Comics company adds direct mail service

Published January 30, 2015 at 7:56 am

Just because your company is already doing well with online marketing doesn’t meant that a direct mail marketing service is unnecessary. In fact, it might be a novel way to take advantage of a devoted internet fan base and expand your marketing material into the physical world. Image Comics, the company behind such popular franchises as The Walking Dead and Saga, is surprising some with a new direct delivery offering for its customers.

These days, comics viewing apps allow readers to access new issues on iPads and other mobile devices, which eliminates some of the inconvenience of the delivery of paper copies. However, the “Image Direct” option could prove that fans still appreciate having comic books brought straight to their doorsteps.

In a press release from Image, the company described the new plan, which will allow American customers the chance to subscribe to whichever issues they prefer for 12 months. It’s an old model for the industry but one that could still be relevant. Image publisher Eric Stephens told Comic Book Resources News that direct service is about opening up new channels, not preferring one over the other.

“Digital is a great option, but I think a lot of people still prefer print, and I think that’s going to be the case for a significant amount of time, especially where comics are concerned,” he said. He added that this service will not distract from his company’s existing relationship with local book and comics stores.

Many companies can look at direct mail as a way to reach new, print-friendly customers without alienating the digital ones that already exist. With appropriate software and implementation, multi channel marketing like this will make a business capitalize on all of the potential different markets for their product and make a larger impression.