An Open Letter to Comic Con Event Promoters

The following is Written for the most part by Mister AnderSiN unless otherwise indicated.

As the people paying for tables, we have a few suggestions for you. We hope you take these words seriously. Seeing you implement any of the following will allow us to take you seriously and, in turn, let us know you care about your event’s success.

For CREATORS READING this, This is the STANDARD we should look to hold promoters and Events too. PROMOTERS WHO threaten to BLACKMAIL CREATORS for EXPECTING these STANDARDS to be in place should REALIZE YOU NEED CREATORS more than CREATORS NEED YOU. Without us, you are flea markets, not comic cons. So PLEASE let us work together and Create an EXPERIENCE that is best for the fans and attendees. Together, and with listening ears, we can stop what has become Comic Con Fatigue. Trust that the CREATORS are talking to MORE FANS and Getting more Feedback than you promoters get, mainly because most of you don’t reply to emails because, as we are told, you are too busy. 

The Pandemic taught us how to sell online. Many of us did well without shows. We want to have both, but only if the shows are doing their part. None of what is below is unreasonable, and franklin should not even have to be said out loud, but here we go: 

(And Again, WE ACTUALLY Want you to be successful. We wish, in many cases, you felt the same about the vendors as we do for you. )

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The Following was not Written by Mister AndersiN but reflects a collective work he was involved in, and he fully endorses. This is an honest, reflective, and open conversation put together by comic book creators with years of experience and concerns. Even FAN FEEDBACK is reflected below. It does not speak for all, but it is spoken about and felt by many:

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Dear Promotors,

As the creators that regularly work with you to rent table space for Comic-Con events, we want to be able to provide the best experience for your event’s attendees in addition to creating a welcoming space for our supporters. This not only boosts our presence in the convention space but ensures that your event maintains a reputation of high-quality while benefiting promoter and creator alike. Several of us have gotten together to compare our experiences as professionals in this space so that we can have an open dialogue on improving this relationship. In effect, this will also improve the convention and event space that we all inhabit. We hope that you will take the time to read and absorb the items we’ve listed so that we can all put our best foot forward for the Comic-Con and creator industries, and we are prepared to discuss further and help facilitate some of these changes with you.

Our first topic is about having a social media presence. As you know, we creators spend a lot of time curating an audience and directing attention to our products/offerings with a carefully managed social media presence. This means social media accounts, professional web sites and mailing lists to name a few. Our followers (and potential supporters) will determine the quality of the creator by how they manage this social presence in today’s marketplace. As a promoter, it is very difficult for us to promote you and your events if you don’t have any social media presence at all or lack a professional looking landing page on the web that traffic can be directed to. All too often, event/promotional websites look cobbled together, taking away from the legitimacy of your event. This ends up hurting your chances to grow the number of potential attendees, let alone garnering interest from users who may have reached your event through our social media presence. With apps such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram being free to sign up for, having even one of these with your information would make all the difference, as it allows us to direct traffic and potential ticket sales to your efforts. Without any site at all, an internet-savvy user will quickly make a judgement call about your operations without knowing anything about you or your promotional events track record! Whether using one of the mentioned apps above or making a simple landing page on the web, having the following information on display would make an immediate and tangible difference on your event sales: Event Dates, Location, Times, and a #hashtag for your event. If you reach out to a trusted creator you may have a relationship with, we’re sure they would help you to get up to speed.

Another topic that comes up frequently involves the cross promotion of Cosplayers and Cosplay events. As you know, the popularity of the Cosplay scene cannot be understated; they have quickly become a staple of the convention scene. As a promoter, we all understand that adding a Cosplayer(s) to the event bill is a great way to include bigger ticket sales overall – we would just ask that if you are promoting a ‘Comic-Con’ or ‘Comic Convention’ that the Cosplay aspect of the event not be something that overshadows the biggest part of the convention itself – the ‘Comic’ in Comic-Con. Looking to some of the biggest names in the convention space for reference, whether it be NYCC or MegaCon for example, the Cosplay presence is a big one – but it is promoted in a way that doesn’t undermine the mission for the convention’s existence. Otherwise, they could rename the event to New York Cosplay-Con. We ask that if Cosplayers are promoted (which they deserved to be, of course), that Comic creators are promoted in equal. Otherwise, it undermines the purpose of the convention, and could dissuade future creators from snatching up table space at the rate that they currently do.

Also, in the interest of highlighting the creators that make up the lifeblood of these comic-cons, we ask that you try to invite a local-area comic book creator to our events, where possible. There are creators everywhere, always looking to interface with their community and introduce themselves into a market they may not have tapped into locally. Plus, when other creators notice that level of support, it goes a long way to ensuring that the creators involved in your event do the most they can to promote and advertise your events in any way they can, knowing that there is a place for like-minded creators and supporters like yourself!

