TWCL

Spamwise · Joined: 28 Mar 2012 Posts: 53

Anyone use Reddit?

Sometimes when I post my new episode (http://www.hardhobbittobreak.com, of course) the thumbnail image shows up exactly as it should -- but a lot of times it doesn't.

Has anyone experienced this before, or heard of a way to fix? I PM'ed the moderators of the forum but have not heard back yet. I do think, though, just from my limited analytics, that not having that thumbnail makes a direct effect on how many referrals I get from them in a day.

Wild Horse · Joined: 19 Jun 2011 Posts: 76

What's the deal with reddit? I've heard people get mad if you just post your comics up there and nothing else, is that true? Outside of that I hear it's a pretty effective promo tool?

Someone want to break it down?
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vaslittlecrow · Joined: 01 Aug 2005 Posts: 609

Wild Horse: It depends. Reddit traffic tends to be bouncy, so it's not of the best quality, but you will eventually score readers if you persevere.

If the general Reddit population likes your material, you can post cat poop every day and they won't care. If there's a few trolls that hate your work or someone who feels you're a spammer, it can backfire. It is best to rotate the subreddits where you post to avoid the worst problems. Do not post all of your comics every single day on any given subreddit. Throw in new articles and videos you find for variety on appropriate subreddits. Post comics outside of the regular subreddits when appropriate for maximum reach.

Here's the skinny on the subreddits that are comics specific: r/comic_crits subreddit is the kindest, but be sure to ask for a genuine critique. On /r/comics people tend to get into moods where they either ignore your comic or check it thoroughly. /r/webcomics is absolutely merciless with down votes, trolls and the mods are stringent about their rules, but if you post something they like, the traffic will be insane. One-shot humor webcomics usually get the best reaction. There is an /r/graphicnovel thread for serial non-funnies.

I hope this helps.
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Visit Catnose Comics and Velvet Rasputin to see my comic art and graphic novels.

Spamwise · Joined: 28 Mar 2012 Posts: 53

/agree with the /webcomics assessment. My serial-based strips get no votes, and little traffic. The gag-a-days get more.

I have no idea how they can tell which they're going to get on a particular day though, since I intermix the two on the site.

But yeah, if you get 3-5 upvotes before the trolls vote you back down, traffic will increase because you'll stay on the front page longer.

I don't dare post to /comic_crits -- my artwork is awful.

Also, I have had success posting to reddits that my comic's topic is about -- for instance my Firefly-based episode did better in /firefly than in /webcomics.

Wild Horse · Joined: 19 Jun 2011 Posts: 76

Cheers guys, really helpful. I'll have to give it a try.
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MGS · Joined: 23 Sep 2011 Posts: 82

I was banned from Reddit. I think it was for posting the same thing in /webcomics and /humor on successive days. Of course, I never found out why when I asked.

Does anyone else have more tips for avoiding getting banned or marked as a spammer?

Also, I agree with the above comment about reddit being 'bouncy'. I had something like a 96%-98% bounce rate when I was posting there.

wendyw · Posted: Sat May 05, 2012 4:06 pm Post subject:

MGS wrote:

Also, I agree with the above comment about reddit being 'bouncy'. I had something like a 96%-98% bounce rate when I was posting there.

After one of my Lego clone reviews I stick up on Commander Cottontail got posted on /Lego (not by me if you're wondering) I got (what is for me) a massive boost in traffic and the bounce rate for that has been, I think, about 94%, so yeah, very high bounce rates, but on the other hand free advertising and some of those viewers must have stuck around, right?

I hope so anyway.
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Blog

MGS · Joined: 23 Sep 2011 Posts: 82

I've been submitting my comic to Reddit again for the last two weeks and have found that the "Webcomics" subreddit is somewhat kinder than the "Comics and Webcomics" subreddit. r/webcomics has also been generating more hits.

I'm going to continue to post in both. Just thought this info might be helpful. Good luck!

Spamwise · Joined: 28 Mar 2012 Posts: 53

MGS wrote:

I was banned from Reddit. I think it was for posting the same thing in /webcomics and /humor on successive days. Of course, I never found out why when I asked.

Does anyone else have more tips for avoiding getting banned or marked as a spammer?

Also, I agree with the above comment about reddit being 'bouncy'. I had something like a 96%-98% bounce rate when I was posting there.

The general rule, I've found (*except* for r/webcomics, where they expect it's your own stuff you're posting) is to try and maintain a 1-to-10 ratio of your stuff to other people's stuff you post.

So I troll around Img.Ur and QuickMeme and find funny stuff to post, or news articles, or other general interest links and try to post those too... Right now I'm probably at 1-to-3 ratio or so, and if a comic gets banned, the moderators are more ready to unban if they see you're not *just* self-promoting.

TonyDiGerolamo · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 326

Wild Horse wrote:

What's the deal with reddit? I've heard people get mad if you just post your comics up there and nothing else, is that true? Outside of that I hear it's a pretty effective promo tool?

Someone want to break it down?

r/webcomics and r/comics will tolerate fairly regular postings, but you also have to be in the community by making comments and posting other stuff. r/humor and r/funny will totally ban you. Try and spread your posts around to other topics if your comic is relevant. If you get banned, you can try going back in a few weeks. Sometimes a new mod will unban you, but they check on your posts. They can see everything you've posted in each individual reddit, so they'll know if you've only posted the same website. Ideally, if you can get your fans to post a link, that's way better.

Fat Bunny · Joined: 12 May 2011 Posts: 49

Spamwise wrote:

MGS wrote:

I was banned from Reddit. I think it was for posting the same thing in /webcomics and /humor on successive days. Of course, I never found out why when I asked.

Does anyone else have more tips for avoiding getting banned or marked as a spammer?

Also, I agree with the above comment about reddit being 'bouncy'. I had something like a 96%-98% bounce rate when I was posting there.

The general rule, I've found (*except* for r/webcomics, where they expect it's your own stuff you're posting) is to try and maintain a 1-to-10 ratio of your stuff to other people's stuff you post.

So I troll around Img.Ur and QuickMeme and find funny stuff to post, or news articles, or other general interest links and try to post those too... Right now I'm probably at 1-to-3 ratio or so, and if a comic gets banned, the moderators are more ready to unban if they see you're not *just* self-promoting.

Yeah, I made the mistake of posting in just the "funny" category or something, because I didn't know there was such a thing as a "webcomics" section. Got banned. Kind of annoying! Cuz those were definitely the most successful days my website ever had!

http://www.thefatbunny.com