Something I’ve mentioned before and that’s important in getting patrons involved with your posts, is to ask questions. There are probably a bunch of patrons who see your post, they might even click the little heart, but sometimes they just don’t really have something to say. Sure, they get a good feeling, it makes them happy, but many times it doesn’t spark a thought to write down.
How to solve this? Ask a question! It could be as simple as “Let me know what you think of it!” or “What should I do next?”, but better would be something more creative. “I put 30+ hours of work into this one! What’s the longest project you’ve spent time on?” or “I really like this character I drew. What do you think her back story is? What adventure is she going on?”
Here’s the catch: Don’t just write your question and run. Respond! Patreon is where your most dedicated fan base come together, so it’s even more important than responding on YouTube or Facebook. These are the people who love you enough to give your money. Share that love back!
Now, if you’re Amanda Palmer and get hundreds upon hundreds of comments on a post, I get it, you can’t respond to them all. But do your best, get to as many as you can. Or make a separate post saying “Wow, what a great response to the last creation! Sorry I couldn’t comment back to everyone, but know that I read and love you all!”
I’m going to be honest, as a patron, there are some creators I’ve excitedly answered questions from only to receive no reply time and time again, and eventually it makes me not want to comment. If no one is reading my comment, why bother?
Someone who’s really good at this is Ali Brustofski (in the cover photo), who asks how her patrons are doing, how their weekend went (while answering the question for herself), then she replies to people with genuine responses (not just “that’s cool”)! It makes a difference.
There are some other “big” creators who put great effort into responding to as many comments as they can – Peter Hollens, Sakimichan – the list goes on (most creators are getting pretty good at this).
NOTE – If you respond to a patron’s comment directly, they get a notification or email (unless they’ve turned the setting off) letting them know you replied. But if you just type a new comment in the thread below, they may have no idea, especially if lots of other patrons are commenting and burying it. I know it’s tempting to just type one “Thanks guys!” comment to everyone, but it’s much more personal to respond to individual comments, AND it notifies the commenter.
That’s all for this week! Peace!