Fans of Comic Conventions are some of the most supportive, loyal, and empathic people around. We will sing the praises of those within our community and fight fiercely to be recognized and respected in the fandoms in which we reside. One topic of much discussion with fans has to do with the loose use of the term ‘Comic-Con’. Similar to the topic we just discussed regarding Cosplayers, there are appropriate times and places to call an event a ‘Comic-Con’. One of the quickest ways to lose the support of creators within the convention space is to mislabel an event. It becomes very divisive when either an interested fan or a creator finds out that an event’s focus turns out not to be Comic book related, yet calls themselves a Comic-Con. More and more of us have communicated with each other and will take steps to withdraw from events that abuse the term for the benefit of ticket sales exposure. Please be direct and truthful about what kind of event you are holding, and we will gladly support and participate as creators in a manner that benefits us all positively. If your main focus are comics, call yourself a comic-convention. If you are promoting cars, then proudly promote a Car Convention – just make sure those cars include Hollywood replicas!

Lastly, regarding table prices – we’ve all been to many Comic-Con events and most creators have either had artist-alley experience or can refer to peers in the industry to better understand the pricing. With that said, you can be assured that we discuss the pricing of tables from event to event. When a promoter sets pricing for tables based on similar conventions or, worse yet, what they think they can charge a creator, we take note and act accordingly. Table pricing standards should be based on attendance (and reputation in the event space). Furthermore, if a promoter’s social media presence is lacking (or not present at all), your table pricing should reflect your presence in the space. Matching more established events without that track record is something that creators have decided is no longer tenable, and promoters will feel in their inability to sell table space.

If a promoter has read this open letter all the way to this point, we applaud and thank you for your support, and we look forward to getting table space from you at your next event. Let’s work together to keep strengthening and pushing forward the convention space to make an incredible experience for fans and organizers alike. If you have any further questions regarding what’s been mentioned here, please reach out to us on this thread or at the COMiXNEWSWire@yahoo.com

Respectfully,

Comix Creators Worldwide

the following is Written by Mister AnderSiN

A QUICK RECAP 

A social media presence is necessary. It is FREE to be on TWITTER, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM, so what arent you on them?

On all of your l social media platforms, PIN All the DETAILS to your EVENT to the TOP of the SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE.

A PROFESSIONAL WEBSITE. If you are a smaller show, SKIP THE WEBSITE, but the URL redirects to a social media destination. 

UPDATE your SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE WEEKLY. Even Months out, share PICTURES on it. If you used it as Hashtag, then this will be easy to do and FIND!

 If you are not going to take the time to build a professional-looking website. Be sure to put on the MAIN PAGE the following info for your EVENT:

DATES

LOCATION

TIMES

The HASHTAG for your EVENT

all this needs to be at the top of the page in the HEADER

-Don’t put the artist alley in the back room or back corner. My preference is actually to be intermixed with the regular vendors. (it should be noted most Comic Book Creators want to be next to other Comic Book Creators, but we reflect all insights here.)

Have the Cost of the tables be a reflection of the audience you will bring. It’s not a cost to cover your expenses, so you have no risk over attendance. If the tables are priced on attendance, that means you are taking a risk along with us. Creators Talk, and we know better.

Do not threaten to Blacklist creators because they spoke honestly about your event. If we find out you are doing this, we will create a notice of your actions and call for a boycott of your event. This is a business you are creating, not a hobby you can hide behind. You are expected to do your part if you charge money for people to be there. If you are unwilling to do your part, step out of the way and let others willing to do right by everyone to do what is best for all. This bullying mentality has to STOP. If the Feedback reflects your mistakes, accept them and grow from the experience. You have no right to get mad because you created a bad experience through your actions, errors, and sometimes misfortunes. Again we want you to be successful and those paying to be successful; that requires an open ear to feedback. We are happy to create partnerships to help make a successful and fun experience for all. 

Food for thought:

After speaking to hundreds of creators and Fans, we have come up with these suggestions:

Please stop promoting CARS That arent a HOLLYWOOD REPLICA; It makes us NERVOUS, Especially if they are kept outside. That may mean no one is coming in if it’s free outside.

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Promoting CosPlayers over Comic Book GUESTS over Comic Book CREATORS makes us NERVOUS. Good Shows do not do this. Cosplayers are an important part of the FANDOM; they are not the attraction. Cosplay contests are an Attraction, and that makes sense for everyone. Promote that.  Invite Cosplayers and have them promote the event. But Do not sell them as THE attraction unless you are a COsplay Convention then, by all means, do so.

Invite a Local Comic Book CREATORS.

If you Are not focusing on Comics, please do not call yourself a Comic con. This is misleading, and you are trying to cash in on something you aren’t willing to truly represent. This bothers Creators and fans due to a deliberate misdirect.

And most importantly, never waste Creator time by adding days or having long cons with few activities. Find ways to engage and create experiences for con congers, so they stay longer than an hour. 

Respectfully,

Mister AnderSiN & Hundreds of Comic Book Creators and Fans