TILTING @ WINDMILLS 47: UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

[MattBrady]

by Brian Hibbs

No matter what you do, there are unintended consequences.

Take for example, my Class Action Suit against Marvel a few years ago – at the time, the only goal was to get Marvel to adhere to their Terms of Sale which stated that any book that was late, or had different contents (or creators) than solicited. But, as a result of that, Marvel decided to institute their Final Order Cutoff (FOC) program. Where the “real” order you’re placing for a title isn’t finalized until hours before the books are being printed – roughly three weeks before arrival in stores for comic books.

Let’s back up a bit and talk about comics ordering, and how it works, so there’s some context for what follows.

Direct Market retailers, as you know, order product on a non-returnable basis – what we order is what we’re obligated to buy, regardless of whether we can sell it or not. We place our orders via Diamond’s monthly catalog, Previews, on an approximately three-month-ahead cycle. For example, the Previews relating to comics (mainly) scheduled to ship in February of 2008 arrived in stores the last week of November, 2007. We normally have three weeks or so to consider our orders (though, because of the holidays, this order for is actually due in first week of January), then books that ship (or, at least, ship on time), start arriving in February.

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[Nat Gertler]

Out of curiosity, is the POS showing you any categories which are livelier than you realized?

[Thacher]

As someone who just opened a store in August and has been wrestling with the stock orders and debating the things that we "should" have, I find this article really interesting, not to mention the kind of thing that, when I hear ti coming from the owner of an established store, "gives me permission," so to speak, to be very critical in what I order for back stock. We just opened our B&T account, so I know I'm planning on doing a fair amount of trade ordering with them, if only for the returnability aspect (but it is percentage based, so you don't want to rely on that for everything, but ordering Walking Dead trades and such like that from them to buoy up that returns rate can be done).

Being that we just opened, I'm not sure if we can make the move to a POS system, although I do salivate every time I read the description of the Diamond system. I'll have to check out the one you mentioned as well.

[khuxford]

Question: Which of these options most closely resemble your thinking:

1. I'm risking losing a few sales or walk up customers for archive books (Showcase, etc) to online sources, but the reward of moving more copies of the faster selling material is worth it.

2. I'm risking losing a few sales or walk up customers for archive books (Showcase, etc) to online sources, but the reward of moving more copies of the faster selling material is worth it. I hold out hope that store loyalty will keep them from moving more purchases to online sources.

3. Many customers are already buying the archive books (Showcase, etc) online, so I'm not risking any lost customers by having to special order only for those books.

[ex_mutants]

Brian,

Considering what you said about new Graphic Novels from new creators, is there anything a new creator can do to help get a book in your store and then help in selling that book?

Is it just simple marketing where buzz needs to be generated for the book and the creators? Would a better discount on the book help entice you?

I ask you specifically because I have a GN coming out from Ambrosia Publishing and all of Ambrosia's output is 80-100 page GN for around 6-10 dollars by relatively unknown creators. What advice would you give to help sell such books?

Thanks,
David Doub
Creator and Writer of Dusk
www.ambrosiapublishing.com
http://dusk.ambrosiapublishing.com

[qnetter]

Originally Posted by khuxford

Question: Which of these options most closely resemble your thinking:

1. I'm risking losing a few sales or walk up customers for archive books (Showcase, etc) to online sources, but the reward of moving more copies of the faster selling material is worth it.

2. I'm risking losing a few sales or walk up customers for archive books (Showcase, etc) to online sources, but the reward of moving more copies of the faster selling material is worth it. I hold out hope that store loyalty will keep them from moving more purchases to online sources.

3. Many customers are already buying the archive books (Showcase, etc) online, so I'm not risking any lost customers by having to special order only for those books.

4. Hardly anyone is buying the archive books (Showcase, etc.) anywhere at all, accounting for DC's moratorium and restructuring of the hardcover Archives line, likely to be followed by a similar move for Showcase and Marvel's Essentials.

[Comic-Reader]

Originally Posted by Brian Hibbs

I strongly suspect that I could make half of the Marvel and DC superhero TPs that we stock disappear and not only would no one notice, but sales would go up on the remainder because it could be displayed properly

That is an interesting idea, and after the holiday buying season is over, you should try it out for awhile. Take the Big-4 stuff that your MOBY system is telling you isn't moving off the shelf and put it in the basement for awhile and see if anyone notices or cares.

However, what might be interesting is to see is if that extra shelf space helps the sales and gets people curious about those non-marketed independent trades that you are currently only spine-displaying.

My point is that a sale is a sale and even though it's less of a discount for the independent stuff, you already have it on hand, so before you decide to order less of that in the future, take a month or two to devote extra shelf space to those underdog books by displaying them face-out and see if that helps them move. If not, then you can be assured that there's nothing you can do for those books, so you would be justified in ordering fewer (or none at all) of those types of things in the future.

Then take those books off the shelf and bring up some Detective-27's and the like from the basement and see what happens when those are given the extra shelf space.

[ljacone]

This is an interesting article. As frustrating as those solicitations are for consumers, I imagine they are much, much more irritating for retailers.

