What do you do when Google, Meta, TikTok, and every other ad platform shut the door in your face? You break the rules, rewrite the playbook, and scale anyway.
In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, I talk with Pauline Schmiechen: badass founder, consultant, and builder of multiple high-traffic adult platforms, who’s thriving in the shadows of mainstream media.
With 3 million+ users a month and zero access to traditional ad platforms, Pauline isn’t asking for permission...she’s building power in places most marketers are too afraid to look.
Here’s what we dive into:
- Why “intimacy is the new currency” in digital marketing
- How TrafficJunky, Telegram groups, and SEO still outperform when used right
- Creative campaigns like billboards, Discords, and even a plane over Coachella
- Fanblast, the WhatsApp/iMessage platform giving creators a direct line to fans (and revenue) and why Pauline’s all-in on it
- The myth that “nobody pays for porn” (they do...and, shocker, it’s billions)
- The backlash, the double standards, and why Pauline still shows up fully clothed at her laptop like every other founder you know
We also dig into the real reason OnlyFans exploded and why traditional marketing can’t handle industries built on human behavior, emotion, and connection.
This isn’t about adult content. It’s about stigma, scale, and what happens when creators and marketers get locked out of the “acceptable” world...and still thrive.
🔗 Resources & Mentions:
📬 Subscribe to explore what’s real (and what’s just noise):
Host
Adam W. Barney
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Ruthie's Table 4
For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, activists, and politicians. Michael Caine, Glenn Close, JJ Abrams, Steve McQueen, Victoria and David Beckham, and Lily Allen, are just some of the people who love to call The River Cafe home. On River Cafe Table 4, Rogers sits down with her customers—who have become friends—to talk about food memories. Table 4 explores how food impacts every aspect of our lives. “Foods is politics, food is cultural, food is how you express love, food is about your heritage, it defines who you and who you want to be,” says Rogers. Each week, Rogers invites her guest to reminisce about family suppers and first dates, what they cook, how they eat when performing, the restaurants they choose, and what food they seek when they need comfort. And to punctuate each episode of Table 4, guests such as Ralph Fiennes, Emily Blunt, and Alfonso Cuarón, read their favourite recipe from one of the best-selling River Cafe cookbooks. Table 4 itself, is situated near The River Cafe’s open kitchen, close to the bright pink wood-fired oven and next to the glossy yellow pass, where Ruthie oversees the restaurant. You are invited to take a seat at this intimate table and join the conversation. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to https://shoptherivercafe.co.uk/ Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/therivercafelondon/ Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iheartradio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.