hey guys i just wanted to know your opinion on how to build a fan base.One day i hope to build my own site for my comics and i just wanted some pointers on wat esle to do to build your fan base.Any tips will help

Kidnapping could be quite affective. Though I'm not sure how that looks from the outside... Hmm. You could give it a go.


Seriously? I have no idea.
Well, in music it works with a principal Be Good, Be Active, Be Everywhere.

Get noticed for your comic/talent, update a lot and answer the comments, comment on others, make banners, write in different forums... As in get readers.
After that I guess it's all about keeping the comic interesting and being nice to your "fans" - like giving them a fancy filler every now and then (but not too many so that they will disturb the flow of the story).
Or at least that's how I see it.

Try asking people with fan bases.

talk to everybody you meet and let them know you work on comics and tell them how to find your comics.

Work on your comic and don't worry about getting a fanbase. Seriously, a good comic can go a long way.

You need to plug. Hop on -every- webcomic list you can, and link that back to your page.

If you don't have a good product from the beginning, though, you can forget about popularity.

I'd also like to know! Tell me when you find the secret...

With most of my fans, I win them over by bringing them food when they are sick, or by doing the dishes. Then, when they are in a good mood (say, during reruns of House) I remind them that I have a webcomic.

I have also tried having sex with them.

That covers the fans who I live with or near to. I also have a few here on drunkduck, and since it is not practical to do their dishes or have sex with them, I mostly just try to be nice to them.

If i ever get more fans I will be in trouble, obviously.

I like the sex thing. Haven't tried it yet (well, at least to build my fan base).

I've got a bowl of peanut M&Ms on my desk, but, since no one who likes my books knows where I live, that hasn't worked out so well.

Just do a good book, & be a good neighbor. The people here at DD are a ggreat bunch.

Later,
Chip

P.S. Can I be your fan, Stace?

StaceyMontgomery
With most of my fans, I win them over by bringing them food when they are sick, or by doing the dishes. Then, when they are in a good mood (say, during reruns of House) I remind them that I have a webcomic.

I have also tried having sex with them.

That covers the fans who I live with or near to. I also have a few here on drunkduck, and since it is not practical to do their dishes or have sex with them, I mostly just try to be nice to them.

If i ever get more fans I will be in trouble, obviously.

Stacey, I think I am going to need some more convincing to read your cartoon. I live in Orlando, by the way.


Actually, you have one of those comics that sex is not required for reading.

I have started project wonderful advertising. We will see how that goes. Also, talk to everyone else and go to their comics and comment. Eventually they will look at your comic and if it does not suck, then you can get a new reader. I was once linked off of Fark. That was pretty hardcore there, getting 250,000 pageviews in 3 days.... Such a long long time ago.

I try to be close and active with my fanbase, and it really pays off. Also, a good idea is to go to some comic forums and promote your comic there. Also, consider affiliation with other sites.

thanks guys

I make friends (and sometimes enemies) with other web comic guys. Alliances with others can go a long way. Even if you don't have a similar comic, you can still have crossover.

I do my comics everyday. If I have a slow day or weak material, I don't beat myself up over it. I work to never do weak material like that again. Its a learning experience. I try to make my comics as great as they can be. Even my "shitty days" are better than a lot of popular web comics. I get told by some readers in e-mails, private mesages, or comments that my weak pages are great. I always aim for my comics to maintain an equilibrium of being great/silly/awful at the same time. Sometimes the material works perfectly, other times not so much.

Now here are a few samples of my comic for those of you who have NEVER read penis should read. If you like them, start reading penis. It updates daily, so theres no reason to miss an update.

An average Faggot Man strip, Faggot Man got himself one of those attack dog suits and needed himself a super hero name. His horrible wife/girlfriend told him to call himself FAGGOT MAN. Some minor internet meme jokes are also inserted in this page, like many other pages.



By the way, I'm picking three random comics from my archive to show off.

This page has a naked ninja (he removed his typical gi a few pages earlier and became a nudist) but no genitals or anything offensive is shown. He's just got a round nub where stuff would naturally be. Dracula here is trying to be arrogant and yell at the ninja for being naked, is hastily told off, with a funny comic.



In this page, the ninja and robot are attempting to turn a computer on. With hilarious results.



My comics can go into areas of bad taste or black comedy, but its rated M for a MATURE audience. It says clearly at the top "seriously not for minors." My comics are professionally done and ingenious comedic satire & parody pieces. Everyone should be reading it, if only to learn how to do a web comic.

