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So... er how exactly would you bootstrap this business model? Yeah, this might (with a very small probability) work if you're already an established, successful

So... er how exactly would you bootstrap this business model? Yeah, this might (with a very small probability) work if you're already an established, successful webcomics author. If you're starting out, though, you have no chances of success. Who's going to chip in for a comic that may or may not be good when it is finished?

kiba 15y ago
In my experience with this business model, I started with a free archive of the magazine with previous essays for people to look at. Then I use a formula to determine the ransom price. All my ransom are met, because I didn't have an extreme expectation that I was going to raise hundred of dollars at the beginning of the publication. Compared to advertising, it performs far better in term of revenues. More importantly, it doesn't uglify your site or make your site worse unlike what advertising usually does. How much better? I would need to perform manual collection to get these figures. With automation, I would be able to tell you, right down to 8 digit place. The problem with this business model is that people doesn't do the work that allows them to reach their goal, or they have an extreme expectation of how much money they are going to raise. If you don't have the fanbase, you ain't going to raise much money. It's not that it might work with a very small probability. It will works, to varying degree of success, depending on the popularity, how loyal your fans are, and so on. I seen a writer who done the exact same thing, but I don't have the link handy. So, I know it works. The more interesting question is how it will perform compared to other business models such as advertising, selling in dead tree format, merchandising, live performance, and so on, depending on the relevancy of each business model for particular industries. Like I said, advertising earn me money, but it perform terribly to how much money I can get by ransoming contents.

kiba 15y ago

In my experience with this business model, I started with a free archive of the magazine with previous essays for people to look at. Then I use a formula to determine the ransom price. All my ransom are met, because I didn't have an extreme expectation that I was going to raise hundred of dollars at the beginning of the publication. Compared to advertising, it performs far better in term of revenues. More importantly, it doesn't uglify your site or make your site worse unlike what advertising usually does. How much better? I would need to perform manual collection to get these figures. With automation, I would be able to tell you, right down to 8 digit place. The problem with this business model is that people doesn't do the work that allows them to reach their goal, or they have an extreme expectation of how much money they are going to raise. If you don't have the fanbase, you ain't going to raise much money. It's not that it might work with a very small probability. It will works, to varying degree of success, depending on the popularity, how loyal your fans are, and so on. I seen a writer who done the exact same thing, but I don't have the link handy. So, I know it works. The more interesting question is how it will perform compared to other business models such as advertising, selling in dead tree format, merchandising, live performance, and so on, depending on the relevancy of each business model for particular industries. Like I said, advertising earn me money, but it perform terribly to how much money I can get by ransoming contents.