The Goosing Of Marvel NOW With Variants And Discount

[toodoor]

When The Dark knight Rises came out, the theatre i saw it at had a table manned by the LCS in the area passing out free comics and coupons for their store. they also have a poster sized ad at the theatre advertising 10% off with ticket stub.
I dont know how much that cost them, but you have to applaud them for trying. something bob seems to not want to do.

Don't you understand? Making them available isn't an issue! If they become Bob's definition of good, then they will magically appear in the hands of customers!

[ewokpelts]

Very true, which is why I think that comics should be sold every where, not in just the DM. The publishers need to advertise that comics are still being made and are available in various venues (comic shops,book stores,digital,supermarkets,convenience stores,and newsstands).

the publishers dont need newsstands anymore. They can push digital which will get them more realtime sales as well as lower overhead. Everyone who bought the Avengers on DVD or Blu-Ray get a digital copy of Avengers Assemble #1 free. Where they have to go to marvel.com/redeem to claim. And then have to use either marvel's online comic store or the apple/android apps to view. If you're a non-reader(or lapsed reader), you are getting a lot of marvel COMICS exposure in one offer. and a a small cost to marvel, as disney basically is paying for the redeemed copies of avengers assemble.
Why would marvel make a concerted effort at the newsstand, where they have to accept returns as unsellable stock?

[Cavemold]

Digital is probably the cheapest and best way to market now a days
.. DC and marvel should try put few books and preview books at Starbucks though.

[ewokpelts]

Digital is probably the cheapest and best way to market now a days
.. DC and marvel should try put few books and preview books at Starbucks though.

the apple starbucks downloads are for itunes only. as dc and marvel use comixology, they would have a hard time participating in the starbucks promo.

best buy had codes for new 52 #1's packaged in dc/warner dvds and blu rays last month. those were redeemable at comixology.

[QCCBob]

Bob, how is it that you can be so dismissive of anyone who doesn't run a LCS when they talk about retail but still think you know more about publishing than the two biggest comic publishers?

Because I sell comic books to customers and they barely know how to sell comic books to retailers. I don't try to tell anybody how to do their job outside of the area I know which is what the end consumer tells me. Ivory tower publishers who are more interested in employing buddies and fulfilling their personal fan fic dreams don't care what consumers want because the DM has zero risk for them. It's the only thing a switch to digital might help.

And I'm only dismissive of people who blatantly have no idea what they're talking about like running a multimedia ad campaign on a $100 a month.

[ewokpelts]

Because I sell comic books to customers and they barely know how to sell comic books to retailers. I don't try to tell anybody how to do their job outside of the area I know which is what the end consumer tells me. Ivory tower publishers who are more interested in employing buddies and fulfilling their personal fan fic dreams don't care what consumers want because the DM has zero risk for them. It's the only a switch to digital might help.

so you listen to the consumer's needs and wants? but they dont know your area of expertise!

[QCCBob]

The DM can invest in itself and advertise at the local level.

BUT we've, as a whole, done that for decades. What you don't get is we can't reach millions and millions of people like they can and we're tapped out. Marvel doesn't care that they can't break 100k, but who lost the profits from that 40,000 copies that we used to sell? This isn't complicated. I used to sell 100 Amazing Spider-Man a month, now I'm lucky to sell 40 twice a month. Don't even get me started on X-books. Marvel doesn't need that money and clearly doesn't miss it while the DM shops who were used to paying their rent with top selling Marvel titles had to adjust accordingly. We did all did that, but we're reaching the breaking point when these numbers get so low that shops can't maintain their discount levels because DC traded a dozen books that sold 15 copies for a dozen books that sell 6.

It's a fool's errand to advertise books that you already know aren't aimed at 85% of the general population and the group that they are aimed at gets more resistent day by day. Use PJP's example, push a book at 10 million Avengers movie fans and if you got 1/10th of 1%, you'd more than double an average book. Do you honestly think ANY DM shop can spend that kind of effort? You people have no concept of how small these number have become and how little money there is too be gained at one LCS at at a time. If I reached 1000 people for that $100, the odds that 10 of them would buy something are slim and the odds that even 1 of them would return are even greater. We've proven that with FCBD year after year. The myth that getting people in the door AND the myth that more availability increases sales have been destroyed over the last few years and you guys still cling to them to justify doing the same stuff that doesn't work while blaming the guys who have the least to do with the dropping sales to simply accept the publisher's status quo. We don't control the price, we don't control the page count, we don't control the content, but we do buy all the books sight unseen with no returnabilty and, according to you, also accept all of the responsibilty for advertising and physically moving the books, plus all the blame if they don't sell.

[D Bell]

Bob, if the margin is so small and it's so impossible to get new customers, why remain in business? It seems, based on the picture you paint, a tremendous waste of time and resources and you make it sound like the shop (and all other LCS) are fated to close as failures.

Or, and this just might be crazy talk, maybe when those people come in for Free Comic Book Day, you point them to product that's not from the Big 2. Product that better fits what you (and Blade and I) have been calling for - all ages material.
Like Amelia Rules.
Invincible.
PvP.
Archie.
Atomic Robo.

Or, and again I'm sorry if this is me being a bit nutty, you talk with the people and find out what they like.
Game of Thrones fan? Maybe you should check out these Conan trades.
Watch the Walking Dead? Well, here are 14 trades that the TV show is based on.
Into Twilight? Here's I Vampire, Preacher and Lucifer trades.

Like I say, I could be off my rocker with these ideas.

And Bob, you never answered my question - since the Big 2 should be advertising and don't, what can you do to get them to start?

[Peter J Poole]

And I'm only dismissive of people who blatantly have no idea what they're talking about like running a multimedia ad campaign on a $100 a month.

Who mentioned multimedia?

BUT we've, as a whole, done that for decades. What you don't get is we can't reach millions and millions of people like they can and we're tapped out. Marvel doesn't care that they can't break 100k, but who lost the profits from that 40,000 copies that we used to sell? This isn't complicated. I used to sell 100 Amazing Spider-Man a month, now I'm lucky to sell 40 twice a month.

100 x 2.99 = 299.00
40 x 2 x 3.99 = 319.20

That's probably not as good an example as you hoped it was...

It's a fool's errand to advertise books that you already know aren't aimed at 85% of the general population and the group that they are aimed at gets more resistent day by day. Use PJP's example, push a book at 10 million Avengers movie fans and if you got 1/10th of 1%, you'd more than double an average book. Do you honestly think ANY DM shop can spend that kind of effort? You people have no concept of how small these number have become and how little money there is too be gained at one LCS at at a time. If I reached 1000 people for that $100, the odds that 10 of them would buy something are slim and the odds that even 1 of them would return are even greater.

So you think 300,000 fans is peak saturation for all comics, in a population of 300million. That's 0.1%

Who the Hell expects a DM shop to make that effort? Publishers and distributors should make the effort, but the LCS should get on the board and surf when the wave goes by.

The population of Cincinatti is just under 300,000 people. Why on Earth would you reach out to just 1000? Oh, right, because you already have the only 40 people there who will ever read Spider-Man... Unless they write him 90's style. That'll have 'em rushing out of the woodwork by the hundreds...

Cheers

[Peter J Poole]

Don't you understand? Making them available isn't an issue! If they become Bob's definition of good, then they will magically appear in the hands of customers!

C'mon, don't you want to be the fly on the wall when Cap'n Ike goes to Disney for Nu52 style funding and advertising?

The business plan?

"We're going to write better comics"...

(Actually, looking at Now... I get goosebumps. Or possibly nausea.)

Cheers