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Bill Kellogg launches ComicsShowcase.com

Published: July 18, 2011 1 minute 68 comments

title: Bill Kellogg launches ComicsShowcase.com

Bill Kellogg, the marketing/sales guy behind Tundra and the new Ink Bottle Syndicate has launched a new website called ComicsShowcase.com “where comics fans can go to view strips they might not otherwise see.”

Bill writes,

[Comics Showcase] is different from the other sites like Comics Sherpa, etc. in that the cartoonists have full control over their pages with the exception of the header and the address bar on the left. There is a charge for cartoonists to be involved, but that is because there are no ads at all (from us) on ComicsShowcase.com. This site is only about the comics. Everyone involved agrees to promote ComicsShowcase.com through social media, newsletters, etc. to draw fans to the site. Since comics fans are usually fans of more than just one strip, some will end up becoming fans of other strips involved in this site and we can all build our bases.

The site is open to anyone who wants to join. Participants are free to use the site as they want – including setting up a store to sell products. Bill says he’ll also be promoting the site to newspaper editors in his newsletters and conferences he attends.

The site currently features:

  • Home Sweet Home
  • B.C.
  • Cranky Girl
  • Crime Quiz
  • Dogs of C-Kennel
  • Evil Twin
  • Frank & Steinway
  • Funnies Extra! Online
  • Future Shock
  • Half Baked
  • Holy Molé
  • Hoxwinder Hall
  • King Monkey
  • Rich Diesslin
  • Supashorts
  • The Deep End
  • That Monkey Tune
  • Tundra
  • Wizard of Id

See the FAQs for more information.

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Comments 68

  1. Very cool!!!! I need to look into this. I was a month away from being ready to join Sherpa with my newest strip Charmy’s Army… cheap plug….. Nice to have a few options.

    In addition to Sherpa and Comics Showcase, The Cartoonist Studio is also launching a site for us amateurs to show off our strips. I have not heard anything about pricing for this yet.

    If I can afford it, maybe I’ll do all three. Is there a non-compete clause when you sign up with either of the three? Time for some research….

  2. This is great news! I especially love reading Tundra in my newspaper. It’s great to see these kinds of strips getting more exposure.

  3. From getting paid by the syndicate to do print comics, to doing web comics for free, to PAYING the syndicate to do web comics. I’m not sure I like the way this is going.

  4. You know what they say about a gold rush – the one’s that sell the shovels make the most money.

  5. I see what you are saying Terry. I think the web is the way of the future. Maybe one day someone will launch a site with ada and revenue sharing based upon the percentage of unique hits your strip gives to the site. That is the wave of the future.

    The problem is though with such a site as this, anyone and everyone would be jumping on and clogging up the site. Please forgive me for saying this but a lot of the web strips out there are really bad. Some, like mine, as just bad, while others are really bad. Oops, I just unplugged myself. (See my first comment above)…

    In order for a revenue sharing site to work, the strips wold need to be hand picked so the advertisers get what THEY are paying for and the cartoonists get their compensation.

    Unfortunately, I am just a cartoonist and I have no idea what I just said. Hopefully it made sense. I get paid to look good… not to think.

  6. Soooooooooo…… Are Web Comics the NEW Vanity Press? Have they always been, with a few exceptions? About one in 50 are worth my time to bookmark and follow. But the rest just hurt my eyes…

  7. I get what you are saying too, Terry. However, comics need exposure to get their strips in front of people in order to gain fans, get into papers, sell products, etc. Exposure helps get more exposure too.

    If I had any talent and had my own strip, I would be on Comics Sherpa too. It is tough though since many cartoonists make very little off of their strips, especially when they are starting out. This is like advertising though.

    It’s the same idea as businesses paying to get their web sites higher placement in Google searches. It’s all about getting your product in front of as many eyes as possible.

    We have to charge because we don’t do ads. Personally I like this way better because ads annoy me, but that’s just my opinion.

  8. As an amateur and “wannabe-syndicated” cartoonist, I hear you Mr. Kellogg! Finding ways to exposure yourself on the web is the best way to get noticed… as long as we are talking about the same manner of “exposing yourself”….

