Retailing & Marketing

[Yesterday we chatted with one half of the Bonfire Agency, Ed Catto. Today we grill Steve Rotterdam on the nerd marketing equation, Bonfire's research and consulting activities, and whether Patton Oswalt was right about too much geek being a bad thing. Steve Rotterdam served as partner and Chief Creative Officer at the East West Agency before joining DC Comics as Sr. VP Sales and Marketing for three years. His background gives his take on the comics industry and where it is going an informed and unique perspective.]

Problem solved! ComiXology, the leading digital comics provider, is going to let brick and mortar comics shops set up affiliate storefronts on their sites, building on comiXology's existing programs for retailers, such as digital pull lists and so on. Prominent retailer Chris Powell explains, “Having seen comiXology’s Retailer Tools and Pull List services, we trust comiXology’s technology to help us thrive in a market where customers are interested in both print and digital comics.  ComiXology will help us provide the one-stop shopping that customers are looking for.  Digital comics can be a great tool for reaching out to new or lapsed customers, and retailers should not be afraid of this new format.  Instead, they should look for ways to make the digital format complement their existing print business."

It was only the golden age of last week that Marvel and ComicsPRO, the organization for comics retailers, announced a special promotion for FORMIC WARS #1: ComicsPRO member stores would be able to release the issue on TUESDAY, 2/15, instead of the customary Wednesday.

The Bonfire Agency is a new entity that is looking to do a lot with the nerd world. Co-founder Ed Catto talks about what he;s learned on the way and what Bonfire can do in this exclusive interview.

Marvel and the retailing community sometimes have a love/hate/love relationship, but here's news that they are strongly supporting members of ComicsPRO, the retailer advocacy organization, by releasing Orson Scott Card's FORMIC WARS: BURNING EARTH #1 a day early on Tuesday, February 15th to ComicsPRO member stores. Participating stores will also sell an exclusive poster. The regular sale date is Wednesday, 2/16.

Here's one of those announcements that looks super vague on paper but given the people involved, you know it will yield some results. ComiXology and Milton Griepp's ICv2 are teaming up to help develop tools for retailers. ICv2 is, of course, best known for its sales estimates and business news. Although the leader in the digital comics space, comiXology has also developed a number of services for retailers, including their "pull list" -- it's not hard to see how that might work with ICv2 to give us some kind of useful metrics. Griepp is on the board of comiXology.

Tokyopop has just signed a deal with Diamond Book Distributors for distribution to both comics shops and bookstores. This marks Tokyopop's return to Diamond...

Diamond has just announced that they'll be holding their retailer's summit this year in conjunction with C2E2 in Chicago, as they did last year. The Midwest location allows for access to a wide swath of retailers. This year's show will focus on the topic of attracting new customers, with a day of workshops and focus groups on Thursday, March 17th, and a retailer breakfast on the 18th. Diamond also announced participation at a variety of shows throughout 2011.

§ In the never-ending discourse over gender and comics, one of those classic anecdotes -- this one told by a man:

Speaking of the party's over, Brian Hibbs looks in the industry mirror and doesn't like what he sees:

Josh Blaylock is back and blogging. The publisher of Devil's Due, which seems to have gone on hiatus after selling many of its characters to Arcana, has moved to a tell-it-like-it-is blog and various ventures like his events company Pop Cultour. Although the most recent years of Devil's Due was filled with charges of non-payment to freelancers, no one can say Blaylock isn't a student of the game. He has some very good advice re S! corporations here, and another blunt post called Will February ’11 Be a Comic Book Direct Market Massacre? Like many industry watchers, he feels the price CUT coming in February is of some concern:

In all the puff pieces and half-baked profiles one comes across in searching the internet, this story on the financial troubles of Berkeley's Comic Relief ranks high on the list for out-and-out weirdness and omissions. What is not in dispute is that since the death of owner Rory Root in 2008, the store has gone into serious decline. The piece reports that since going in arrears to Diamond, the shop has not received new product from them in a month. Understandably, without new comics, customers are not clamoring to shop there. Closing is imminent unless a new buyer for the shop is found.