Invasion of the 5-10 page PDFs . . .

[philreed]

Just to barge in with an occasional freelancer/customer's POV:

Keep putting these short PDFs out.

Will do. Ronin Arts is releasing A Dozen Ceramic Items later today. Just have to finish the bookmarks and load it to RPGNow.

 

[Prest0]

I do remember when I released my first PDFs. Products stayed on the front page for weeks. Now they seem to stay there a few days. I just see it as a sign of the success of RPGNow and the growing PDF industry.

Very true. The "front" page lost usefulness from that standpoint quite a long time ago. However, even the category pages are in the early stages of seeing that sort of churn. Still as you say, publishers have to promote their PDFs in other ways.

 

[DaveStebbins]

All I'll add is that they're like popcorn. Now that I've started, I just can't stop grabbing 'em!

 

[philreed]

All I'll add is that they're like popcorn. Now that I've started, I just can't stop grabbing 'em!

Thank you! I hope you've been grabbing a few of the Ronin Arts PDFs.

 

[d20Dwarf]

Hmnnn... Never thought of that... That might actually be a problem.

It's not a problem if you don't rely on front page exposure as you marketing strategy. And if you do, well...

 

[lmpjr007]

You already know my feelings on this topic, Phil. I must say the short PDF is sometimes needed. Not every topic needs 300 pages.

 

[Vigilance]

Right, just because their was a time when front page exposure was a big help doesnt mean we should all expect manna from heaven to keep falling forever

Also, with all the small product being released I think there has to come a point where a company is releasing products too close together, competing with itself.

Dunno... RPGObjects has a different product model favoring larger products and our sales have steadily improved so in a lot of ways I am out of step with the "younger generation".

Chuck

It's not a problem if you don't rely on front page exposure as you marketing strategy. And if you do, well...

 

[philreed]

Also, with all the small product being released I think there has to come a point where a company is releasing products too close together, competing with itself.

Very true. I think the only way to combat this problem is by having a variety of products. Which is why I released a stand-alone RPG yesterday and have another stand-alone in the works.

These new games, in addition to our D20 fantasy and modern releases, are targeted at different groups of customers. And with upcoming fiction and board/card game releases, I hope Ronin Arts will continue to grow.

 

[cleavthorn]

Does anyone have figures on units sold vs. larger PDF runs?

Do they sell as well? (volume as opposed to profit)

 

[HellHound]

You can see general results, Jesse, by checking the top lists at RPGnow.

While a few of the mini PDFs are making it on to the lists, they are still dominated by the larger ticket items.

But then again, A publisher can PROBABLY stretch a product out further this way income wise... LPJ is selling prestige classes at $0.99 each, while I sell prestige classes in a set of 50 for $5.00 - that's 1/10 the price per class.

---

Here's the top 20 sellers in the past 28 days, d20 products only - those marked with an asterisk are so-called 'mini-PDFs'. From my reading, the volume of sales is lower, because the PDFs are a lot more focused, but the profit-to-work ratio is PROBABLY higher for a lot of them.

D20 RPG - This Month
1. Steam & Steel - A Guide to Fantasy Steamworks
2. Quintessential Temptress
3. Blood and Fists: Hong Kong Knights
4. Elements of Magic: Revised Edition
5. Modern Magic, Volume Two
6. Death in Freeport Revised
7. Complete Spell Cards - Updated
*8. A Dozen Troubling Rumors
9. Complete Monster Cards
*10. A Dozen Trade Goods
11. Lost Prehistorica
12. The Quintessential Aristocrat
*13. A Dozen Documents and Papers
*14. A Dozen Unusual Articles of Clothing
15. A Magical Society: Ecology and Culture
*16. Steam & Steel: Diseases and Prosthesis
*17. A Dozen Carved Items
18. Weird Wars II: Mission Manual #1
19. Blood and Brains: The Zombie Hunter's Guide
20. Campaign Planner -- Revised!