I just watched Watchmecough’s YouTube video ’10 Things I dislike about OnlyFans‘ and just had to write this response post to address a few common concerns.

Although I nodded along to almost everything she shared because I’ve been there before, many of the issues raised are actually either avoidable, or have simple solutions.

I hope this helps!

OnlyFans take 20%

On the surface, this seems unjustifiable, outrageous even.

As frustrating as it may feel that OnlyFans take a 20% cut, keep in mind that you’re using their services to provide your own.

Company commission is common in most creative industries: publishing, modelling, teaching, YouTube etc.

20% pails in comparison to the 55% YouTube take away from their creators.

In the publishing industry, author’s only get a 10% cut. 10%! The majority goes to the publisher. Ouch.

Take Teachable, who charge their creators over $100 per month to use their platform.

Worse than that, some course creators aren’t even allowed to distribute their courses elsewhere.

Look on the bright side

With OnlyFans, the internet is your oyster. OnlyFans do not own your work and won’t prevent you from distributing it elsewhere.

You have access to audiences who already use and trust the platform, and you pay nothing.

Honestly, keeping 80% is kind of incredible.

I wouldn’t be all surprised if this amount decreases overtime, considering YouTube’s initial 40% cut crept up to 55% in 2016.

In 2020, OnlyFans cut affiliate commission in half and capped potential earnings $1,000,000 per creator. It used to be 10% lifetime, now it’s 5% on the first year. 

Airbnb did something similar, offering their affiliates 25% commission on guest fees before cancelling the scheme completely. 

Enjoy your majority cut and be grateful for the free service you’re able to take advantage of.

Maybe the problem is that you put all of your eggs in one basket?

One of the most freeing things about working on OnlyFans is that you don’t work for them, but through them. 

You could diversify on other platforms or even sell your worn underwear on Sophia Gray. 
*Use CODE: OnlyFans101for 10% off.

How to diversify your OnlyFans income

• Make merchandise 
• Sell on social media
• Sell worn underwear
• Create a Patreon profile
• Create your own website
• Use alternative sex work platforms

Just know that you cannot promote these additional income streams on OnlyFans and will be warned if you do. 

It’s difficult to gain subscribers

“I wish there was another way you could promote yourself without having such a big following”

Let me let you in on a little secret…

There is!

There are two main ways you can attract an audience if you’re starting from scratch.

But before I delve into them, let’s consider how little sense this hang up makes.

All you’re expressing is that influencers with existing audiences established themselves before you.   

They worked x amount of months or years to get where they are now, and you can do the same. You’re just a few steps behind.

You can get there too if you put the work in.

However, you do not need to start with a following to be successful on OnlyFans. You’ll just need to grow one as you go.

How to attract an OnlyFans audience if you have no following

Public promotions

Rather than sulking about your lack of subscribers, make yourself known to your ideal audience.

The main platform I’d recommend is Reddit as it allows users to target specific audiences.

The trick is to create consistent content with a specific community in mind.

Choose your most fetishised features and run with those.

For example, if you’re a curvy red head with thick thighs and glasses, you should post to r/curvy, r/redheads, r/thickthighs, r/girlswithglasses.

Twitter is another NSFW friendly platform you can promote on, although, it can feel like putting content out into the abyss if you’re not already established. 

I much prefer Reddit as it allows me to find people who are looking for what I personally provide. 

Regardless of the platform you pick, you should aim to promote and engage regularly.

Nurturing your free followers is vital. Aim to incentivise them to subscribe.

I’m not saying you should have private conversations, this would be a huge waste of your time, but definitely reply to comments to boost your posts.

You should expect to see around 1-3% of your free followers converting to paying subscribers.

Remember, growth in this industry is exponential.  

Your initial growth may be slow but once the ball is rolling, there’s no slowing down unless you slam the breaks on intentionally.

Paid promotions

Another way to grow if you’re starting from scratch is to pay established OnlyFans creators to promote you on their page.

Just be careful not to be too trusting of creators who boast about being in the top x%

I read an article recently by an ex-OnlyFans creator who said she’d paid a top 7% creator £20 and it went down the drain.

