site promotion

gazorenzoku · Post by **gazorenzoku** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 4:28 am

This might have been covered in a previous thread, but I thought it might be a good idea for everyone to share their own site promotion ideas. I have only done the basic stuff, like e-mailing everyone I know, putting up fliers, submitting my address to Yahoo and AOL, etc...

I plan to start making postcards with little illustrations on them and sell them for a dollar or so. The postcards will have my site address on them. Hopefully the price will cover production cost, so basically it will be like free advertising. I would stand around and sell the postcards downtown. If people use the postcards for decoration, then the advertising will only work within the city (and whoever else the "customer" chooses to tell), but if they send the postcards to other people, then the advertising possibilities really pick up.

By the way, I linked my site to almost everyone participating in this forum. If I didn't link my site to someone here, let me know and I will put a link up. I don't expect everyone to link to me, but it would be great if a few folks out there did...

More site promotion ideas?

[ This Message was edited by: gazorenzoku on 2001-12-14 03:28 ]

gazorenzoku · Post by **gazorenzoku** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 4:29 am

All this talk about promotion and I forgot to display my own site link... well, here it is........

glych · Post by **glych** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 4:12 pm

Well, there's always the funny papers banner exchange... posting on boards like this one, polykarbon, digitalwebbing, keenspot/space/vention, and other comic sites online- and all that's for free....Also, doing turtorials, writing essays, getting placed on search engines, and earning awards from larger sites also are great ways for FREE promotion; but- but if you really want a larger fan base, the best thing to do (other than a great comic to keep the ones who do come) is to buy advertisements on the larger sites. wizardworld.com, for one. Also, wildstorm, dc comics, marvel...all these "dead tree printin' books" get lots and lots and lots of individual viewers a day- and a personal theory about "click through" ads of mine, is that they work the same way as an ad on the side of a bus or one in times square. People keep seeing "CREST" everywhere -on buses, signs, commercials, pamplets, promotions, etc, but they can't walk up to the sign and touch it, taking them to Crest HQ like they can with the web...People think that web based advertising should be based on click throughs, which is BS....people see "CREST" on the top of a porn page or something (whatever they're looking at) and think nothing of it...But advertising is all about bombarding the masses with images o your product that make the masses want your product...

And when it finally comes down to one of the masses at the grocery store looking for toothpaste, he's going to reach for Crest over aquafresh only because he trusts it.... There's no reason for him to really, no logical reason, but because he's seen "CREST" everywhere he goes (including the web) his subconscience thinks of that product as always being there with him, for him. It's product association and it works.

(by the by, I have an degree on advertising)

So, even if the first few months you're not getting any hits from your ads don't worry- because when the time comes- and someone out there has done thier routine on the net, and is looking for something else to keep htem busy before their next class or whatnot, if your ad has stayed in their mind-they might think "hhhmm....what about that one site I keep hearing about..." *click*

And your ads work is done!

and banner ads do work. One of <a href="http://framed.keenspace.com">Frank's</a> ads for FRAMED worked beautifully. It had the words :FRAMED!!! 100% nipple free! And his character Allison saying :Oh yeah, like that'll attract readers....

It was reverse phycology and it worked...

One of mine that I had for No Stereotypes (no more, now) was my character Spons nodding frightenly and the words: NO STEREOTYPES. Magic, Mystery, and an emortal purple cat named Spontaneous. What? Afraid you might like it?

And it worked...click throughs even.

But that's all just the net..

Also, buy ads in Wizard, Fima de Chine (Wizard: Italy), Gamepro, comic books, movie magazines, Entertainment mags, etc, etc, etc...

It requires a budget, but it works...

Sorry to rant...it's just my forte and whatnot.

-glych

Jack Masters · Post by **Jack Masters** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 4:34 pm

In my opinion, the friendliest way of advertising is sending people fan art, because it's giving something worthwhile in exchange for the mention of your name, people who read the comic you gave fan art to will see that you like the same comic as them, your take on one or more of the comic's characters, and your general art/writing style. As glych said with banner ads, people are unlikely to go gallavanting off to your website because the liked the fan art you made, but they will remember you in some small way, and untainted with "ick advertising" feelings as well.

Tailsteak · Post by **Tailsteak** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 6:13 pm

Some of the greatest surges of readers to 1/0 came from art I did for others. My recent fan strip for Absurd Notions, for example, which Kevin was kind enough to put on his front page. I don't do advertizing.

Jack Masters · Post by **Jack Masters** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 8:13 pm

We may call it "fan art" and PvP may call it "sponsorship" but in many ways the mechanics are the same.

Post by **Greg Stephens** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 8:18 pm

But there is a crucial difference- And that is the money factor.

