As a fan of the Nickelodeon series Avatar: The Last Airbender I am perplexed why the network is ignoring the best marketing opportunities for it. The show is an American anime that takes many of the familiar themes of the genre — magical children, the struggle against an evil empire, etc. — and used them to tell a story that is emotionally satisfying, intelligent and fun. It doesn’t hurt that it happily borrows ideas from some of the all-time great anime. For example, there is the air bison Appa (left) a homage to the cat bus (below right) in Miyazake’s My Neighbor Totoro. It is a show that Collateral Damage Jr. and I watch together happily.
From what I’ve seen Nick has marketed this in the exact same manner it has marketed other successful animated shows like Bob L’ePonge and The Fairly Oddparents. They have done licensing to major toy makers and the fast fooders. There are also the t-shirts, hats, backpacks and other standard items. Given this and the fact that the show is about to enter its fourth season, some may wonder why I am saying Nick is missing it with the show’s marketing.
I just returned from my annual sojourn at Anime Boston — a three-day long fest of anime, manga, and anything vaguely related to that. The last semi-official attendance figure I heard was 14,000, so it’s no small thing. There were Avatar fans in abundance, as there have been at every anime convention I’ve been to since the show debuted in 2004. It is easy to tell who the fans are. They’re the people dressed as the series’ characters (even Appa) in costumes they made themselves. They are also the artists selling their own drawings of of the various characters (if Nick interferes with that then they are truly idiots). Each one of these people is an asset being ignored by Nick.
The age range for these conferences is generally high school to early 30s (I am an outlier, to put it mildly) — well past the 6-11 slot that Nick mostly aims at. The con features an enormous dealer’s section where people come to find tchotchkes of all sizes emblazoned with their favorite characters on them. Indeed, the dealers’ room is always a huge draw at these things. I spent a lot of time in it — as usual — I can report that all those dealers didn’t have so much as a single Avatar item for sale. In fact I have never seen an Avatar item for sale at any of these cons. A glance at the Nick online store makes it clear why. Other than the Avatar t-shirts and plushies, there is nothing that any fan in this age group would buy. These are people who want to wear their brand identification — which rules out action figures and Lego sets.
My entirely anecdotal research suggests that Nick isn’t having much luck with selling these items to the 6-11ers. I always see a LOT of Avatar merchandise in the discount aisles at Toy R Us and other big boxers.
It seems to me that this is an example of Nick ignoring The Long Tail — selling less to more people — and blowing the opportunity to turn Avatar from a niche hit into a genuine phenomenon. As a result of its inability to market patches, stickers, keychains, clothing and accessories that might appeal to anyone over the age of 11, Nick is leaving a lot of money current and future money on the table.
Anime fans are trendspotters and trendsetters for the youth market. These are the folks who knew about Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, Hello Kitty, Emily The Strange, and a host of other brands long before they became mainstream sales phenomenons. While some of them (including CD Jr.,) are in the 6-11 age range, most are not. But they are enormous influencers on this market. That’s because they are the big brothers/sisters who define cool for the under 12-set.
Another thing Nick needs to know is that the anime community is very design conscious — so it’s not enough to simply slap the characters on to product. Find some good graphic artists — I’m sure the folks behind Avatar could point you in the right direction — and apply the same creativity that marks Avatar the show to its marketing. Some outreach/listening to the fans the show already has could make Avatar into a SpongeBob Squarepants type of earner for Nick. Failure to do this will make it nothing more that a slightly more successful Code Lyoko — the French anime franchise that Cartoon Network killed with its one-size-fits-all approach to marketing cartoons.
15 responses so far ↓
Steve // March 24, 2008 at 2:23 am
I’m sure Nick is making more than enough money already selling
Steve // March 24, 2008 at 2:24 am
OK, so it should show a picture of Spongebob brand Edadame. Better than twinkies.
Chris // March 26, 2008 at 5:24 am
I miss code lyoko
Kizza // March 27, 2008 at 4:31 am
I agree avatar is one of the best anime i have scene. I recon they should sell more marketing goods and i didnt know they were going into a fourth season
antonio // March 27, 2008 at 1:14 pm
why are you a fan of this?
collateraldamage // March 27, 2008 at 2:29 pm
It “takes many of the familiar themes of the genre — magical children, the struggle against an evil empire, etc. — and uses them to tell a story that is emotionally satisfying, intelligent and fun.”
Also, I’m a sucker for a giant flying bison.
And I, too, miss Code Lyoko.
Amanda // May 3, 2008 at 10:50 pm
I completely agree with you. I am well out of the 6-11 range and I want to see some high quality merchandise. Even the figures they have out now are akin to something you would find in a dollar store. The quality sucks. I am sorely disappointed in the lack of attention in this area. Even ebay is a barren, hopeless place when searching for Zuko stuff!
In other news, due to the upcoming movie, maybe we’ll see some good merchandise. I could care less whether or not Nick is making money! I want resin collectibles!
Zolem // May 8, 2008 at 4:10 pm
I agree. If there was Avatar stuff tht wasn’t too babyish for even my little sister, I’d toatly buy it.
Amir // May 8, 2008 at 5:08 pm
You are totally right. All what nick tries to do, especially lately, is to swim in their merchandise money- and they’re not even good in sell audience! They totally, as Bato of the water tribe said, “Lose in a leafhead”.
Good article BTW
Kim // May 8, 2008 at 5:49 pm
You’re totally correct.
I think what Nick fails to realize is that shows of this proportion, with such an advanced story line, appeal to older viewers as well. Their lack of merchandising shows this ignorance.
I think everyone is missing out in this case–Nick, the show’s fans, and the show itself.
Amanda // May 8, 2008 at 6:15 pm
It’s pretty dumb that they’re not selling to the older age groups. I mean, we’ve gotta make up the majority of the people watching it, since an 8-year-old would probably be more interested in farce comedy than an actual plotline. Not that I don’t know any younger kids that watch Avatar, because I do, but they need more for US.
Niia // May 8, 2008 at 6:50 pm
I actually don’t know that many people period who watch Avatar except anime fans
personally I love it half to death will be sad to see it go (though may it perpetually live on in fanfiction and art)
I think a good deal of what has killed their target audience is also because of the long hiatus between season 2 and 3….. it’s why my younger brothers stopped watching it and now have nearly forgotten it existed until they see me watching it
Sarah // May 8, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Yeah, I don’t understand it, either. I mean, what other Nick shows have people cosplaying their characters at almost every con in the US or panels that fill up so fast, some people have to stand outside the room to listen in? It’s ridiculous the way Nick is treating one of its most popular shows, especially with the release of episodes on DVD before they even air.
Avatar_Mom // May 10, 2008 at 12:20 pm
Thank you for such a well written nod to this amazing show. I agree with you, and find it disappointing that it’s harder to market a thoughtful and intelligent series like Avatar, than to market most of the other material supported by Nickelodeon.
To me, it’s already a phenomenal hit. I would like to see it reach it’s full potential though. Perhaps the live action movies directed by Director Shyamalan will introduce the story to a broader audience, allowing it’s true brilliance to be appreciated.
Until then, the fans will keep enthusiastically supporting the show. It’s hard not to love it!
Avatar_Mom
Marina // May 10, 2008 at 4:13 pm
I couldn’t agree with you more. My local con is rather small, only about 3000, so not only is there nothing in the Dealer’s Room, but it’s usually a challenge to find things in the Artist’s Alley as well. If they had more official stuff, I’d buy it, but they don’t, so I don’t. Lost money on their part.
Leave a Comment