AVN Wants Me On The Traffic Panel In Vegas....Even Though They Have No Idea Who I Am.
 

I shit you not.

Someone hit me up on ICQ about possibly being on the Traffic Panel at Internext In Vegas.

I grunted a lot & asked who was on the panel:

XXXJay - good choice IMHO

Q'On - great guy, but I've never known him to be a big "traffic" kinda webmaster & I hope I don't offend anyone, but it'd be like me being on a panel marketing ebony sites.

Johnny V? (from wildline) - did a search on Board Tracker for "wildline" & the only result was this person being on the last Traffic Panel in Miami & a link to an article on YNOT about that panel with some really obvious observations. Seems to be a broker, so the reply to any & all traffic questions would be "You can buy it."

"Name Withheld To Protect The Innocent" who does run a Link List & would be a good choice for a Traffic Panel.

Moderator: Mike Hawk from Smash Bucks, who has told me in no small terms that he does not like the policies of this board :D

So I thinking about it...basically a free pass for an hour of my time.

I have no idea how many seminars there are, but the cost to AVN is the room for 2 days, since there's no actual money given to the speakers. It costs Joe Blow Webmaster $80 to attend the seminars. I'd really love to know how many people paid for the seminars minus the cost of the room :D

So then it dawns on me to ask for money...and passes! $1000 & 4 passes - this would cover The Bitch & me as well as the MaryLou's.

SO I ask for the email addy for the guy that's running this stuff so I can see what I can get out of it. I'm told:
I had the original quote up here, but the person that realyed the info to me asked me to remove it, so I will just say that AVN contacted one person about being on the traffic panel. That person recommended my contact. My contact recomended me.

The long & short of it is that AVN is looking for people to be on this Traffic Panel & asking for advice on panelists because they have no idea who to put on this panel.

Isn't this one of the beefs we have with AVN?

NO ONE AT AVN KNOWS WHO THE FUCK ANY OF US ARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(don't even get me started on the stats part of that, as I guess I was 5th on a list of 4)

I did this panel in 2003 (I think) an it consisted of me, Traffic Dude (see wildline), SE Guru (great guy - all about the SE's & a lot of paid ad spots) and Aly (who I love & was still with Python & really had no idea why she was on the panel :D

So should I feel insulted?

Should I suck it up & ask for the $1k & 4 passes? :D

You decide - VOTE NOW!!!!!!!!!!

Take the money and passes. A free trip to Vegas is a nice way to soothe a bruised ego.

Fuck them

I picked the money and passes, just because I want to hear what they say.

Take the passes and when you get to Vegas tell 'em to fuck off. They will remember you after that :D

Remember - they didn't offer me the money & the passes...that's what I'm thinking of asking for from the people that do no know who I am, but do know they want me on the panel :)

I say the same thing fuck them. Just get the media pass and sleep in. And think about what time they have these things. And the worst part is that AVN has no idea who anyone is. Probably why most times these seminars suck. Back when there was a choice of a show floor without seminar pass, that's what I always went for :)

This seminar is supposed to be in the afternoon of the 1st day, so the time isn't really a factor (plus I'm not drinking, so there will be no hang-overs anyway)

And they did go back to offering just the floor pass & the floor pass with seminars - hence the $80 difference.

I say ask for the money and passes and give 2 of the passes to me.
I'll come to the seminar and standup and clap and whistle after everything you say.

They'll know who you are after that.

|thumb

I say go for it, i'll come and listen to this one for sure ;)

Eat lots of beans and sit on the panel

I did it once in FL in 2003 and will never do it again. The traffic panel was a success but never again will I give up that much knowledge to so many paying attendees for free, plus the videos of it they were selling PPV online. There's just no incentive to do so. If they want to learn from you GreenGuy, have them come here where in doing so, they support you as well. We all simply work too hard to give it to AVN for free.

Two words


Fuck 'em

I have to apologize to everyone because I had to edit my original post so that my contact doesn't rock any boats.

The original post with a quote made the problem that I was bitching about a lot clearer.

