It’s tax day. Federal and State income taxes must be postmarked today — and estimated taxes for the first quarter of 2019 are due as well. If you’re having trouble, here are some handy resources from Webcomics.com.
We all hate the Facebook algorithm. Why? Because it keeps our messages from going out to all of our followers.
What if I told you that the Facebook algorithm — in fact, nearly any social-media algorithm — is your friend. What if I told you it was an ally? What if I told you it was even more than that? Would you think I was crazy?
Pull up a chair.
Here’s the dirty little secret that you may not want to accept: Your readers aren’t interested in reading every message you send. I know that you tell yourself otherwise. After all, why else would they have “liked” your page? Why else are they following you — if not to receive a steady stream of your dedicated messaging?
But they don’t. And — truly — that’s not what they signed up for.
What they want is to hear from you sometimes — and preferably when it’s important to them.
Stop. Read that sentence again.
Don’t believe me? Try running an e-mail newsletter or deliver your comic to an e-mail mailing list. (Or speak to someone who already does.) According to MailChimp, the average open rate for e-mailed outreach in the Arts and Artists category during Q2 2016 was about 27%. (A slight tick higher than the average of 25%.) And the open rate was 2.87%.
In other words, when people actively sign up to receive a steady stream of your messaging, they open the e-mails only about 25% of the time. And then they only click on links inside those e-mails (Kickstarters, Patreon, merchandise) about 3% of the time.
They are actively making choices that are very similar to the choices that social-media algorithms are making on their behalf.
Readers want to hear from you sometimes — and preferably when it’s important to them.
The question is obvious. Are you sending out messages that are important to them?
“I updated my comic today” is a lazy, uncreative message.
“Today’s comic is all about xxxxxx” is better.
“I’m excited about today’s comic because xxxxxxxx” is even better still.
Take a look at your social-media messaging. Are those messages compelling? Do they present an emotional hook for readers and potential readers alike? Did you say anything beyond “here’s another comic”?
The lazy, uncreative, knee-jerk social-media posts are typically the ones that get the least response. And, as a result, they’re the ones that the algorithm filters to the bottom of the tank immediately. Posts that say something interesting usually garner better engagement, and as a result, those posts are spread more widely.
And, unlike an e-mail newsletter, a social-media post has the potential to expose your work to new potential readers. And that’s really why you’re on social media ion the first place.
When I was in school, I had a teacher I loathed. I was certain this guy had it out for me. He graded me extremely tough — tougher, I thought, than he graded other kids. He was picky. He was strict. If I wanted to get a good grade from this guy, I had to work my tail off for it. I rejoiced when I graduated out of his clutches.
I ran across his on Facebook about a year ago. He was enjoying retirement in Arizona. I looked at his photo. He was a little more heavy than when I knew him, but he was at the same time smaller. More wrinkly. Faded. Maybe sun-bleached. And I realized that I learned more from that wrinkly son-of-a-gun than dozens of other teachers who I never hated enough to remember. And I told him so.
He wrote a very pleasant reply. Correcting my grammar.
A social-media algorithm is like that strict teacher at school. They don’t accept half-baked submissions from you because they know you can do better. And because it’s their job to help you get better. You probably hated that teacher as a kid. And, as an adult, you probably realized that the lessons taught by that teacher was way more valuable than most of the other.
The algorithm isn’t the enemy. It’s your friend.
Perhaps even your teacher.
The ’Ringo Awards have opened nominations for this year’s awards. Click this link to nominate your favorites — and share it with your readers, encouraging them to nominate their favorites!
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Cartoonists Dave Kellett and Brad Guigar are talking shop! On this week’s ComicLab the fellas talk about writing yourself into a corner. NEXT a question-asker asks “is my Patreon reward tier too high?” And FINALLY, they grapple with this — if they could time-travel back to the early 90s with their current skills, would they have been able to make it as syndicated cartoonists?
BUT FIRST, Brad bends over to pick up a 12-pack of soda and throws out his back in the process. Getting old sucks.
Show notes
• 00:00 — “So-so art”
• 06:24 — My Back!
• 17:23 — Creative problem solving
• 33:35 — Stretch Break!
• 34:34 — Patreon tiers
• 47:38 — Getting popular now versus then
• 01:05:56 — When community building gets complicated
The tax deadline is a week from today. You must file your federal income tax return Monday (along with any state and local taxes that are due).
But what if you owe money and can’t pay? Don’t make a bad situation worse. This could end very badly if you handle it improperly.
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.Cartoonists Dave Kellett and Brad Guigar are talking shop! On this week’s ComicLab we have an interview with Tony Cliff, creator of DelilahDirk.com
Brad has a failed attempt of a formal introduction. DURING the interview with Tony, the guys all answer the question on what they choose as their career titles. THEN discussing their routines when it’s time for deadline crunch. ENDING with the most sophisticated outro Brad and Dave are capable of.
BUT FIRST, Dave shares some fond memories of wooing his wife!
• 00:00 — Dave Kellett: the Master of Making the First Move
• 05:09 — The most formal intro ever
• 06:48 — Interview with Tony Cliff
• 31:21 — Cartoonist or creator
• 41:36 — Deadline crunch time
• 54:03 — The most formal outro ever
Get out your calendar and start circling dates. It’s time to do a little webcomics planning.
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Emerald Comics Distro, an independent comics-distribution company, is currently open for submissions. Originally focused on the American northwest, Emerald Comics has opened an online catalog for retailers — widening its potential reach to brick-and-mortar shops everywhere.
The content you are trying to access is only available to members.Cartoonists Dave Kellett and Brad Guigar are talking shop! Dave dives in on his full experience at ECCC this year, including some wonderful critters he met and his interaction with a rep from Nickelodeon. Dave answers the burning question — Did he do well enough to justify going back next year? Following this, Brad shares his thoughts on the recent success of Nathan “Strange Planet” Pyle. Next, the guys answer the questions on options in going digital.
BUT FIRST, Dave tells us about his lovely ECCC roomie, Inktober’s Jake Parker.
I attended the Patreon On Tour conference in New York City, and I strongly advise you to take advantage of this opportunity if it comes to a city near you. It was packed with great data-backed information, like information on which Patreon rewards work best.
At one time in the presentation, the topic of promotion came up, and the data they had gathered floored me. I’d been thinking about patron-acquisition all wrong. Here’s what I learned…
According to their research, about 40% of new Patreon backers arrive through social media — less than half!
Think about it. If you’re focusing on social media to spread the news about your Patreon rewards, you’re missing sixty percent of the other avenues! Here are the other ways patrons find out about the Patreon campaigns they back:
Let’s talk about a few of those…
If you’re like many of us, you’ve seen your advertising revenue decimated by ad blockers. You may have even removed advertising from your site entirely. But that space is still has value — even if it’s not currently delivering on that value. House ads have long been promoted on this site as a way to bolster that undervaluation. The application to this instance is simple: Replace the paid-advertising space with self-promotion space. If you code it directly into the page, you can even bypass ad blockers. There’s no better place than your site to find the people that are most likely to back your Patreon campaign. Use that old advertising space for outreach.
This is a great way to promote a Patreon campaign. Consider this post from last October for one way you could approach this:
Sending out a monthly e-newsletter is a great way to keep in touch with readers — and an awesome way to get the word out on new information about your webcomic. It takes a little time to prep, but it’s a well-targeted message to an interested audience is incredibly valuable as you build your community. Webcomics.com has tons of handy resources to get you started.
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