Actually, I agree with pretty much everything @michaelson said.
Look, you do need readers to reach any kind of monetization be it ad revenue (which is way down now), tips, merch, crowdfunding, etc. You do NEED to build up readers and when you do there is nothing wrong with asking for help from your readers (if you plan on using Patreon..you have to ask--I agree don't be too spammy). Their help isn't required. A lot of comics are going to paywall methods because they have to. When you spend HOURS per page, you are allowed to be paid for it. If you are worried readers might leave then you are going to be slaving forever.
You know what I can tell you, with 110% certainty, readers will leave if you ask for money, but they will leave if you don't update fast enough, they will leave if you say something they don't like, they will leave if they find out you are more of a Star Trek than Star Wars fan. They will leave because you are doing better with your comic than their favorite comic is doing and it "isn't fair" (true story) Readers will leave for many reasons. Those aren't your real "fans" anyways. But that shouldn't stop you from creating, or building up other readers, or asking for support.
We've been doing this for years, we have tens of thousands of readers and we do make money (which is really hard now) and I am telling you Michael is not wrong. It isn't wrong to ask for support, likes, or for people to tell their friends. It's no more tacky that every other post in the forums being "how do I grow my comic", "like my comic", "Hey if you have under ___ subscribers come here and we will help each other" It's the same thing. Asking for support is asking for support.
I think it's refreshing that they want people to succeed here. Do you know how hard it is to build a platform? You can come right here and have one. You have eyeballs ready and waiting to read your story. The people running Tapastic are trying very hard to make it easy to use, to make a strong community, to encourage creators to KNOW their value and not be afraid to THINK they are worth something. We recommend new people to come here for these very reasons. Most creators don't get the encouragement that you get here. If you go to a restaurant and have dinner are you not going to ever go back because they asked you for money? No because you should pay for it. The reason people think everything is for free is not because it's right it's because that how it was started (ad rates and donations paid well) and it doesn't work now. Why do you think a lot of the original people moved on to other things or went to Youtube or to publishing?
If you don't like the suggestions just don't do them. Easy.
Oh and I also agree with @michaelson about youtube too.