Jack Masters · Post by **Jack Masters** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 9:29 pm

True. When you pay someone with art instead of money, it's much more of a mutually benificial situation. You win because you get publicity and the chance to express yourself, the recipienct wins because they get fan art, and the readers win because they get to look at it. Unless it stinks, then the readers lose.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 11:38 pm

On 2001-12-14 15:12, glych wrote:
and a personal theory about "click through" ads of mine, is that they work the same way as an ad on the side of a bus or one in times square. People keep seeing "CREST" everywhere -on buses, signs, commercials, pamplets, promotions, etc, but they can't walk up to the sign and touch it, taking them to Crest HQ like they can with the web...People think that web based advertising should be based on click throughs, which is BS....people see "CREST" on the top of a porn page or something (whatever they're looking at) and think nothing of it...But advertising is all about bombarding the masses with images o your product that make the masses want your product...

And when it finally comes down to one of the masses at the grocery store looking for toothpaste, he's going to reach for Crest over aquafresh only because he trusts it.... There's no reason for him to really, no logical reason, but because he's seen "CREST" everywhere he goes (including the web) his subconscience thinks of that product as always being there with him, for him. It's product association and it works.

(by the by, I have an degree on advertising)

So, even if the first few months you're not getting any hits from your ads don't worry- because when the time comes- and someone out there has done thier routine on the net, and is looking for something else to keep htem busy before their next class or whatnot, if your ad has stayed in their mind-they might think "hhhmm....what about that one site I keep hearing about..." *click*

And your ads work is done!

-glych

First person I saw voice this opinion was Boxjam in his Keenvention essay: http://keenvention.keenspace.com/other/ ... eaker.html

And I also maintain that it's true.

fredirc · Post by **fredirc** » Fri Dec 14, 2001 11:40 pm

Gah... I hate that annonymous default. Forget to type in your username and it becomes anonymous.

_________________
David Schumacher
Creative Masochist
http://atp.cx

Greg Edits to say: Yeah, I agree. However, phphBB version 2 is nearly ready and it handles logins differently and you can choose to have it remember you or not. I'll be upgrading as soon as it's released. Check out their test forum here. I've tested a conversion from our current forum and it should go pretty smoothly.

[ This Message was edited by: Greg Stephens on 2001-12-15 12:24 ]

ashess · Post by **ashess** » Sat Dec 15, 2001 8:40 am

lol.
trying if keenspot works (get space at keenspace.com) but it's taking awfully long to register...

Wikkit · Post by **Wikkit** » Sat Dec 15, 2001 10:03 am

On 2001-12-15 07:40, ashess wrote:
lol.
trying if keenspot works (get space at keenspace.com) but it's taking awfully long to register...

I don't know if getting on Keenspace would be worth the negatives. IANACA*, but as a reader I generally have lower opinions of the keenspace strips than the non-keenspace strips. I suppose each author has to weigh the good (free web hosting, a bit of publicity) with the bad (ads, ads, ads, conformity, ads, negative perception, ads).

Someone should make a 'Keenspace Pro' type site, where comic strips are reviewed before entry. I know it'd be less diverse, but it might actually be profitable.

Ben

* I Am Not A Comic Author

ashess · Post by **ashess** » Sat Dec 15, 2001 10:30 am

*shrugs* there's good and bad comics everywhere. but you're right, a little selection might do the place good. still, there's plenty 'f good ones in there. (Elflife, Helpdesk, Choppingblock lost$found)
and its a nice place to start looking 4 more stuff from.

gazorenzoku · Post by **gazorenzoku** » Sat Dec 15, 2001 10:36 am

lots of great ideas and opinions. Thanks to glych for your input...

Fan art sounds like a fun way to go.

The other day I found a search engine that lists art related sites. I submitted my site and got accepted. I don't know if anything will come of it, but if you all are interested, give it a shot. I don't have the URL handy, but I will post it here soon.

Also, I found a site that has a lot of links to some interesting search engines. I know that getting linked to the big sites is the best, but I figured that it can't help to get listed on as many search engines as possible...

One idea I was thinking about was getting together as a group and forming a site that is designed to promote all of our sites, as well as other sites that we think deserve a readership. It would be kind of like a free online comic directory. Work could be catagorized (or not).

What would be the review process? That whole issue seems pretty problematic to me. If it is too exclusive no one would care. If it was too inclusive, it would be no better than having a keenspace site (no offense)... maybe even worse.

Maybe this kind of thing could work, maybe not... but we're all supposed to be creative people, and we have at least one ad specialist amongst us, so maybe we could make it work...

