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Comparison of retail outlet revenue percentages for independent foundries.
Posted by Jeremy Dooley in
15 Oct 2006 — 3:46pm
15 Oct 2006 — 3:46pm
Independent foundries:
I am interested in seeing aproximately what percentage of income comes from each retail outlet.
Most serious foundries would be signed up with two or three, I assume.
Example:
Myfonts.com: 40%
fonts.com (monotype): 30%
fonthaus.com: 10%
foundry website: 10%
veer: 10%
etc.
Any information would be appreciated and useful as well. Currently I am only signed up with myfonts.com, but I would like to do some revenue projections. This could be useful information for other smaller foundries to tweak thier marketing.
Thank you,
JDooley
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16 Oct 2006 — 3:25pm
myfonts.com: 96%
fonts.com (monotype): 4%
philsfonts.com: 0% so far (top 100 fonts should be going live next month)
veer: 0% (they are "evaluating" my stuff, to see if it fits their mold)
fontshop.com: 0% (currently suffering an embarassment of riches, may have an opening next year)
blish.com: 0% (new portal site -- haven't decided whether or not to give them a try)
17 Oct 2006 — 10:03am
We license our fonts exclusively through our website www.terminaldesign.com so that would be: Foundry Website 100%
As to your revenue projections, I can't see how one foundry's revenue breakdown can be of any help to another foundry. Unless you are selling the same designs!
Also, how much are you willing to give up in royalties to these different venues, and what do you get for your money? A secure e-commerce web site and payment gateway are not that expensive to set up. Will these venues really earn their take in the marketing of your types?
A few fonts floating in a sea of other fonts. They are already doing that on the internet, do you want to bury them again in the excessive libraries of some of these mega-resellers?
James
19 Oct 2006 — 3:51pm
Odd it as may sound, the more foundries that myfonts.com adds to their stable, the greater the number of sales I have made there: go figure...
19 Oct 2006 — 4:05pm
No matter the size of the jug, the cream always rises to the top. ;^)
19 Oct 2006 — 4:41pm
Interesting. Could it have more to do with the increase in your offerings, Nick? You do add a few fonts a month.
20 Oct 2006 — 1:20pm
Yes, I add five fonts a month, BUT the bulk of my sales are from fonts that were released as long as six years ago, so new additions aren't the only factor.
25 Oct 2006 — 8:40am
James,
Thanks for your comments:
"As to your revenue projections, I can’t see how one foundry’s revenue breakdown can be of any help to another foundry. Unless you are selling the same designs!"
Yes, we probably would cater to different markets, but it is still handy to see what other firms are used by small foundries to see if it would be worthwhile to contact them with the possibility of distribution. I don't think that offering fonts in different venues competes - it just gets the word out that much better.
"Also, how much are you willing to give up in royalties to these different venues, and what do you get for your money? A secure e-commerce web site and payment gateway are not that expensive to set up. Will these venues really earn their take in the marketing of your types?"
Unfortunately, most small foundries don't have name recognition. Nobody is going to go to "smallfoundrywebsite.com" to get typefaces for a project. They are going to go to a larger site, with more selection to find exactly what they are looking for.
"A few fonts floating in a sea of other fonts. They are already doing that on the internet, do you want to bury them again in the excessive libraries of some of these mega-resellers?"
I disagree that releases are "buried" on myfonts.com, in particular, and I dont think that typefaces really compete with each other. If a designer sees something he/she likes, they buy it. Myfonts.com does a great job of assisting small foundries with promotion. I would also agree with Nick: obviously, I can't see traffic information for myfonts.com in general, but my growth on myfonts is exponential. Each font that I add brings in more interest to the foundry. My sales on myfonts.com generally come from freelance designers.
In summary, offering fonts through other firms is a multiplier, helping get your offerings out in front of the public. All I want to know is what other foundries feel is the most effective.
Thanks for your comments James,
JDooley