Usagi Yojimbo Sales...

[MikeM]

I have been tracking this for awhile now and I thought you guys might be interested as well. These are the sales numbers for Usagi Yojimbo according to Diamond Comics.

• Month Rank Title Issue Numbers Sold
  Jan, 2005 155 USAGI YOJIMBO 81 6,537
  Feb, 2005 no solicit
  Mar, 2005 199 USAGI YOJIMBO 82 6,476
  Apr, 2005 no solicit
  May, 2005 173 USAGI YOJIMBO 83 6,464
  Jun, 2005 225 USAGI YOJIMBO 84 6,412
  Jul, 2005 171 USAGI YOJIMBO 85 6,432
  Aug, 2005 206 USAGI YOJIMBO 86 6,228
  Sep, 2005 no solicit
  Oct, 2005 194 USAGI YOJIMBO 87 6,228
  Oct, 2005 196 USAGI YOJIMBO 88 6,179
  Nov, 2005 209 USAGI YOJIMBO 89 6,079
  Dec, 2005 no solicit
  Jan, 2006 181 USAGI YOJIMBO 90 5,957
  Feb, 2006 191 USAGI YOJIMBO 91 5,900
  Mar, 2006 227 USAGI YOJIMBO 92 5,836
  Apr, 2006 202 USAGI YOJIMBO 93 5,897
  May, 2006 no solicit

[steven hubbell]

A steady increase with each issue, except one.

Do you have any figures for the tpb and hardcover sales as well?

Abayo....

[MikeM]

actually, unfortunately its a steady decrease.

In January 2005, Usagi was ranked at 155 in the top 300 and sold 6537 copies.
In April 2006, Usagi was ranked at 202 in the top 300 and sold 5897

I think we need to get the word out folks.

As for trades, let me see what I can do.

MikeM

[MikeM]

Ok, this is what I could find on the trades.

Jan 2002 - Grasscutter II Journey To Atsuta Shrine TP = 2,752
Dec 2002 - Shrouded Moon TP = 2,768
Sep 2003 - Duel At Kitanoji TP = 2,688
Jun 2004 - Travels with Jotaro TP = 2,686
Jul 2005 - Fathers & Sons TP = 2,559

Sales on the Trades look good.

MikeM

[steven hubbell]

OOPS I didn't really look at the dates, I thought the list went from most recent issue back....

Since Usagi Yojimbo is so readily available in tpb, a lot of steady readers may be waiting on each book to be released instead of buying the individual issues.

There is a steady number of new Dojo registrations each month, so there must be some new readers finding and trying Usagi.

Abayo.....

[Shishio]

Or maybe old readers just discovering the site. I registered here a little over a year ago, but I had been reading Usagi for years at that point.

Anyway, it is unfortunate that the sales for such an excellent comic are steadily decreasing.

I think it would be a good idea (Assuming Mr. Sakai and Dark Horse were willing to do this.) to set up a section on the UYD to show some Usagi stories, and post previews of upcoming issues. (I know previews are posted here, but if they were also posted in this section I am proposing, then it would give people a reason to come back.)

It would be like a webcomic site. Obviously, you can't give people everything for free, but maybe post some of those older, short Usagi stories to give people an idea of what Usagi is like, post some short, newer stories, to let them see how the artwork has evolved, and again, post previews of new stories. And maybe Mr. Sakai could do occassional short stories specifically for the site. I know he is very busy, but if it would help increase sales, I think it is worth considering.

I have often heard that there are many more readers of webcomics than there are of print comics, I have also heard of people who started in print, and then moved to the web, and started making more money. And don't forget the man who made a year's salary in a month. And I'm sure you could find more webcomic success stories if you cared to look. (The biggest being Penny Arcade.)

Of course, you would have to publicize this as well, but that should be easy for a creator of Mr. Sakai's caliber. I'm sure you could get features on comic and webcomic news sites/blogs written up for you, and you could also advertise on other webcomic sites (Which is really cheap.) and submit it to webcomic index sites such as Online Comics and The Belfry.

