Having recently launched my first Kickstarter in over four years, I’ve been trying to get back into the swing of promoting. Here’s a list of ten promotional ideas that I generated to keep me on track.
Previews: I’ve built thirty previews that feature one- and two-panel excerpts from my graphic novel, and I display that in a consistent framework that pitches the Kickstarter and some key details. Here are a couple of examples.
Teaser Trailer: You can build very simple video previewing pages and share key details of your Kickstarter. I’ve used iMovie in the past, but I’m also a big fan of an app called vllo.
Character Introductions: Short, snappy intros can be a fun way of discussing your comic without seeming like overt promotion.
Quote Graphics: Books often use pull quotes, which are large displays of typography that feature a powerful statement or passage from the book. You can do the same thing with standalone panels from your comic that accomplish the same thing.
Behind the scenes: Bring potential backers into your creative process. Record a studio tour of your workspace. Share proofs when they arrive from the printer. This is a mystifying process for many folks. They’ll love seeing how this book comes together!
Interactive Polls: I would not offer a poll asking about preferences for rewards because, let’s face it, I can’t change those once the Kickstarter has launched! However, interactive polls on side issues in the book’s content can be a fun way of talking about the content without seeming promo-y! For example, If a character makes a decision in the storyline, you could ask if people thought that was the right decision.
Fan Art Features: Encourage and post fan art! It’s a great way for other artists to cross-promote with you. You have more reasons to talk about the Kickstarter, and you both get to expose your work to new followers.
Livestream / AMAs: Host live sessions — on TikTok, Instagram, Twitch, or a similar platform — where you discuss your excitement about the upcoming book. If you’re comfortable, you could even livestream yourself drawing an exclusive piece of art that will be added to the book! AMAs (Ask Me Anything) can also be a great way to drum up excitement!
Pinned posts and house ads: Here’s one I always forget. Go through all of your social media profiles and pin a post that announces your Kickstarter. Add it to your Linktree. Make sure there’s a prominent announcement of your website.
Reach out to previous backers: If you have operated Kickstarter campaigns in the past, go to those old Kickstarter pages and post an update. The people who supported that previous endeavor will get alerted to the fact that you have another project they might enjoy. You can also message Patreon backers who have canceled their pledge in Patreon’s Audience Manager. Remember, these are all people who have shown an appreciation for your work. They’ll want to hear about this new campaign.
A successful Kickstarter campaign requires constant promotion. Remember, it’s awfully difficult to repeat a message to a prospective backer when most social media algorithms are designed to deliver each of your messages to only a small portion of your followers. So you can’t pretty much put any worries of “spamming” people to rest. Moreover, keep in mind the old advertising axiom that suggests that a prospective buyer needs to hear an advertising message an average of seven times before they’re ready to act. Make a thirty-day plan and have the elements ready to execute before you launch the Kickstarter.
You want to write longform stories that are brisk and engaging, and yet you also want to optimize your comic to use social media to build an audience. It feels impossible to write a quality story and succeed on social media at the same time, doesn’t it? It’s not. Welcome to a publishing method I’ve developed called Mutli-Channel Publishing. MCP helps you to do both.
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Many of us struggle with humor writing. In many cases this boils down to understanding the difference between a joke and a non sequitur. I’m going to use a case study as an example.
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In a Surviving Creativity podcast a few years ago, Scott Kurtz, Cory Casoni, and I discussed how creator reaction to the Patreon service fee announcement spiraled out of control — and had some pretty nasty consequences. During that conversation, we identified an urgent need for creators to do better when it comes to crisis management.
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What’s in a name? Quite a bit if you’re trying to name your book. Crafting the right title can have a significant effect on everything from Kickåstarter pledges to audience response. And there are some very real pitfalls to avoid.
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Lettering is crucially important — especially if you’re trying to write a humor comic. Comedy is about timing, and bad lettering kills timing. So let’s look at a seldom discussed aspect of lettering — line breaks.
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Every once in a while, someone asks if it’s possible actually to make a living in comics. It’s a fair question, and it deserves an honest answer.
SPONSORED BY…
ComicLab is brought to you this week by the book “How Comics Were Made, a Visual History from the Drawing Board to the Printed Page.”Comics historian and ComicLab fan Glenn Fleishman has spent years researching the history of newspaper comic strip production and reproduction and is bringing his expertise to this printed work full of comics from Yellow Kid through Krazy Kat, Doonesbury, Peanuts, and, yes, Dave’s own Drive! It will feature never-before-seen original drawings and printing artifacts, such as “flongs,” the hilarious old-fashioned name for printing molds. The book draws from museum collections like the Billy Ireland Library and the Charles M Schulz Library, generous access to artists’ own archives, and Glenn’s personal collection. Glenn’s taking the book to crowdfunding in February, using lessons drawn from this very podcast! You can read more about the book or sign up to get an alert when the campaign launches by going to howcomicsweremade.ink.
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