YNOTmasters.comFor years, webmasters have been debating whether the dreaded “summer slowdown” is fact or fiction. Some contend that revenues from consumer-oriented adult Internet websites drop in the summer months.YNOTmasters.comFor years, webmasters have been debating whether the dreaded “summer slowdown” is fact or fiction. Some contend that revenues from consumer-oriented adult Internet websites drop in the summer months. They hypothesize that with the good weather (in the Northern Hemisphere) and college students being out of school, surfers spend more time outdoors and offline, resulting in a decrease in memberships to adult-oriented paysites. Others say that they see no drop-off whatsoever during the summer months, and so insist that the “summer slowdown” is just a myth.At YNOTmasters.com, we have asked webmasters about the “summer slowdown” over the last few years. Here are the poll results for the question:

Has your adult business been affected by the summer slowdown?
August, 1999 (115 total votes):
Yes, very affected! 39.1%Yes, but hardly noticeable 20.8%No, not affected 14.7%Summer’s been better! 6%N/A 19.1%

July, 2000 (66 total votes):
Yes, dramatically 5.7%Yes, moderately 22.7%No, no noticeable difference. 10.6% No, actually an increase 10.6%N/A 22.7%

August, 2001 (134 total votes):
It’s kicking my ass! 35%It kinda sucks 40.2%No problems! 24.6%

Over the last three years, less than a quarter of the webmasters responding to the YNOTmasters.com polls indicated that they were not affected by any “summer slowdown” – strong evidence that the “summer slowdown” is a reality. Additionally, we should bear in mind that those responding that they had no decrease in sales from June through August may receive most of their traffic from surfers located in the Southern Hemisphere. Thus, it can be hypothesized that the vast majority of webmasters with Northern Hemisphere traffic do experience a slowdown in the summer months. In any event, the summer of 2001 appears to have been particularly bad for webmasters.

Mainstream data supports the slowdown theory. According to Nielsen/NetRatings, less Americans went online in July, 2001 as compared to June. Further, less Internet users who had Internet access went online in July, 2001 as compared to those Americans who had access and went online in June. So, the number of Americans who have Internet access isn’t shrinking – they just didn’t go online as often during the summer.

So, what is a paysite webmaster to do in the face of the inevitable “summer slowdown”? Here are some suggestions for summers to come:

1. Offer discounted membership fees during the summer months to keep membership levels up, even though revenues will decline a bit. It is much easier to keep an existing member than it is to obtain a new one.

2. Sign up surfers for long-term memberships at a discounted rate that carry the surfers through the summer months. For example, if your membership ordinarily costs $30 per month, offer surfers a six-month membership from April through September for $120 (saving the surfer $60, or $10 per month, but again, keeping them as members).

3. Use dialers to fully maximize and monetize your international traffic. Some of your surfers may be residing in cooler parts of the globe during the June through August months. Don’t ignore the opportunity to make money off of your international traffic while your North American surfers are outside smelling the roses! You can find informative articles and interviews relating to international dialers, within YNOTnews.com.