Hi,
This a feature that, basically, will define whether or not I will consider patreon as a long-term solution for our future community funding.
I run a youtube channel in it’s first year, and we’re already very successful. We have about 23,000 subscribers and $500 per episode. Soon we’re going to be creating different kinds of content that caters to divergent interests. However, with the current structure of patreon, we can’t realistically create a unified hub brand to fund our shows through. We either have to stick to a show-by-show basis, or go monthly.
Well, what if some people want their money to go one show instead of another? What if some people aren’t interested in updates for shows other than the ones they fund? What if the channel gets bigger rapidly, and we decide to restructure the way some shows are funded and leave others the same? What if people want to learn more about show specific rewards that would then entice them to fund different shows?
I know theoretically we could specify “include which show you would like this to go.” or some other disclaimer, but in reality that is a messy and inelegant method. It would be vastly preferable to have a central hub and a sort of collection of pages, cards, or profiles for each sub category of content we offer.
Right now the format (for our needs) is very inflexible. And as we are starting to discuss our future with sponsors, collaborators and partners, we are looking for a solution that will grow with us as we expand, instead of forcing us to shift to a different platform or model when we exceed the scope of the platforms features.
Just wanted to share some of the thinking that’s going into our decision making process. Hope it informs some of the feature choices you choose to pursue in the future.
@alexanderlewolf It is hard for me to really say a lot here, but if I understand what you’re saying and looking for, it seems that what you really need is a landing page somewhere that would allow fans to then select what they are wanting to support.
If that’s the case it seems to me that honestly the best solution (for you regardless of Patreon) would be to have that be external on its own. Perhaps a support page on a website that would serve as the hub. From there then fans would click to support the channels or shows you’d be asking for support for.
There’s a couple of reasons I would recommend this. First, I am a firm believer that you should when at all possible own and control as much of your own platform as you can. Second, your support will most likely be much better if your reward tiers are more tailored to each channel/show rather than a generic one.
The other option of course is to just do one for you as a creator and not for the show necessarily. How you then use the support you get then would be something you’d have to decide and work through. There are plenty of creators on Patreon that run multiple projects. Everyone seems to handle and deal with it differently. Just gotta figure out which way works best for your needs and situation.
Again though, I could be totally misunderstanding what you’re looking for and wanting, in which case my thoughts are irrelevant and most likely not helpful at all.
I understand where you are coming from. I have the same problem and was going to post the same question, so here’s the thing for my specific page.
I create a full-cast science fiction audio drama based on Elite Dangerous, called Escape Velocity. My Patrons support me in making this show on a per-release basis.
Many of them support because they like me and my work. Many of them support my work because they like Elite: Dangerous and that particular series.
However, I’d like to be able to create different content between series of Escape Velocity whether that be single-narrator audiobooks, or another full-cast audio drama based on an entirely different idea. I dunno, maybe some sort of present day crime serial or something. I can’t confidently say that all my supporters would be happy to fund every project, so I either
take the money and risk upsetting patrons who don’t stay in communication
create an entirely separate patreon account under an alt email address
don’t use patreon to fund these other projects.
It seems to me that for Patreon and my own benefit it would be good to have the functionality for Patrons to support different categories of releases.
@alexanderlewolf, thanks so much for sharing this! The idea of connecting different pages or creation types is definitely something that we think about a lot.
I have seen other creators experience this kind of growth in the past and then decide to start an additional Patreon page for the other creations (Kinda Funny and Kinda Funny Games, for example). They link the pages together in the description, so those interested in one or both of the pages can easily become a patron to either or both.
That said, we’ve been able to ship new features pretty quickly, so I would not be surprised if your growth is matched with our ability to handle it.