  9. Well, I put up my own site(http://www.hardboiledshaman.com, if you’re interested) and I think I’ve been getting at least as much traffic as I would be if I paid to be on a site with a bunch of other comics. Of course, I have to pay for hosting myself, as well as the labor, since I haven’t made any money yet, and I also have the advantage of having a professional history and a character at least a few people had already heard of. Still, it’s hard for me to see how paying to be on a site with a bunch of other comics would be better than just being on my own site. What would be the advantage? I have a store and even my own header.
    If it works for you, hey, go ahead and do it. But any cartoonist who thinks they can duck the business side of promoting their own strip by being on a site that defacto attracts a lot of readers is kidding themselves. If you’re going to do all that hard work anyway, why not just do it for your own site?

  10. I have to agree w/ Terry. There’s no doubt Bill Kellogg’s helped quite a few cartoonists, but any system that asks you to pay to expose your work is not good for the cartoonist.

  11. Terry. You’re right that everyone needs to do the business side and promote their own strips, and their own sites. But think of this, or any site like this as a mall. By being in the mall, a store owner hopes that if someone is going to the mall to visit a different store, that customer might see his business too and may come into his store now or in the future. He is still doing the business side and he is still promoting his store, but there is crossover from other stores doing the same thing with their businesses.

  12. I guess I am seeing the opposite side of this Terry. For me, the fact that my strip would be drawing traffic from BC, Wizard of Id and my favorite web strip Hoxwinder Hall is awesome! Gave you a plug Danny Boy! Anyway, I am diving into this venture. This may be the exposure I need to get a syndicate to bite either Just Say Cheese or Charmy’s Army… gave myself a plug too…. Go look ’em up on Facebook and fan me!….

    Seriously, this is an opportunity for us…. not a money grab. I think this is awesome work by Bill!!! I’ll have a check next month sir…..

  13. Thanks for the kind words David.

    This whole idea came about from me trying to figure out a way to increase our newsletter subscriber base and our number of Facebook fans with Tundra over the last few years. We sell a lot of stuff to these folks and these are the people who are dedicated enough to write to the papers to request Tundra.

    As a marketing guy, I want more of these fans. I want the same for the Ink Bottle cartoonists as well, and there is plenty of room for more good strips out there.

    Of course I would like this to work for everybody so I might make a little off of this for my efforts, but I won’t make anything unless it works for the cartoonists involved too.

  14. Well said Terry – Love your work on Hard Boiled Shaman, too – it’s a blast to read and I’m sure it’s a ton of work to promote and market. I’m glad you’re up to the task… Really, marketing and promotion is not rocket science, it’s Sweat Equity – a lot of tedious and repetitive work that takes a real emotional investment to keep doing week after grueling week…

  15. No problem Bill. I liked your analogy of your site being like a mall…. but I see it a bit differently. I am not trying t make money at this time so the store reference doesn’t work. I just want to muster up a TON of viewers and then have my devoted followers and worshippers carry me into syndication…

    Worshippers… lol…. Oh hail the Mighty Cheese…

    I spending some major bucks this year to promote my strip. I would not do this if I thought my strip was not good enough. Fact is, my wife’ll kill me… lol…. so I have to succeed. Behind every man is a woman watching his pocketbook.

    My next big expenditure will be the Austin Comic Con. I am up to $^00.00 bucks for this one show… Whoa! Yet another plug November 11 – 13th…. Austin Texas…

    Good Luck Bill. I’ll be emailing you with questions next week.

  16. I don’t see anything wrong with paying Mr. Kellogg to put your strip on his website. If Tundra is any indication, it could prove to be beneficial down the road.

  17. Bill,

    Sounds interesting. I am really struggling to get visitors to my website and this might be a good way to drum up traffic eventually… Google Adwords is definitely not working for me 🙁

  18. Not sure how this is different than the Webcomic List Directory or Onlinecomics.net or any of the other directories. It’s cheaper to place a banner ad there and get their already large audience to click on your site But maybe I am missing something. And need to look into this more.