_________________
<A HREF = "http://www.gazorenzoku.com">gazorenzoku.com: entertainment for sequential art addicts</A>

[ This Message was edited by: gazorenzoku on 2001-12-15 10:14 ]

glych · Post by **glych** » Sat Dec 15, 2001 5:20 pm

About the keenspace selection thing- I mentioned this to Gav at con...that there should be a "promo" page before actuall keenspace, like this order: keenspot-keenspace-keensville (or something) and have keensville be where people started out...if they did well for 4 or 5 months, updated and suched (without all thse "no comics" I keep seeing in the list) they'd get upgraded to keenspace....Keenspace comics that get over 50,000 hits a day or something outstanding like that are updated to Keenspot...ChoppingBlock is one example, and I thing Framed will be next...not sure...

But Gav and Teri said that they didn't want to discriminate at all- that they wanted to give everyone a chance equally...which is a great idea, it's optomistic and it give hope- but it's not practical... Not if you want to run a free service with limited space for webocomics that take up a lot of space...

I just hope that Chris, Gav, Teri, and all them know what they're doing...

I know I've appreciated the free webhosting and especially autokeen (the autoupdater for us lazy folk)

But as for fanart ideas- I didn't even think about it! That is a great idea! I forgot how many hits I got when I did a piece of fan art for Avalon and Elflife (both characters mixed in) last year....

Kept a few readers too...

And as for the boxjam click through idea- I checked the keenvention, and you're right! I forgot to cite boxjam- it was his idea first...*sigh* and I almost sounded intelligent...

But unlike "CREST" being everywhere, he used the term "drinking windex"...*snicker* though the idea is the same...

Thank you for correcting me, fredric...

-glych

gazorenzoku · Post by **gazorenzoku** » Sun Dec 16, 2001 1:24 pm

i just finished making a business card to pass out. The card has my site address on it. I don't get many chances to pass out a name card, but you never know. The other day I went to a friend's wedding, and all the cool business folks were exchanging cards. I thought, here would be a perfect chance for a few uninterested people to receive my card and then throw it away later. Needless to say I rushed home and made a card right away. I will print it up tomorrow.

don't know if that is an idea that anyone else out there would enjoy trying, or if you have already tried it, or whatever, but I just thought I would mention the idea in case it helps anyone.

Having and passing out a name card is pretty big here in Japan, but I forget if it was dorky or not back home...

Tailsteak · Post by **Tailsteak** » Sun Dec 16, 2001 5:36 pm

It's not that it's dorky, it's just that it's not done, unless you're in an important business relationship.

I think that a site to list and promote comics would be great, but only if other people knew where to find it. Whenever I'm scanning for new talent, I usually use the list at The Evil Network: http://drsetebos.tripod.com or the one at The Belfry: http://belfry.com

gazorenzoku · Post by **gazorenzoku** » Sun Dec 16, 2001 10:33 pm

I took a look at those two sites. They look pretty promising, for entertainment as well as promotion. Thanks!

vince

Post by **Greg Stephens** » Mon Dec 17, 2001 12:48 pm

Actually, business cards are a great way to go. People you meet may ask about your comic but seldom have pen & paper to write down the URL- which they need to do in order to remember it, no matter how simple it is- but if you just have a card to give them, they have all the information and you've even managed to impress them a little.

The Borrower · Post by **The Borrower** » Wed Dec 26, 2001 12:33 pm

Sometimes you have to ask, "Would I buy product if I was consumer, not creator?"

"And, if so, where would I buy? What would be ideal way to grab my attention? Where does new sensory input fit into my life?"

I find web is "low attention span theater". Don't stay at one place very long -- just like wave-surfing.

Internet is great for information addict like myself. When I slow down, then I pick up book, or go for walk.

New stuff usually gets attention on web -- but I refuse to pay. Web should be free, in my book. I use web to collect information, which may lead to purchase at store.

I buy at Borders. I buy at comic book conventions. I buy at local comic store.
When kid, I used to buy at 7-11.

It is unfortunate indie producers cannot unite effectively -- together, we could accomplish more than separate.

Sadly, artists I know refuse to sacrifice time or money for big investment -- we all want safety and security, as well as achieving great fantasy goal in sky. You cannot have both if you are just starting.

Risks required to be successful. Heart sure to be broken several times. Your path will be strewn with rejection letters and tears of frustration. Nothing is easy.

However, intelligent approach is useful. All suggestions posted by others are excellent.

I would only suggest ... personal touch is important. Unity means more than conversing on message boards. Unity means creating web of indie artwork that will catch fans from Hong Kong to Houston.

United we stand. Divided ... we fall.

The Borrower · Post by **The Borrower** » Wed Dec 26, 2001 12:36 pm

Speaking of unity....

gazorenzoku · Post by **gazorenzoku** » Fri Dec 28, 2001 2:38 am

very interesting comments...