I really hate to sound arrogant, but I believe what I am proposing would help Usagi reach a much bigger audience.

Here is an excellent webcomic automation script if you care to follow my suggestion.

[Cosmo]

I think Fanfan recently wormed information out of Mr. Paquet to know the sales of Usagi's French edition. It was 8,000. In comparison the first French edition (which had a big format) was quite confidential, I heard it was no more than several hundreds.

But Fanfan may be better informed than me on the subject.

[Todd Shogun]

Thanks MikeM for sharing with us the sales figures on Usagi. My only question, being completely naive as to how the comics publishing and distributing world works, is that the entire count for each issue of Usagi published? Is Diamond the sole distributor for Usagi? In other words, are there only 5,897 copies of UY 93 made available through comics retailers across the country? Another question, which I've pitched to DHC, is what the official print run is of UY currently (DHC responded as it being confidential). I wonder what the variance is, if any, between issues sold/distributed and issues actually printed. The decline in sales has me particularly concerned. We definitely need to take action.

On a related note, how does the sales count compare with the average Marvel or DC comic? Or your average indie comic? Are other comics experiencing similar declines? Perhaps the market as a whole is showing some weakness...if anyone out there could find out, I'd appreciate it!

And thanks Shishio for suggesting such an awesome idea. I will take it up with Stan offline and determine if he's interested. Perhaps a web comic along the lines of what has appeared on DHC's site. Maybe even a weekly or monthly comic strip to get potentially new readers interested, and informed enough to understand that Usagi is a genuinely awesome stand-alone comic, and not just a TMNT spin-off (which obviously it is not, but to the uninformed, that could very well be their understanding).

[Shishio]

Thanks MikeM for sharing with us the sales figures on Usagi. My only question, being completely naive as to how the comics publishing and distributing world works, is that the entire count for each issue of Usagi published? Is Diamond the sole distributor for Usagi? In other words, are there only 5,897 copies of UY 93 made available through comics retailers across the country? Another question, which I've pitched to DHC, is what the official print run is of UY currently (DHC responded as it being confidential). I wonder what the variance is, if any, between issues sold/distributed and issues actually printed. The decline in sales has me particularly concerned. We definitely need to take action.

I'm not an expert, but my guess is that a publisher prints a number of copies that is, or a little more than the amount ordered.

As far as I know, the best selling comics sell anywhere from 100,000 to 300,000 copies. I think a typical independent comic sells 2,000 to 5,000.

Of course, since Usagi is published in a number of countries, I'm sure Mr. Sakai is OK, but it would, of course, be nice to see it become more successful in North America.

I am glad you like my idea. Maybe if people were up to it, you could also post some fan stories. Imagine a short story illustrated by Amy. The prospect is enough to make a UY fan salivate. Of course, it's a lot to ask of people, and it may lead to confusion amongst new readers, but I just wanted to throw the idea out there.

And one last thing. I forgot to mention this before, but bandwidth will also be a very important consideration. I don't know how much bandwidth you have, but if it is necessary, I could host the Usagi webcomic. I am allowed more than a terabyte in monthly bandwidth, so unless it becomes super popular, it won't be a problem.

[Maka]

I have been tracking this for awhile now and I thought you guys might be interested as well. These are the sales numbers for Usagi Yojimbo according to Diamond Comics.

• Month Rank Title Issue Numbers Sold
  
  Apr, 2006 202 USAGI YOJIMBO 93 5,897

Thanks Mike, always interesting to see a little of the sales part of the picture.
According to this site: http://www.cbgxtra.com/Default.aspx?tabid=1657
UY issues ranked 202 out of the top 300 comic books in April 2006. At first I thought, Well at least UY beat Marvel Zombies #2 (223). But then I figured out that is a reprint.