  19. If I could just add my two cents as comics fan (and not a cartoonist). Most of you make it far too difficult to buy your stuff. In many cases, the best that will happen is that one collection of strips from the first year will be released, and then nothing ever again. Many times even that doesn’t happen (think Todd the Dinosaur, Retail, Arctic Circle). We are way into the digital age, with Kindles and Ipads etc readily available. Yet I still cannot pay for a year’s worth of archives in a digital format. This inspite of the fact that many of these strips have been available on line from their inception. I pay $15 a year to Kings Syndicate, and the same to United. This gives me access to hundreds of comics each day. I assume each artist gets some small amount from my subscription. Why can’t digital archives be released, where the artist gets a large chunck of the revenue? I’m in the medical field, and I can easily buy old archives of med journals that I can download in many formats. Why can’t you cartoonists do that? Is there some syndicate clause that doesn’t allow this to happen? I have the money to spend, and believe me, I want to support you folks. Make it easy for me!

  20. I am working on my Kindle achive now. Should be ready by 2018…. Hope Kindles are still around then…..

  21. I’ve had my own web site for over a decade, but I see this as a good way to get some new looks and looks by folks that might be fans or customers down the road. So, I view is as advertising. You could use the site to keep fresh content out there … some are blog pages, but I see it more as a billboard (no pun intended) to get interest to my site and my work.

    The cost is reasonable, so I’m in to see what happens. Keep up the good work Bill. 😉

  22. “The site is open to anyone who wants to join.”

    Which will mean a lot of unedited strips and no quality control.

    A shame – I hope that the site develops so that the cream has a chance to rise to the top.

    Cartoonists may not need syndicates any more to distribute their work, but they sure do benefit from having an editor.

  23. If you see this as advertising, it makes some sense — people come to see one or two strips, notice yours and become fans. That assumes, however, that it doesn’t become so cluttered that they can’t be bothered to look at more than their favorites.

    My problem with sites like Big Panda (to avoid criticizing anything that still exists, and to give people with long memories a case of the collywobbles) is that, if you started poking around, you mostly found strips that hadn’t been updated in three months or that were about a couple of college guys sitting around drinking beer with a talking animal of some sort. There may have been a pony or two under there somewhere, but it takes too much digging.

    And to avoid Norm having to jump in and say it, there was an excellent Retail-based book, “Pretending You Care,” released when the strip was young. It’s still available and much better than a bland collection of strips.

  24. @ Bill Kellogg
    Bill, I notice that some of the cartoonist’s pages are a blogger page and some are comicspress pages. Is there a standard template you offer with no knowledge of html required for us newbies to everything digital? Something that still lets us have an archive and also a few links to stores and character profile /images? thanks – John

  26. Looking forward to this so I can showcase my strip “On the seventh day . . . “. You can find the strip on facebook. 🙂

  27. $20 a month seems a bit much for what at first glance appears to be a directory. However, it’s early days, I’ll be interested to see what this develops into. The marketing opportunities associated with the site seem much more enticing than the site itself.

  28. Has anyone really looked at the site?
    Only 3/4 of each page load (width wise).
    I’m fancey myself computer savy but the instructions to email everything struck me as a little pre 1999.
    Just my penny’s worth.

  29. Bill – I noticed that one of the selling point of this website is that you will be marketing it to editors.

    Won’t that conflict with you marketing the strips from your Ink Bottle Syndicate?

  30. Of course, you’d almost have to look at something like this as advertising. 20 bucks a month is a fair amount, though. As for the mall analogy, anyone actually been to a mall lately? The ones around here have an awful lot of empty space. Anyhow, I’d be interesting in hearing if anyone actually gets results from this. If they do, mazel tov. At least Bill makes money.

    @Dave Krainacker You’re absolutely right. But it should be noted that putting strips into a downloadable PDF format takes some work–they don’t already exist that way. That being said, as someone with one book out and little prospect for another published the conventional way( collecting Edge City, that is), making archives downloadable for a price seems like a no-brainer. I will investigate this.

