#Profitable Blog Niche

[bloggingmag]

Blogging Tips for Beginners 01 - Selecting a Blog Niche

Starting a blog & making money is not an overnight task. It requires your hard work, dedication to work, & passion for learning new technologies. No one can make money without struggling.

Pick a niche in which you are familiar with. Ensure that it is profitable, that you can bring traffic, and that you can make money with it.

Not all niches are profitable. Health & fitness, finance & investment, digital marketing, Personality development, Technology & AI are some profitable blog niches as of 2025.

You can also consider web design & development, home decoration, sales, travel & food, education, parenting, and gaming niches for creating a successful blog.

Which is your pick among them? Or do you have other choices?

Identify monetization methods for your target niche. Affiliate marketing is a popular monetization channel for bloggers. Find affiliate marketing programs in your niche and join them.

Some brands add new affiliates based on things like blog traffic and main traffic location. So, you may face some difficulties in joining programs in the early days. As a result, you may adopt alternative monetization methods, such as displaying ads to earn money.

Selling digital products and becoming an Amazon affiliate are other ways to make money blogging for beginners.

[starksh]

Discover 3 essential tips to choose the perfect blog niche! Find a profitable, engaging niche that resonates with your audience and drives growth.

[digitalvision01]

Keyword Research tools for SEO in 2023

The digital landscape is ever-evolving, and so are the tools and techniques used in the realm of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). One of the foundational aspects of Keyword Research tools for SEO in 2023. It’s the process of identifying the terms and phrases that potential customers use to search for products, services, or information online. As we step into 2023, let’s delve into the latest…

[infoanalysishub]

Can Blogging Make $500 a Day? Earn $500 Daily from Blogging

Earn $500 Daily from Blogging: Discover how blogging can realistically make you $500 a day. Learn proven strategies, income streams, and step-by-step tips to build a profitable blog and start earning daily. Can Blogging Make $500 a Day? A Complete Guide for Beginners Short answer: Yes, blogging can make $500 a day, but it takes time, strategy, and consistent effort. It’s not a “get rich quick”…

[panstag]

This article is your one-stop guide to navigating the world of profitable blogging niches in 2024.

[mewsworldwithheart]

The Most Profitable Blog Niches for 2023 and always

The Most Profitable Blog Niches for 2023 and always

https://earnwithjassal.blogspot.com/2023/09/Profitable%20Blog%20Niches%20%202023.html

[magnoliapromenadegalleria]

I take no issue with monetizing cc. You release good content and have an agreeable release window, I either choose to subscribe, or I wait. Cool. What I do take issue with is this

Perma-paywalls or ridiculous early access release windows. Anything exceeding thirty days is excessive. My opinion.

2. New creators setting up immediate early access. The skillset is just not there yet to put a price on your creations. You barely have a base to sell to. This includes creators who created for other games, then come over to The Sims and try to sell to us. For example, the creator that makes skins and admitted they don't even play the game. Simply here for profit.

3. Creators that do not qc their work, or steal from other creators. Girl.

4. Customer service. Once you start creating for profit, whether it be supplemental or your main source, you have to have a level of customer service and professionalism. You have now started a brand. A very niche brand, but that's what it is. You cannot be short with people for asking valid questions and catching an attitude with them. Like that one lady with the tree coming out in February. If you are one of those rare creators who is lucky enough money to hire someone to handle your social media, I suggest you do that. Or supply a friend with more patience with their favorite coffee or something and let them handle it. Something.

5. Not interacting with the community you are trying to sell to. Connect with people. Repost their edits, lookbooks, builds, leave comments, give a like. The creator mentioned above commented that no one comments on their stuff, at least not here. Fair. This community does not talk like it used to, but to each other like it used to, but you can go to creator pages and see that they are perfectly curated advertisements. Like a showroom. No reblogs of anyone using their content. If you want that for your main page fine, but at least have another side blog where you can do the outlined above.

6. Pushing something out just to push it. I think we have entered a space, both creator and follower/consumer, where everything feels so fast-paced. What's the new thing coming out, what's next, etc. So much so that I think it has made creators push out content just to keep up, especially if they rely on that income. This has resulted in some creators getting into hot water for releasing the same item(s) in different sets and in different colors. Or creators releasing duplicates of the same thing. It can be frustrating, but I question if it is because they're just trying to keep up, or afraid to try something new or different in fear of it not doing well. Some smaller creators who create different content don't get as much love and I question if they would receive more if they followed the wave, or were big enough to start one.

