Rethinking the ad revenue model
Advertising is dead. At least on my website it is. For the foreseeable future.
I have never really been a fan of banner ads. Many of them are poorly designed and only serve to add visual clutter to the site. More importantly though, they haven’t provided much of a compelling financial return. (Let’s not forget that roughly a third of the readership elects to block ads altogether.)
There has to be a better method of generating revenue for what essentially constitutes a “free” website. I enjoy making comics. I will never charge for viewing the content on my site. But the reality is, making comics and writing blog posts takes time and energy. Being a family man, my priorities are simple: Spend time on things that help me help my family. It stands to reason that being compensated for my efforts makes it easier to justify the time spent.
Yes. There is the merchandise route. I do offer items for sale, and they have sold well (thank you!) – but the crux of going with that route is – I can’t (and don’t want) to be on a merchandise-making treadmill.
I want to focus on making comics.
I view merchandise sales as a form of support for what constitutes free content, but not the end all answer.
Currently, I’m researching two separate options. The first is Patreon, which allows readers to support and engage with creators. Other online comic creators, like Zach Weinersmith (of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal and Jon Rosenberg (of Scenes from a Multiverse) seem to have garnered solid support via that approach.
The second option I’m considering is to have one to two curated ads on the site, with a few sponsored posts (again, curated by me) – much like Daring Fireball and Shawn Blanc. I would have the right to refuse ads or sponsorship that aren’t a good fit for the site or my readership.
At this point, I’m leaning towards both of the above options. But maybe there are other methods that I’m overlooking. In any event, banner ads are done for on my site.
-Krishna
Adam Young
December 19, 2013 at 3:05 amI hope you can work things out. These past few years it seems like the bottom has fallen out of the ad revenue market. You need more and bigger ads to keep up the return which drives people away (which starts a vicious cycle).
I, for one, don’t use ad block on any site and haven’t for years. Once I realised how I was hurting the creators that I love, like yourself, I couldn’t keep using it.
If you decide to go down the Patreon route then I’ll support you. The last couple years I’ve started directly supporting the content creators I love; mostly through PayPal recurring payments and subscriptions. This way I know the money goes where it’s needed. I can usually only afford $1-4 a month since I give to so many different people (including now SMBC), but I just hope other fans like me do the same.
Krishna M. Sadasivam
December 19, 2013 at 6:45 amThanks, Adam. I should arrive at a decision at the beginning of the new year, once the site’s fully operational. I’m liking the Patreon model quite a bit, but I’d like to know of any possible downsides, too. i.e. how is it different than a Paypal donation with incentives?
Adam Young
December 19, 2013 at 8:39 amFrom my, granted limited, understanding the main differences are that readers only pay once “goals” have been met. So you’d pledge for, say, a minimum of 8 strips a month, but if you only did 4 then the money wouldn’t come through. That way people would know what they’re paying for.
I’d also imagine Patreon would also handle more of the back end stuff like payments and rewards. Though I think their cut is higher than PayPal (which is understandable).
Krishna M. Sadasivam
December 19, 2013 at 8:40 amThat makes sense – I can see why it has been referred to as “an ongoing Kickstarter”. Thanks, Adam!
Adam Young
December 19, 2013 at 8:57 amAnother difference to PayPal is that with PP recurring payments they are taken, say, every month from the date the person set it up. With Patreon the money would come as a lump sum every month (or whenever the goal is met) instead. This could be something to consider for cash flow reasons too.
Krishna M. Sadasivam
December 19, 2013 at 9:00 amgood point. I would prefer the lump sum approach. It streamlines the process… I think you’re talking me into Patreon, Adam. ;)
Adam Young
December 19, 2013 at 6:40 pmThank you. Though PLEASE double check this stuff sine I could be mistaken.
Patreon seems to be set up specifically for creative artists (in all mediums) whereas PayPal is just purely money transfers so it seems like the better choice.
However you do it Patreon, PayPal, Kickstarter, or some sort of coin operated comic viewing machine I’ll pay my share.