On the case of Patreon

[Tanisha]

I was having a conversation with someone and the conversation turned to this and for the first time I actually have a topic for you guys xD

Is it wrong to have a patreon if you have the money to privately fund your creation?

There are many big creators like youtubers and such that turn to patreon for upcoming projects they have in mind. Most would say they are in a good financial situation but that doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t need more money to cut on productions costs right?

I was always one to think that if you have enough money than why start a patreon for all this extra money and take away potential customers from small creators starting up their business? I mean yeah it’s a pretty entitled way of thinking about it but I just can’t help but think that way for other people.

[LordVincent]

They aren't taking away potential customers. If anything, they are getting more people used to the idea of paying for online content, which is something we need to strive for as a community at large (online content creators) because there is a growing culture of entitled people who think creators shouldn't get paid for anything.

Personally I prefer to use patreon as a tool for people to buy instant services related to my comics (early access, exclusive bonuses) and I don't much like the idea of fundraisers at all. But that's just me and the way I prefer to do my business. I don't care much how others use it as long as they give their fans what they promise for their money. And don't use it for illegal activities of course.

[SpavVy]

The way I see it if they have the funds to support their project they still should be able to make money off of it with sites like Patreon if they oh so wish. If the individual makes good quality content that a lot of people enjoy and they want to support it then I really don't see anything wrong with doing so. These people are putting time into their work just like the rest of us and it's completely fair that they too want to make money off it.

[punkarsenic]

patreon isnt a charity, its a business model. setting up a patreon is more akin to setting up a small business than setting up a gofundme to get surgery you cant afford. its not wrong for people who dont need the money to set up a business, and people with fulltime jobs and the like have set up side-hustles from the dawn of hustling.

i dont think theyre exactly taking customers away from others either, in that its not americas next top model, each patron is looking at 3 beautiful creators has one dollaridoo in their hand. some patrons cant afford to pledge to all the creators they want to and have to make a choice, this is true, but most of the time the venn diagram between people interested in supporting one comic and those wanting to support another is... two big fat unrelated circles. people bring patrons over from other sites usually, which only makes patreon better.

also like... yknow, people are putting a lot of time into the stuff they make on patreon. its not that much to ask that people pay a little to get it, regardless of the creators situation.

[Rayenae]

Agree with everyone else, basically. It's a business. If people are willing to purchase the product you're providing, that's all the justification you need.

That being said, what does everyone think about the direction Patreon says they want to take with only supporting creators that make a lot of money instead of smaller ones who only make a few, small transactions?

[akemikae]

I don't like anything about their business changes to be honest. Since to me, the whole point of patreon was to allow creators big or SMALL to get paid for their services. Patreon assuming that smaller people ruin their business model have no idea what they're even going on about. That's the original joy of patreon. It is a great stepping stone for beginners to get paid for their services.

They also claim that their new terms (adding 35 cents to a dollar for example) is supposedly gonna help incentivise people to go for the higher tiers. Which is bull. It's always been the creators job to make that look appealing. So I have a lot of thoughts about what they're changing. I don't like any of it.

[Rayenae]

It's also just a dumb business move in general. Any kind of mobile game, for example, will tell you the same: small transactions add up. They should be focusing on volume instead of only worrying about the larger transactions. MAYBE they'll see some gain in the short term doing this, but in the long run they're going lose out on growth potential. Where do they think these big successful creators come from exactly? They start out as the same small fish they're potentially screwing over.

[edmourabarbosa]

I agree with you in seeing Patreon as a business transaction, but lately I've been seeing that maybe that's not really what the patrons think.
I used to think that you had to make great rewards for pledges, as to encorage people to pledge to different tiers. What I've been seeing in other creators patreons, and even in mine, is that patrons don't really care about what they're getting. At least the majority of them just want to HELP the creator do what they're doing. The patrons want to feel part of the project, they want to show you how much they like the project, and most of the time, how much they like the creator as a person.
I don't want to say that you don't need rewards for each pledge. Patrons feel ripped off by that. Just that they don't care thaaaaat much about what they're getting.

[punkarsenic]

hmm.. this is true. im a pretty inattentive person, and i cant deny that i pay very little attention to my patreon dashboard, and have even dropped pledges from people posting too much (of stuff i dont care abt, and that werent the only issue, but still). part of this is that i earn a very little amount a month from patreon, so it kind of feels like 7 free dollaridoos i can put back into the game, and im not losing anything, so idrc if im all about the content im getting.

i defo pledge to people on the basis that i wanna make a statement of support.

The patrons want to feel part of the project, they want to show you how much they like the project, and most of the time, how much they like the creator as a person.

this absolutely.

that said, i think this might change when a patreon page gets big enough. there are some podcasts i LOVE and wanna support on patreon, but 1: they get thousands a month and 2: their $1 tier, the only one i could feasibly pledge to, doesnt provide the rewards i really want.