    @Dave Stevens Thanks for the kind words, man. You are my new best friend.

  31. The problem w/ the mall analogy, to me, is that people go into a mall to BUY something. Not that they always do, but that’s pretty much in the back of their minds. No one’s buying anything when they come to the site. Sure, maybe you’ll get a click or two, or someone will come around to your website once or twice.

    Sometimes associating with known quantities (in this case, established strips) works out. Sometimes.

    I’ve not met Bill Kellogg. From his reputation I’d say he’s a knowledgeable guy. But I still can’t get behind any effort that promises artists exposure while charging them for it.

  32. This is going to be a long one so I apologize in advance.

    @ Alex. This is not a ?syndicate? thing. Our editor will be going through all pages to correct spelling & grammar mistakes, but comics are all subjective. There are lots of strips in the paper that I don?t like at all but my wife loves them. That is not up to me to decide. That is up to the readers.

    @ Mike. The cartoonists can create their Comics Showcase page on a ?blind? page on their own web site and update it live, any time they choose. They can send us changes any time they want too. Hopefully they will update their pages often but that is their decision.

    @ John. The web guy has a few options. You can set your page up as if it was a flier (paper) and send him all the pieces and he will put it together on the web site. The above answer is the best option if you have your own site, but we?ll help however we can.

    @ Jesse. The price is because there are no ads or any other fees to offset the costs. Perhaps I?m the only one that cares and I may rethink that if everyone would prefer to have ads and a lower price.

    @ Tiki. The template the web guy is using for cartoonists that have him build their pages is smaller width-wise than the others but I think he?s changing that. When they build their own page on their web site (see Mike above) they can make it wider, and some of them are. I?m ?technically challenged? so none of it makes sense to me.

    @ Jason. I will be sending newsletters and handing out info to editors but I don?t see that as a conflict. I have to put a lot more time and effort into the Ink Bottle strips. This is not a syndication thing, it is meant to help give strips exposure. Maybe some editors will pick up some of these strips. Maybe some editors will become fans of some of these strips even if they don?t pick them up. Maybe a strip won?t be a complete unknown to an editor when a syndicate shows it to them down the road.

    @ Terry. I have a long way to go before I make money off of this. If it does well for others and draws more cartoonists in, I will hopefully make some money. Otherwise, I have the most to lose.

    This site is about trying to get exposure for cartoonists and their strips. It is also a platform for them to sell products to try to make some income if they want. Even a cartoonist that doesn?t have a web site can sell originals, prints, subscriptions, etc. off of their pages to generate income.

    This is not a replacement to Comics Sherpa or any of the other sites either. I?ve had a few cartoonists ask me specifically why they should choose Comics Showcase over Comics Sherpa. My answer was, ?I wouldn?t.? If you have the budget to do both and you feel they can benefit you, then do both. My feeling is you should try to get as much exposure as possible for your strip if you want to make money from your strip or if you want to be syndicated. The more known your strip is, the more likely a syndicate will be to look at it. This is just another tool to help achieve that goal.

  33. @ Jeff. Should I spend my time effort and money to promote strips for free?

  34. Truly one of the funniest comments (#33) I’ve ever read in the history of this site.

  35. @Dave Krainacker and others: Making eBooks is now very very simple. Marketing them is another kettle of fish though.

    I’ve created my eBooks simply using Microsoft Publisher, creating the pdf with a free pdf program and treating the pdf-files with some kind of digital protection (i.e., you cannot click on the cartoons and “copy” them and you cannot “print” the pdf).

    There is a free sample to download at http://www.hagencartoons.com/eBooks.html if you want to see what a very simple way to make an eBook looks like…

    And, before anybody says anything, yes, I know my website is pretty bad, but I did it myself (not proud of it)… I need to invest in getting a professional to do it…

  36. What possible costs could justify 20 bucks a month from 15 or 20 cartoonists? Was the domain name expensive? Cause it shouldn’t cost 300 bucks a month to host a basic site like that. It should be more like 10. Even if you were getting tens or hundreds of thousands of pageviews a day it would be like 50.