As for turnover rate and rack space, that is a very legitimate concern, especially for a shop like mine which is not completely dedicated to comics (about half the space being dedicated to miniature gaming). So long as I can ask my retailer if he could me The Essentially Absolute Showcase Edition: Armadillo Ranger and The Roadkill Patrol, and he get it for me, I don't mind not seeing the slow-moving stock actually on the rack -- it makes for less of a glut if you're just looking for something off the beaten track.

[phunengames]

Originally Posted by ex_mutants

Brian,

Considering what you said about new Graphic Novels from new creators, is there anything a new creator can do to help get a book in your store and then help in selling that book?

Is it just simple marketing where buzz needs to be generated for the book and the creators? Would a better discount on the book help entice you?

I ask you specifically because I have a GN coming out from Ambrosia Publishing and all of Ambrosia's output is 80-100 page GN for around 6-10 dollars by relatively unknown creators. What advice would you give to help sell such books?

Thanks,
David Doub
Creator and Writer of Dusk
www.ambrosiapublishing.com
http://dusk.ambrosiapublishing.com

This may be the million dollar question.

A retailer with more shelf space from retired “dead material” that is reluctant to try new material outside the “big 4” is still a problem to him or herself and the industry. It is scary but in many comic stores if the book does not sell itself it will not sell. In many stores it seems “add-on” items around the register are things that have been on the cover of Wizard or tied in to the latest event. It is also at times beyond difficult to get readers to try new material. Fans may not know there is anything else in a store but a book to the left or right of the book they are buying unless someone talks to them. Publishers and creators just have to be ready to sell their product.

It sounds trite but to me it seems that a creator may make a great book but they may have no sales skills. Great artist are not necessarily good salespeople. If a creator or publisher do not want to do sales they have to find someone who will. Great retailers look for material to sell but a times it seem that they maybe frustrated when they cannot find people to talk up a product.

Big or small the first thing a publisher/creator has to do is have a sales plan for the material. Do not put it in Diamond then figure out a sales plan later. Small publishers may want to use local store as a base. Store owners talk to each other. Use it.

To me, there is no magic bullet. It 2008, it seems that publishers and retailers will have to step up their game. The great thing from Mr. Hibbs’s article seems to be that good retailers may been putting new stuff in dead space and that may get some fan to try new things.

[Somebody]

Originally Posted by Brian Hibbs

Where we reach a problem is places where the change is actually significant. For example: in the aftermath of "World War Hulk," Incredible Hulk is suddenly changing title and focus to Incredible Hercules. There's no problem with that, in and of itself, except that, in order to "keep the surprise" of the storyline, the first few issues of Incredible Hercules weren't actually solicited as such - instead being listed as "confidential information," or something like that, but still under the Hulk name! And what that means is that Direct Market retailers like myself took orders for one thing, and will find ourselves delivering something else entirely.

HUH? "First few issues"?

The first issue was going to be IH 111, but that ended up as a WWH-tie-in Incredible Hulk issue with the same amount of Hulk as #106-110 had on average thanks to the WWH5 delay.

IH112 is still technically an "Incredible Hulk" issue - that's going to be the indicia title for the issue.

And IHerc 113 was solicited as "INCREDIBLE XXXX #113 (NOT ACTUAL TITLE)".

[Not From Around]

I certainly understand wanting to study turnover to clear the clutter on the TPB shelves. Libraries have to do something similar when we weed our collections. By clearing out old junk that is no longer circulating, we make it easier for patrons to find what they DO want. A good weeding system can actually increase overall circulation.

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by Nat Gertler

Out of curiosity, is the POS showing you any categories which are livelier than you realized?

Individual books, yes, not categories -- we basically only have three: comics, books, and everything else. "Everything else" is well under 5% of our sales.

-B

[Caleb Gerard]

So, what are you going to do with the "culled" books? And will you be taking a financial loss or break-even on them?

CJG

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by Thacher

We just opened our B&T account, so I know I'm planning on doing a fair amount of trade ordering with them, if only for the returnability aspect (but it is percentage based, so you don't want to rely on that for everything, but ordering Walking Dead trades and such like that from them to buoy up that returns rate can be done)

Watch your discounts, man -- losing (say) 10 points of discount on something like WALKING DEAD to get a teensy smidge extra of a return allowance is probably not the best of ideas...

B&T *is* a great source for a lot of things -- especially "F" and "H" discount publishers from Diamond; but it's very very seldom the right place to buy "Big 4" material from

-B

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by khuxford

Question: Which of these options most closely resemble your thinking:

4) Since no one is buying the slowly-turning books, and special order fulfillment is potentially no more than 2 days away, the risk of actually losing a sale is pretty slim indeed.

-B

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by ex_mutants

Brian,

Considering what you said about new Graphic Novels from new creators, is there anything a new creator can do to help get a book in your store and then help in selling that book?

Is it just simple marketing where buzz needs to be generated for the book and the creators? Would a better discount on the book help entice you?

Yes.

If it is profitable to carry, and if there is a perceivable audience, then it is much easier to convince retailers to stock it. Ignore either of those points, and it is much harder.

