In 1995, a comic bubble burst, leaving me with about 20% of the customers I had at the peak. I realized that the 20% were the customers who actually read and enjoyed comics and who couldn't care less about perceived value.
Since the speculators had disappeared anyway, I decided I would try to rebuild my base by appealing to readers. Encouraging people to buy on the basis of the quality of the art and writing of comics. I even came up with a saying. "Speculators always quit. Readers keep reading."
I didn't think I would see it again in my career, but speculation has re-entered the market. I'm not changing my policy. I don't care about comics that suddenly shoot up in price. I don't care if a variant cover is in demand. I still cater to the readers.
Yes, I'm missing some short term customers, but I'm not building castles on the sand. Every sale in my store is on the basis of content, not a mirage.
This applies to everything in life--content is content, image is just image. This include politics, by the way. Build your base on what you believe; don't cater to things you don't believe to gain money or power.
Just saying.
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