This is not surprising. It’s unlikely this top 7% creator is even managing to cover rent with her OnlyFans income.

Paid promotions only work if the creator is in your niche with a significant following, so be sure to ask how many followers they have.

OnlyFans doesn’t inform creators if fans takes screen shots

Unlike snapchat, OnlyFans don’t alert users when their contacts take a screen shot.

This is not a feature I’m about to defend.

There’s no reason at all OnlyFans aren’t able to implement this feature. Why not tweet them publicly and encourage others to do the same?

Plagiarism could be prevented or at least reduced if they put this measure in place.

On the bright side, some users have reported an increase in subscribers when leaks have occurred.

Just be sure to watermark your content and remain within your personal boundaries.

Once it’s out, it’s out.

People who message outside of only fans

You wouldn’t believe the audacity of some free followers on public platforms.

Here’s how I get around this issue:

Hi, thanks for stopping by! ♥️
I’d love to chat but I promised priority to my favourites list. Here’s a link if you’d like to reserve a spot ___. 
Ruby x

I also have ‘I only respond to DMs on OnlyFans!’ In my bio, but some still slip through the cracks.

Just know that you do not, under any circumstances, need to reply to or even read messages outside of OnlyFans.

More often than not, doing so is a huge waste of time.

Turn your DMs off and only reply to public comments. Doing so will give your post a boost in the algorithm and allow your community to connect with you on a more personal level without wasting your time.

It’s not next day money

What job is?

Going back to what I was saying earlier, don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.

When I worked on YouTube, some brands would pay me 60 days later! 

Once, I assumed I’d be payed instantly and booked a trip to Thailand and was broke when I got there. You live and you learn.

At least with OnlyFans, the wait is only nine days. 

People who subscribe without reading bio

OnlyFans is a very visual platform so it’s best to keep your bio brief.

If you think they might be missing your bio, try shortening or rewording your bio and remind them in your welcome message to set the record straight. 

If you’ve made your products and services clear, subscribers cannot complain. Or at least, they shouldn’t. 

Don’t feel bad if they got it wrong. All you can do is try to improve your marketing methods.

Unsolicited dick pics

Aren’t they gross?

It’s entirely up to you how you handle them.

You could consider warning them before blocking as there’s a chance they didn’t realise you don’t offer dick ratings.

Many creators include genital ratings with their subscriptions, so sometimes it’s a simple misunderstanding.

Other creators charge clients for sending photos, you could try this if you’re comfortable.

Otherwise, make it abundantly clear that you do NOT want to receive pictures and doing so will result in an immediate ban.

Societal stigma

Depending on where in the world you live, societal stigma may be better or worse than other areas.

Generally speaking, most cultures are hypocritical.

People watch and enjoy porn, then shame the people who produce it. It makes no sense.

You need thick skin to exist in this industry, so props to you for trying to push past stigma.

If you haven’t already, immerse yourself in sex work communities. They’re a place you’ll be welcomed by likeminded, progressive people who won’t degrade and judge you.

Social media burn out

This I can relate to a lot.

Have you tried using social media schedulers like Tailwind?

If not, I couldn’t recommend it enough. Tailwind lets you line up your social media posts weeks in advance so you don’t need to constantly promote.

It’s honestly a life saver, especially for people like me who fizzle out easily.

OnlyFans is over saturated

This is a lie many need to let go of. 

As hard as it may be, you’re going to need to drop this mindset immediately. 

There is enough room on OnlyFans for everyone.

Consider that creators outnumber clients massively. There are 20 million of them and 1 million of us.

You’re high demand, low supply.

Don’t forget it.

Obviously, higher quality accounts outperform lower quality accounts, so you’ll need to continuously improve, just don’t make it a competition.

OnlyFans is not a competition

The only person you’re competing with is your past self. Aim to outperform her every time.

Keep in mind that this is a long game, not a winning lottery ticket.

More than likely, you’re working very hard, and well done!

But you could be working very hard with the wrong social media marketing methods.

Maybe it’s time to implement a few changes to see some improvements?