Anime companies are a bunch of whiners (I’m looking at you Bang! Zoom)

 <- People complaining about piracy make this kitty sad

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There, I said it. A good deal of anime companies that are going out of business are whiners that like to complain towards deaf ears that only pretend to care. Oh yeah, sine this was regarded at a hot button issue at my last anime club meeting, I suppose I should run my twist on it.

Bang! Zoom’s big argument is that nobody is buying their DVD’s. They attempt to guilt trip fans into purchasing, but the pirates that they are trying to stomp have a much better deal: The same show, but free!

While it is true that what the pirates are doing is illegal, the risk factor is so negligible that nobody really cares. Not to mention, when a pirate gets caught, all that happens is that they get a cease and desist, they stop, and go about their merry lives. What does this do to stop piracy? NOTHING! Why would anybody choose to buy overpriced DVD’s over the negligible risk of stealing the anime in the first place? People will whine about how piracy is wrong, then go right back to their torrent hub and pirate some more.

Moaning and complaining isn’t going to stop piracy people! What will stop piracy is outsmarting the pirates, or more interestingly, hiring them. As I previously mentioned, it is entirely possible for anime companies to distribute anime for decent prices (or for free even) and still turn a profit. They do it just like with TV and with blockbuster, they just put commercials on internet streams, and release them for free, knowing commercials will pay for the cost that the anime took to produce. Studios like Funimation and Viz Media are already on this, and those studios aren’t in danger of going underwater. So what’s Bang! Zoom’s problem? They don’t get with the times!

That’s why I say the big solution to anime piracy is not to pout and moan about how the industry is dying, but to actually go to legal sites that give you anime for free and watch it there! Give them their deserved pageviews! Show them that we anime fans are willing to use legal channels to watch our favorite shows, and that we’re just too broke to buy overpriced DVDs. The industry cannot stay in its current position, the time for evolution is now!

Hence, the ONLY way to stop piracy is to put out a product that competes with what the pirates put out, which fortunately, is what Funimation and Viz do. For if pirates do the job of spreading entertainment BETTER than the people whose very jobs are on the line, why are they being paid? This is the very reason that Bang! Zoom is going under. The pirates are consistently outdoing them, while all they do is complain about stealing and tell people to buy overpriced DVD’s

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Running a store on Ebay, and what not to do

Well, most people who know me know that I once ran an anime shop on eBay that shared a name with this website. I think it might be fun to talk about my experiences attempting to run a local anime corner store, despite failing miserable\y from it. Perhaps I could enlighten people on what kind of mistakes can be made, and how to carve their way to eBay fame if they feel that they have the hard-broiled determination it takes.

First and foremost, running a store on eBay isn’t easy. You are trying to fight a bunch of people attempting to do the same thing, who will undercut you, and somehow manage to get better prices than you. I do not actually know how some of these people were able to make their prices, but a LOT of eBay merchants manage to get their product to cost less than what wholesale shippers charge (Hey, if you’re looking to buy, eBay is great) Another issue is fighting the evil bootleggers that plague the website. They aren’t as active due to public awareness these days, but they still exist. These guys LOOK like their selling a 50$ boxset for 10$ but it’s really something I could make on my DVD burner. And if you’re trying to sell a DVD, that may cut into YOUR profits.

HOW TO DO IT: From my failure to PROPERLY run a local anime shop, I did learn some things that don’t work. REMEMBER! Making a living on eBay is a full time job. You can hear stories of people making millions selling from their attic, but that is BULL****. There is no way to make sustainable income from eBay without giving it 100%. I tried to run an eBay store alongside working a lot and going to school, and it just collapsed. Other people managed to get more fame than me, undercut me, then ruin my sales, leaving me with unsaleable product.

PUBLICITY: Yeah, to actually make you going to need to have people’s trust. To get trust, you need recognition and a lot of positive feedback. Now then, where does feedback come from? You need to do a lot of sales. And to get these sales up, you have to freaking promote your ass off. Like a blog, everybody you know and their mother NEEDS to know you have a store. You need to go to forums, listing sites, and anywhere you can. Not knowing about your store will become a crime in your book. As everybody around you knows you have a store, customers will have an easier time finding you. I believe this to be my largest failing, since I did not spend nearly as much time promoting as I should have.

GETTING PRODUCT: This one is difficult. Going to wholesale distributers like AAA Anime are a good start. Alas, it should be noted that distributors are only a good source for new stuff. Other than that, they are no good, because their prices don’t go down as fast as eBay’s demand. So only order what you know you can sell immediately, or you’re screwed. I suggest you give up on stuff after it’s a month old and mark it down. That’s just how eBay marketing works. After that period of time, you’re never getting full retail again (A real store might still be able to, but not on the internet.) Internet marketing is fast, and not keeping up will result in you getting left behind.

RISK FACTOR: Well, I failed at running ye local anime shop on eBay. That doesn’t mean you can’t run your own shop. There is a LOT of risk. Product doesn’t come from nowhere, so you’ll need a loan or investors. Then you have to be knowledgeable enough in the field to actually know what will sell. Knowledge of the internet is important so you can get the word out. Time is of the essence, because you should spend more time publicizing than actually managing your store (yes, publicity is THAT important.) This is a full time job we’re talking about. Willpower is important to. If you lack the hotblooded energy to punch through the crowd and have your store noticed, you might be able to get somewhere. But if you can’t give it your all, don’t even bother trying.

Yes, running an anime shop demands that you do things hotbloodedly, like Lord Kamina. Or maybe you should acquire reality altering powers like Haruhi. Alas, the biggest problem with online sales is that getting started and getting established.

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Also, if you’re interested in running a store on eBay, why not try doing some research the old fashioned way?