[gonzo]

Originally Posted by RawAlex

Circle Jerking in my mind has never been the best way to sell a product. However, there are certain webmasters out there who swear by it. Pissing people off until they finally buy something seems like a bit of a weird business model, but apparently it does work to some extent.

I do think you are correct though: The more you circle jerk someone around, the more they are going to look to other sources to get what they are looking for. I also think it is only a matter of time before tube style sites refine their methods and start doing a better job of herding the surfers towards purchases rather than free pleasure.

The current tube business model for the most part is "show a ton of ads with the videos, and hope like hell someone clicks on something". I truly doubt that many direct sales are made from the clips to the sites in question, especially on sites showing longer clips. After all, if a surfer can get 5 clips of 5 minutes each of the content he wants, he will likely be reaching for the kleenex box before he is reaching for his wallet. In my mind, tube sites have taken a business model of 50% plus profit and turned it into a 5% profit business overnight.

In the long run, tube style sites will refine their processes and work to move the surfer towards a purchase. Already, the bigger sites limit the number of videos per day, interlace the videos with clickable ads, overlays, and other promo material... but until a workable solution is found that makes these sites push towards sales, they will be huge volume / low sales systems entirely dependant on third party ad sales to try to make a living.

The correct tube business model is to upsale them the very clip they are watching as a PPV or Download to own right then and there.

The rest of the ads are there as parsley.

I think the allure of massive traffic has driven people to lie cheat and steal in order to populate those sites.

Mark my words - when its all said and done and the Fat Lady sings... one will remain.