  37. After digging around a little, it does look like you paid a pretty penny for that domain name. 20 a month still seems awfully high, but whatever, best of luck to everyone involved.

  38. I doubt with the extra “s” it cost any more than a regular 7.99 a year domain –

    if so, ya got ripped –

    comicstripshowcase.com

    and

    cartoonsshowcase.com

    are both available.

  39. Good luck with this, Bill!

    I do think there is still room for new print comics to find an audience and rise to a level of popularity that results in a fairly good income. I must, as I have been an aspiring comic strip artist for three decades now.

    But what we are all waiting for is an internet model that can harness the power of web traffic into a modest income. Until that happens, all print avenues will continue to disappoint.

    I know it is happening for some, but it remains a mystery to me.

  40. @ Jesse. I don’t remember what I paid for the site name but it was less than $10. Probably $6.99 ish. That being said, between Tundra and Ink Bottle, I don’t have time to build this site on my own. The bulk of the money I get from this site will go into paying someone to build and maintain the site as well as print promotional flyers to pass out to editors. I can charge less and use ads to generate revenue but I don’t want to.

    As far as how much it costs vs how much it brings in. Guess what? I don’t want to break even. Like every other business on the planet, I would eventually like to make money off of this. It is important to me that everyone involved is happy with the product and feels like they are getting some benefit out of it though. There are already many changes in the works and hopefully it will continue to grow and get better.

    I’m a marketing guy so my primary focus with this geared ultimately towards how cartoonists can make money with their strips. As the saying goes, it takes money to make money.

    We spend a lot of money to promote Tundra. Ask any syndicate boss and they’ll tell you the same thing. It is not cheap launching a new strip, or keeping one going for that matter. There are sales trips, info packets, postage and all kinds of other expenses involved.

    Sites like Comics Sherpa or The Cartoonists Studio (I don’t even know if they charge) are a great way to get exposure for very little cost.

    This site is intended to help cartoonists build a fan base because your fans are the ones who will buy your books, calendars, t-shirts, prints or whatever you have to sell, now or in the future. Your fans are the ones who will take the time to write to the newspaper to recommend your strip to the editors. Your fans are the reason most cartoonists draw comic strips in the first place. One of your fans might be an editor with a slot to fill too.

    I feel like I am just saying the same things over and over in different ways so I think I am going to call it here with this thread. Anyone is welcome to contact me personally with questions or for more information. My phone number and e-mail address is all over the Ink Bottle site.

  41. It truly amazes me to see how many people don’t understand how the capitalist system works.

    Bill has created a product that he thinks is worthwhile. He has capital, in the form of money and time and energy, invested in the venture and he needs to see a profit. He’s not doing this for his health, he’s not doing it to help your strip… HE’S DOING IT BECAUSE THIS IS HIS BUSINESS.

    If you don’t think the price he’s set for his product is fair, or valid, then you don’t have to patronize his business. In fact, you’re free to start your OWN competitive business and charge whatever YOU think is fair. Free, if you like!

    Let’s see how long that works.

    It’s basic Economics 101. Is that even still required in colleges any more?

  42. Just adding that, upon reflection, I think the issue of dead wood will resolve itself since people aren’t apt to continue to pay to promote a comic they’ve quit updating.

    And, yeah, people in business ask their customers and clients for money. I learned that with my first lemonade stand. Which is where I also learned that, if you want to make a profit, you have to ask for more money than it cost you to set up the stand.

    I was five years old.

  43. do kids seling lemonade at lemonade stands have to pass any health/hygeine tests first before selling their product?

  46. @John (#41): Amen, brother. I think people need to read up on concepts like “opportunity cost” and “moral hazard” before passing judgment on Bill’s business plan. (And if you think “moral hazard” concerns morality, you REALLY need to read up on it.) If people have something at stake (or “skin in the game,” if you will), they’ll be more prudent and attentive to outcomes than if there’s nothing at stake. Bill is not altruistic in his endeavor, but he IS investing in something that benefits him if others also feel they can earn a benefit. Best of luck, Bill–your track record speaks for itself.

