Well, problably its a language problem. I'm from Western-Europe and English isn't my mothertounge. Sorry, let my try again.
Why people would think they buy galleries? Well, because many of them are just ordinary people who have no idea about the online adult business and the terms and language which are in use there.
They see a gallery and read that it's to buy. And you can bet, many of them think: "What? For these few photos they want me to pay? They must be crazy." So even when they like a model or scene, they refrain from signing up.
Stupid? I would call people stupid who need a hint by law not to put their pets into a microwave, but not people who don't understand how to buy porn online.
Anyway, I cannot making up poor advertising material that I may get from a sponsor. I have simply not the time, I have to run a live website, you know.
However, I'm wondering at all. In no other branche people say "hell, yeah, we have 10,000 visits and only 14 sign ups. Hell yeah, that is true. But that's the way, that's gods will. So we have to accept that."
In no branche people say so, but seems in the the adult branche they do. Why is that?
Times changed, the market changed, the industry changed. What's wrong with trying new ideas and strategies which take care of these facts? Why accepting this incredible wasting of visits instead to find out how to stop it? That would be smarter business. Just my humble opinion.