Shishio: very interesting idea: webcomics. I had never heard that there are more readers of webcomics than print comics. Has anyone else? It makes sense because it's almost "free." But for me, I love the comic book collecting aspect and enjoy having something in my hand (on the other hand, I don't subscribe to ESPN, but i do read articles on it every day). Webcomics haven't grab my attention (but I like the link to Foglio studios, I had forgotten how much I like those two's art).

In any case, it make sense that anything that promotes UY should be considered.

----

As long as we are thinking of creative UY promotion, I was thinking of an idea after watch the "where the hell is Matt?" dancing video that Mr. Sakai linked Ronin Ramblings. We should do our own Usagi global T-shirt contest. Here are the draft rules:

1) Everyone who is able, buys an "Where the heck is Usagi?" T-shirt (image designed by Mr. Sakai) for $20 (including s/h) or so. Or maybe the T-Shirt should be called "USAGI was Here." (whatever, play with it)

2) Wear your t-shirts and take a picture in front of a famous location or person.

3) Submit your picture to one person on usagiyojimbo.com (I volunteer) with the location or famous person. You could even submit a story if you want (to be posted on line)

4) For ever different picture (meaning different location or famous person) the submitter is given an virtual raffle ticket. (I think there is some rule somewhere that all raffles require that you don’t have to purchase something to be entered, so someone would have to research raffle rules [Dark Horse Comics just did the SDCC trip one, so their lawyers must know]. You could offer one free raffle ticket to those who just sent in their postcard with the appropriate information).

5) The prize could be whatever STAN wanted to offer. I would think you could have multiple prizes: from original art (like the T-shirt design for this contest), statues, signed comics, klingons, etc.

6) Take the pictures and create an iMovie (I volunteer again) of all the photos and some UY titles (like facts that Steve wrote in letters page of UY #89), put some funky music for the sound track and make it kinda nerdy. Post it on youtube, myspace, facebook, and all the message boards we visit outside of UY.

7) . Some one else could design a uy.com page to post the pictures and stories behind the photos as the contest is on. This could create interest.

Truly nerdy, but grassroots marketing. If nothing else, it would be a fun way for your fans here to contribute to the marketing of UY is a relatively cheap way (the cost of a t-shirt). And everyone would get their 15 seconds (okay 2.5 seconds) of fame in the video.

Have the contest last about 6 months and promote it on other comic websites (somewhere on this site someone listed other comic website people visit), message boards, UY/Dark Horse comics, facebook, myspace, etc.

I enjoy making Digtal Video movies, so if Mr. Sakai and others were interested, I’d be willing to brainstorm some ideas with others and put some effort into this (truly it should be a collaborate process so we can get the best ideas). I have about 3 more weeks off before I go back to work (family medical leave and family vacation) to think about it a little. I’m passionate about UY, so it would be fun work vs. just work.

Once the idea was more structured and the photos came in, we could probably put together a pretty good 5 minute movie in about 72 hours of DV editing. Images of UY would have be very clear (so the rules would have to reflect that). Wavers would have to be signed and so on.

My friend Darryl got two of those bendy people picture frames (where you can put your picture of your face in head of a bendy stick figure gumby-like frame) for his honeymoon. He put his wife and his faces in them. Then instead of them being photographed in front of the Tower of Pisa or the Eiffel Tower, they put those stick figures there and made them the objects in the photo. This was back in the 90’s, and it was cute. They even had a picture with Kevin Smith holding them at some movie or comic signing.

So if T-shirts aren’t the way, actions figures (but that seems even more nerdy to me.

A local Isla Vista burrito business (Free!birds) has a t-shirt and they give students a free burrito if they bring in a photo of them infront of a famous location. The wall has about 20 photos on there from around the world. People will do almost anything for a freebee.

Well just a thought. I obviously have too much time on my hands as I recover from surgery.

Peace,

maka

[Todd Shogun]

Maka: Perhaps we could use the new Albedo NR 2 tee's? Hmm, maybe not, that's a back design....but great idea. If you're willing to sponsor the effort, I'll endorse it with Stan's approval! Just let me know what you need.

