How did you build your reputation to attract viewers?

[KellyAngel]

Most everything I could say has already been covered but I'll add my bit anyways

I've been drawing comics and putting them online since (roughly) 2008 and it's only been this last year that I had a really significant increase in followers. I started posting more than I had been before in 2012 and in 2013 even more (and to a schedule), so there's probably a connection there. Before then updates were very sporadic, 7 month intervals don't really work well for gag-a-day comics haha. My main intention when I started making comics was just because I wanted to make comics/tell a story/joke. I wanted people to read them of course but it was (and still is) mainly an act of love (I may be wording that weird...).

Treat your followers well, if you have time try to reply to comments and answer questions. Be careful not to get taken advantage of (some people will ask unreasonable things) but show people you're not ignoring them.

Take advantage of social networking. I've found Tumblr to be really good. Not everyone subscribes to RSS feeds (if you have your own site for your comic) so making use of social sites like facebook or twitter are a good way of giving people an easy way to follow your comic.

There's no one way of gaining a following, what works for one person may not for another. The main thing, in my opinion, is just to keep doing what you're doing as long as you love doing it. Patience is very much a virtue and it will, most likely, pay off.

:¬)

[brianorlando]

Thanks so much for all the good advice and words of encouragement.

[hannahmcgill]

Yeah definitely, just keep at it and keep making stuff. You only lose by giving up.

[obachuka2]

for me, i've established a pretty reliable strategy that helped me skyrocket to stardom and beyond

3 easy steps:
1. buy a truck with your comic's url on the side
2. crash it into your local bakery
3. rake in mad views

But seriously, biggest piece of advice I can give is "Don't look for shortcuts." There's no secret key to making it big, and any time spent looking for one is time wasted. Just remember to have fun making your comic because it's what you love.

(but you can try my 3 easy steps too if you want)

[taybee]

It's difficult, especially since no matter how many viewers you get it never seems like enough sometimes. What I've done is be very active online, I have Defying Gravity on 3 different sites, and I post my artwork on 3 more! I have a tumblr, to which I blog about the comic daily (update posts, news, etc) this reminds people that there's an update, since expecting people to keep up with it themselves won't work because hey, people get busy and forget! Even my favorite comics I find myself forgetting to check up on until i see an update post.
Another is to be social. Find connections, don't be shy to talk to artists you look up to. If they are livestreaming, join in and chat with them a bit! And if it's you that's the artist, if you can think of something to say then say it! Knowing that there's a living person behind that story really makes the comic more appealing.

TL;DR: Don't expect readers to come to you, you have to go find them!

[jonathancowen]

I don't think it is something you can pin down, it is more of an organic thing. Sometimes you attract several readers at once, sometimes you lose a few. In the end you are only in competition with yourself! Best advice I can give is be yourself, do it your way, and be persistent (it's a marathon not a sprint). You will find your audience over time, and maybe it's never the big leagues, but as long as you enjoy it, who cares?
I noticed doing the 365 tumblr sketches attracted people to my work. I think Tumblr is a good way to go, and Facebook obviously. Good Luck!

[Ohharvey]

Building a reputation to attract viewers takes time, hard work, and patience. I believe patience may be number one on my personal list, closely followed by quality work. If you have both of these the need for extensive advertising won't be necessary because your work speaks for itself. But if you are simply creating a story only to gain followers you may be creating a story for the wrong reasons. Have fun with your story, after all it is one of your brain babies and something you love to create right?

However, having your own website and a few other sites which you post your work helps. If you make sure to keep these external sites active, make posts, and provide new work, you will grow a reputation with your viewers over time.

Good Luck guys and gals I hope this helps a bit.

[brianorlando]

Truck crash into bakery was super effective.

[brianorlando]

Best advice I can give is be yourself, do it your way, and be persistent (it's a marathon not a sprint).

I completely agree. I think it will definitely show if you are trying to make a comic that doesn't represent who you are as a creator.

[brianorlando]

TL;DR: Don't expect readers to come to you, you have to go find them!

Yep. Very true. It takes a lot of persistence.

[brianorlando]

active

I think this is the magic word here. It's important to keep 'active' everywhere you/your comic have a presence. After all, I think readers want to be involved in a story that is alive and ongoing. This implies that it is a creators job to engage with their audience as much as possible to keep that flame going.

[jjfresh]

I have been working on my story, "Beautiful Lies" in March it will be two years. I don't expect big attention. This story is a starter for me so I can learn and improve. I have many people who are fans...well my idea of many, and I'm happy some people are interested. I made it mostly for myself and myself to improve more. What I have notice for this almost two years is attention is mainly when I update. If you are gone too long, no one will see your comic and you won't get many viewers. You have to advertise a little, such as draw pictures of your story for deviantArt or talk about it on the forums. Another idea is to post your story on other websites. I have mine on a few websites but I don't like having it on too many website so I am trying to fix this.

