Hitch It / Ditch It: Buster Drake and Ungoodwise

This is the fourth installment of the Hitch It / Ditch It Hot Seat -- one of the most popular critique sessions we've had here. The concept is simple. I look at your webcomic and point out one thing that I think you're doing very well. And then I point out something I think needs improvement. As always, the discussion is then opened up to the members at large. Links, as always, in the headers.

Buster Drake

Ungoodwise

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Best of Webcomics.com, June 2013

If you're not a member of Webcomics.com, here's what you missed last month.

Site Posts

Comic-convention exhibitor alert: If you see them nest to you on the convention floor plan, you need to take action.

Digital downloads as convention merchandise: Why didn't my digital-download cards work as convention merchandise? Was it because of the "Quest Factor"?

Banner Ad Hot Seat: We concluded a critique session focused on banner advertising.

"What Do I Have To Lose?" Is this a statement that indicates that ther person hasn't given the decision enough thought?

Hitch It or Ditch It: We launched a new critique series in which we discuss one thing that's working well on your webcomic -- and one thing that needs more work.

Mailbag: Illustration board and paper size: A member writes, "I am currently developing my first webcomic but I am unsure about the paper size I need to purchase for a four panel strip..."

Tep tips for SEO optimization: Don't let anyone misinform you. SEO matters. A lot. Here's how you could be doing it better.

Gumroad enable subscription management: The digital-download app adds an important feature -- the ability to let users subscribe to regularly updated content.

Ten! (No! Eleven!) tips on running a successful Kickstarter campaign: Here's what I learned (in some cases, the hard way) about running a Kickstarter campaign.

Creating your own standing drawing table. Member Jason Frazer shared his step-by-step plans for building an ergonomic work station for his comic.

BannersNStands member discount: When we asked longtime Webcomics.com supporter BannersNStands to re-up their member discount on retractible banner stands, they did -- and then improved it.

Best of the Private Forum

The Penny Arcade Podcast Kickstarter: What can we learn from this?

StoreEnvy: It now supports digital downloads.

What name do you table under? Your name? Your comic's title? Both? Neither?

Meeting the readers where they roam: What's the best way to get your comic in front of the group of people most-likely to support your work?

Sketching at cons: What do you need to have on-hand to be successful?

Adobe goes subscription-only. What are you going to do? This has been a fascinating discussion. Some are bolting for less-expensive solutions, and others are arguing that it's really not such a big deal.

Scott Kurtz and Table Titans: In a podcast interview, Scott talks about launching a new comic after over-a-decade of PvP.

E-mail subscriptions in 2013: Out-of-date idea or useful feature?

Profanity in the Comments section. What should you do?

Webcomics CMS suggestions: Comic CMS? Webcomic/Inkblot? Comic Press/WordPress? Comic Easel/WordPress?

Amazon eComics: A few members test-drive it and give their thoughts on the interface -- and the revenue-split.

DPI: At which resolution should you post your comics?

Strip Search Aftermath: It looks as if there was more than one winner...

Friday Archive Dive: GooglePlus - Dead in the Water?

Today's Archive Dive comes from July, 2012, when I wondered whether GooglePlus was going to make it.

It has been almost one year since the premiere of Google Plus. Here's an excerpt from my post, discussing the topic:

I'd like to open up a discussion about Google+. As I tweeted earlier this week, I'm convinced that it's going to be the Next Big Thing because I have absolutely no idea what to do with it.

And neither does anybody else, it seems.

So far, the thing I've heard repeated most often has been that the Google+ circles allow you to direct what information get shared with whom.

Aside from those circles, Google+ is Facebook -- minus the development that has gone into Facebook over the past few years (games, groups, storefronts, ads, etc.).

But I still don't know what to do with it.

I mean, the circles are nice, but Facebook is likely to meet that functionality by the beginning of August -- especially is Google+ begins to show any signs of traction.

Nevertheless, I'm hesitant to underestimate anything with the power of Google behind it.

Well... "Next Big Thing" may have been an overstatement. Or maybe, in hindsight, it was a Big Thing... but only for a short time. However, it's been around for a year, and -- much like the rollout -- I still don't know what to do with it.

I'm still wondering what to do with my GooglePlus account. What about you?

Read the entire post and comment there.

Comic Con International - Taking my own advice

A funny thing happens when you write for a site like this, day after day.

You start to listen to yourself.

Ever since 2010, I've posted here about how my attitude towards comic conventions has changed. When we wrote the original "How To Make Webcomics" book, I wrote the chapter on comic convention. I drew myself as a carnival barker, standing on top of a convention table, and most of the matrerial in that chapter was very strongly geared towards using comic convention as a primary revenue source for webcomics.

And I still think they're important.

But for years, I've been posting some very frank advice on the topic. In short, I don't think you should go to a comic convention unless you have a very good chance of turning a profit.

July To-Do List

It's July. Comic Con International is in a few days. If you're going, it's time to triple-check your prep, start getting ready to travel and brace yourself for the upcoming Nerd Prom.