  47. More power to you Bill. I for one appreciate the effort you are making… and if you can profit from this I say, “Even more power to you!”…

    I just want to get everyone I can to notice my two strips and that unfortunately means I need to spend some money. I am putting out over $500 for my November appearance at Comic Con in Austin and that is for only 3 days of watching people walk by me with their eyes looking forward as I sit alone and discouraged….

    Hey, did I say above that I was “putting out”? Maybe I should rephrase that…

    Anywayz, you have to spend money to make money… and someone has to take your money to make money….

    Best of luck to you Bill and THANKS!!!

  48. Hey John Lotshaw, I’m a CPA. But yeah, if you want to pretend like I don’t know anything about websites or econ or…wait for it…business ethics, by all means pay this guy 20 dollars a month to have your site listed on a crappy 1998 looking website that won’t get more than a few dozen clicks per day. Have fun.

    Meanwhile I will keep questioning bullsh1t when I see it. Especially when some of my good friends are involved.

  49. @Bill – Pesonally, I found the FAQ a bit too vague. You mention sending out newsletters several times a year. Are these mailings or emails? How about a round-about number of editors that will get the mailings? What do the newsletters look like? What is the time-frame of mailings? I’d love to see a calendar. You also mention editor conferences. When are they? How many are you booked for this coming year? Can you put a calendar on the website?

    And I’d have to agree with Jesse – the website does not come across as professional. Even the distorted .com in the logo should be looked at.

    Just my two cents – not that you asked.

  50. @David #47:

    “I just want to get everyone I can to notice my two strips and that unfortunately means I need to spend some money. I am putting out over $500 for my November appearance at Comic Con in Austin and that is for only 3 days of watching people walk by me with their eyes looking forward as I sit alone and discouraged?.”

    Respectfully, David, if this is how it works out for you, I don’t see why you’re spending the $300. Yes, you may have to spend $ to make $, but isn’t there some way to at least make the $300 more effective? Nothing’s a guarantee, but it sounds to me w/ the con you’ve already lost.

    Curious to see how you’re looking at it.

  51. Not that I agree w/ what Bill’s doing, but it is his right as long as he’s upfront about it, which he is. Calling it ‘bull$hit” or criticizing the website (which he’s already explained is new, he’s not a designer, and he’s looking to get someone professional to fix it up for him), is really uncalled for, in my opinion.

  52. @ Jeff – It is $500 not $300. I have a banner with a stand, I am giving away a door prize of a T-Shirt each day. I have printed 2-sided business cards, I have printed templates for my Autographed Cheese Doodles that say Comic Con 2011 Austin, Texas, plus the other miscellaneous stuff like food and lodging… of yeah and gas!

    I am looking at it from the perspective that I have thousands of crazed comic enthusiasts at my bidding… and one may be the fan who knows someone who knows someone… or maybe an industry professional at the show may take note of me… or who knows.

    I just believe that if you work hard and invest in your idea correctly, you will succeed.

  53. I would join bill’s site if i wasn’t a poor cartoonist. I wish him the best of luck with it

  54. Bwa-ha-ha!!!!!!

    @ Brian – I read the post before I saw who wrote it. I interpreted you to mean poor as in “I Stink”… as in “If I wasn’t such a terrible cartoonist”…. Then I saw that the all-mighty Brian Martin, the man who draws circles around me, wrote it! LOL……

    I get your drift now……

  55. @ David Jones

    Do you have a book collection to sell at the ComicCon, David?

  56. That’s nice of you to say David….but flattery will get you no-where with me….I am poor afterall.

  57. I would buy a book collection too David…you should look into it…

  58. I am actually three weeks into preparing my first e-Book for Charmy’s Army. I hope to have it available by Christmas but it’ll more than likely be a Summer 2012 release. It’ll be a collection of Charmy’s Army strips and a collection of short stories based on Charmy’s Army.