-B

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by Comic-Reader

Take the Big-4 stuff that your MOBY system is telling you isn't moving off the shelf and put it in the basement for awhile and see if anyone notices or cares.

What basement?

Don't confuse this with "indy" and "big four" splits, either -- the point is that unmarketed, non-commercial work doesn't stand much of a chance in this saturated market, regardless of WHO is publishing it.

I've *always* known that a certain percentage of what is on the racks isn't going to sell, but I just hadn't realized what a growing percentage it was...

-B

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by Caleb Gerard

So, what are you going to do with the "culled" books? And will you be taking a financial loss or break-even on them?

CJG

Blow-out sale, most likely, though I'll cross that bridge when I get there (there may be some charitable uses, though I have to look carefully at the exact books involved)

Break even would be the goal, but "small loss" is probably more likely.

-B

[khuxford]

Originally Posted by Brian Hibbs

4) Since no one is buying the slowly-turning books, and special order fulfillment is potentially no more than 2 days away, the risk of actually losing a sale is pretty slim indeed.

-B

OK. As a customer, I know I'm not prone to bother asking someone to special order something when I know I can get it online if they don't have it, normally for a better discount, and delivered free to my door. So I thought there might be the potential for more concern than there seems to be. The risk does seem to outweigh the reward, clearly, though.

[BamaRainbow]

Brian Hibbs posted:
Here's another example of When-FOC-Goes-Bad: DC's publication of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier HC was using data that was a year old. Black Dossier was supposed to have been released in 2006, but took another year to finally come out. Instead of resoliciting the book, DC just FOC-ed it, so our first notification of it arriving was about 3 weeks before it did so. I'm reasonably sure that this is one of the contributing factors of the book selling out before release - any store that opened in 2007, for example, had no orders in for the book, nor any obvious way to poll their customers before it arrived. Even stores like mine who had their 2006 orders in may have found that situations have changed significantly since they placed that order. Thus everyone needed more, but couldn't get them because the baseline prediction was generated from year-old data.

(Disclaimer mode on.) I stopped reading the article at this point to respond, so I haven't read any responses or corrections that may have come already. (Disclaimer mode off.)

Brian, I'm sorry but you're absolutely WRONG about this. DC (and/or Diamond) issued a press release (that was also posted at Newsarama) about "Black Dossier" MANY MONTHS before its release, informing the public that there would be two covers available. (The Direct Market cover would use the old item code number while the new cover had a new item code number.) I'm reasonably certain (without taking time to search the database for the item) that DC allowed for changes to be made at that time to your original order. (This, of course, doesn't necessarily help any of your hypothetical stores opening in 2007. Did any new stores open in 2007?)
As soon as I read that press release, I contacted my LCS owner and informed him which edition I wanted. (If memory serves, he did send out an e-mail to his customers regarding the press release also. I can't go back and double-check as I unfortunately lost all my e-mails that I'd saved for the previous couple of years after having to do an emergency uninstall/reinstall of my ISP software.)
My basic point, however, is that when DC issued that press release earlier this year, that should have been the point at which most (if not all) stores should have been able to make any initial changes to their orders for the book. If you missed that press release, then I'm sorry, but you can't hold DC completely responsible in this situation.

(On another topic, the Hulk/Hercules fiasco was wholly justified since Marvel has been pulling this "classified" BS on titles for well over a year since "Civil War". Or did you completely forget about the whole Captain America shooting fiasco in the comic solicitations? As long as the stores didn't complain too loudly--or refuse to order any of the "Classified" books at all--Marvel can legally, if not morally, claim that you don't really have any problem with the system.)

[Not From Around]

Originally Posted by Brian Hibbs

Blow-out sale, most likely, though I'll cross that bridge when I get there (there may be some charitable uses, though I have to look carefully at the exact books involved)

If you decide to go the charitable donation route, it wouldn't hurt to contact local library systems and see whether they would be interested.

[Cray_ws]

Brian,

I think its little too soon to be concerned about books not moving, I'm really surprised you're taking this data seriously in such short period of time. There are variables at work here that no amount of computer data isn't going to account for. Such as the cycle of the business. I believe sales usually slow down in the fall and winter and peak during convention season (summer). I'd wait a whole year before you decide to stop ordering books that haven't moved in such short span since using your new system.

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by BamaRainbow

Brian, I'm sorry but you're absolutely WRONG about this. DC (and/or Diamond) issued a press release (that was also posted at Newsarama) about "Black Dossier" MANY MONTHS before its release, informing the public that there would be two covers available.

You mean this press release, dated 8/21? The one that states the Final Order Cut-off date was two days later on 8/23?

-B

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by Not From Around

If you decide to go the charitable donation route, it wouldn't hurt to contact local library systems and see whether they would be interested.

I've found the SF library system to be EXTREMELY adverse to taking donations for display (as opposed to, say, a library sale or something)

In fact, the Main Library doesn't have enough shelving for the books that are currently in their system!

But, still worth exploring if it gets to that.

-B

[Brian Hibbs]

Originally Posted by Cray_ws

I believe sales usually slow down in the fall and winter and peak during convention season (summer).

Your belief is wrong -- December is almost always the single busiest month of the year.

-B