Are You Too Hot for Social Media? Not Anymore!

It’s no secret Facebook has more traffic than just about anyone else. According to Alexa, the social media monster currently ranks No. 3 globally. It’s also no secret that Facebook selectively enforces its community standards regarding nudity and “graphic” content, as well as not-so-subtly discriminating against work-related sexy content.

Though insulting, a site like Facebook certainly is free to do as it pleases, and people whose work requires a bit of the ol’ *wink wink* are under no obligation to use the site. Facebook’s cultural ubiquity and crushing internet presence, however, make it hard to ignore. We want that traffic. We need that traffic. But as people who work in “graphic” content, chances are we’re not going to be able to get it.

Until now.

Launched in April 2015, 2Hot4FB.com claims to have found a way for models to tap into Facebook traffic without getting banned for violating community standards. I met 2Hot’s founder, long time industry innovator Steve Lightspeed, at YNOT Party Austin recently and was super-intrigued by the service, but also a little skeptical. No way was Facebook gonna go for this. But apparently they do. Here’s how, with model Jacqui Childs to demonstrate:

1. Upload your pic to 2Hot — something that’s too hot for Facebook’s community standards but not so hot that it violates 2Hot’s terms of service (e.g. no hardcore, etc).

2. Edit your pic with fun stickers — smiley faces, sunshines, flowers, and the like — making it more “teasing” than rule-violating.

3. Post your edited sticker pic to Facebook along with its 2Hot link.

A recent post on Facebook

4. If people want to see the unedited version, they click the link, which shuttles them over to 2Hot. The image is still SFW, but fans can click on the image one more time to see the unedited version.

Jacqui Childs’ pic as it appears on 2Hot before the click-reveal.

Of Note: Childs has two Facebook profiles, one with more than 100,000 followers and another with over 2 million. That’s a lot of risk to be taking with boobies and sunshine stickers, but apparently it’s working.

Models and photographers who share their work risk getting banned from social media platforms every day. Even the old standby Twitter may be changing its terms soon. Consequently, outside of referral bonuses and affiliate marketing, there’re very few effective ways to monetize social media popularity.

2Hot works on most social media sites (Facebook, tumblr, Twitter, Google+ etc), and it enables models and photographers to make that money. The website sells ad space and shares the ad revenue based on user-generated traffic. According to 2Hot, the average earning per post is U.S. $2.84, with the record payout for a single post being U.S. $288.30.

There are also some interesting bonus features. 2Hot reviews your uploads to make sure you’re maintaining community standards, which will keep you from getting banned. They also have a service called “Stalk-O-Matic,” where they email everyone who has asked to follow you on social media when you post something new. They provide detailed stats showing every hit on every photo, honing in on what kind of content appeals most to your fans and which relationships are worth cultivating. And they don’t allow anyone to post stolen content, so dudes can’t make money off your pictures — at least not without your consent.

If you cam on a network, you should definitely check to make sure 2Hot doesn’t violate any rules on that end. Otherwise, this service sounds like a clever way to make some extra cash and harness the power of the previously unharnessable Facebook whale. And if I’m being totally honest, rather than have all our toys taken away by things like the U.K.’s Digital Economy Bill, which is moving forward as we speak, sometimes compromise is necessary. As a community, I would rather the adult industry self-censor than be censored out of existence externally.

—

Tell us your news! Follow YNOT Cam on Twitter at @ynot_cam and/or email erika@ynotcam.com.