    I have signed my mentor Jonathan Peacock, creator of Soap on a Rope, to write my forward to the book!!!! His strip appears in the Daily Grind and a few other prison newspapers across the country… lol…. inside joke. Brian and anyone else who are in the Cartoonist Cafe on Facebook will get that. The rest of you just will think I am odd while the ones in the know, know I am odd.

    I will not be selling anything but my soul at Comic Con. I am just looking at spreading the word about my two strips, Charmy’s Army and Just Say Cheese… Obviously I am not the best marketing guy or else I would be going there to MAKE money… lol…… I hope to in the long run. At my age though I cannot run quite as long as I used to…… lol……

  59. I’ve just written to my congressman asking him to sponsor a bill that would remove the obligation for cartoonists who don’t like the site to put their strips up there.

  60. “really uncalled for”

    I was a bit nasty*, but I stand by my criticism of the website design…after all that is what he is selling. Let me just sum up my thoughts and then I will move on.

    I’m sure Bill is a nice guy, and what he has done with Tundra is fascinating, and likewise his Ink Bottle Syndicate is fascinating and I have no qualms with that. My issue here is I see someone in a position of authority, in this case marketing comics, cashing in on hopeful cartoonists by enticing them to pay for exposure. And I think it’s wrong to do that. Maybe I wrong to see it that way, and maybe I am prejudiced because of my disdain for Comics Sherpa, but whatever, that’s how I see it.

    There are so many free ways to promote your comic (SU, Reddit, message boards). I really just don’t think anyone should pay someone for exposure. If you really are impatient and want to spend money, just pay 20 dollars a month in Project Wonderful ads or something.

    Bill has every right to charge whatever he people are willing to pay. And I have every right to question it. I don’t even care that much anymore, but just wanted to explain my view so I don’t just look like someone b*tching about the price. I’m going to get back to worrying about my own site. Good luck to everyone involved.

    * I have a personal rule against arguing on the internet. This morning broke my year and a half streak of not responding to anyone online. I’m going back to ignoring this site and being an internet hermit now.

  61. @ Jesse Cline

    Out of pure interest Jesse (or anybody?) how many new readers /suscribers could you expect to get for $20 advertising on Project Wonderful?

  62. This sounds a bit like a comics collective! They were big in webcomics a couple of years ago, and then fell out of favour for some reason.

    It always seemed like a pretty good idea to me, everybody promotes their own work as normal, and there’s an extra bit that promotes the collective on everyones site. The problem is, they become less effective as more comics get added to the collective. After about ten, people stop seeing individual comics and it’s just a big list of titles. The top couple of comics in the list get most of the clicks, and there’s diminishing returns in terms of exposure the more the list grows, until eventually you end up with SmackJeeves (which I’m on, and like the features of, but as a medium-popular cartoon it’s of limited value as a marketing tool).

    Bill, you might be better served keeping a tighter rein on the comics you allow to join. The paywall will keep out the worst of the amateurs, but if you’re trying for a digital syndicate, then you, or someone, is going to have to start acting like a syndicate editor and rejecting strips that might not reflect well on the ComicsShowcase brand. It’d be much more worthwhile to creators and readers if being on ComicsShowcase reflected some kind of assurance of quality rather than just being a list of comics that signed up.

  63. I?ve just written to my congressman asking him to sponsor a bill that would remove the obligation that all comments left on blog posts have to be pats on the back.

  64. I would willingly pay $50 a month for this if like Gar Molly says it could keep out the worst of the amateurs.

  65. I agree with Bill and Gar – but I think it requires that Bill team up with a seasoned comic editor who has an eye for talent and who can develop talent. Bill’s proven he’s a great salesman, but a syndicate isn’t just sales. You need a good editor, too.

  66. @John Platt
    to respond to the question about Project Wonderful, and from my experience, i think it’s reasonable to hope for 2000 visits with a carefully spent $20.

  67. Thanks for that info Brent, that was most interesting and helpful

  68. I’m using Project Wonderful now. It’s perfect in that it targets the exact audience you are looking for — comic and cartoon fans. Can’t get more exact than that. Plus it supports the webcomics that are running the ads. Win, win situation.

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