[casual_games] Art Game Capitalism

Thu Mar 23 14:07:46 EST 2006

Jason, your gut instinct to target companies that you wish to be associated
with is very good.  As you have noted, accepting ads from just anyone can be
very annoying - and it doesn't fit with your market, which are people who
enjoy visual / computer art.

What about other arts organizations such as museums and galleries?  In my
experience, organizations which you already have a relationship with are
great places to start.  At the least they will be more honest with you and
tell you exactly what you can do to make the idea of advertising more
appealing to them.  Organizations you are unfamiliar with won't do this.
When approaching the companies have some concrete figures, such as how many
visits your online art has had.

Here is one thought - you probably already have a sponsor that gave the
original grant to do the art.  Just as a test, place a link to their web
site with your art.  Experiment with how it fits in.  And keep track of how
many people click on that link.  This will give you some idea about how many
people would click through on a similar ad.  You can also experiment with
the best placement to generate more clicks.

Kenton 

  _____  

From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of Jason Van Anden
Sent: Thursday, March 23, 2006 1:40 PM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: Re: [casual_games] Art Game Capitalism

Hi Lennard , 

Hmm - this is an interesting idea if I can get ads that I don't think are
tacky!  The reason I avoid an ads model is because my experience with them
is the yearbook one, or the mortgage one... etc... I find these annoying to
the point where I will spend less time with site that display them, so I
would not want to annoy my audience with them (is that weird?).
GoogleAdSense looks OK on my gmail, but doesn't really blend as the frame
for visual art. 

My art/games will be java/browser based - which is my preference.  Your
suggestion makes me wonder how hard it would be to solicit ads from
companies that I would want to associate myself with, or at least not deem
too distracting from the game itself.  Anyone out there have any ideas in
this direction?  Seeking sponsorship maybe?  It seems complicated on its
face. 

Thank you for the feedback!

Jason Van Anden

www.smileproject.com

On 3/23/06, Lennard Feddersen <Lennard at rustyaxe.com > wrote: 

Hi Jason, do you think the people who looked at your piece would likely
have purchased the piece in large #'s?  If you are getting wide exposure 
with something that might not convert well then you might consider using
ads to at least partially subsidize what you do.  The demo's of my PC
products carry ads, drop me a line if you want me to help you out with this.

Happy game makin',

Lennard Feddersen
CEO, Rusty Axe Games, Inc.
www.RustyAxe.com <http://www.rustyaxe.com/> 

Lennard at RustyAxe.com
P. 250-635-7623 F. 1-309-422-2466 
3521 Dogwood, Terrace, BC, Canada, V8G-4Y7

Jason Van Anden wrote:

> I am seeking some advice that requires a little background before the 
> question, here it goes...
>
> I am a fine artist and software engineer who joined this list and IDGA 
> after I released a game last year as art that became a popular success
> - Wired, Edge and USA Today liked it, among others.  It was offered 
> online for free because it was commissioned by an arts organization. 
> Art grants are very, very small compared to even the low side of a
> casual games budget.  The reason you apply for these grants for this 
> type of activity is to have a reputable stage from which to launch 
> your online artwork, and so that you are not "giving it away" in art
> world terms.
>
> For the last year, I have lurked on this list and eagerly devoured all 
> of IDGA's excellent white papers, trying to figure out a good model 
> for future art/game hybrids. One thing I have learned from this is
> that free is not a good policy if one hopes to sustain their art or 
> biz from their art.  It is also frowned upon by others in either field 
> (art or games) because it screws up everything for everyone who wants
> to make a living from doing this.
>
> I am in the process of putting together a grant proposal for new 
> game/art/toy hybrid I am very excited about - the grant is 
> prestigious, but not a lot of money.  I want this piece to be staged
> as art, but as I am putting the proposal together it seems to me that 
> it could also be a popular success, in which case I would want to 
> capitalize on it this time.
>
> I am looking for advice, models, suggestions as to how I might both
> offer the work as art and leave open the possibility that it can 
> generate revenue.
>
> Jason Van Anden
> www.smileproject.com <http://www.smileproject.com/>  <
<http://www.smileproject.com/>  http://www.smileproject.com>
>
>
>
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