Shishio: As far as the UYD bandwidth goes, we currently have 2.2 TB, more than enough to handle a webcomic. But I appreciate your stepping up!

[Shishio]

Shishio: very interesting idea: webcomics. I had never heard that there are more readers of webcomics than print comics. Has anyone else? It makes sense because it's almost "free." But for me, I love the comic book collecting aspect and enjoy having something in my hand (on the other hand, I don't subscribe to ESPN, but i do read articles on it every day). Webcomics haven't grab my attention (but I like the link to Foglio studios, I had forgotten how much I like those two's art).

Well, I have yet to see any proof of it, but I would not be surprised. A webcomic artist I recently spoke to tells me he has 110,000 to 120,000 readers. And his strip only updates weekly.

I don't know if it's true, but I have heard Penny Arcade has around 1,000,000 readers, which is more than the amount of people who buy print comics in North America. Either way, they have achieved a great deal of success. Darkhorse is publishing collections of Penny Arcade strips, actually. I believe 35,000 orders have already been placed for the newest book.

DJ Coffman makes a living from his online strip, Yirmumah. He also self-publishes and distributes Yirmumah comic books, and, according to him, is more successful than he would be had he gone the traditional route through Diamond.

Of course, it is true that only an incredibly small percentage of webcomic artists have achieved any financial or critical success, but nevertheless, if Mr. Sakai likes the idea and is willing to post enough material, I am convinced he can gain many more readers.

Todd: That's good to hear. Let me know if you ever need any help.

[Fanfan]

Thanks Mike, always interesting to see a little of the sales part of the picture.
According to this site: http://www.cbgxtra.com/Default.aspx?tabid=1657
UY issues ranked 202 out of the top 300 comic books in April 2006. At first I thought, Well at least UY beat Marvel Zombies #2 (223). But then I figured out that is a reprint.

Shishio: very interesting idea: webcomics

I am quite astonished by the sales in north america compared to french market.
Was Usagi a mainstream by the past, or are those sales regular for years now ?

We make small actions in France, we go at conventions with Usagi TShirts and some flyers, the french editor Paquet printed a promotional book with inside an Usagi story (for Angoulême). For the next Stan's coming i will try to organize a signing in Paris with an article in a newspaper.

WebComics are usually very particular structure with regular publishing, only a few have a lot of readers and are printed. I really do believe that an adaptation in a good animation movie would be the best promotional material.

Perhaps we should make more local promotional actions (expo, promotional book...) and some campaign on internet forum, webzine, and our own websites :

1) Everyone who is able, buys an "Where the heck is Usagi?" T-shirt (image designed by Mr. Sakai) for $20 (including s/h) or so. Or maybe the T-Shirt should be called "USAGI was Here." (whatever, play with it)

I really do believe that it could be a good idea, we should ask all our international usaginauts to take a photo with an Usagi TShirt or print in famous places all over the world.

[Shishio]

WebComics are usually very particular structure with regular publishing,

That's not true at all. You can do almost anything with webcomics. Infinite canvas, using flash for navigation or to make comics more interactive, the sky is the limit.

only a few have a lot of readers and are printed.

True enough, but Usagi is already in print, so that's irrelevant. The point of this idea is to attract more readers. The internet is an incredible promotional tool.

Animation would be good too, but Mr. Sakai has said he has yet to see anyone who could animate Usagi to his liking.

[MikeM]

For a comparison in how many comics are sold:

In May, Civil War #1 from Marvel was the top ranked comic selling 260,804. This is amazing for todays standards, but in the 90's during the boom it wasnt all that hot.

Also in May, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #27 sold 3299 copies and ranked in at 280.

Marvel Team-Up #20 is probably one of Marvel's worst selling books (its been bad lately) sold 18,843 copies and ranked in at 120.

Now also for trades, in July 2005 (the month of the last Usagi Trade) Usagi placed 30th out of 100. Thats pretty good.

Now also, this is all according to Diamond, who is the largest distributor of comics in North America, but not the only way of getting comics.

MikeM