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Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 7:09 am
by CaliforniaDave
I did get a notice from PayPal - that's how I got the tracking number in the first place. :)

A MONTH to get things back on track? Muttermuttermumblegripebitchmoan...

Well, it's not the fault of Giz or Dave - they did their bit. It's Canada Post's fault, so...

BLAME CANADA (Post) !!

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 8:09 pm
by Blissfull Wulf
Yay, I just got it, now to read it.


Love the cards and the inside messege from Dave.

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 1:25 am
by CaliforniaDave
Mine showed up today, too. Thanks for the patience!

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 8:10 am
by Monzach
Just got mine! :ymparty:

Thanks for that Ma3 secret Dave, I'm gonna have to read the whole series again now that I know who the real main character is! \:d/ :-?

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2011 9:58 am
by Paul
Mine showed up also!

Yeah, sure Dave! :p

Nice sketch of Didi, Giz!

And I loved Sonia's choice, Zii at the end made me laugh! :))

Well done, guys! :)

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:04 am
by TheEighth
Mine arrived and I loved it, especially the extras.

Is it weird that I've already decided to buy the next volume?

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:48 am
by jclma3
Hello,

I have been reading ma3 online for some time, but I have never posted to the forums before, and I have a couple questions.

Do you or might you offer the books as digital downloads? And, do you have any other payment options?

I am really interested in the books, and I have really wanted to order them for awhile. However, I prefer to read things online, partly because I don't like to keep adult material around so my children can't get to it. I also totally boycott PayPal because they have been nothing but trouble for me and many people I know. I realize this is not a major commercial site and such, so it is what it is. And I will be honest, I am an impatient person with a short attention span, waiting 3-4 weeks is a killer.

I am sure they are available as a torrent somewhere, but I prefer to support the artists that I Iike, and I think this webcomic is both entertaining and high quality, something you don't often see.

It would be awsome if you could buy these books on Amazon or something like that, I would buy them in a a second even at a higher price.

Please forgive me if I have somehow missed this topic or question in the FAQ or something.

Thanks

Regards

JCL

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:27 pm
by Giz
Hi, JLC, and welcome to the forums!

We've thought many times to offer the books digitally on sites like Amazon & the Apple store, but there just hasn't been any real incentive yet.
Creators don't get much from a sale on either of these sites. Everybody gets a piece of the pie and by the end of it, the creator is left with barely a dollar on a book priced around $5. Since we already offer the strip digitally online, it's very hard for us to feel excited about putting our work on there. When we sell a book $10, we get $10 (minus print cost of course.) Even just going through traditional distribution, and getting them in bookstores; as soon as it goes in the hands of a distributor, we've already lost 50% of the sale (plus the cost to print the books, so it's more than 50%.) You need to sell LOTS of books for this to be profitable, or heck, even to break even! We're big in terms of webcomics, but that doesn't necessarily means we'll do well on these sites. Our thought right now is to maybe offer the older volumes only. It's what might make the most sense.

As for Paypal, last I checked, you can pay with your credit card now and bybass Paypal of sorts. Paypal might get a cut from the transaction, but it's billed to your credit card.

Hope this helps explain why we haven't done certain things yet. :)

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 9:32 pm
by Kisai
Giz wrote: As for Paypal, last I checked, you can pay with your credit card now and bybass Paypal of sorts. Paypal might get a cut from the transaction, but it's billed to your credit card.
Paypal tends to cost the person you send money to up to 3%+30cents of the transaction (which is basically the credit card merchant rate and a bit.) This is why micropayments (including ebooks) never work for webcomics. It's possible to put archives behind a paywall, or ebook-reader formatted versions, but Giz still loses half the money in the end. More money is made on print versions, even though it's a much larger initial investment.

The artists and writers who make the most money from comics, make it from advertising revenue and merchandise sales. The problem is that the most popular comics are those that have mature concepts, but these are the least able to accept advertisements.

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2011 9:56 pm
by Giz
Kisai wrote:The problem is that the most popular comics are those that have mature concepts, but these are the least able to accept advertisements.
And that's correct. Ma3 has been able to use Project Wonderful for advertisement, but I don't think if we'd be starting the strip today that we could use them (they've changed their rules.) And mature content is also tricky for the Apple store (not sure about Amazon.) Violence seems to get more of a pass than the sight of nipples.

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 4:25 am
by jclma3
Huh, well OK, a few more questions then....

1. Wait, are the printed versions identical to what is available online? I was under the impression that there was a significant amount of extra content, and maybe more/full color, etc. in the printed versions? I also read "The Order of the Stick", which is not adult so it doesn't have all the same "issues" (har, har), but the print versions of that comic have probably 40% more content throughout and more color. The story is the same, but the online version skips things and basically is a highlight where the book is the full story, side stories, extras, color, etc. I think you at least have some extras not available online right?

2. If you went the Apple/Amazon route, can you not "set the price accordingly"... ergo, maybe it's $19.99 through those channels, so after the 50% you lose to vendors, you still make $10/issue? I realize they are like the gestapo, along with the whole RIAA/MPAA deal, but in the end are you giving up all control? Not looking to beat this one to death, if you say you have looked into this and it does not look good to you, I believe you.

3. Screw them, what is to stop you from selling *.PDF's off of your website? No printing costs or other overhead, negligable bandwidth costs, 100% control, too simple to possibly work maybe? I am sure there are pros and cons to it, but I do know of some other sites doing exactly this, or some that just have a subscription and then you can view all content online.

4. I can take a look at the credit card option, I have seen that before even though usually when I see PayPal involved I run away. Don't really care about the fees really, just don't want to give them my money if possible. Also, I have seen where (especially on ebay) they try to make it look like you can just use your credit card, but in fact they are trying to rope you into an actual account.

5. Meh, if I purchased the books with the credit card option, would you e-mail me an unofficial PDF? Never hurts to ask.

6. I suppose you could offer censored/un-censored versions of the comics, even though it would be hard to censor adult themes even if you take out the pictures of the naughty bits. But I am sure you have already thought of this, so I will spare you the trouble of shooting it down.

Thank you for entertaining my questions at any rate....

-JCL

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 6:44 am
by midgetshrimp
There is extra content. A short side-chapter that isn't necessarily canon, and for the Collector's Edition buyers, you get 4 high gloss postcards (previously of Giz's Slipshine pinups, not sure what the current 4 are yet, hope to find out soon :D ).

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 10:35 pm
by Ravenhull
Got it. And the postcards this time are pinups similar to what you got with the EC book, except this time with chibi characters interacting with the ladies.

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2011 5:23 pm
by Milnoc
All right! What the heck happened here!?? :))
20110715_004.jpg
20110715_004.jpg (164.13 KiB) Viewed 20344 times

Re: Menage a 3 - Vol 3 : Discussion

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 4:34 am
by Dave Zero1
Seems to me like you got the 1 in a Million Jackpot \M/