At a recent Internext seminar I asked a panel of third party payment processors what measures they took to ensure the value of the paysites that they process for. They replied they check the site content matched up to what was promised in the tour in terms of quantity. They said they were unable to decide on the quality, suitability and porn worthiness of a site, claiming it would be different to each viewer.I also asked a reviewer of paysites why he did not review the “porno appeal” of a site; after all, he reviewed everything else from design to download speeds. Again the excuse was it’s difficult to judge, as what appeals to one person will not appeal to another.

Many times I see a girl posted on a message board as “HOT” who is clearly not, or someone explaining that with the right marketing you can sell anything on the adult internet.

Well, if these “professionals” can’t tell the difference between porn and content of naked people then the surfer spending $29.99 a month certainly can. The webmaster or paysite owner who can also spot it will be far more successful because no matter how good you are at marketing, selling good product will produce better returns than selling bad product.

What we do in this business is not rocket science. Software engineering does take some education and intelligence, but the rest is pretty simple. Telling good porn from bad porn is easy if you follow a few basic rules.

Firstly let me explain that these are general rules that cover 90% of what we do. My qualification to tell you them is simply I’ve earned my living by these rules for the last 27 years.

Porn is used by mostly men to arouse and stimulate sexual thoughts. We look at it to get the urge to masturbate or have sex. Therefore it needs to fit a few simple rules.

Does the action look like it’s being enjoyed by the participants? Does it look like these people are doing it for the enjoyment, pleasure and satisfaction or just looking to get paid? This might not apply to a few niches, but as I said this is for 90% of what we do.

Bored models do not look hot… they turn off the consumer. Models looking into a camera with a look that makes you think the photographer had a good chance of getting laid after the shoot will make surfers think he/she could fuck them. Models doing girl/girl or boy/girl looking at each other with lust in their eyes will make the surfer fantasize he could have joined in on the action.

With pictures it’s easy to pull out the bad shots; with videos it’s a lot more difficult. When a model in the middle of a sex scene looks up and gives the impression she is bored, the fantasy is lost.

Positions of models are very important. The way a model reveals herself to the camera can make or break a shot. In terms of solo girl shots, is she showing you that she wants you or not is a simple enough question. In terms of two people, or more, are they interacting with each other in a way that says they want sex, or not?

How attractive a model is does come into it, but I’ve made a lot of money shooting average pretty girls who looked like they wanted to be fucked. Getting the picture crisp, clear and properly exposed helps, but again good money can be made from “readers’ wives” shots: bad pictures of horny models that make the consumer think the lover took the shots immediately before joining in on the action.

Then does the content fit the niche it’s created for? Simple mistakes include “teens” who look 25 years old, glamour shots of girls who are not attractive or have cellulite, or simply girls in the wrong clothing for the scene. Penthouse spends $400 on underwear because their style can’t be shot properly with a model in panties from Wal-Mart. Teens do not wear lace top stockings with suspenders! I actually had someone try to sell me that recently.

So check out everything when buying content for your paysite or free sites and ask yourself if it will get the surfer horny enough to get out his credit card. If you’re sending traffic to a site, take a look inside the site and ask yourself if it’s going to keep your traffic happy. Does it look like just another pile of pictures and videos or is this a site full of horny and hot models?

Most of us are salesmen. One of the first things I learned as a salesman was to empathize with my customers. To think about what their needs and motivations are before my own.

There are some very simple tips to follow when buying content.

First, has the model been shot before by the photographer? Good models get to come back and work again and again, but bad ones get one shoot. Is the content provider selling on price or quality? A good one will have lots of loyal clients who will buy regularly and does not need to discount to sell. Is the content provider busy and adding new content all the time? Shooters make a difference. Some bring out models better than others. These people are selling a lot because they have regular buyers.

Buying brand new sets is a good way to save money and get, for a few weeks, practically exclusive content. This will be content the surfer has not seen… content that is more likely to get you accepted on the better TGP sites with none of it costing a fortune.

But the best tip that I can give you is to look at the content and ask yourself, “Do I think he/she would let me join in?” This is going to be the fantasy of your surfer or member, so make it yours as well.

Is it worth learning how to tell porn form pictures of naked people? Well, would you like to improve your conversion rates by doing nothing more than buying wiser?