The main way you will receive many viewers is of course, it has to be interesting. My theory on good comics is that it doesn't matter what theme you have so long as you deliver your story well. Well means technique and over all skill of course. That takes much practice.

[SaiKyon]

I think it's about the climax of the story[if the comic is a story-type] or the realization/punch-line[for short gags] that makes the rise of audience.

it's just my opinion on what the public reacts on some stuff in the internet.

( O 3O)

[oh, Hi!]

[JoesBar12]

Hi, Neecko of Joe's Bar Toons here. One item that I have very cheaply done is produced Business Cards that have a drawing of my main character along with QR code and link information about my toon. I basically hand them out everywhere and also post to any bulletin board available. I found if I just mention the site (Toon) people tend to forget about it, but if they also have the business card they come across it eventually and check me out! www.joesbartoons.com
Hope it's helpful
Neecko

[OutlandishComic]

Truck crashing into orphanage, not so successful... However, very good advice in this forum. Thanks!

[Malcontent]

This is a great thread with a ton of excellent advice. I keep coming back and finding new nuggets of wisdom. Just thought of something I could add that's helped me.

I'll start by saying that building an audience is brutal. I've been at it for years, and I've seen only modest gains. But one thing that has consistently helped me has been the use of color. When I started, my strips were all in black and white. At some point I did something in color and got a great response. So I started using color every week. Since then my numbers have seen a consistent increase, and I get a bigger bump when I post to sites like Reddit. When I post black and white stuff, even now, the numbers drop.

I believe it has to do with post icons. When people scan social media sites, having an icon or image in the sidebar that really pops will naturally grab their interest. For me, adding color achieved this, but it could be making a simple black and white drawing that still catches the eye. The main thing is to stand out among all those other tiny, tiny images.

Anyway, hope this is useful to someone. It sure has helped me a lot.

[rainfreak]

I didn't fully read all the replies to the topic but, as @michaelson just encouraged me to participate even more in the community, let me tell you a little about my experience and some things I learned at marketing in my Design Licentiate and as a volunteer at St. John of God's Foundation about exploiting the viral side of the Internet.

I've been at Tapastic for just a little over a week and was extremely surprised by the sudden number of subscribers that my series Somewhere in the Rain got in that short amount of time (just now 146).

I'm not new in webcomic communities, but this is my most important project and I'm taking great care with it.
So here's a couple of things I've learned that I think might help you:

• First give a little bit to read. Don't start with just one page. Try at
  least 5/8 pages, or long enough that it spikes the readers'
  curiosity. This goes for things like Facebook or blogs. Never ask
  someone to follow something that ha no content!

• Second, do cross posting. Like everywhere. Every network is a cranny
  on the Internet. You never get the same results at each of them, but
  it'll help spread your comic and reach different audiences.

• Third, if you're like me and take huge time to draw, let your readers
  know. **Give them other means to follow your work and show that you are
  working on it**.

• Fourth, decide what you want: speed or quality. I went for quality
  and so far it's what attracts readers to my work, or so I deduce from
  the readers' comments. I'd rather take my time and produce good pages
  than be just another comicker that works fast but poorly. There are
  many stylizations so that also plays into the scene. Think a little
  over that.

• Fifth, and last that I can remember right now to recommend, is that
  you decide how to schedule your publishing. At fist I did 1/2 pages a
  week at Smackjeeves and InkBlazers and DeviantArt. But I felt that
  just giving one or two pages to the readers left them either confused
  or very expecting, especially when I didn't have time to draw a new
  page. So I decided to update each chapter (or episode, if you will)
  in parts. I leave some cliff hangers in the right place and give the
  readers enough content to enjoy the story rightfully.

I hope this helps in some way.

AND THAT IT WASN'T TOO MUCH INFO! SORRY!!!!!!

You can ask me more things if you remember anything specifically.

[Brad]

Tried the truck crash into bakery thing as well. Gotta say: it's magic.

[GemGfx]

Lot's of great suggestions and points made in this post. Very useful information.

For me I think the most important thing is patience. The "Rome wasn't built in a day" situation applies here I think. Also it helps for me to avoid comparisons. It can become a very slippery slope if you look at the performance of your book and compare it to that of another. There are many, many factors that would affect how well a book is doing, and it would be unfair to yourself to measure your book against one that is doing well. Not to mention the fact that no matter how good your book does, you will always find a book that is doing better and be tempted to once again compare. So I try to avoid that and just take it slow and easy.

But once again, great advice given. Much thanks to all the posters.

[hurstah]

Yeah, all very good tips. I believe the artwork attract readers and the writing, keep them around. If the readers truly love your work, they will share it with others, but it all takes time.