+ Sigma lions, trad wifeonomics, ChatGPT glazing, Veo 3 Tokers, AI's incel problem, a Zohran lookalike contest, Jersey Shore nails, and the fight about the universe tearing the cosmologists apart
The boom in OnlyFans billboards is being driven by two main factors. For one, the popularity of OnlyFans as a platform is skyrocketing. As of November 2023, OnlyFans had over 4.1 million creators, which was a 29% year-over-year increase from the year prior. In 2023 alone, approximately 936,000 new creator accounts were added to the platform.
As the platform becomes more saturated, however, attracting subscribers becomes more competitive. Digital advertising options are limited for OnlyFans stars because of restrictions on adult content. Social media platforms and digital ad networks bar ads for NSFW profiles or don’t offer OnlyFans stars premium ad space. Billboards, however, aren’t subject to the same restrictions.
“Billboards can’t be shadowbanned, can’t be muted, and can’t be scrolled past,” said Andrew Bachman, the CEO and founder of Creators Inc., one of the largest management agencies in the OnlyFans space. “When everybody’s going Jetsons, going Flintstones, is kind of a flex. And for a world that now lives online, nothing hits harder [for these creators] than seeing your name and your face lit up in the real world.”
Bachman said that billboards are also incredibly effective for OnlyFans stars. They allow creators to reach the masses in a way that doesn’t feel invasive, and help the biggest creators skyrocket to even more mainstream fame. Baker reported that her billboard led to a 200% increase in her subscriber count. Chloe Amour, who has a billboard up in Los Angeles said that she’s gained about 70 new subscribers per day from her billboard, leading to thousands of dollars in monthly subscription revenue.
Bachman said that Creators Inc. often purchases billboards for their talent, especially around major key events like Coachella or Miami Swim Week. “For us, it’s a turf war,” he said.
“Billboards work because they hit everybody,” said Sam Betesh, an influencer marketing expert who has worked with OnlyFans. “With OnlyFans, the market is really broad, and so you want to reach as many people as possible. The best way to monetize a big, broad audience is OnlyFans.”
I wrote more about the history of OnlyFans billboard advertising for Passionfruit:
Though the OnlyFans billboard trend is newer, adult entertainers have used billboards for decades as part of their marketing strategies, especially in cities like Las Vegas and Los Angeles. In May 2003, porn star Jenna Jameson appeared on a 48 foot tall billboard in New York City’s Times Square, promoting her website and movies. The ad featured her wearing a thong with the tagline, “Who says they cleaned up Times Square?”
Porn companies have also purchased billboards to promote their talent and platforms. Porn website Brazzers promoted male porn star Keiran Lee with a billboard on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles in 2011. Just a few years later, in 2014, Pornhub launched a G-rated billboard in Times Square featuring two hands making a heart and the tagline, “all you need is a hand.”
These advertising efforts, however, have not come without backlash. PornHub’s billboard was removed after two days because of public backlash.
Eliza Rose Watson couldn’t place her billboard within 100 meters of a school. An OnlyFans star known as Savannah, who purchased a billboard in Perth, Australia, received hundreds of complaints. The complaints led to an investigation by Ad Standards Australia.
The investigation ruled in Savannah’s favor, allowing her to continue advertising. Some billboards have also suffered vandalism. Amour’s billboard has been repeatedly defaced and torn down. It continues to be resurrected, however, despite attempts at removal.
Usually, it’s the OnlyFans stars themselves or their management companies buying billboards. However, last year, a large billboard was erected in Los Angeles seemingly to get the attention of Kazumi. Kazumi is a porn star and OnlyFans influencer with millions of followers who is expert at crafting viral stunts.
A billboard suddenly cropped up with her face and the message “Kazumi please notice me! PS your OnlyFans is the best.” She later published a video purportedly seeking to find what “simp” had purchased the billboard in her honor.
The rate for billboard advertising varies. Amour pays an estimated $8,000 and $10,000 for her billboard in Los Angeles, but rates depend on where the ad is placed and how long it runs.
Jeffrey Rosenberg, CEO and founder of Shoot the Moon, a media agency specializing in out-of-home advertising, said that billboards deliver double value because of the impact images of billboards can have online. People take photos and share them to social media, where the ad spreads ever further.
“When you look at the digital landscape,” Rosenberg said, “it’s gotten more and more saturated. CPMs continue to rise. With out-of-home [advertising] not only are you creating this impactful, unavoidable, tangible format out in the real world, but you’re able to leverage that online and create a ton of earned media.”
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What I’m reading
Why Do Lawyers Keep Using ChatGPT?
One attorney called it a ‘super search engine.’ –The Verge
Gen Z Loves ‘Old Money’ Sports. The Old Money Isn’t Pleased.
Young Americans are getting into country club sports like golf and tennis, sparking a culture clash with boomers and Gen X. –Business Insider
The Nobel Prize Winner Who Thinks We Have the Universe All Wrong
Cosmologists are fighting over everything. –The Atlantic
Teachers Are Not OK
AI, ChatGPT, and LLMs "have absolutely blown up what I try to accomplish with my teaching." - 404 Media
Curtis Yarvin’s Plot Against America
The reactionary blogger’s call for a monarch to rule the country once seemed like a joke. Now the right is ready to bend the knee. - New Yorker
There’s No Trumponomics Without the Tradwife
Amid all the discussion of sending men back to factories, where are the women? –Intelligencer
How Butterworth’s Became the New Scene in Trump’s Washington
Right-wing insiders, caviar bumps and protests at a see-and-be-seen Capitol Hill restaurant. - NY Times
Pablo Torre’s Unique Media Journey
Torre had to leave ESPN to carve out a spot mixing the silly, the salacious, and the smart. –The Athletic
A little-known ‘dark roof’ lobby may be making US cities hotter
As cities heat up, reflective roofs could lower energy bills and help the climate. But dark-roofing manufacturers are waging a quiet campaign to block new rules. –The Guardian