On top of making great comics, I also have great extra content on my website. I got stuff called Vinhead and Benny that is, absolutely hilarious. I have other comedy bits such as my about me page and poetry, its very funny stuff meant to entice readers into staying on my site longer than they would normally.

So go read penis.

Oh, how I wish the answer was "talent". As I've experienced, it seems that talent really only accounts for about 25% of your comic's overall success - I've seen so much crap out there that got more exposure than awesome comics just because somebody had some deep pockets. But as for us little guys, the best thing you can really do is reach out to potential and current readers, be more than just the mysterious artist who hangs out in Dimension X and beams comics down every once in a while. Go to comic cons, and talk to people. Get them interested. Make friends. Let the webcomics enrich your life... as cheesy as that sounds, you really have to be passionate about your work, even when you're not holding a pencil.

i post alot and i try and make as many friends as possble

I have tried posting more on the forums and that seems to draw people to my comic. Also any person who leaves a message on my comic I check out their profile and if they write a comic...I go and read it and leave a message for them. I also thank them for checking out Godlings in the messages I leave on their comics. The only problem I have is that I don't get as much time to just peruse the forums and leave comments. Also some of those 100 plus comics take some time to get through. I eventually do read all the comics of people who leave me messages...just not always right away. I also sell my comic at the local comic con too...that is very fun:)

I do a lot of guest stripes, and stuff like that, but I only have a small fan base. (Making friends is always good.)

I post links to my comic as much as I can and try to get people to read it.

Unfortunately, because its so long, no one really does. xD; But I do have about 10 to 15 people who always comment on my stuff and I try to keep my friendships going with them so that they'll keep coming back.

Also, update regularly. >o>'

yeah i kinda built a friendship wit certain people they all have great comics

Be aggressive. Talk about it everywhere you go. Wear your own t-shirts.

...A little money under the table never hurt, either.

Neilsama
Be aggressive. Talk about it everywhere you go. Wear your own t-shirts.

...A little money under the table never hurt, either.

Thats for attracting attention and publicity, thats not necessarily creating fans. Fans want memorable characters, catch phrases, and interesting scenarios... among other things you can find in penis, here on drunk duck. :)

I'm letting my plugs get to a level where its become a joke. If I don't include it in a forum post, I feel like I've left out a necessary joke. Almost like I've developed plugging my comics into the catch phrase "read penis." I don't include the link on it like I used to do. I'd say at this point, everybody who wants to read penis is reading penis. The numbers don't lie.

that kid yellow
i post alot and i try and make as many friends as possble

Quality, not quantity. Its an argument that I always fall into. At least attempt to use proper english grammar and sentence structure. I generally TRY to, but its sometimes unavoidable. Since I am not really a smart man, I try and be an interesting and funny man. Most of the time I say stuff with a tounge-in-cheek "tee hee hee" style that some people for whatever reason, can't pick up on. I've a problem with consistency too. Sometimes I'm smart and have really deep thoughts, then other times its just poop joke after poop joke. So who knows.

I put my link in places where people who might like my comic will be able to find it. I really suck at making banners though. One of these days I need to make one that is a good reflection of what I do. I think making sure your banners and plugs reflect the content of your comment is important. That way people who would enjoy your comic are the ones clicking your links and actually seeing it.

After people find it... Those who like it stay. Those who don't, leave. I don't get lazy with my comic. It's important to me. I put love, thought, and effort into it and strive for constant improvement. Anyone who is reading it will not be disappointed in the future. The story and art both only get better, so I don't think I'll lose any readers who already like the comic.

I also go all out for doing fanart and community projects. Since my comic is many months behind my current abilities (a big "buffer" can be annoying), I like to take any chance I can to show what I'm capable of. And I like hanging out with "real artists." I feel like the dork at the popular table. lol

I can tell you one thing that hurts your potential "fanbase" is a weak beginning for your comic (in terms of art or writing). Going by my fancy site statistics/counter thingy, I know a lot of new visitors dropping by end up clicking on that "First Page" link and then leave after viewing one to three of those. That always depresses me a little because it means I did have some interest, but lost it. (And I was doing the best I could in those early pages too -- my "best" just happened to seriously suck at the time.)

marine
Thats for attracting attention and publicity, thats not necessarily creating fans. Fans want memorable characters, catch phrases, and interesting scenarios... among other things you can find in FIGHT 2, here on drunk duck. :)

@ usedbooks:

The weak first page won't be too much of a factor if your current page quality rocks. After all, upon first click you're always directed to the latest page. So the reader will know in the back of his head "OK page 1 is weak but the artist has improved a lot judging by today's page..."

marine
Thats for attracting attention and publicity, thats not necessarily creating fans. Fans want memorable characters, catch phrases, and interesting scenarios... among other things you can find in , here on drunk duck. :)

All of that stuff is part of the process of creating fans. Drawing people to the comic is part of the process. Of course I make memorable characters, storylines, and catch phrases. But all that stuff is built into the comic.

