When I was still a camming newb, one of the worst problems I had was dealing with slumps, so I thought I might talk about how experienced cam models handle them, and what exactly can be done to minimize their impact on your bottom line. There’s nothing more terrifying for a webcam model than to find herself in the middle of one of these, especially when she hasn’t properly prepared (financially, OR psychologically).
Slumps are basically just periods where you make less money than you usually make. They can be terrifying because, especially when you’re new, you don’t know if they’re going to last, or they’re going to get worse, or what. You’re trying to build a business and you want to be optimistic about your future prospects, but getting hit by a slump can totally knock you off your balance and put you down in the dumps. It takes some time and experience in the industry to understand the camming slump phenomenon, and what you should do about it, so I’m going to share what I’ve learned.
The first thing you need to understand is that slumps affect virtually ALL businesses, no matter the industry. So that means that any self-employed person is likely to run into them, sooner or later. This is a very common issue for those who are their own bosses, so it comes with the territory of not being an employee. I’ve known plenty of people who were self-employed in industries totally unrelated to webcam modeling and who regularly had to deal with slumps.
In the camming world, slumps tend to be more seasonal than in other industries, though. Generally, cam girls report more income declines during the summer months than during other parts of the year. A slump can hit at any time, however, so you should be prepared to encounter one no matter what time of the year it is.
I had a friend who worked at Chaturbate for a year, and she was doing fantastically for like 4 full months. Her room counts were growing, her follower numbers were ballooning rapidly, and she was making more money every month. Her Chaturbate income took a dive after the fourth month, though, and she began to panic. She was frantically trying to figure out what was wrong and was making various changes that she thought might stimulate tipping. She started using more apps, she changed her hair color, she started doing chaturbate lovense shows, and she even started to really ramp up her social media efforts. The slump lasted a couple weeks, then her income skyrocketed. She basically did exactly what you’re supposed to do — mix it up.
Now, honestly, I happen to think her income at Chaturbate would have returned to normal even if she hadn’t mixed up her camming game, and I say that based on experience. But the bright side of running into that slump was that she used it as an opportunity to try new things and experiment with new approaches and styles, which probably contributed to the significant income increases she ultimately saw (and she did have quite a bit of success with the Lovense shows). Nobody ever wants to fix what ain’t broken, right? Well, a slump gives you the opportunity to try some things you wouldn’t otherwise try when times are good.
So yeah, the number one way to deal with slumps is to try new things. Changing hair color and hairstyle is one of my favorite anti-slump measures because it’s easy, and it gives you a nice fresh look (plus I totally love to change my hair!). Getting more aggressive on social media can help a lot too, and it’s not just about posting more content, it’s also about posting DIFFERENT content. Change up what you’re delivering your viewers. Don’t just rely on the same mirror selfies, or twerking videos, or gym pics. You might try playing an instrument on Snapchat, or maybe sing, or dress up in costumes, or tell jokes. Your imagination will produce a lot of cool ideas if you push it.
The second thing you should do to prepare for camming slumps is to SAVE MONEY!! Omg, if I would just listen to this advice more. One of my biggest challenges since I became a camgirl has been putting away money for a rainy day. I don’t know, it’s like there’s always something new to buy, or something I need to spend money on. Like, as my income increases, so do my expenses. It’s weird! But you should try to muster up some saving discipline because having a nice money pot at the ready when a slump hits is the best way to avoid that feeling of dread that all cam models know and despise. Slumps suck balls, but they REALLY suck when you’re broke!
Finally, you need to mentally prepare for slumps when times are good. The best way to do that is to understand them, and remind yourself that they’re temporary and can be mitigated by changing your game, upping your hustle, and being financially responsible (unlike me, haha!). To be honest, the psychological part is probably the hardest, because slumps really do batter down your spirits. I know cam girls who can’t even get out of bed the day after ONE bad camming session — but you can’t let that be you!
If I know anything from my years as a webcam model, it’s that there are up days and down days, but as long as you keep going and have a good strategy, you’ll be heading in the right direction. You’ve got to step back and look at your progress as a whole over time. Slumps don’t last, but you will!!
XOXOXO – Aria