Patreon: What is it? Easily explained

You hear more and more about Patreon, especially on YouTube. We explain what this is in this article.

What is Patreon - simply explained

For a few years now, Patreon has become increasingly popular in creative communities such as YouTube. We explain what the website is all about.

• Patreon is a so-called crowdfunding platform.
• Crowdfunding means mass funding. The idea is that numerous users of a product all lump together to make the product possible.
• You also know this from websites like Kickstarter, where a large amount is collected over several weeks. This enables the development of the product.
• Patreon's goal is not one-off large amounts, but regular funding to keep a mostly free project alive.
• A web comic artist who has had a medium-sized fan base for years and does not earn enough to make a living from advertising can thus finance herself through regular small donations from her fans.
• If you now want to support a project as a fan, you can promise this artist a regular - possibly very small - amount.
• The intervals at which this amount is then donated vary.
• Some artists want funding on a weekly or monthly basis, others for every completed project - a YouTuber, for example, for every new video or major update for a film project. You can find information on this on the artist pages.
• It is interesting that you can also see on the artist pages how many people donate regularly and how much is raised. In the meantime, this amount is also shown adjusted - i.e. less the patreon fees of 5 percent.
• Many artists come to your donors in different ways. Often you get early access to new content, are involved in the development process - for example through making-ofs or surveys - or there is special Patreon-exclusive content such as additional comics for illustrators or unabridged interviews with podcasters.

In addition to Patreon, there are other crowdfunding platforms as mentioned. Next, we'll explain what Kickstarter is.