TCC Timelines #6 to have 16 new pages of Allspark Almanac content!

Discussion in 'Transformers News and Rumors' started by General Tekno, Aug 23, 2011.

  1. Sideswipe80

    Sideswipe80 Well-Known Member

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    So can I go pre order now at my comic shop?
     
  2. sunlink

    sunlink Be Transformed

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    Nice idea by FunPub to get their comic bought but the chances are pretty slim to actually win Minerva.
     
  3. Pete Sync

    Pete Sync Well-Known Member

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    We look forward to anyone who wants to participate doing so. We also understand this contest may not be for everyone, but I would not call those who do participate "fools" or "losers". Not very respectful of your fellow fan...

    We will be clarifying any concerns before the contest start date so it runs smoothly.
     
  4. Ikkstakk

    Ikkstakk Well-Known Member

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    Okay... I have alerted my comic shop... :confused2 

    Pete, can you elaborate on the $200 worth of prizes that the winning store will receive?
     
  5. General Tekno

    General Tekno Lugnut Supremor & Arkivist

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    The prize details are on the club site.

    Can't recall everything, but I know Botcon Fisitron is one of them.
     
  6. samtastic

    samtastic Herald of Wheelie

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    I love transformers animated. I love the botcon set and comic & will personally but comic again if it contains more of DJW's character designs.

    But this contest seems annoying. Instead of encouraging creativity or anything fun in any way, the contest requires fans to basically work as sales representatives for FP, beg stores to order lots of copies --ie: create artificial demand for an overpriced book.

    Basically this is a way for FP to have fans boost their sales. Basically make fans work for them for free.

    I prefer contests where I don't have to volunteer as part of the sales team; but instead offer something creative to try and win an exclusive item.

    That said -- if folks are willing or excited to partner with FP to spread the word, I guess I have no problem with that. Just not my thing.
     
  7. Pete Sync

    Pete Sync Well-Known Member

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    I hope you have participated then in the dozen or so creative based contests we have held over the last year plus. We have more of those on the way as well!
     
  8. Pete Sync

    Pete Sync Well-Known Member

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    The owner of the comic shop with the highest number of orders will receive a signed 2011 Transformers Timelines Issue 6, a TF3 Razer DeathAdder Gaming mouse and a BotCon 2011 Exclusive Fisitron figure.
     
  9. samtastic

    samtastic Herald of Wheelie

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    That's great! I love those contests. I ran out of time on a few, but prefer those :) 
     
  10. GrantB

    GrantB Pic so old

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    When I said "loser", I merely meant non-winner. I edited my post to change it to "non-winner".

    The "fools" part, though, was interpreted correctly, and my use of the term was clear and intentional.
     
  11. Ikkstakk

    Ikkstakk Well-Known Member

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    Ah, got it. So the mouse is a prize for the winning store and also a prize for the first runner-up in the contest. For some reason I wasn't interpreting that correctly the first time.
     
  12. Pete Sync

    Pete Sync Well-Known Member

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    Yes, first runner up gets mouse and gaming pad.

    Shop owner gets Mouse, Fisitron and signed book.
     
  13. Lumpy

    Lumpy Taylor Swift Action Master Super Mod

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    I see demand for Animated, but not that much, especially for an $8 book... It's a cool concept, but as someone stated it'll increase sales on the book that won't have nearly as much demand behind it... that said, I'm still going to order it, and encourage my store to order a few for the shelves, but I know they won't order enough to win in the end.

    I'm still stoked to get this comic though, just wish this contest was maybe a random drawing from any store who orders 10 or more, instead of biggest order... I've got all the other years Diamond Edition's as well, except 05 (but there wasn't a Diamond version that year, IIRC)

    which issue of Previews will this be in Pete?
     
  14. Pete Sync

    Pete Sync Well-Known Member

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    September Issue... Hits newsstands on 8/31

    Thank you for the suggestions. Some good points...
     
  15. Lumpy

    Lumpy Taylor Swift Action Master Super Mod

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    Cool, i'll be sure to look for that next week and get my order in.
     
  16. GrantB

    GrantB Pic so old

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    That sounds like a great way to do it, and probably way more effective.
     
  17. Ikkstakk

    Ikkstakk Well-Known Member

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    So here's how it breaks down, and someone please correct me if I'm off somewhere.

    Comic shops can order books at roughly 50% of cover price. (For indies and low-print-run books like Timelines #6 it may be less, but I'm just ballparking all of this anyway.) So for Timelines #6, let's say they can get them for $4 per copy. They could therefore order 50 copies at a cost of $200, the stated value of the comic store prizes. If that's enough to win them the contest, they receive the mouse, the signed copy and Fisitron, which they will obviously resell. If they can get $200 for these items, they break even. Any sold copies of the 50 books they ordered is icing.

    Where this goes hazy is the value of the prizes. A quick eBay check shows the mouse going in the $60 range. Fisitron, as an item never sold at retail, technically has a retail value of $0. The store can put whatever price it wants to on the figure. Most eBay sellers seem to want $100-$150, but of course those are all Buy It Nows and not a reflection of the figure's actual value. And the signed comic, again, technically has a retail value of only $7.95. The autographs will bump it up, but by how much? Again, the store can put whatever price it wants to there. Is it worth $40? $40 being the minimum price the store would have to sell the issue for, assuming they sell the mouse for $60 and Fisitron for $100, to make back the $200 they spent on 50 copies of Timelines #6.

    And then, of course, a store owner will surely guesstimate how many copies of the book he can sell. 10 copies sold will net him $40 (remember he spent $4 per copy, so he's in the hole by half of the issue's cover price). If he runs a large, urban comic store, 10 or even 20 copies might be a reasonable guess. If his store is rural, probably not. Now if he can make $200 by selling his prizes, and another $40-$80 for the copies he can sell, he may not care that he's left with 30-40 copies he can't sell. But in my opinion, $40-$80 is a pretty slim profit margin for this prospect. And this is if he wins. If he loses, he's out $160-$200 unless he can miraculously unload at least 25 of the issues he ordered.

    I'd love for some store owners to chime in, here. Is this a fair evaluation? Would you be likely to take this gamble? What about other wrinkles, like the fact that just because you have a $40 signed copy of Timelines #6, a $60 TF3 mouse, and a $100 Botcon-exclusive toy for sale in your store doesn't mean they'll sell before the end of the month, thus messing with your budget? Would the prizes be of more value to you as prizes for your own in-store contests?
     
  18. thedreaded1

    thedreaded1 Well-Known Member

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    I applaud TFCC for coming up with something original for a contest but I don't think a lot of shop owners are going to increase their order numbers for this book. Comic book stores are closing up left and right. Between the economy, rising comic book costs, and the push for digital content; there isn't a market for this type of contest.
     
  19. Lumpy

    Lumpy Taylor Swift Action Master Super Mod

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    that's pretty right on... i don't have a store, but i've worked for almost every local comic shop in town. if i was an owner, and had enough money in the bank, i'd probably try to win just to keep her for myself, and sell the other prizes... and most likely just try to sell the books for $5 to get them to move quicker... but i'd also have to make sure to set an extra stack of the books near the counter so that it grabs more eyes... but again, all of that is hypothetical as i don't own my own store...
     
  20. BB Shockwave

    BB Shockwave Behold, Gagatron!

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    Ebay:
    Great, addig stuff I'd have bought even as a stand-alone comic into some TFCC material I'd had to be prescribed into for a long time to get, not to mention their horrible international shipping methods and timelines.

    It'd have been better if they made this into some Botcon comic that everyone could buy at Botcon... or even pre-order. Without paying a prescription fee.