When The Oatmeal creator shared one of his new comics on Facebook, he got so much positive feedback about a character, he decided to share different drawings of her with his fans.
The best part: He included a transparent PNG file and encouraged them to use the image however they like.
Fans who commented on this post talked about making their own t-shirts from the image, using it as an avatar, and incorporating it in their email signatures. One woman even hand-stitched the character into an embroidery hoop.
This is textbook word of mouth marketing. Your fans rave about something, and you give them more of it. You encourage them to share it, and they make it their own.
