal draws in more women members and men than Hustler who seek "erotic" content rather than "looking at her fallopian tubes" hardcore images. They tend to draw in more celebrity photospreads than the other 2 and if they can't monitize that advantage through an online business model - shame on them!
- Penthouse: Should be the leader in women memberships and men seeking purely erotic and European photoshoots. If a member wants "erotic" - this is where they should be going. Years and years of Penthouse forum & stories content and their Penthouse Pet search can certainly be an advantage for them.
That leaves us with the (literally) million dollar question - Why aren't they the leaders in the adult industry?
While in actuality it's a more complex answer than this, it boils down to something like this;
Their approach to the online business model is handled with the same philosophy and approach that they use for the print media business and that
IS (and for as long as they think that way)
WILL BE the reason they aren't the leaders.
Take a look at how this ad is worded. "This guy" reporting to "that guy" who answers to another person... and I would venture a bet that once you get past "this guy reporting to that guy" - no one has any actual experience running an adult website program yet their up the command chain for making decisions and while they may make great magazine business decisions, they don't know anything about the online business model so.....
- Let's have a meeting to discuss an idea....
- Great, let's run it past the marketing guys....
- Can't do squat without a focus group so let's set that up...
- Sweet, we have some results, let's have another meeting to discuss that
- Huh? Bob's on vacation this week, ok, let's set up a meeting next week to decide when everyone can fit another meeting into their schedule...
And while all this is going on, the 10 man companies out there now are busy creating new sites, banners and signing up new affililates.
Hiring someone who fulfills all of the qualifications of this ad would really be frustrating for the person who takes the position because of the current command structure in place. They should hire somone 3-4 positions up from this one first to fix (and set in place) a structure that'll actually work!
That's my :2 cents: - put the change in the Ronald McDonald House change jar
