Lesson #30 Updating Your Member Area
Written By Titmowse

Maybe someday computers will have the artificial intelligence to run a paysite but that day is not today. Granted, computerization makes work easy and organized but there’s still stuff you’re going to have to do manually in order to keep the money flowing. It’s important to keep the shopping cart rolling. It’s vital to make sure the server is humming. It’s imperative the tech support lines are open. But probably the most substantial thing you’ll do as a paysite owner is make sure your content is regularly updated.

The best customers are return customers. As an adult paysite owner, you want to keep your members for as long as possible. The single best way to keep your members recurring is with regular, earnest updates.

What is an Update For a Paysite?

That answer depends on the size and niche of your web. A large paysite will probably add at least a gigabyte of new content to their member’s area in a week. A smaller paysite -with a smaller member base- might only add a few new galleries a week.

The fact to keep in mind is that an update should be comparable to the cost a member would pay to stay a member. Just adding a few images and a clip or two won’t fly with most members. To keep them coming back for more, you have to know the definition of more. Look at updates through your customer’s eyes. What would you be willing to pay to see that you haven’t already seen? An update for a paysite is much more than a new logo or a META tag rework. A paysite update involves adding enough new content to keep your members for another month.

There are other steps to updating a paysite. You might want to remove older or less popular content from your server. Or you might want to archive old content into back-page sections in order to expand your paysite to the point where no member could traverse it all in one month. As well, you’ll want to change things around with the general appearance and performance of your paysite. New colors and menus keep the site looking fresh when new content is on the thin side.

You’ll want to update new technologies in payment processing and customer support. These types of updates show that you’re on the ball. No paysite is perfect and improvements go a long way with members.

How Often Should You Update Your Paysite?

Once again, that answer depends on the site and the price of membership.

For instance, some paysites offer content that is hard to find. Unless you’re creating your own niche content, you’re at the mercy of niche content providers. One can’t expect a micro-niche (like ballons) to have a lot of available imagery for sale. If you have a smaller paysite with a smaller customer base, then you might only be able to update once a month.

On the other hand, if you’re the owner of a general-purpose mega-site, you might have to update each and every day of the week. The important point to remember is not to promise what you can’t deliver. If you promise weekly updates, you better follow through on your promise. Broken promises equal cancelled memberships.

Updating your paysite is necessary but it doesn’t have to kill you. One trick a lot of paysite owners do is they pay other people to update their content via leased feeds and images. There are content providers who allow you to use their regularly updated content for a fee. Some have live webcams and chat models. Some offer high quality adult cartoons. Other will lease hosted galleries. These types of content save time and hassle for many a paysite owner.

Still, you need to continue to buy/create content that fits within the theme of your paysite. You need to continue to update regularly. You want them to come back don’t you?