Fox Offers Bulk 'Passion' DVDs to Churches

According to the USA Today, Fox has been successfully pre-selling 'Passion of the Christ' DVDs in bulk to churches. The article describes their unorthodox marketing tactics:

In an unprecedented move for a Hollywood studio, Fox sent fliers to hundreds of thousands of churches inviting them to buy special packs of 50 DVDs. Fox won't release numbers about the program; spokesman Steven Feldstein says, "This film brought people to the theater that normally don't go to movies and will also bring people into the DVD purchasing pool who weren't there before."

Fox is even doing a bit of "co-branding":

Groups placing large orders can buy customized slipcases (99 cents each) with two lines of printing, such as the church's name. "Fox felt that they could rally the churches to use it as a ministry tool," says Laura Neutzling of Nashville-based Word Distribution, which has orders for several thousand slipcases.

While this type of grassroots marketing may be "unprecedented" for a major studio, reaching core demographic groups with mailings and bulk orders has always been the bread and butter of indie movie marketers and home video distributors.

Yahoo! News - Churches buying 'Passion' DVD in bulk