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Selling thru Amazon FBA , website, Retail stores, etc . without going thru the Hasbros,Licensing agencies,

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Blocker
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Joined: 04/14/2016

I am new at the board game business but own a business for 12 yrs. So Now I have a board game about to get manufactured. It should be in my hands in under 60 days. I want to market it myself thru the web, retailers,etc etc, So need the ultimate list. Where can I buy it, or who can I hire to help me find it?

chris_mancini
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Joined: 05/01/2015
What sort of list are you

What sort of list are you looking for? There is certainly a lot of info on self-publishing here on BGDF, so you may start by searching around the boards.

As you've already made the decision to go out on your own with an initial order of games placed, here are a few pointers which may help you get the word out there.

1. Attend as many gaming conventions as you can, and bring plenty of copies of your game to sell. This is probably the most immediate way of making sales, as everyone there is looking for new and exciting games to add to their collections.

2. Put your game up on BGG. It's up to you if you want to pay for an ad, but the general rule is, if it's not on boardgamegeek.com, it's not a "finished" game. This is also the main hub for enthusiasts of the hobby, so another case of the right eyes getting on your game.

3. Send some copies to reviewers, and think about paying a couple of the more popular ones to review your game. You'll need trusted sources telling your potential customers about your game and why it's worth their dollars. As you're not asking for a Kickstarter preview, they'll likely be more candid...so expect your game to be challenged. If it comes out glowing on the other side, you should see a result in sales. There is a list of board game reviewers and their contact info available online; should be easy enough to find.

4. Amazon is a great way to make your game widely available; you'll just have to manage inventory very carefully as you could sell a few or hundreds...though that largely depends on your promotion and marketing. When the levee breaks, Amazon may be the best way to really sell volume.

5. Take your game to local game stores and ask if they'll stock a few copies. They'll want to know what you're doing to help those copies fly off of their shelves, so do this after you've got some promotion running. I'd say make a day of visiting as many game shops in your area as you can...you'll only place a few copies in each location at best, but if they sell, the store should be calling you for more copies.

6. Go through a distributor. They'll take a decent chunk of your profits, but they'll also take the worry of shopping your game around to hundreds of shops out of your hands. You can focus on promotion, and the distributor can react quickly as demand grows. Like trusted reviewers, you should easily find a list of distributors online.

Hope some of this helps!

richdurham
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Joined: 12/26/2009
Nice and thorough

Well put, Chris.

Blocker, if you plan on distributing yourself to retailers you'll best stick to the advice above or seek the help of a hobby game distributor. For that, check out this list.

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