The new explore feature seems to be pretty much the same as the old one used to be. There are a handful of featured creators, and then each category lists a further 20 or so of the top creators within it (some in two categories - I thought this wasn’t allowed?!). Am I using it right/missing something?
My frustration with the old/original explore feature was that there was no way of simply browsing through a category. I know that you use the search function, but surely the point of having categories is that it takes away some of the randomness of searching? A creator may or may not come up in a search depending on the search term and how they’ve described what they do, but will definitely be listed under their category.
Ideally (for me) this is how it should work:
You choose a category, and all creators in that category are listed, and then you simply go through them, page by page.
If you want to refine this, then you could (maybe) list creators within a category by popularity (number of patrons or income), by how regularly they post, by location, etc, or some combination of all of these.
Perhaps HQ are working on something like this, or in refining the search function to achieve something similar, but I honestly don’t understand how the new feature is meant to be an improvement. The bottom line is: if people already support someone on Patreon, and they’re looking for others to support, then a decently functioning browse/search function is vital to doing that. Patreon is the best place to discover creators - a short list of suggested people to follow/support is not enough.
I can see why they’d feature people who are at the top of their categories in income as it validates Patreon as a whole, however I agree with you that it should also show all creators within a category. I like your suggestions for refining this as it would push those not working on their Patreon or abandoning it to the very bottom of the list yet give those of us who are still workin’ it and haven’t achieved mega success a chance to be found within Patreon. Maybe havin’ those heavy hitters on the first page of each category and an “Explore More” button that leads to the rest of us.
Did you see that the search works now though? I was able to find myself not just with my name, but under a search for fantasy comic artist, a search by post titles, and phrases and keywords within my posts. Specific searching is definitely better, though as you said browsing could be improved.
I would also like to be have an off/on NSFW search option sometime in the future.
Yes, I see the search now works - I noticed your other post on that, Lochy. Thanks for the heads up.
I don’t have a problem with the most successful in each category being listed. In fact, it was something I requested way back when categories simply listed fairly random selections. But, as you testify, I think a lot of other creators would be in favour of a better way of exploring categories. Otherwise, there’s not really much to explore, is there!
I’m hopin’ since it says “Explore over 50,000 creators” on that page and they are promoting the new feature, they will be implementing something like you suggested very soon.
I was actually excited to see the new Explore function, and I’ll tell you why: It’s pretty obvious they cribbed it from Kickstarter.
Kickstarter, in my estimation, has become the dominant project-based crowdfunding site on the strength of its ability to expose new potential supporters to projects they weren’t previously aware of — “discoverability.” More than 20% of my previous Kickstarter campaign was composed of pledges that Kickstarter brought to me through its various in-site features such as “Recommended for You” and “What’s Popular.”
Patreon has always lagged behind a little bit on discoverability. (Understandable… Kickstarter had a several-year headstart.) Both Explore and Social Connect are significant steps towards improving that metric. This is definitely something worth promoting to your readers on your site / social media.
I don’t disagree that something along Kickstarter lines is needed, but my point was that the Patreon discover feature is still very basic - pretty much what it has been since I joined a few years ago. “Recommended for you” and “what’s popular” are good steps forward, but they’re not enough. Currently, all you have to find creators outside of the top 20 in each category is the search function, which can be hit or miss, and only allows you to filter according to creators or posts.
In comparison, if you look at Kickstarter, their explore feature not only allows you to search ‘everything’, but also to list projects according to various criteria (popularity, most funded, newest, etc). If the Patreon explore feature eventually turns into something like this, then that would be exactly what I’d hoped for, but it seems like it’s been stuck in this basic state for a while - which is why (genuinely) I wondered whether I was missing some new aspect of this feature that warranted it being announced as a big step forward.
Of course.Thanks for sharing the Kickstarter comparison - I don’t use it, so wasn’t aware how well they’d refined their search/explore features. Hopefully, as you say, Patreon will catch up soon.
Don’t mean to gripe. So many positive things to say about Patreon, I guess it’s just frustration and impatience!
