opinion

Hosting Talk: Scaling Back Without Compromising Quality

Budget-trimming has become a part of every business (adult and otherwise) in recent years, an inevitable reaction to sluggish sales that inspires business owners to cut spending, reduce costs and downscale their operations to lessen the financial impact of declining revenues. This process can be painful, as this belt-tightening often is aimed at the heart of the company: its staff.

Eager to avoid that kind of drastic move, many companies scale back on what they consider “extras,” or less essential spending — including scaling back on bandwidth and hosting costs. While this move might seem logical from the outside, it’s a huge mistake in the long run. There are ways to cut costs without cutting corners and getting by with service that “good enough.” Here are two common cut-backs, and what we recommend scaling back on instead:

There are tools and services available that allow you to monitor and reduce consumption without cutting into your site’s total available bandwidth and performance.

Cost Cut: Bandwidth

For video-heavy sites, premium bandwidth is mission critical and worth every penny. Your customers expect — and demand — quality performance: videos that play without buffering, downloads that don’t chug along, and page loads without delays. Discounted bandwidth is appealing for its low sticker price, but the consequences far outweigh the benefits: just one negative experience on your website and you’ve lost a customer. And unhappy members = poor membership retention = decreased revenue, which leads to more cost cutting — it’s the very definition of a “vicious cycle.”

Money Saver: Monitor Consumption

There are tools and services available that allow you to monitor and reduce consumption without cutting into your site’s total available bandwidth and performance. Your current hosting company may offer tools that allow you to see where your bandwidth is being burned, even letting you drilldown to the specific user and IP address, and identify members who are making the heaviest use of your sites. (And if your current host doesn’t offer this option, you can find useful software from outside sources.)

You may find members who are abusing their access, running download managers that pull down content in bulk as quickly as possible — in some cases with the intent of redistributing your content without permission for their own profit. ID these users and throttle their connection — or ban them outright.

Another tip: by monitoring user behavior, you may find that you can save money by changing the way you deliver content. If you find that most users watch only a few minutes of any given scene, but your current delivery method downloads the entire file each time they press “play,” you may want to explore a different streaming option. Adaptive bit rate, for example, streams in real time without downloads or buffering and can save an average of 50 percent of bandwidth use compared to traditional progressive download.

Cost Cut: Hosting

Because hosting isn’t a “visible” expense, it’s easy to consider reducing your program to be a harmless solution. Moving from a dedicated server to a shared plan sounds good on paper, but before you make the call, consider the consequences. Sharing server space costs less, yes, but if your website is your bread and butter, you risk dramatically affecting its performance to the point of profit loss.

Remember: you have less than 30 seconds to engage your viewer, and it takes only a few seconds of delays before he or she clicks away to the competition. Research by Google engineers (reported in the New York Times last year) shows that if your site is slower than a close competitor’s by more than 250 milliseconds, users will stop clicking your way. That’s faster than the blink of an eye. Switching to a cheaper hosting plan will simply slow your website speed and, in turn, risk losing customers to your competition. It’s just not worth it.

Money Saver: Conserve!

This may sound silly, but you’d be surprised at how much money you can save through simple adjustments in behavior and resource allocation at the office. Over time, even something as simple as setting your thermostat a few degrees cooler in the winter (or hotter in the summer) can save thousands of dollars every year, and the same goes for turning off lights and appliances overnight.

We also recommend making changes to your supply use, such as requiring paperless communication and document sharing until the final product is approved. Paper doesn’t come cheap — and it comes from trees, remember? — so implementing a document sharing program (or simply using Google Drive) has helped many of our clients considerably reduce paper, ink and printing costs. It also makes it easier to keep organized and make sure everyone signs off on the final result to avoid costly mistakes.

These cuts may seem insignificant, but they add up over time and save you money in ways that your customers won’t even notice. Because any changes that reduce your site’s performance will only result in further revenue loss, which defeats the purpose of those cuts in the first place.

Steven Daris is CEO and co-founder of Red Apple Media (RedAppleMedia.com), a managed hosting, ecommerce and video streaming solutions provider.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More Articles

profile

WIA Profile: Lexi Morin

Lexi Morin’s journey into the adult industry began with a Craigslist ad and a leap of faith. In 2011, fresh-faced and ambitious, she was scrolling through job ads on Craigslist when she stumbled upon a listing for an assistant makeup artist.

Women In Adult ·
profile

Still Rocking: The Hun Celebrates 30 Years in the Game

In the ever-changing landscape of adult entertainment, The Hun’s Yellow Pages stands out for its endurance. As one of the internet’s original fixtures, literally nearly as old as the web itself, The Hun has functioned as a living archive for online adult content, quietly maintaining its relevance with an interface that feels more nostalgic than flashy.

Jackie Backman ·
opinion

Digital Desires: AI's Emerging Role in Adult Entertainment

The adult industry has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to embracing new technology. From the early days of dial-up internet and grainy video clips to today’s polished social media platforms and streaming services, our industry has never been afraid to innovate. But now, artificial intelligence (AI) is shaking things up in ways that are exciting but also daunting.

Steve Lightspeed ·
opinion

More Than Money: Why Donating Time Matters for Nonprofits

The adult industry faces constant legal battles, societal stigma and workplace challenges. Fortunately, a number of nonprofit organizations work tirelessly to protect the rights and well-being of adult performers, producers and industry workers. When folks in the industry think about supporting these groups, donating money is naturally the first solution that comes to mind.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
opinion

Consent Guardrails: How to Protect Your Content Platform

The adult industry takes a strong and definite stance against the creation or publication of nonconsensual materials. Adult industry creators, producers, processors, banks and hosts all share a vested interest in ensuring that the recording and publication of sexually explicit content is supported by informed consent.

Lawrence G. Walters ·
opinion

Payment Systems: Facilitator vs. Gateway Explained

Understanding and selecting the right payment platform can be confusing for anyone. Recently, Segpay launched its payment gateway. Since then, we’ve received numerous questions about the difference between a payment facilitator and a payment gateway. Most merchants want to know which type of platform best meets their business needs.

Cathy Beardsley ·
opinion

Reinventing Intimacy: A Look at AI's Implications for Adult Platforms

The adult industry has long revolved around delivering pleasure and entertainment, but now it’s moving into new territory: intimacy, connection and emotional fulfillment. And AI companions are at the forefront of that shift.

Daniel Keating ·
profile

WIA: Sara Edwards on Evolving Clip Culture and Creator Empowerment

Though she works behind the scenes, Sara Edwards has had a front-row seat to the evolution of adult content creation. Having been immersed in the sector since 1995, she has a unique perspective on the industry.

Jackie Backman ·
profile

Segpay Marks 20 Years of High-Risk Triumphs

Payment processors are behind-the-scenes players in the world of ecommerce, yet their role is critical. Ensuring secure, seamless transactions while navigating a rapidly changing regulatory landscape requires both technological expertise and business acumen.

Jackie Backman ·
opinion

The SCREEN Test: How to Prepare for Federal Age Verification

For those who are counting, there are now 20 enacted state laws in the United States requiring age verification for viewing online adult content, plus numerous proposed laws in the works. This ongoing barrage has been exhausting for many in the adult industry — and it may be about to escalate in the form of a potential new AV law, this time at the federal level.

Corey D. Silverstein ·
Show More