Penny-Arcade's "Strip Search"

[ghostcat]

It was a comic called Rob and Elliot. I did it for 8 years with my brother, Hampton, as the writer. We monetized with ads and were earning about $100 a month off that at the peak. Here's what we did wrong:

1. Only one ad.
2. Updated once a week.
3. Didn't sell any merchandise.
4. Didn't take it seriously as a business.

#4 was the biggest problem. I always categorized the comic as a hobby and never made a real effort to monetize. Since I said it was a hobby, it wasn't a big deal if it didn't make any money. I figured if the comic was good enough, it would become popular on its own, and I could monetize it easily. The popular part kind of worked out (If we had promoted it at all, I think we would have done better), but monetizing take serious dedication that we were lacking. I now realize that treating it like a hobby is the absolute worst mentality to have, and for my next comic, I will be looking to promote it and monetize it at every opportunity.

I will add that working with a partner was great from a creativity standpoint, and I know the comic wouldn't have been as popular without his writing, but working with someone else can make accomplishing anything that much harder. You each have hot and cold periods of engagement that rarely line up, and plans to do anything get put off indefinitely. I'm equally to blame as my brother for not getting anything done, but the combination of both our laziness made the problem greater than it should have been.
</cautionary tale>

I agree that the PA team would be a huge asset and leg up but the team won't ensure that you find a dedicated audience that will support you. (chances are if you win, you'll have those talents yourself though). To grow your audience, your absolute main focus should be on making the best product you can.

Also, there's only one person who will benefit from winning each year in a best case scenario, and those are some looooong odds, so I wouldn't pin your hopes of succeeding on winning. You can do just as well on your own if you are business savvy, and take it seriously. I know lots of people who have.

[Inkthinker]

Oh, most definitely no guarantee of success here. But damn, it's a sweet leg up.

Merch is a big deal, and advertising as well. Most of the strips I can think of as "successful" have at least 3 ad blocks scattered around the page, and they really work the merch and the con circuit.