In Part One of this series, YNOT.com asked top porn PR pros to explain what they do for their clients, and why they are worth their pay.
In Part Two, we are asking our porn PR panel what they charge clients for their services, and what the porn stars get for their coin.
The experts who took part in one or more segments in this series include:
– Brian Gross (www.bsgpr.com)
– Erika Icon (www.therubpr.com)
– Jay Kopita (www.deltahousemarketing.com)
– Roger Pipe (www.pipelinemultimedia.com)
– Alexander Raymond (www.starfactorypr.com)
– Lainie Speiser (www.mizlainie.com)
– Wendy Williams (www.hotwendypr.com)
YNOT: What do your clients pay you for your services?
Lainie Speiser: You have to be my client to find out! (She smiles.)
Roger Pipe: It depends on what services are needed. Some performers need a full force media campaign, while others just need the occasional boost here and there.
Wendy Williams: Well, that is personal, but it ranges depending on the amount of work I do and some do content trades. It really varies!
Erika Icon: Most of the publicists are within a specific range. I set my services at a very fair rate so girls and companies can afford my services. Plus I offer way more services than most.
YNOT: What do your clients get in return?
Jay Kopita: I supply my clients with business leads, networking opportunities, introductions to potential customers and partners, and closed sales and deals. The more money I make my clients, the happier they are, and the longer they can retain the services of my consulting business.
Erika Icon: I do get my clients paying gigs including spokesmodel gigs, signings at trade shows, hosting parties, and feature dancing. However, I don’t take a percentage of anything I get for them that pays, unless I get them a toy deal.
Lainie Speiser: I’ve been able to bring extra income for my clients by booking them at Headquarters Gentlemen’s Club, which is also a client of mine. I have made it a point that all of my clientele can be of use to one another. HQ is a fantastic club that pays well and has a great reputation for hiring porn stars to host and perform at.
I’ve gotten clients some print work, most notable in Penthouse Magazine as feature models and — in some cases – as Penthouse Pets. When you get a title like Penthouse Pet, that also translates to more bookings in the feature dancing business.
Last year I booked almost all of my clients to do voiceover for Grand Theft Auto 5. Not only did they get paid for their time, but (it) also got them a mainstream credit in a billion dollar grossing video game.
YNOT: Is income the only way you help your clients?
Wendy Williams: No. The main thing I have helped with the newcomers is setting up blogs and learning out to be an affiliate. Stop pushing traffic to sites and losing that extra income; why not push it as an affiliate and make 50% of that sale!
I cringe every time I see a model re-tweeting a link on Twitter or saying “see me here,” and not using an affiliate link or pushing it to a blog they own and a URL they own.
YNOT: What opportunities might your clients miss without your help?
Erika Icon: There are many.
The big one is that many media outlets don’t know how to reach the girls. If they do hit them up on Twitter, the girls may or may not respond. And, if they do, they could quite possibly forget or miss the interview. This isn’t good for a girl’s rep or popularity.
Jay Kopita: When you own and operate a specific product, typically you need to focus most on development and maintenance of said product as well as customer service. All of that has to be your priority and can be very time-consuming.
If your product and service is not completely up to speed, then it doesn’t make sense to get out there and market and sell it. Having established business relationships and industry branding enables me to get in the door quicker and more efficiently for my clients who can then have an easier time closing deals that I help open and “warm up” for them.
While it’s impossible to be everywhere at once, having a marketing/consulting firm on your side will definitely help you identify and open more opportunities that you would have otherwise missed on your own.
Lainie Speiser: Again, it’s about connections and the vast amount of people I know and the good relationships I have.
Without me some of my clients would not have met Josh Rose the founder/owner of www.pornstarsexlife.com which puts out mainstream sex education instruction. Josh Rose has hired and paid several of my clients for projects, a few of them shot with him this past week in fact.
The same thing with the above-mentioned Grand Theft Auto where Rock Star Games went exclusively through me to hire the adult talent, and they knew of me through my good relationships with Opie and Anthony. I’ve had clients who have told me their dream was to be a guest on Howard Stern and I have made that come true.
Wendy Williams: I guess that depends on how active they are on social media and pay attention.
Some people just aren’t business-oriented. That doesn’t mean they are stupid. It just means that, when it comes to marketing or business-type of work, it’s better to have someone help with it.
Lainie Speiser: Basically my job is to make my clients realize their full potential. Of course it’s like that saying goes, you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink. If a client isn’t fully committed, I can only do so much.
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In Part Three of this PR porn series. YNOT.com asks the PR pros to tell us what makes for a good – and bad! – porn PR agent – and how to find one while avoiding the other.