I feel that now I just look like a rambling ass.

|greenguy| |greenguy| |greenguy| |greenguy| |halfgabbo

wow, that reply gets my vote! and a 4 greenguy post rating" :)

OH! That thought had crossed my mind - get as many people as I can to get seminar passes, have them show up with big signs & hoot & cheer every time my name is mentioned :D

Still, an hour that you could be napping, gambling or just farting to sit on a panel for people that don't know you.

I don't know, if you can get something from it, maybe think about it but...AVN still sucks. Definitely don't do it for free.

So, what happened to having to pay for the all in one package? Did they actually listen to the webmasters about that?

At MINIMUM it should be free passes and 1k.

I do these events all the time.. and NO one does them for free. and most organizations that run the trade shows know who all the players are.

I did 1.5 hours on a panel for CEA last month and made over 2k plus special treatment -room, complete access to all seminars/dinners etc and a 'travel stipend' but since I'm in Vegas they gave me the cash equivalent instead.

Fuck make it 2k for your years in the business and 6 passes (2 for you, 2 for the MML's and 2 for tart & I).

|pimpin

Welcome to my world. |waves|

I really dig free stuff, so that part of me wants to say take the passes and run, but the stronger and darker side of me, the side known for making all of my wonderful business decisions, is stomping and screaming "FUCK THE COCKSUCKERS - SET THEIR DOGS ON FIRE!!!" So, there you have it. (Keep in mind, I'll probably have a completely different and wholey random opinion in another ten minutes or so.)

Once you accept something for being on the panel then you have to be on the panel. You know your integrity won't allow you to skip out so you'll end up going and might be unhappy about it. Just make sure that what you accept for doing it is really a good exchange for your time in Vegas.

SirMoby - I know it was suggested in this thread, but I'd never say yes to the panel & then back out once I got there just to fuck them over in my own little way - not really my style :)

Wasn't Q'On the guy that made the post promoting NATs and bashing a shitload of good sponsors? It might be fun just to see what's next.

Go for it :)

I didn't think you actually would. :D

That's why you need to figure out if $1,000 is really worth it. Here you are sitting at a table taking all of Ramster's cash and then you have to go to the traffic thing. |cry|

They should be giving you free passes to the show for sure. At least 2 for you and the wife.

I doubt they'll give you any money. They'll just ask someone else they do not know. :D

1. I don't believe that they will give you anything, one free pass tops.

2. I agree wholeheartedly with Cyndalie, and trade secrets are worth much more than $1000.

3. I suspect that you don't need $1k bad enough to compromise your personal principles and be used as a tool to further someone else's agenda.

4. Back to #2- If you're gonna share, share with the people who support and value you, not just hear through the grapevine that you might be an asset to them and a potential draw to increase their numbers.

Cyndalie touched on one thing earlier - anyone can pretty much come here to the board & ask me (and a lot of other traffic people, a lot of which know more than me) whatever questions they wanted....for FREE! :)

Maybe I'll just have a couple of informal Q & A sessions in my room (I don't need the money or the free pass - that's more of a principal thing)

All I'd ask is that the person asking a question was a member of the board |shake|

That sounds like a golden idea. Why waste time answering the traffic questions of people who can't be bothered to show up here anyway? :)

BTW, I voted for the $1000 and 4 free passes. Even if they want to do the passes but no cash you're still coming out ahead if you decide to do it.

I guess the biggest question would be...do you really feel like doing it in the first place?

Sorry....... who are AVN?

Hey Greenguy :)

These panels are the same old tired shit they do every year. Nothing new usually comes out of them. But imagine how many more people they can get to buy a seminar pass cuz the famous Greenguy is on the panel. Wtf do you get out of that? I've also heard a lot of people aren't even going to this show. I haven't been to an internext in a couple of years. They are just crap lately. I would say if you planned on going, get something for your trouble of appearing on this panel. If you weren't going, is it worth it to put up will all the hassle just to be on that panel? Like it's been said before, if someone wants to learn from your expertise, all they have to do is come to this great board.

Anyway, just my opinion :) Hope things are good for you!!!

Thanks for your input Becky. Especially "all they have to do is come to this great board" :)

But you are right...there are quite a few people that would pay the money to go to a seminar just to learn what people learn here for free.

Three years ago they asked me to do a panel on "Niche Marketing" along with three known webmaster names. I agreed, seeing as how Niche is what I know. :) But at the last minute they wound up changing the topic to "Targeted Marketing" for some combinations of half-explained reasons. If you decide to do the "traffic" panel, you may want some guarantee that you won't mind up having to talk about something else instead.

