David Seigler of Ground Zero Comics in Tyler, Texas saw Steve Bennett's column on Making an Effort on Free Comic Book Day (see 'Confessions of  a Comic Book Guy -- Make an Effort'), and shares his own experience and thoughts:

Steven Bennett brings up some interesting points in his column concerning Free Comic Book Day.  I have had similar discussions with fellow retailers who did nothing more than put the FCBD poster in their window and then were disgruntled at the poor response.

What did our store do?

For the first four Free Comic Book Days, we cross-promoted with the local theater.  They handed out Free Comic Book Day coupons with each ticket to see whatever comic related movie was premiering that week.  We also variously sponsored an art contest with the theater, a 'create your own comic character,' and provided gift certificates that they used as door prizes in exchange for movie passes.  We also contacted the local schools, placing Free Comic Book Day posters on various campuses and providing flyers and coupons for the students.

What was the result?

The first year was fantastic!  The second year was very good, although down from the first.  The third year saw a marked decline but was still considered a success.  The fourth year was the first that I would really call a disappointment.

This year our promotion was unfortunately reduced, despite our efforts.  The local theaters were not interested in cross-promoting with us, as there was no comic book movie opening that week.  Some of the schools allowed us to place posters, but many of them declined to be included.  Through vigorous promoting here at the store and through our Website, we managed a serviceable crowd, but it was significantly down from previous years.

The bottom line for us is that each year we have put more effort and promotion into the event and yet have drawn a smaller crowd than the year before.  Frankly, the newness of the event has worn off for many people and with it, some of the appeal.  We are a destination store, which ultimately for us means that we are just pulling existing comic collectors into our store for Free Comic Book Day.  I would much prefer to be pulling in people who are not current readers.  We still take the opportunity to tie our annual art contest into the event, encouraging entrants to bring as many people as they can to Free Comic Book Day to vote on the art entries.  As with last year, a local man dressed as Batman stood on the busy street outside our shopping center, holding the Free Comic Day banner and waving at passing cars.

I still think that the idea is a great one.  However, as the event is now five years old, serious thought should be put into its future direction.  An event that stagnantly occurs each year becomes commonplace and can lose the public's interest.  This was the first year that neither our local paper nor one of the TV stations chose to cover the event.

Now, returning to Mr. Bennett's comments:  certainly comic shop owners, and anyone working retail, can always use a reminder of the importance of customer service.  However, to imply that a poor response to a store's Free Comic Book Day might simply be linked to a lack of effort or a poor sense of customer service is short sighted.  Our industry is represented by the same variety of stores and personalities as any other field.  Undoubtedly some stores are marked by poor service and lazy promotions.  Logically those stores that were lazy in promoting Free Comic Book Day would also not go to the trouble to report their results here.  The shop owners that take the time to read and especially go to the trouble to report their success (or lack of it) on this site are most likely dedicated to their business and the industry in general.

I certainly plan on putting a great deal of effort into next year's Free Comic Book Day.  I can only hope that the results reverse the trend of the last couple of years.  If they continue their downward trend, it won't be due to a lack of effort on my part.

Retailers -- If you'd like to share your Free Comic Book Day story with ICv2's readers, please e-mail us at Comments@icv2.com with your story and images.