Interesting Read

And I can confirm some of it from my brief time working in adult. The business has been hit hard by piracy and the economy, but there are still ways for them to make good money. Nowadays, the primary thing that girls need to do is to try and market themselves and establish their names. This opens up other options for them such as feature dancing, webcamming and skype shows, custom DVD's, escorting.  They need to target those that will become hardcore fans.  The casual fan or porn watcher most likely just uses the tube sites to watch porn, they're highly unlikely to pay for anything.  However, the diehard fans will spend BIG bucks on their favorite stars.

Staying relevant is also very important, and it's always a topic.  I tend to think that prolonging the transition from various levels of hardcore might be more profitable and better overall than coming out and doing the filthiest stuff right away.  I'm curious to see if some of the current big name teen porn stars are around in a few years.  The ones I'm thinking of already do anal, gang bangs, IR scenes.  Sure, this gives them a wide variety of scenes that they can get paid for, but it also will lead to people potentially getting bored of them quicker.  I also would imagine that by drawing things out with an "anal debut" or "DP debut," the girls can increase the $$$ for said scenes

I'd consider her in the top 10%, maybe top 2-5%, but like you said she's a BUSINESS person.

but the problem is shoots are down due to Piracy, internet,  plus proliferation of women entering it, there's a good read bout the biz from Christian XXX on his blog - whether or not you like the guy he has a pretty level assesment of wht goes on

ALTHOUGH new things like MILF & Creampie - porn keep cuming up with something new to help longevity.

but back to a more typical pornstar - she tries to break in, and the majority are begging to get a couple scenes a month, BUT if they are smart  and can tough it out a year, they can have enough credits and enter the really lucrative world of escorting, where just 2 gigs a week can bring in $1600 cash minimum.   but a lot of girls can't essentially run things themselves, spend a lot don't save, have agents picking off a lot of percentage, etc.   but even escorting is competitive, and the best ones have 5-10 'regulars which only makes them more selective.   The best escorts do get that $250k/year income, but that's rare.   and then there's the 'shelf life'  - it's a high wear and tear biz (except for a select few) with the compartmentalization, regulars regularly falling in love causing them not to be regulars, etc. lol

it's a tough gig, but for those that love sex, have good (don't need great) looks, they can really bank  a lot of cash, not to mention they can come upon some nice 'help' from attornies, accountants, web-masters, etc. at a discount.

plus the new girls can often get dragged down the road of doing more hard-core (anal, DPs, gang bang) that if done repetitively is more conducive to burn-out

smart ones will just work hard, supplement with cam work, etc. , limit their scenes, and get establshed as upper-end escorts  

but I bet the average porn star does about $35-$40 gross only per year,  and that is maybe high - so clearly the escort work is where they are going to cash and get into that 6 figure range and u

I don't understand how people say there is so many stars who are now escorting due to the tough economy, but I just dont see that many adds in the Porn Star adds section.  I feel like I am missing out on some mysterious place where all these out of work stars post their adds.

tiers

the porn biz is a highly selective one..there are the girls who pull down 50k a month with ease..the ones who are barely making ends meet..and the ones who will never quite make it..marketing..escorting..picking the right agency..the scenes they choose to do affects it..you can have all the looks in the world but if you dont have that " it " factor..you will languish in the mire..