But you also have to be a whore for your work. Why do you think artists go to conventions every year? It's part of getting new readers involved, drawing them to the material, and even giving them a sample to read on the spot.

I would say the basics are:
Patience, updating, posting, commenting, and more patience.
In that order, it's been a year since I started my webmanga, I'm in the top 100 of TWC and buzz, top ten in webbed, but I have no idea why, because my fans must be ghosts or something XD I have near to 0 comments.
That's why I came to DD, communities like this one are just incredible, I made a mistake when I started my own web and everything, I still keep it, and I will, but so far DD had been a great help to get my manga known =D

Patience my young padawan, patince.
And do not make a webcomic/manga just to build a fan base, do it because you want to do it, if not, you may be disappointed in the short term.

I know cases of instant success with fans, but that's not the usual. Don't let that affect you.

Well, it depends on the type of fan. If it is an oscillating fan you'll prolly want to go with a metal base, a long pipe for the stand, with tightening brackets so you can adjust the height. A large metal, or lead base to keep it from tipping. It is is a box or attic fan, I'd just go with some good old fashioned wood. If it's a box fan you might even hit it with some poly to give it a nice sheen when you're done so it looks classy. Wooden box fans are always nice. I'd never use palstic, it's cheap, and breaks. And also, they melt. I've seen a few melt and start fires.

I'm assming you're referring to axials. The axial-flow fans have blades that force air to move parallel to the shaft about which the blades rotate. Axial fans blow air across the axis of the fan, linearly, hence their name. This type of fan is used in a wide variety of applications, ranging from small cooling fans for electronics to the giant fans used in wind tunnels. If you're referring to another I'll have to change my answer.

Marine, this isn't the place for advertising. Go plug your comic in the plug forum.

Speaking of advertising, that's exactly what you need to do. I have a story to share about that, too!

Now, my webcomic is aimed at the city I live in. I wanted not only for online folks to read it, but I wanted Detroiters to take notice also. So what did I do? I made posters.

I made a funny slogan, and basically set up everything like a movie poster. Then I had to figure out--where was my target audience going? Young people tend to read webcomics more than older people do. And where were all the young people? At the local university. So I rode down to the local university campus, stuck posters at bookstores, art stores, bars and the like, and then crossed my fingers.

A while passed and nothing happened. I became worried that nothing would.

But just yesterday I finally got someone who left a message. They said where they saw my poster, and that they loved what they saw. So! There you have it. You must advertise! And not just sticking stuff up wherever you can, but do so in an efficient and intelligent manner. What is your target audience? Where do they surf/hang out at? Then you go to those places and advertise the hell out of yourself. If you story is good, they will love it and become a fan. Then, you advertise some more. Wait a little bit. More people will come. That's how it works!

This is the first time that I have produced a regularly updated cartoon strip and after kicking it off a couple of days ago I searched out DD strips of a similar nature and left good-natured comments regarding their work.

I didn't even mention that I had produced a cartoon strip. It was the fact that I was pleasant and somewhat clever in my comments that enticed them to visit my site in turn. Most of them are still regular visitors and fans. Now, of course, it is up to me to keep them happy.

Obviously that's not a scientific process or much of any process at all, and yet it's working. I've already got a happy and regular fan base after only a few days of being active. It probably helps, though, that I genuinely appreciate my visitors and take the time to interact with them in a positive manner in the comments section. Interaction and consistency are key.

All that aside, it's no doubt a good idea to casually work the name or nature of your work into most of your communications. Or at least mention that you are producing something whether or not you bring up its name.

Also make sure that the nature of your webpage matches the nature of your comic or cartoon strip. Don't combine the dynamic grittiness of a super heroic site with a webpage background decorated with pink hearts and cuddly bunny rabbits.

If you really want to bring in readership, though, then hit all the readership related websites you can find and interact and advertise. Assuming that your actual work is of sufficient quality and you update on a dependable schedule then not only will people drop by for a look-see, but they will become fans.

Simply put, I post my comic on more than one website, and each of those websites links to this one.

I'm also very social on several websites, and people read my signature and click it. Easy way to get a bigger fanbase.