selling your work on a website for donations

[Jim]

It's one of the options available to writers and some newspapers and others are trying it.

YouGov's report shows that currently at least it isn't a major success

https://yougov.co.uk/news/2017/06/27/...

[Will]

Jim, I suppose that's consistent with the usual funnel effect for getting new readers. There's a conversion factor for people who read a blurb and then who click for more information.

Then there's another conversion factor for the people who read the further information and then decide to buy the book.

There's another funneling between those who get the book and those who actually read it, especially if the book was free.

Of those who read a book, only a certain proportion will like it enough to leave a review or buy another book in the series or by the same author.

Presumably a website which asks for donations works on the same principle. Only a proportion of the people using the website will click on the donate button.

Seen in that context, an 8% success rate doesn't sound too bad. It's all part of the funnel effect and is better than nothing.

And just like the funnel effect in general, that 8% will be an average. Some will do better, some will do worse.

[Jim]

It looks as if you can write stories that appeal to university educated readers with a high disposable income then you're cooking with gas :-)

[Rosen]

I have donated (very small amounts) to the Guardian and Wikipedia. I've always thought of myself as one in a million and am disappointing to learn that I'm only one in ten.

BookHippo.uk gets a reasonable amount in donations, but that's not in exchange for content, it's in exchange for visibility.