TradePaperBlog

It’s a fact that classic marketing techniques have been with us for some time. By “with us,” I mean in the comic back issue market. Dealers have been declaring certain issues as the great get-it-while-you-can for decades. And the fact is, many of us fall for it. Why is that? Well there are a number of good reasons.

1) They’re right. Sometimes an Incredible Hulk #181 or Batman #232 gets identified as having potential for future growth and those who jump on early reap the reward. So, when advertisers say “jump,” why not ask “how high” or “how much?” Well, how about because advertisers and hobby magazines rarely call them right. For every Marvel Spotlight #5 that someone calls attention to when its $20, there’s a dozen flavor-of-the-month variant covers with a quick climb, only to be forgotten five years later.

2) We are too short-sighted. Whereas the sellers see the potential for short term gains. If enough attention can be brought to an Adventurers #1 or Infinite Crisis #1RRP then the sellers know that they can get in and out before the buying public (that’s you and me) can realize that they paid ten times what the book will be worth in five years. Its like listening to stock tips on MSNBC. The names of hot stocks are thrown out in the morning to create a price spike that enable holders to sell at. The audience think they have a winner to hold onto, but instead it crashes at the end of the day. And this is repeated daily. It is like holding a lollipop out for a kid to grab and pulling it away at the last moment. And then doing it ten times in a row so that you can laugh at their gullibility.

3) Buyers can be as greedy as sellers. There is a high liklihood that many of us have bought books that were promised to be hot with the intent to flip them. “If this book is skyrocketing, and it can be found half-way to it apex, then it can be unloaded for double its price.” How many buyers have thought these thoughts? The number is probably countless. Let’s be honest. In the age of eBay, this is what drives much of the back-issue market. “Day Traders” are following the lead of the big boys and getting burned most of the time.

4) Collectors need to believe. We hobbyists are collecting comics for a multitude of reasons. One of which is the belief that a comic bought now will continue to go up in value. Without this feeling of potential growth - the market loses a lot of its steam. Many of us are aware that Bob Overstreet has a system in place in which certain sectors of the market receive 2-20% increases annually. Critics find no basis for most of these gains, since they run contrary to the law of supply and demand. But where would the average collector be if a 1990 price guide were the same as the 2005 edition? Ultimately, the “Hot Comic” is a reminder that there is a dimension to collecting that focuses on return on investment.

Currently, Wizard Magazine is the central figure in the comic-hype machine. If one were to look at their picks that urge readers to “find it cheap…for now” it would be clear that those issues rarely have the staying power that would make them worth our while. Recently, at the Wizard Philly show, I looked through a box labeled (yup, you guessed it) “Hot Comics.” None of which were priced. I handed him a stack and waited for his asking price. He wanted $9 bucks each - firm. I handed them back to him, because it was easy to turn down books that will be available for half that price soon enough. So, next time you’re reading a Spider-man or Batman from the 80s and 90’s and you see an ad for New England Comics and Mile High announcing which comics are “Red Hot” take a second to reflect on how the old trap is still out there.