Simon

C'mon Cyndalie, we're not giving anything to AVN, we're giving free and valuable information to attendees that have paid good money to expect more from a seminar than a bunch of webmasters spamming their services.

I've spoken on a few panels and twice at Cybernet and have no problem sharing the same information there that I share on the boards.

As for being paid, I've never heard of any seminar doing that before although it might not be a bad idea because then the panel 'experts' might not feel that they have to 'sell' themselves to make it worth their time.

They do typically give at least one free pass to the panelist.

Jeez...

Such animosity... I said it before and will say it again. AVN is not the enemy. When they are reaching out to get the right people don't get pissed because in the past they got the wrong people... what is the use in that? Time to effect a positive change.

Don't do it if you think it will be a waste of time or if you don't want to share information.

Generally panelists get a ticket plus one guest. Maybe they should start paying panelists but that is not the case for the time being.

The real "secret" of most people's success is HARD WORK - I don't care if you are a tgp, ll, seo, or whatever expert- none of it comes without effort and daily grind. So no matter what "trade secrets" are revealed 99% of the audience is not going to take advangtage of them.

Being a panelist is a good way to build exposure and make good connections. If you think others would be better suited to be up there with you then let them know.

You know.... you bring up a very good point... as someone who has spoken on panels, organized panels/events and has attended nearly every single panel/seminar in the past several years I think this is an excellent idea.

#1 - It would help to increase (IMHO) the quality of the speaker as the companies who organize would be more inclined to look for a return on their investment. They might actually research speakers a little more before just saying, "hey dude - wanna be on a panel?" or simply allowing sales reps from sponsoring companies to come on and spam the attendees continually for an hour.

#2 - It would increase interest in speaking and possibly inspire speakers to be more prepared, give more useful information and overall just add value to the seminars. A happy speaker is a better speaker.

#3 - Wow... wouldn't it just be nice to have these big companies who have been picking our pockets over the years for industry events actually GIVE SOMETHING BACK to the people that ultimately give them their "content" for these events??? That in itself would kick ass!

Great discussion Greenie - I voted for the first one, screw them... but now that I think about it, if you could use your undeniable clout to improve the speaker/seminar/attendee situation at these things I think that would be great. Then again, I'm not holding my breath - we're talking about people who have consistently failed to see the value in our end of the industry - well, other than raping attendees and exhibitors for years with show costs and fees...

Just my .02... |waves|

Ask for money. Money that will pay for the info you're giving away - whatever is concidered reasonable to you. Buy the tickets yourself. What I'm trying to say is - just keep it all business.

I have to ASSume that you are speaking only of Internext because in almost ALL other industries, no-one does it for nothing. Honorariums are common and range anywhere from passes + a $ amount and expenses, to upwards of 1000's of dollars plus perks. Even 'industry-centric' panels pay their panelist's expenses and for their time.

Even in the non-profit world they are paid a minimum and our industry is certainly for-profit even tho some of us are still looking for them. |pimpin

what I would do is tell them they could generate traffic by doing the following
search engines
link trades
free sites
gallerys
writing your url on dollar bills
etc etc etc same old shit

thats what they would get for 1000.00

far-l, that is the problem...they are not reaching out. Where are they? Where have they posted since Aly left?

I do understand that AVN is probably good for your business. Hell, they are good for any Adult Video business. But for the average webmaster, they really have nothing to offer. There is no way an average webmaster with a family can afford the $3k + or - to go to a show so close to Christmas.

The bottom line to me is they have done great things for the Adult Video Business. But they really haven't done anything for the average webmaster other than overcharge for a show that is a shell of what it once was.

Let me say this really quick. I don't hate AVN. I just believe they really need to have a front man that can make changes that the webmasters (their customers) complain about. Aly did her best but Ray Charles could see that she really couldn't make the changes that are needed.

And let me apologize if it seems that I am lumping you in with AVN. I know you don't represent them and you are only trying to make the Peace.

But that is my point...where is their representative?

Wow, did I get off on a tangent. This really had nothing to do with being on a panel or not, did it? :) For that, I apologize.