Author: andertoons

Hey, it’s been a while since I put up any new LEGO dala horses, so here’s a baker’s dozen for you. (See the entire collection over at Flickr.)

Let’s say you want to buy some chocolate.

You could buy a cheap brand name chocolate bar at a corporate grocery chain or big box store and it would be OK. Not great, but totally fine.

Or, you could go to that little local chocolate shop in town. The person behind the counter made a fresh batch this morning and always says hello. They have that kind of fudge you just can’t get anywhere else, and you feel really good supporting a small business you like.

That neighborhood shop feel is what I’ve strived for at Andertoons.com. So as we launch a new website, I thought I’d take a moment to talk about what I think makes Andertoons different and maybe a little special.

Sensible Pricing

Big box cartoon sites like to make sure they don’t leave any money on the table. And that’s fine, but it also makes things complicated.

One site has six basic prices, but if you count all the additional options and permutations, there are more than 26 different prices. To illustrate, there are two different prices for “indefinite private non-commercial use with family, friends and colleagues” depending on whether or not you also want electronic rights. Also, for newspapers distributed solely in India, they “can offer a further 30% off list price for any category N1/N2 license.”

Sheesh!

I have basically two prices. $20 per month ($200 per year), or $75 per month ($750 per year) and you can download whatever you like with no complicated contract. Cancel whenever. Easy peasy.

Stop Me If You’ve Heard This Before

Let’s say it’s Monday and you’re at the office. Someone tells you a joke and it’s really pretty funny. Then on Wednesday someone else tells you the same joke. And on Friday you hear it again. You continue to laugh politely, but it doesn’t really have the same effect.

With big box cartoon sites, you’re using cartoons that, while good, have been printed and reprinted and re-reprinted over and over for years in books, magazines, marketing, calendars, etc…

Andertoons cartoons are less widely published, and that’s very much to your advantage. A cartoon your audience hasn’t seen before makes a much bigger impact.

It’s Just Me

Big box cartoon sites have lots of people working for them: web developers, e-commerce consultants, marketers, salespeople, administrators, lawyers, and, oh yeah, cartoonists. Need something? That’s Tom’s job. Oh, actually, I think that’s Judy’s department. And we should check with Jerry. We’ll get back to you.

With Andertoons, it’s just me. (OK, I also have my assistant, and I have a guy who does my taxes.) Problem with your order? I’ll help. Website gone kabonk? I’m on it. Something special you need? I’m your guy.

But Wait, There’s More!

While Andertoons sells cartoons online, we also do a lot more.

Need a custom cartoon made just for you? I’ve created hundreds of custom cartoons for clients large and small. I’ve got tons of examples if you’re interested.

I also teach cartooning to kids. In fact, last year I taught almost 100 cartoon classes at schools and libraries! Dinosaurs, robots, and superheroes! Oh my! Check it out!

Plus there’s a free daily cartoon, our cartoon blog, and Andertoons on Instagram.

So as we launch a new Andertoons.com, thanks so much for your support! And I hope you’ll agree that Andertoons is different and special.

It certainly is to me.

Welcome to the new Andertoons.com!

It’s been more than ten years since we made such a substantive change to the website, and we’re very excited to tell you all about it!

Fixes

The web has changed a lot in the past decade, and while the last iteration of Andertoons was robust, it was starting to show its age. Passwords would stop working, RSS feeds would glitch, and just recently every cartoon went AWOL for a few hours. Well, I’m happy to report that those problems are a thing of the past.

We’ve built the new Andertoons on the world’s best e-commerce platform. We’ve also partnered with industry leading designers and developers including specialists in subscription and search. We’ve even gone though the entire cartoon database line by line and cleaned up all those little quirks and errors that had creeped in.

Long story short, it’s working great! And when technology moves forward, we’re positioned to move with it.

Subscriptions

Since we introduced Cartoon Subscriptions back in 2012, we’ve signed up over 1000 individuals, schools, government agencies, and businesses large and small all over the world. Our subscribers have downloaded more than 75,000 cartoons, and subscriptions make up almost 95% of our e-commerce.

And it’s no wonder – Cartoon Subscriptions are simply the best product and greatest value we have. Why pay $20 for a single cartoon when you could pay the same $20 for a subscription and enjoy an entire cartoon buffet? In fact, single cartoon customers usually buy additional cartoons within one day of their original purchase.

The numbers don’t lie, and our customers have clearly indicated this is their preferred way to do business, so we’ve phased out individual cartoon purchases. If you’ve purchased that way in the past, we urge you to try a subscription. We know you’ll love it! (Did I mention you can cancel any time?)

Mobile Friendly

The old Andertoons was actually launched before the original iPhone, so it was never designed to be used on a smartphone.

The new website, however, was built from the ground up to be responsive and display beautifully on desktops, smartphones, tablets, and just about anything else!

Finally you can peruse the latest cartoons while waiting for the barista to call your name!

Larger Clearer Images

While we were fixing everything else, we also took the time to refresh and clean up the thousands of cartoons in our inventory. They’re bigger, clearer, and easier to read. The cartoons are the real stars of the show here, and we’re happy to present them at their best.

Downloads

In the past we offered cartoons at just two sizes – small (480×360 pixels at 72 DPI) and large (1500 pixels wide at 300 DPI). But, again, the internet has changed drastically since Andertoons launched (we actually predate Facebook by 3 years!). So a change was overdue.

During the redesign we spent a lot of time looking at all the most popular email marketing services, social media, and publishing trends, and we compiled five JPEG sizes and ratios to better serve our customers needs. And they’re all at print-ready 300 DPI. They are:

• Small (480 x 360) – Great for blogs and Twitter
• Wide 1 (1200 x 900) – Big enough for MailChimp but not too big
• Wide 2 (1200 x 628) – Perfect for Facebook News Feed
• Square (1200 x 1200) – Ready for Instagram
• Print (2250 wide) – Gorgeous on the printed page

Even better, you don’t have to worry about which size you need. Every time you download you’ll receive a ZIP file with all five sizes!

No matter what your usage is, your Andertoons cartoons are always the right size.

But Wait, There’s More!

In addition to all of the above, additional improvements include:

• The redesigned Andertoons Blog
• A newly curated Daily Cartoon email
• Andertoons on Instagram
• New YouTube how-to-draw content
• And there’s more on the way!

The Best Part

So after more than two years of planning, sourcing, designing, coding, testing, and sparing no expense, how will all this affect your pricing? That’s the best news of all; the price you pay isn’t changing one bit.

Nada. Zip. Zilch.

We have the best and most loyal customers out there, and we built the new Andertoons for you. Have a look around and enjoy! We know you’re going to love it!