By Tina D.
Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, oh my! WTF do I do, and where do I start? I have no followers! How do I start from ground zero?
If these worries and frustrations have crossed your mind, you’re not alone. No one said webcam models grow their social media overnight, or in a week, but it’s not impossible. You just have to start somewhere.
With hundreds of new cam models joining Stripchat every day, as a marketing professional, I run into the same issue: models lacking social media. It’s great that Stripchat is newbie-friendly and all — and new cam models kick ass on their broadcasts — but all models could be reeling in more traffic (and tips) with the power of social media.
I personally send cammers a private message or email to find out whether they have Twitter and Instagram accounts so I can help promote them. For the ones who stay dedicated, our social media team also will get them new followers to boost their popularity. If a cam model is workin’ it, why not help her out? It’s a white-glove approach, but it works and brings enthusiasm to models.
The best advice I can give is open social accounts before you broadcast. Think of stage name first, then check the social networks to see if that stage name is taken. To grow (and have potential fans find you), it’s a good idea to keep your stage name consistent on all your social channels.
For the adult world, it’s best you use Twitter and Instagram. Facebook isn’t adult-friendly, but there is some utility there if you know the tricks. So, for Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, if you want to grow your followers, get more traffic to your shows and earn more money much easier, take a look at the tips and strategies below.
Twitter is the most adult-friendly social platform; you can promote your model self (and … ahem … assets) full-throttle. When you open your account, followers won’t just flock to you (just yet). You’ll need to start following some influencers, models and promoters of the adult industry. Dedicate an hour or so and follow people; try for 50 accounts a day. For example, you can search by hashtags like #camgirls and follow other cam models.
Then, here’s a trick: Check out who liked the tweets and follow those accounts. Rinse and repeat.
Also, check out other cam models’ pages and see which Twitter handles they’re tagging. Many times, they’ll be promoters or their cam site. Curiosity is a good thing here, because you’ll want to check out these promoters and reach out to them for a retweet when you post something. You can also mention some cam girl promoters in your tweets to score retweets. But be careful and don’t include promoters in every tweet, or you’ll look like a spambot.
What content should you be tweeting? Keep things interesting by including:
- Erotic photos and videos of yourself in sexy lingerie or costumes.
- When you’ll be online next and a photo of yourself or what’s to come.
- Thanking your top tippers for an amazing experience.
- Polls about anything: favorite movies, food, controversial topics, etc.
- Tweeting other models (and you can ask them to return the favor).
I’ve just been tipped 1000 tokens on @Stripchat!Thanks YourManOnly! #stripchat #stripmenow #striptokens .stripchat.com/carlalovell
— Carla Lovell ?? (@carlalovell17) August 23, 2017
Don’t kill your posts with hashtags. Aim for two or three and look at Twitter’s sidebar for trending tags of the day. It’s a good idea to post three to six tweets a day, as Twitter is a feed that changes content very rapidly.
Make sure to include your Twitter username in your model profile page or when you go offline. This way users know where to connect with you when you’re not performing.
Try this trick: Make money with your twitter account by setting your Twitter profile private. This means you’ll have to grant access for others to see your posts. Tell your viewers that for “X” amount of tokens, you’ll give them access your Twitter account.
As I mentioned, Facebook is not the most adult-friendly site, but you can still use it to your advantage. Create a fan page or a username profile. I think username profiles are much more effective, as Facebook’s algorithm works in favor of people as opposed to fan pages. Unless you plan to do some kind of paid advertising to gain likes or get email addresses, a Facebook page may not be your best bet.
Caution: Don’t add your personal friends to your model account, because you’ll pop up in the suggestion section for others that may know you to see you (if you want to stay private and not let friends/family find out).
When you have your new model Facebook username, start joining groups. Just enter in Facebook’s search “Camgirls, Webcam models, Webcam girls…” You get the picture. Join a few groups to see which will be best to promote yourself.
Facebook isn’t friendly with adult links in posts, so don’t even dare. You will get caught. Just avoid posting links in groups and on your personal feed. For all the new fans (friends) you gain, though, you can message them your link to your room. That’s okay, because it’s private messaging.
Instagram is a fantastic viral tool for webcam models and a must for self-promotion. Instagram is one of the best places to share photos and videos easily, as well as create live stories. Again, try to make your model stage name match your Instagram user account name and include the link to your cam room in your bio.
Now, let’s get to how to use Instagram to get more followers. You’ll notice everything is connected to reaching out to your cam fans and getting new ones to come check out your show.
A few checkpoints for cam girls using Instagram:
- Upload quality media, not blurry, poor-quality shots and videos.
- Tag, tag, tag. Use relevant hashtags in your post; try 10 tags that showcase your post.
- Follow other people you’re interested in — promoters, models, your fans, etc.
- Comment on photos. You want to get noticed? You need to comment on others’ photos.
- Use InstaStories. Try uploading different kinds of footage: when you’re about to cam, something during your day, while you’re at the gym, etc.
Another tip worth mentioning is to message (or DM) for shout outs. Stripchat models actually DM our team for mentions and tags, and then we’ll prepare them for posting. There are a bunch of cam model promoters giving shout outs and tagging models in the photos. Some may ask for some money or an exchange of service. You’ll have to DM them and see the actual terms. But there are promoters willing to help you out even for free.
There are more strategies, but these are a good baseline for social media in the webcam modeling world.
When you’re ready to move up a level in your social media mastery, and if using all the social networks becomes overwhelming, check out schedulers like Buffer and Hootsuite. You can schedule all your social postings in advance and also get insights as to what is working best on those networks. More on that in a future post.
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Tina D. is the social media and marketing manager for Stripchat. Find Stripchat on Twitter at @Stripchat.
