Ruben Bolling wrties over on his blog click here (h/t to Alan Gardner at The Daily Cartoonist):
PRODUCT PLACEMENT AUCTION
Attention Advertisers, Marketers and Promoters of All Types:
Imagine your product featured in an authentic “alternative” comic strip that is read by the most desirable demographics: educated young professionals; sophisticated internet users; upwardly mobile newspaper readers; and discerning australopithecine enthusiasts.
Your product will be featured not in an ad, to which these groups are notoriously resistant, but within the artistic framework of the comic strip itself!
The fantastically popular “Tom the Dancing Bug” comic strip is auctioning off a product placement. The highest bidder will have the product of its choice unobtrusively yet noticeably placed in an upcoming “Super-Fun-Pak Comix” installment of the comic strip.
Participants may place their bids by emailing the following information to tomdbug@gmail.com : Name, E-mail address, Corporation or Business Concern, Product, and Bid (in US dollars). Upon conclusion of the Auction, the winner will be notified by e-mail, and must make payment, by Paypal, within 24 hours.
Quaternary Features reserves the right to reject any bid that it, in its sole and absolute discretion, determines to be unsuitable for any reason, including but not limited to concerns of propriety and good taste. The winner shall be determined by Quaternary Features in its sole and absolute discretion. The manner in which the winning product is pictured, named or otherwise referred to in the comic strip shall be determined in the sole and absolute discretion of Quaternary Features. Proceeds will be donated by Quaternary Features to The Committee To Protect Journalists.
Bidding starts now.
-JG
PS: I know I'll be bidding to help promote my artisan/handcrafted charcoal jewelry.
PPS: This topic has been brought up many times over the years by marketing people and the occasional creator. Hey, why not get a sponser (for-profit as opposed to Ken's munificence) to pay to appear in our/my/their comic? It's a path that could be frought with peril ... but it's an interesting thought.
Even outside of running the ad in the actual strip (which editors and ad directors would most certainly have an issue with) I've always believed that Met Life was pretty darn savvy to use Snoopy as a mascot. As the daily exposure that Peanuts has in newspapers/web/apparel/merchandise is probably in the hundreds of millions.
And get this! It's EVERY DAY! AT NO COST TO MET LIFE! Hundreds of millions of exposures! NO COST!
-JG
Comments