Webcomic Site Survey
I am currently doing some revamps on my runnersuniverse.com site to get some things updated before the new story launches. For visitors of the site, I have a few questions, and any input would be greatly appreciated.
- What would you like to see as the home page? I am debating between having it be the latest page of the story (along with its commentary and reader comments) or a static, landing page that is an intro to the series, including info on the characters, world, and archive. On that home page, there would then be links to the latest page and start of the story.
- Would readers like it if I implemented Disqus to handle discussion and comments on the site? Would you find it better or worse than the current system for leaving comments?
- Would you like the blog to be a part of the home page or on a separate page? If the home page hosts actual comic pages, the blog being a part of that can clutter it up a bit, instead of just having the focus be on the page itself and comments. But if the blog is on a separate page, I’m not sure if it will be seen as much.
Please feel free to chime in with your thoughts! Thanks!!
1. I like when the latest page is on the front page, makes it very clear that it’s a webcomic site.
2. I like Disqus, it’s nice to be able to see that you’ve gotten a reply to something when visiting another site that has Disqus on it.
3. Some comics have the blog below the comic, others have it separate. Having it below the comic doesn’t really detract from the comic I don’t think.
1. I’d rather it was the blog’s latest entry with a sidebar that linked new people on where to start. Alternatively the latest comic would be best, but since you don’t tend to post regularly that might make people think it’s dead. Depends on what engine you’re going to use for your new site, but if you’re sticking with WordPress that’s doable.
2. You could get rid of comments entirely and it probably wouldn’t hurt. If you really want comments create a subreddit or Facebook fan group and moderate it there. Then you’re always able to hand it off later if you don’t want to/don’t have time to moderate it.
3.Separate the blog into it’s own Page and post there. That way you can have a single source for people who just want to read the comic and for your more dedicated fans..ahem…they have a place to dive in deeper. I read your blog posts through my feed anyways. Alternatively just post via the newsletter.
Thanks for the comments! Definitely helpful to hear from readers, and it sounds like people prefer some sort of update (blog or page) rather than the static landing page. Phil, I totally agree that the site could look dead without regular updates, which has been a big concern of mine. But my plan going forward is to keep the comic going regularly and consistently, so the long hiatuses should be a thing of the past.
I definitely want to keep the comments though, since that’s one of my favorite things about the webcomic format: being able to post commentary and then allow discussion. I find that very fun, and the interaction with readers is a nice break from the cold, cold vacuum of producing the book alone in my studio. Ha ha.
Will definitely consider all these comments in my decision with the site. If anyone else has feedback, feel free to share!
1 landing page with a link to most recent as one of the most obvious things on that page. I tend to read webcomics every couple months in chunks, so seeing the latest page first, usually spoils at least one thing, no matter how much i try to not look lol.
2 i like disqus, however I also like your current comment system. If you changed it or left it how it is, I’d be happy.
3 my personal favorite is where the blog is separate, but the most recent blog post still displays below the comic.