First off, I wasn’t really sure about the category, but I thought this would be the best, cause it’s mainly for people who can deliver me some content.
Ok, im off to starting a new so-called ‘artcommunity’, where people can come together and hopefully learn from tutorials, read interviews, browse and chat on the forums etc, it’s not in English but in my main language (Dutch).
I know a fair bit of Photoshop and all, but I definitely do not see myself filling all the content I need on my site all the time. I found some well-known artists (digital artists, illustrators, photographers) that are also from my country, but how would be the best way to approach them? I’m on a very tight budget, being ‘just a student’ and for ‘just a student’ i’ve had to invest a fair bit into the back-end and software of the site.
Would they be interested in doing something (like writing a tutorial) for a new start-up, just because they like their ambitions and plans? Do I need to offer them money? Part of the money that is made from the advertisement on their page? Do I offer them a free advertisement on the site? I really do not know how to approach this!
I would start by offering them advertising revenue from their content along with a profile link back to their website. The better the quality of the article that they write, the better your website does and hence the more money they make.
I believe SitePoint has tiers. So if your article brings in 1000 views you make $5.00. If your article brings in 5000 views then you make $35.00. (I made these numbers up.)
My advice would be to offer all authors a link back to their homepage, a percentage of revenue from advertising on their articles and perhaps think of some other ways you can monetize the website. Had you thought about producing merchandise of the art (such as mouse mats, mugs, t-shirts etc), there’s plenty of sites that’ll produce that kind of stuff based on your needs (like Cafepress), be creative with your revenue model and it’ll all work out.
Yes if it’s useful and easy to use I think people will use it just for the hell of it, just one more way to get themselves out there.
No I don’t think you would have to pay them or even offer to pay them. What are you going to give them each like $5 a month in advertising revenue, that’d just look desperate on your part.
You could offer them an advertisement on a rotational banner (i think would work best at least), but be careful it’s not pulling to a competitors site or their own site. Because wouldn’t you want them not to link anything in order for them to get their work showcased on your site?
