I've noticed requests for prize support at conventions come up a lot on IPR lately, and was wondering what people's take on it is. Do you think it's worth your while to donate things to conventions to be given away as prizes? Does it engender goodwill or promote you as a publisher? Essentially, is it worth the investment, as cynical as that may sound?
Typically I hang back and don't donate anything to the US conventions. I feel that without an actual presence or games being run there, simply giving away books is unlikely to have much effect or do much good.
It's different here in the UK, where we've typically given away a bundle of our stuff to a convention where we've had a strong presence all weekend as well as where we have a close involvement with the organisers and the causes they support (in particular the auctions at Dragonmeet and Conpulsion spring to mind). I'm a lot happier donating prizes to local cons in that respect.
Where I've seen it work best...
Submitted by Gregor Hutton on Tue, 11/09/2007 - 11:36.
...is when it's a personal choice/connection made and it's not part of a large effort by many publishers.
The one that leaps out in my mind was Contested Ground sending a signed a|state to Vancouver as a prize for a con there. It was something really special and out of the ordinary for that con, and it wasn't like it was one of 15 such things. That had way more impact and value than a games drive for the military or a con looking for 30 books to hand out as prizes.
If some quirky con contacted me direct and asked for a Best Friends I'd probably do it, but I avoid the game drives in general.
I handed a copy of the book to Shoshanna for running a session as part of the Women in Gaming events at GenCon.
Also Justin Jacobson at GenCon was doing a charity raffle and needed prizes. Without blinking I handed him one of my personal copies of Best Friends. When it's someone or something like that then I'll back them up, y'know.
If it's a case of put me in a box with 15 other publishers, I'm not sure you get any promotion out of that. If it makes you feel better and it's the kind of charitable thing you like to do then go for it, but I don't think you'll see return on it.