Sorry about the delay there folks, apparently the final year of your degree leaves you approximately no time for dilly-dallying. Ergo, here I am sat at my desk at 1am on a Tuesday morning thinking deep thoughts and freaking out about my commitment levels to this blog.
So - without further ado (or waffling) here is part deux (I watched Hot Shots! the other day, sorry) of my adventure at Comic Con: money, merchandise and fandom.
So - without further ado (or waffling) here is part deux (I watched Hot Shots! the other day, sorry) of my adventure at Comic Con: money, merchandise and fandom.
On the list of things I don’t have enough of - including Irregular Choice footwear and patience for the new series of Sherlock to appear - is money. However, I ended up purchasing a Dragon Age mug (£10) and a Firefly tee (£8.50) which one could argue are not essentials, I also found myself seriously considering spending £30 on a keyblade
(a weapon from the game Kingdom Hearts).
The love I have for these fandoms means that I am willing to part with cash I had previously set aside for things like food in order to fuel my much more pressing hunger for things.
(a weapon from the game Kingdom Hearts).
The love I have for these fandoms means that I am willing to part with cash I had previously set aside for things like food in order to fuel my much more pressing hunger for things.
| Every time I have a cup of tea from my DA:Inquisition mug, walk around in my DJ-ing Spock top or Jedi robe dressing gown, it makes me unbearably happy. And I’m not alone, the merchandising business is ridiculously lucrative and I would argue even more so for fandoms which involve the fantasy/ sci-fi genre. We’re just the type who love to collect and have, you can see how big the business is at events like Comic Con where there is merchandising (official and not-so-official) literally wall to wall. |
We don’t just see it in the merchandising either, people are walking around in costumes they have clearly poured a lot of money and time into making. Sadly one of the more impressive cos-players of the day I couldn’t seem to get a photo of so I will have to describe to you what got my attention.
A TWO METRE WIDE SET OF MECHANICAL WINGS.
A TWO METRE WIDE SET OF MECHANICAL WINGS.
I cannot even begin to fathom how much time the guy put into that but it can’t have been easy or cheap. To put a bit of perspective in here - from a cos-play retailer online (Hello Cosplay) I could buy these shoes (Kingdom Hearts character: Sora): for £145. And I could buy this dress: for £110 (Frozen character: Elsa). That is some insane revenue whether you’re spending money on cloth and accessories to make your own, or buying outfits outright. | |
While I was sat down (read: collapsed in a tangled and tired heap with my friend rummaging around for slightly squashed ham sandwiches I had made at 6am) on the edge of the hall, I overheard a woman talking to - whom I can only assume - were her children. She had set aside money for each of them to spend while they were here and was surveying their loot.
Kid number 1 had spent his money on (roughly) 10 books which looked to be a series and a keyblade (yes, I was incredibly jealous). Kid number 2 had bought a fancy new hoodie styled after a character from the Assassin's Creed games.
My point here is that these kids are not part of the targeted primary market for these products.
Kid number 1 had spent his money on (roughly) 10 books which looked to be a series and a keyblade (yes, I was incredibly jealous). Kid number 2 had bought a fancy new hoodie styled after a character from the Assassin's Creed games.
My point here is that these kids are not part of the targeted primary market for these products.
What’s important is that we don’t immediately jump to conclusions about target audience - yes, the nerd who is obsessed with Star Trek weaponry is obviously going to want to buy a Bat’leth (my birthday is very soon), but how are we now defining those people? Nerds, gamers, prosumers, voracious consumers of fan culture - can be anyone. They are no longer confined in the bracket of basement-dwellers, no longer the territory of pasty teenage dweebs or lumped in with that guy from South Park. For example: my step-Mum absolutely loves Star Trek, she also loves musicals, Hozier, Jean M. Auel and gardening. |
Fandom is something that is beginning to permeate our culture, whether it’s games, books, TV or music, everyone is talking about community and how it can be used.
Something I have noticed as I tiptoed into the worlds of fandom via Tumblr, fan fiction websites, Twitter etc. is how creative they are. There are stunning pieces of fan art that I would (and have) paid money for, incredible pieces of fiction spun from my favourite storyworlds (of all the fanfics in all the world I am genuinely horrified they led with 50 Shades of Shit to publish) and in-depth discussions involving characters, lore and many other topics.
Something I have noticed as I tiptoed into the worlds of fandom via Tumblr, fan fiction websites, Twitter etc. is how creative they are. There are stunning pieces of fan art that I would (and have) paid money for, incredible pieces of fiction spun from my favourite storyworlds (of all the fanfics in all the world I am genuinely horrified they led with 50 Shades of Shit to publish) and in-depth discussions involving characters, lore and many other topics.
So how can we use it?
Amazon (the clever, money grabbing, Skynet-esque devils that they are) have already started by monetising fan fiction with Kindle Worlds. This platform allows authors to upload their work and be paid royalties of 35% of net revenue, each work to be priced by Amazon at between $0.99 and $3.99 (https://kindleworlds.amazon.com/).
But there are other ways - an anthology of the most popular Tumblr art posts for a fandom? A lore compendium about a world with conspiracy theories interjected written by members of the community? These kind of collaborative projects would help to bring together creators and consumers and go a long way to generating brand loyalty with publishers.