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For Patreon, what rewards do you value?
9 years ago
General
What follows is inane ramblings of a poofy tigress ---
So, I have a patreon. It's not much right now, but I'd like to rework it so it's got more value for people that support me through it. Its also got to be stuff I can deliver. Also right now it mostly is just around Shifters, but it could possibly support Brymstone too if there was enough interest.
However, I'd like to get an idea of what sort of patreon rewards you, the supporters, feel have value. I don't have core membership anymore, or I'd probably do a poll, so this will have to do.
So, here are my personal observations so far with Patreon:
- I've offered things like exclusive livestreams and skype Q&As, and no one attends, so I feel like this has little value on a "patrons only" level currently.
-I've got a strong feeling that people are mostly there just for the early updates of the comic/lineart previews. this makes some sense though, people are there for the /comics/ first and foremost.
- I don't really get much feedback on the wallpapers or any other art, though up till recently I wasn't posting random art.
So I'm talking to different groups of people here.
One is people who already support artists on patreon (mine or others), and that is what sorts of rewards do you personally value? What things do you want to participate in? How do you want and expect to interact with an artist you support on patreon.
The other group of people who aren't supporting people on patreon, but If you were going to support an artist, (and that doesn't have to be much, $1 minimum here guys, Less than a cup of coffee), what would entice you to do so? What would an artist need to be providing for you to say "Yes, this is worth my dollar a month." (or hopefully more).
Rewards I commonly see offered by artists include:
-Access to a patron only 'art stream' of sketches, sneak peaks, and random unpublished stuff
-Discounts on commissions/products
-Priority on Commission slots
-Tutorials (art, or otherwise)
-Private Streams - Process, lessons
-Free Commission, icons, sketches rewards at a certain tier
-Hangouts, Q&As
-High rez downloads, PSD files
-wallpapers
-Credits/shoutouts on art or in a comic
-Cameos in comics
-Process videos
-Physical rewards (stickers, charms, pins, prints)
-Access to an exclusive upload area with PDF and other goodies
-1 on 1 art lessons, redlines, how-to videos
-Preview artwork, lineart, in progress sketches
Which of these do you find valuable? Are there other rewards not listed that you would want to see? Obviously the rewards vary by tier, but I'm trying to get a sense of which of these things do people actually like and find valuable.
I posed this to my current patrons, but they are rather silent on the matter. So I'm having to look elsewhere for feedback. So I'm very interested in any feedback I get.
However, I'd like to get an idea of what sort of patreon rewards you, the supporters, feel have value. I don't have core membership anymore, or I'd probably do a poll, so this will have to do.
So, here are my personal observations so far with Patreon:
- I've offered things like exclusive livestreams and skype Q&As, and no one attends, so I feel like this has little value on a "patrons only" level currently.
-I've got a strong feeling that people are mostly there just for the early updates of the comic/lineart previews. this makes some sense though, people are there for the /comics/ first and foremost.
- I don't really get much feedback on the wallpapers or any other art, though up till recently I wasn't posting random art.
So I'm talking to different groups of people here.
One is people who already support artists on patreon (mine or others), and that is what sorts of rewards do you personally value? What things do you want to participate in? How do you want and expect to interact with an artist you support on patreon.
The other group of people who aren't supporting people on patreon, but If you were going to support an artist, (and that doesn't have to be much, $1 minimum here guys, Less than a cup of coffee), what would entice you to do so? What would an artist need to be providing for you to say "Yes, this is worth my dollar a month." (or hopefully more).
Rewards I commonly see offered by artists include:
-Access to a patron only 'art stream' of sketches, sneak peaks, and random unpublished stuff
-Discounts on commissions/products
-Priority on Commission slots
-Tutorials (art, or otherwise)
-Private Streams - Process, lessons
-Free Commission, icons, sketches rewards at a certain tier
-Hangouts, Q&As
-High rez downloads, PSD files
-wallpapers
-Credits/shoutouts on art or in a comic
-Cameos in comics
-Process videos
-Physical rewards (stickers, charms, pins, prints)
-Access to an exclusive upload area with PDF and other goodies
-1 on 1 art lessons, redlines, how-to videos
-Preview artwork, lineart, in progress sketches
Which of these do you find valuable? Are there other rewards not listed that you would want to see? Obviously the rewards vary by tier, but I'm trying to get a sense of which of these things do people actually like and find valuable.
I posed this to my current patrons, but they are rather silent on the matter. So I'm having to look elsewhere for feedback. So I'm very interested in any feedback I get.
Physical Rewards can fall into this as well - especially since physical rewards take more than time to complete. Definitely take the price of the materials into account if you do intend to set this tier.
While priority commissions are indeed nice, this can cause what I nickname "The Paywall effect" wherein you open up for slots and the patrons gobble up all of/most of the available slots and this can discourage newcomers who may become potential regulars and/or patrons. Sure, a good way is to become a patron so you are able to get the priority, but for those impulse "oh I have some spare money this month I think I'll commission someone let's see who is open hmmm...."-types (And there are a lot) that can be discouraging.
Now, in terms of producing extra content per month, I do think that things such as the patron only art stream, tutorial, how-to videos, process videos, hangouts, Previews, and the private streams are also nice because doing the monthly requests takes time - moreso than just a "Every x day of this month, there is a stream - I will announce this one-two weeks ahead of time". If it's more of an insight into the creative process rather than say a private request stream, that will definitely be more friendly to people who are busy/live in different time zones - sure they may not be able to have made the stream to show that, but at least it's not a request stream or commission stream that makes them really annoyed that they missed out on - cause if they missed that stream, they could have gotten something if they were there, and so many of those things wind up getting the same people over and over again.
Things like the discounts on commissions and products are something I also promote as a good idea. Whether or not it's "Existing patrons during the month this is commissioned" or "Patrons receive a coupon for x off their next commission", this won't get you bogged down too much with having to catch up on all the rewards.
One thing that can definitely be interesting is offering one-time deals. E.g, "Hey any of my patrons going to this con this year? I'll offer a discounted/free conbadge if you are!" or maybe alternating some of the things in paragraph 2. ("Hey guys, this month will be an art tutorial", next month will be a sketch dump") You could also kinda keep backups this way in case something happens - and knowing luck, it WILL happen.
With some exceptions, I prefer getting something personal from an artist I support on Patreon. E.g., pledge $30 and get a personal sketch every month. It's more work, but if you think you can keep up (be sure to limit the size of such a reward tier so you don't end up with 50 drawings to do every month), it may be a good option for you. There is one artist I've been supporting this way for over a year, and his work has improved remarkably in that time frame because he's drawing a dozen colored reward sketches every month, so there is a tangible benefit to an artist's skill development, also, if that's one of your goals!
In most cases, I personally don't go for things such as early access to art, high-res files, or access to collections of old art. I know some people enjoy these rewards, but they almost never sway me.