Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-26252804-20150507221936

Colin wrote us a letter today and it was wonderful. In it he mentioned that there has been a lot of feedback on the new Integration/Advertising initiative, much of it about what is wrong with them.

I want to make one thing clear: I love the new Integrations that the boys have implemented. Is it perfect yet? No, but it's only a couple of weeks old and if we know one thing it's that it won't be perfect on the first few attempts.

There are two particular things that drive me to liking the program, the first of which is that if it is good for them, it's good for us.

Patreon and Twitch is never going to be enough to purely support Kinda Funny. Youtube advertising isn't going to cut it either. The company is still in it's infancy but it's growing fast, they've already had one hire and we're only four months in. If they continue to grow they are going to need more income. Integrations are going to be a great way of doing this. Each time they book an Integration, making some logical leaps here, they are likely provided with a script and  a block of time in which to present said script/product. The revenue from these Integrations are going to go back into Kinda Funny and is likely going to be used to make more great content and that is great for us. One hand washes the other, both hands wash the balls.

The fact that the Integrations come across in out Patreon content shouldn't be an issue. Our views count towards the overall metrics, these metrics will entice bigger, more exciting and more relevent partners. Imagine if the boys got a Comixology Integration where we go there and use a code and get a TPB at 25% off. This would be amazing. I support both Patreon's and I am happy to have the Integrations within our content. Also, if they were to cut out Integrations from the Patreon content we could miss out on something that becomes and inside joke and the flow of the show would be interupted.

Which brings me to my second reason, It's just like having a conversation with your friends.

The way that Kinda Funny are implementing their Integrations feels like you're having a conversation about a store of product that you love with your friends. Tim's anecdotes about using proflowers and Warby Parker are great. The fact that the boys get and try out the products are great. If the Integration spurs a several minute conversation about the product/Partner and it is both funny and informative it just comes back around to my previous point. If the Partner is paying for a short slot but get a few minutes of conversation it's just going to draw better Partners to the program.

If you've made it this far, well done. I hope I've sucessfully articulated my feeling about the Integrations. I know they haven't nailed it yet but give them time, and just like everything else it will become a mostly smooth experiance.

All the best,

MDump 