No more ads…
Like a sip of strong coffee, it’s kinda bracing, isn’t it? So here’s the deal. Patreon has completely eclipsed site advertising for me. (I go into detail about this in this blog post.) All of you who are backing me through that site — regardless of the size of your pledge — are making it happen. Now, obviously, the biggest share of that has been the $10 backers at the NSFW reward level. But I’ve got something in mind that might be compelling for those of you who aren’t interested in the naughty stuff — an ad-free Evil Inc site.
Once the Evil Inc Patreon achieves $4800, I will remove all third-party ads from all of my Web sites — including: Evil Inc, Arch Bros, Guigar.com, Courting Disaster and Phables. And as long as the Patreon remains over that mark, it will stay that way.
The heart flutters, doesn’t it? So here’s a look at our possible future. (Click here for a larger version)
What’s in it for you?
There are a number of benefits. First off, the site will become instantly more appealing and it will load faster. There will be less to distract you from the good stuff. And, best of all, we reduce our risk of malicious advertising to zero. Now, I want to make sure I communicate this clearly. I started Evil Inc in 2005. I’ve been alerted to malicious ads being delivered through a third-party ad network maybe twice during that time. (You can read about one of those times on Webcomics.com.) Usually, when it happens, my inbox fills up with concerned readers, and I immediately disable the ad network delivering the malicious ad. It’s not something that happens often. However, I’m concerned that, as ad revenue recedes across the Web, these instances may begin to rise. And I’ll be all-too-happy to be able to wash my hands of it completely.
Plus, you’ll get all sorts of rewards for your pledge. Check out the Patreon page. Even at the lowest level, you’re getting advance postings of the Evil Inc comics, as well as behind-the-scenes stuff, access codes, discounts and all sorts of other great offerings. Heck, my Patreon people were the first ones to find out about the free-shipping Early Bird specials on my recent Kickstarter, and they were able to swoop in as soon as the campaign launched and secure theirs.
If you’re going to be a backer, I’m going to do my best to make that experience a beneficial one.
One dollar a month
That’s all it takes. You sign up on Patreon’s secure server. You can pledge at any level, but, honestly, we can easily get there with $1- and $5- pledges. You’d be amazed at how quickly that adds up. Your credit card or debit card gets charged at the beginning of every month. It’s a dollar. You’re not even likely to notice it.
But I’ll notice it. And when you come to an ad-free Evil Inc, you’ll notice it.
And, best of all, there are no strings attached. If you decide that you don’t want to pledge any longer — or if you want to pledge at a different level — you can make that change with the click of a button. You’re never locked into anything.
What’s gonna change?
All third-party ad positions will be eliminated. That’s the leaderboard (the top of the site) as well as the two ads in the left-hand column, under the comic. Evil Inc promotion will continue, of course, and that will be placed at the top of the left-hand column under the comic. This will promote convention appearances, Evil Inc merchandise, and so forth. Likewise, the promo at the top of the right-hand column under the comic — which promotes Alex Heberling’s work — will stay. And, similarly, all third-party ads on all of the other sites I run will be removed.
Heroes Without Borders
I don’t foresee us reaching this goal before the end of the HwB site sponsorship. However, I have promised them a certain number of pageviews, and if we reach our goal before I’ve delivered that number, the leaderboard ad position will remain until that happens. That’s only fair.
Alex Heberling at Penguicon
Meanwhile, it might be nice to take a cup of strong coffee to Evil Inc colorist Alex Heberling, who will be in the Detroit area, exhibiting at Penguicon this weekend. She’ll be at Table 37 in the Maker’s Market. She’ll be doing sketch-card commissions all weekend, and you can catch her in a comics jam panel on Sunday at 1 p.m. Go out there and tell her how awesome she is.
The post Strong coffee appeared first on Evil Inc.