I've always wondered why d&d (and other TRPGs) never seem to advertise. You could argue that it's because the TRPG community is small, but I see advertisements for TRPG PRODUCTS (such as HeroForge) all the time. How come none of the big TRPG companies ever run like, a full ad on TV or something. It could get more people into the community,
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For god's sake. Find a hobby or something. Sheesh. Please stop using this font.
Wizards of the Coast is heavily focused on streaming (for better or worse) as they have data showing that's the primary driver of their growth right now. Also, because the game is so heavily social, traditionally they have looked for organic growth in which an existing player pulls in new people. Giving us better and more tools for that is probably more cost-effective than mass market media buys.
They probably feel they are famous enough that anyone who wants to join and has the money has done so already. That's not quite true, but they aren't exactly in financial problems, so I guess they feel they don't need to.
Not every product is suitable for mass advertising and I think it would be problematic for D&D. Certainly I doubt there'd be a worthwhile return on the investment.
Despite it's growing popularity, D&D is still pretty nerdy and, frankly, you've got to have both a certain personality to be interested and sufficient IQ to play. There's a fair bit of maths and a LOT of literacy and imagination involved. The rules are fairly complicated, even in 5e.
Also, it can be pretty intimidating trying to break in and the easiest way is through friends. Even then there's a bottle neck in that you need sufficient DMs.
I think it has enough cultural cache now that the sorts of people interested in the game will find it.
Not every product is suitable for mass advertising and I think it would be problematic for D&D. Certainly I doubt there'd be a worthwhile return on the investment.
Despite it's growing popularity, D&D is still pretty nerdy and, frankly, you've got to have both a certain personality to be interested and sufficient IQ to play. There's a fair bit of maths and a LOT of literacy and imagination involved. The rules are fairly complicated, even in 5e.
Also, it can be pretty intimidating trying to break in and the easiest way is through friends. Even then there's a bottle neck in that you need sufficient DMs.
I think it has enough cultural cache now that the sorts of people interested in the game will find it.
To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand D&D. The Orc-Slaying is extremely subtle and without a solid grasp of medieval weaponry, most of the fighting will go over a typical player's head. There's also my bard's nihilistic outlook which...
I'll stop now.
Seriously though, you bring up a good point. D&D is, even though it is growing, still pretty niche, and advertising wouldn't be a good investment. It's the same reason why there are (sadly) few prog rock stations-not enough people would listen.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
For god's sake. Find a hobby or something. Sheesh. Please stop using this font.
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I've always wondered why d&d (and other TRPGs) never seem to advertise. You could argue that it's because the TRPG community is small, but I see advertisements for TRPG PRODUCTS (such as HeroForge) all the time. How come none of the big TRPG companies ever run like, a full ad on TV or something. It could get more people into the community,
Wizards of the Coast is heavily focused on streaming (for better or worse) as they have data showing that's the primary driver of their growth right now. Also, because the game is so heavily social, traditionally they have looked for organic growth in which an existing player pulls in new people. Giving us better and more tools for that is probably more cost-effective than mass market media buys.
just got a ad for DDB on facebook for a 25% coupon code to purchase Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes so i guess they do advertise now ;)
They probably feel they are famous enough that anyone who wants to join and has the money has done so already. That's not quite true, but they aren't exactly in financial problems, so I guess they feel they don't need to.
Not every product is suitable for mass advertising and I think it would be problematic for D&D. Certainly I doubt there'd be a worthwhile return on the investment.
Despite it's growing popularity, D&D is still pretty nerdy and, frankly, you've got to have both a certain personality to be interested and sufficient IQ to play. There's a fair bit of maths and a LOT of literacy and imagination involved. The rules are fairly complicated, even in 5e.
Also, it can be pretty intimidating trying to break in and the easiest way is through friends. Even then there's a bottle neck in that you need sufficient DMs.
I think it has enough cultural cache now that the sorts of people interested in the game will find it.