IN THE SPOTLIGHT

BannerMaster Matt is the President and CEO of Bannermaster Inc., and the designer for the newly-established site, YNOTBOB.com, but Matt’s job duties go far beyond the management aspects of the company.IN THE SPOTLIGHT

BannerMaster Matt is the President and CEO of Bannermaster Inc., and the designer for the newly-established site, YNOTBOB.com, but Matt’s job duties go far beyond the management aspects of the company. He says, “Deep in my heart I am a developer, and I seem to get most satisfaction out of development work, whether it’s graphic design or programming. If you create something out of nothing and that something helps someone make more money and live a better, fuller life, it has to make you happy.”

According to Matt, Bannermaster’s mission is to provide unorthodox, creative, high-quality design and development solutions that can “help our clients strengthen their bottom line. Our products are not only meant to be pretty looking, we try not to forget that the main purpose is to make money. We thrive on originality.”

All the sites, banners and graphics Bannermaster creates are made from scratch and developed with certain goals in mind. Matt says, “I believe the experience we have gathered throughout the years allows us to identify the strengths and possible weaknesses of our products ahead of time so that we can address them while developing user-centric products as opposed to post-development adjustments. Such processes enables us to deploy a stronger, more focused Websites that require very little fine-tuning in order to maximize surfer-to-customer transformation. Our clients seem to recognize that.”

Let’s find out how Matt got into the industry …

YNOT: What drew you to the industry?
Matt: I have started my Internet journey developing mainstream sites. I realized that what I really wanted is to drop the suit and tie and do something that will allow a higher level of personal freedom, something that will present a daily challenge and provide a high level of satisfaction. The money prospect wasn’t out of the picture either. Adult business seemed to be a natural choice and I don’t think I have to explain the different excitement levels between working on “Joey’s boiler repair service” site and an adult Website!

YNOT: What type of work were you doing, if any, before you started in the biz?
Matt: I co-owned a “small business computer services” company that specialized in deployment of small LAN’s and contractual tech support for small businesses. It was boring comparing to what we deal with today.

YNOT: Where did you begin gathering info about the business and when did you get your start?
Matt: In 1995, I started a mainstream web development company, and after a few months, I decided to build a few generic adult free sites and put them online to see how they will do. When after a few months we put them online and started making money, I knew what line of work I would be in, in the near future… A few months after launching my first sites (mid 1996) I was approached by a webmaster asking me to develop a “professional-looking adult site” and after some research I found out that there were virtually no Adult designers to speak of at the time. It was a call for action that we responded to.

YNOT: Did you already have friends in the business?
Matt: Well, at the time adult webmaster hangouts were virtually non-existent. To the best of my knowledge YNOT was in pre-conception stages, existing only in Rick’s (YNOT founder’s) head, therefore, relationships with other webmasters took some time to establish. I remember an adult webmaster message board with 2 -3 posts a day… as far as I can tell it was the only board around at the time and I corresponded and traded links with people posting there. As the time went by, I have established a lot of great relationships, met literally hundreds of interesting and stimulating people that I feel privileged to know and deal with.

YNOT: Give us your thoughts on how easy or difficult it was for you to get started.
Matt: I think it was not as difficult as it would be right now. At the time when we started, we were doing more adult than mainstream development. There was basically no competition and business grew steadily. A few years later it started becoming more competitive as new designers began to pop up everywhere. Today, I think adult web development market entry would be more difficult.

YNOT: What changes would you like to see made in the adult Internet industry?
Matt: There are several problems that are industry-wide; I think our image as perceived by outsiders should be our common primary concern. In addition it would be healthy for all of us to have a vocal, independent and strong lobbying group that would be supported by all the people involved in the Internet Adult Industry; they could represent our interests in Washington. It may be the key to the future for us…

YNOT: What do you love about the adult internet industry?
Matt: Most of all, I love the fact that I can do what I love to do without wearing a suit and tie every day. I love the dynamic atmosphere and people we get to do business with. I love the laid back, relaxed atmosphere of this business and good webmaster parties.

YNOT: What do you find funny in this business?
Matt: Funny? YNOT Bob’s appearances on DoKK’s radio show (Albumside.com) are a blast to me…. We need more of that stuff!

YNOT: What do you dislike?
Matt: I don’t like scam artists and gone-by-night “businesses” that rip people off and disappear just to resurface a few months later under different name. Got hit a few times, probably just like anyone else…

YNOT: What are your thoughts on the future of the adult Internet industry?
Matt: We are reaching a critical saturation point, and soon smaller operations may find it an easier option to sell than fight an uneven battle. In my opinion, mergers, acquisitions and buyouts will be the order of the day.

YNOT: Where do you see yourself in one year? Five years?
Matt: We are involved in a very fast paced industry that makes it difficult to predict anything. BMI is a very flexible company and we have some exciting projects lined up for the future; all I can say at this moment however, is that we will be here in five years from now and will be as dedicated to serving our clients as we have always been. As for the hosting part of our business we are developing a contingency plan that will enable us to move our servers offshore without service interruptions in order to protect our clients and our company from possible reprecussions of changes in the U.S. law.

YNOT: If you had one bit advice you could offer new Webmasters, what would it be?
Matt: Do everything possible to maintain integrity and establish yourself as an honest businessperson. Work hard and be honest with yourself and those you deal with, if you do – the results will come. Good luck.