How Webcomics.com is doing as a subscription site
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Last January Webcomics.com went behind a paywall to much the surprise to many of us.
Fleen.com’s Gary Tyrell looks back to see how the site has changed.
That fourth graf is where I got it especially wrong ? I was reading WDC as an informational resource and nothing more; what?s become clear is that Brad?s managed to turn it into something else entirely. If it isn?t already, it?s well on its way to becoming a professional society, with the fringe benefits that go along with it. Members exhibiting at the inaugural C2E2 got a break on table costs greater than their annual subscription (with the possibility that a similar deal may extend to other Reed Exhibitions shows in future), and the 10% discount at Transcon could be worth hundred of dollars.
And while I don?t have definite information on this, I think it?s likely that Guigar would not have been able to negotiate such deals for the readers of an open website ? that $30/year subscription acts as a gatekeeper, and convinces suppliers that this is an audience that they want to reach out to. That bit of exclusion acts to make the demographic cohort economically desireable.
As ? let?s say awkwardly as the transition was handled, the outcome has been significant. I?ve seen no indication that the quality of postings has dropped off, that the discussions have fallen away, or that the passion of the membership has diminished. Guigar is coy on the exact number of members, but he has been willing to describe it as Close to twice what I expected, and more signing up every week. That fact alone ought to give him the leverage to make deals to benefit his members in future. Website hosting, accounting and business services, private-label Bristol, and custom-edition Cintiqs could be a reality someday. Or, if we?re really shooting for the moon, how about WDC becoming the equivalent of the Freelancers Union? They get access to an insurance benefit.
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