Ok, here is the problem. I’d like to start selling ALL my merchandise from Anhedonia Blue, LAWLS, [ui], and any future endeavors from one location… as I’ve already been branding ArtisticDOOM as who I am as an artist i feel like this would be the best place to start branding all my merch from as well. If this is the case, I have a question for you guys. Would it be best make Artisticdoom.com load up a store front in which you can navigate all my products.. something like Steamcrow Does? Then i move this existing site to either a Sub-domain or extension. For example to find my portfolio you’d have to go to http://portfolio.artisticdoom.com or http://artisticdoom.com/portfolio ? From there if you’d like to read my blog you’d have to go to http://portfolio.artisticdoom.com/blog or http://artisticdoom.com/portfolio/blog. in my opinion i like the sub-domain the best. I’m just not really sure which would look the best or more professional.
The other option would be that the store would become a sub-domain or extension of artisticdoom. This case would read http://store.artisticdoom.com or http://artisticdoom.com/store. My main concern about this whole ordeal is simply the fact that I need to continue making money so that I can keep drawing comics and getting stuff up online for free. Right now, the important thing for me would be ease of access to a store front. When im at a convention, it would be the easiest solution to say, “oh and you can also buy other stuff online at artisticdoom.com”. Customers can then at their leisure after the convention come to my site and EASILY find my store.
Your opinions and thoughts would be greatly appreciated as I’m really not sure what the best solution would be. One of you may have some ideas that could help me a ton.
I don’t think that’s the greatest idea to have it be BOOM!STORE right up front. You need to sell yourself first, before you think about selling a product.
Right, I agree to some extent…but as of right now, i don’t promote this site in anyway, its just here for people who find a link via LAWLS or ABlue (the sites I’m selling myself on) or if i give them the url in an application or something so they see my work. If I’m at a convention and i meet someone who buys some of my prints for instance and i say “thank for buying this, btw, you can always buy any of this online at my online store just go to [simple url]” to me I’ve already “sold” myself, same goes for if i have a link from LAWLS or something.. Basically if you’re on LAWLS and you click store, it would just take you to my online branded store, all in one nice place. See what I’m saying?
I actually agree with Joe. I always find it a little pretentious when you’re first met with a store before you can see the rest of the site.
don’t get me wrong, it’s a good idea to get it all together in one place, but store up front is a turn off.
You’re completely missing the point though. It’s not like LAWLS is going to have a store on the main page, that would be exactly what you said “a pretentious turn off.” Artisticdoom to me isn’t anything worth promotion and not something I am too proud of at the moment infact i dont really want people come here for anything. I want them to look at my comics at their respective sites, not here. I only have this site to link to job applications and if someone who is picking me up for freelance, i can give them a quick over view of some of my best stuff on one link… of which i can just provide to them on those respective cases. The direction i want to take Artisticdoom as an overall item is simply, just a store.
To me it’s overly pretentious to try to say “hey look at me, I’m an artist, look look look at what I can dooooo!” And throw the portfolio that no one cares about in their face.
Overall, and I don’t mean this is a negative way or anything, but you aren’t my target demographic. I want people who don’t really know my comics too well, but they like the merchandise they saw of mine at a convention, to have an easy time finding the stuff they saw at the event and if they care to look around and see what I’m all about, they very well can, if they chose.
Either way, thanks for voicing your opinion.. It’s really interesting to see how different everyone’s views are on this whole subject. :]
I guess we have different views. I don’t think it’s pretentious at all to have a portfolio site where people can see what you’re capable of and find out how to get in touch with you. That’s a pretty reasonable way to market yourself, I think.
That’s just the thing though, I’m not trying to market my portfolio, I’m trying to market my art that is for sale. Basically I’m trying to run a business.. not show off my work. I’m individually marketing myself fairly well at my two comic sites, I dont see the point in working just as hard to maintain a third site every time I post a new comic. At some point I’m wasting energy in the wrong areas. Portfolio site = no money. Store = Minuscule money (but enough) to keep me drawing comics and putting them online for free. I don’t think you realize this, but I don’t have a full time job. I part time work with Autistic kids, when families call me.. and I part time work on comics but mainly I work on comics. In a perfect world I wouldn’t have to focus my art in a direction that I need to make sales.. but if I am too keep doing this, i HAVE to change the direction of this site to be sales of quality products rather then an art gallery of unsellable art pieces.
And I’m not getting rid of the portfolio, just focusing my energies towards something profitable.. for once.
I see what you are saying. I see that they do not see what you are saying. Show them.
With a Battle Axe perhaps?
Lol, i don’t need to prove myself in anyway. I value the opinions of others, I need to hear other peoples views to help me make the most logical decision about this. This isn’t really a forum to debate who’s right and who’s wrong, though the use of words like “pretentious” which have the negative connotations that allude to this being a debate…. It’s more of a decision of, do I need to be business focused towards my entire brand or self focused towards me an as an artist. I’m leaning Brand (largely as part of my current financial situation).
::AXE TO THE FACE::!!!
j/k
I prefer the sub-domain idea
If you have a link to the store easily readable from artisticdoom.com it should be easy to see
I definitely like sub-domains MUCH more than extensions. So you think Artisticdoom.com should stay my portfolio and my store should be store.artisticdoom.com then?
yeah that makes a lot sense to me, but you are the expert
whatever you decide will work out I’m sure
Thanks for the input either way, it’s computing into my brains as I try to figure out the best approach to this whole mess.
I think it all should be in the same place personally.If you have 2-3 sites people get confused. artisticdoom.com should have all comics and the store on it together.
Well the portfolio and the store would both be here, it’s more of which URL is the “prudiest” and what should the landing page of Artisticdoom.com be? Store or Portfolio? I say when you came here you should see the store first cos in reality, what i do i sell art… the portfolio is more for professional job applications and such. So for those people I can just send them the URL for the portfolio.
i’m for the subdomains idea.
a portfolio.artisticdoom.com, blog.artisticdoom.com and store.artisticdoom.com
as for the splash screen for when users stumble onto the site, you should really be promoting the store, blog and portfolio as links so it looks more focused.
currently right now, i’m bombarded with image thumbnails which, if that’s the only main focus of your site; is fine. except, you have many other things that you’re involved in and doing which might interest the viewer.
make it so it’s obvious you are attending comic cons and push your store upfront since that it your main source of moolahs.
tl;dr version – make the splash screen less busy and promote what’s most important to you (store).
For ease of the matter (though i completely agree) I may have to just do extensions for the time being, Pretty much cos the time I’d have to invest into changing /reederrabbit /ui /blog /project etc into sub domains would take too much time from art and all that.
Otherwise I’m glad you see things my way on this matter, I’m gonna probably dumb down the main page into a few categories that are very simple and clear from the get go. What I’ll probably has is a few large images that say: Portfolio, store, Projects, shows. Something like that. the header will have all those anyway but at least you wont be bombarded by 30 portfolio images right when you get to artisticdoom.com. The store will be the top most item of course. :]
…that or leave it how it is and on the right side bar ill have a large image that says “take me to the store” or something like that.
sounds good. see how that looks and if it doesn’t suit you, you can always change it again :}
…And again, and again, and again. ^.^