Comments on: How the web made way for the $2000 vibrator http://melissagira.com/sexerati/2009/01/08/how-the-web-made-way-for-the-2000-vibrator/ Sex & the internet, by Melissa Gira Grant Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:44:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: Tomorrow Museum » Archive » How the web made way for the $2000 vibrator http://melissagira.com/sexerati/2009/01/08/how-the-web-made-way-for-the-2000-vibrator/#comment-1209 Tomorrow Museum » Archive » How the web made way for the $2000 vibrator Mon, 30 Mar 2009 04:39:22 +0000 http://melissagira.com/sexerati/?p=498#comment-1209 [...] a long day — she won’t feel her intelligence is insulted by sleek, well-designed toys.” - Melissa Gira. Or, as Debauchette once said about Njoy wands, they want something that feels like “fucking [...] [...] a long day — she won’t feel her intelligence is insulted by sleek, well-designed toys.” - Melissa Gira. Or, as Debauchette once said about Njoy wands, they want something that feels like “fucking [...]

]]> By: Suzanne Portnoy http://melissagira.com/sexerati/2009/01/08/how-the-web-made-way-for-the-2000-vibrator/#comment-1129 Suzanne Portnoy Thu, 08 Jan 2009 08:05:57 +0000 http://melissagira.com/sexerati/?p=498#comment-1129 Having once run a sex toy site many years ago and owned quite a few of these expensive toys myself, it will be interesting to see if there really is a market for upscale products. My experience leads me to believe that their audience is way to small to sustain a real business. Many woman haven't ever used a sex toy and if a casual survey of my friends is anything to go by, the only toy they may have is a Rabbit or Rabbit variation. Lelo does have the lead in using superior materials and motors in most of their stuff (the expensive pebble shaped thing being the exception for me). The fact most of their toys are rechargeable is a big bonus and actually makes them seem quite reasonable in the long term. The main issue is always going to be the challenge of finding places to advertise. In the UK it's almost impossible to get a sex toy in newspaper or magazine. I was once told by a journalist working for News International they had a policy of not giving editorial space to phallus shaped sex toys, the rationale being that male readers might be intimidated. Sex bloggers are a great source of publicity but the reality is that the conversion rates are extremely low. The most popular sex bloggers usually sell no more than a handful of toys for the site they are promoting. It's a difficult one. Having once run a sex toy site many years ago and owned quite a few of these expensive toys myself, it will be interesting to see if there really is a market for upscale products. My experience leads me to believe that their audience is way to small to sustain a real business. Many woman haven’t ever used a sex toy and if a casual survey of my friends is anything to go by, the only toy they may have is a Rabbit or Rabbit variation. Lelo does have the lead in using superior materials and motors in most of their stuff (the expensive pebble shaped thing being the exception for me). The fact most of their toys are rechargeable is a big bonus and actually makes them seem quite reasonable in the long term.

The main issue is always going to be the challenge of finding places to advertise. In the UK it’s almost impossible to get a sex toy in newspaper or magazine. I was once told by a journalist working for News International they had a policy of not giving editorial space to phallus shaped sex toys, the rationale being that male readers might be intimidated.

Sex bloggers are a great source of publicity but the reality is that the conversion rates are extremely low. The most popular sex bloggers usually sell no more than a handful of toys for the site they are promoting.

It’s a difficult one.

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