Banner Exchange

[D.Z.]

Here's a suggestion: What do people think about setting up a Webcomics Community banner-exchange program between ourselves? I'd have no idea how to go about it, but it doesn't seem like a bad idea. The comics here are all pretty good IMO.

If not--and I do rather like the idea--what banner-exchange coalition would people recommend joining?

[Rob]

I don't even have a banner page on my site. Might be worth looking into adding for the site redesign though. The only problem is I'm not sure anyone pays attention to links lists or banner exchanges anymore. They're pretty 2004. 

I'd have to think about it... and this sounds very sheeple but if I thought a lot of other folks were going to do it I would probably be more inclined to make the effort.

[Gibson]

I still get traffic from other people linking to me, and I know people get some traffic from my links to them, so it's not as 2004 as you might think. I'm not really interested in a banner exchange, though. The worry is I'd get stuck promoting something I didn't like, and possibly vice-versa.

[Miluette]

A while back I was all about banner exchanges! But now I'm like "eh..." The most tempting banner exchange for me would be one very niche or themed, with a high probability that I'd read/already read the comics within. Somebody needs to do that.

It's still a good option for the WCC if people wanna get in on that, promote the fellow forum-goers, etc. I'm just down on general banner exchanges because they always inevitably die, for one reason or another.

[Rob]

Maybe we could make a banner page here for all the members in alphabetical order or something. And then everyone who wanted to to participate would put let us ad their banner to the page and then maybe put a Webcomics Community button on their page. That way if readers press on the WC button they would come to the banners page and see a menu of other comics.

That might be more palatable than an actual link exchange. 

[Gibson]

I sub this idea.

[Miluette]

Yeah, Rob, it is.

[JGray]

Agreed.

[Rob]

Anyone want to volunteer to make the button?

Trevor (takacomics) made all the graphics for the site. Perhaps said volunteer could commune with him and come up with something.

If someone makes a nice button I'll sidle up to Chadm1n.... whack in the head with a whiffle ball bat and chain him to the furnace until he builds the page for us.

It may take some time but we'll get it eventually.

He's notoriously resistant to torture. 

[Alectric]

You know, I've been thinking about this, and we've already got banners in our signatures, a Pimp Your Comic section, and a rotating ad on the home page.  I get the impression that adding a banner page would be redundant.

[Rob]

You know, I've been thinking about this, and we've already got banners in our signatures, a Pimp Your Comic section, and a rotating ad on the home page.  I get the impression that adding a banner page would be redundant.

Think harder. 

[Gibson]

Part of the idea is that WE would be helping to promote Webcomics Community, not just that it would promote our comics. Also, it sounds like Rob means the link to go to a page of banners, so it would be promoting our comics not just to people on this site, but to each other's readerships as well.

[D.Z.]

I'll go with this idea, I guess.

The original idea was to do something more like Keenspot does, with a rotating image on each others' sites advertising fellow Keen comics. This seems like it adds an extra step that most readers won't follow through.

But it does also promote the forum, so hey. I'm probably in if someone makes the banner.

[Rob]

Part of the idea is that WE would be helping to promote Webcomics Community, not just that it would promote our comics. Also, it sounds like Rob means the link to go to a page of banners, so it would be promoting our comics not just to people on this site, but to each other's readerships as well.

I have no interest in promoting the site to Webcomic fans. If they don't make or provide services to webcomics then I don't really want them here. The wizard didn't want Dorothy behind the curtain either.

The second half of what Gib has said is the intent here. It will be a place that you can link to that will promote ALL the other comics that participate. Kind of like the Keenspot adbox except the user has to click on the Webcomics Community button to see the ad... and it isn't one ad but banners for all the participating sites.

So if one were inclined to explore webcomics for other, new webcomics, one would click on the button and be brought to a page with potentially dozens of other webcomic banners at which point one could explore all, some or none of them at one's leisure.

It's a link exchange without the exchange. Instead of linking all the people who link to you, you both just link once, to a repository of links.

Have a confused you yet?

[Dr. BlkKnight]

I get it. Sounds interesting.