Now to this community

If a creator disrespects you or others or moves in a way that you don't fundamentally agree with, and you complain but still download and or advertise their content, you're moving counterproductive to your plight. Why would anyone reflect on themselves when you prove that you're going to advertise their content anyway?

2. Show love to these creators. Big and small, especially small, monetized or not. Everyone likes to hear or see that what they release is valued. Don't harass or disrespect creators if they take a break, or they don't get something out quickly. Especially the modders.

3. Interact with each other. Even if your aesthetics or different. This is a community. If you see something you like, LIKE IT. Share it, leave a comment.

4. Create the thing simmer. The edit, cc, build, lookbook, whatever. Create the thing and share the thing. Even if it isn't part of a popular trend or aesthetic.

I'm speaking about myself here too because I want to better about this.

I want this to feel fun again. Not just based on what is in at the moment.

This might be read. Might not. Just my two Abes. Anyway I'm about to make some soup from scratch. Toodles!

[shownohajimarida]

In the Beginning...

In the beginning, God made phantoms and thieves.

If you're reading this in English, there's a 90% chance you first learned the word Kaitou from Kaito himself—and only slowly come to realize just how many corners of Japanese pop-culture it's really bled into, from Tezuka to Tuxedo Mask to Princess Peach. There's thieves, there's thieves with style, and then there's phantom thieves. A law unto themselves in their own worlds and ours, a breed of gentlemen who can magically stay gentlemen while doing the most ungentlemanly things known to society.

You'd need a book—probably a whole shelf—to properly explore all the ancestors of this proud archetype, never mind all the twists and turns it's taken in modern times. But we're a bunch of poors in money and time, so let's settle for just one tonight.

Fun fact, there's a doctor in Japan who runs a full-time clinic, lectures for one of the top med schools, and still finds room to blog about his fifty-odd niche interests. With him lighting the way, we tracked down this: the oldest book Japan's National Library has ever picked the word Kaitou out of.

Not a gentleman sort of book, you'd assume—and be absolutely right. Dated 1908 (just a little after Leblanc's Lupin, just a little before his first Japanese translation), Eishirō Suzuki's Strange Worlds is a loud, proud freakshow, trotting out ghost story after tall tale after Believe-It-Or-Not article about some wackos in America marrying in a lion cage. Our story of interest comes about halfway in: six pages and change, unmistakably headed 怪盗.

What lies within? A tragically forgotten ancestor to this great and greatly profitable archetype? Or a dead-end that happens to share the name and damn little else? Or, despite all odds, a combination of both?

Why don't you see for yourself?

Pull up a seat, grab a drink, and enjoy our exhaustive translation of history's first...

Phantom Thief

In the days of Jōkyō,¹ near Shitaya's Ikenohata-town, a pawn-shop called Yamaguchi Place² stood rich beyond imagining. Its master, with eleven vaults to his name, was a long and proud worshiper at the Benzaiten³ shrine on Shinobazu Pond. Now, it happened that this man heard the Shogun’s offices had recently surveyed the pond for land-filling, and grew troubled.

One evening, having closed early and settling the day's accounts, the boy tending the shop heard a tap at the front door, and opened to look. Lo and behold—there was a magnificent palanquin, inlaid four-square with silver, bound on every side by tens of fine, sentinel-eyed Samurai. Shocked, the boy ran to his master telling all. The master, no less shocked, came out with warm greetings, asking the company into his home.

Then from the palanquin emerged a most exquisite woman, so noble and divine of bearing that she might have been taken for a celestial maiden, with face sweeter than any peach or plum, and dress of the richest twill brocade. With hardly a sound this beauty sat, drew open her vermilion lips, and bade all listen—

“To begin, my being is not of flesh, but an envoy of Her Lady Benzaiten, in whom thou hast believed all thy life. The Shogun's men mean to bury Shinobazu Pond, and Her Ladyship suffers no small distress hearing this, for Her own power may well draw sanctuary from any ladle's-worth of water, but Her kith and kin—some hundreds upon thousands of scales—must wilt and suffer without mires to call home. “Deep ran Benzaiten's pity, and with it a divine will to bring salvation of some, of any kind. Mercifully, thy garden declares a most generous pond, and in behalf of those kith and kin I call upon thee to guarantee it as their new sanctum. If thy faith in Benzaiten be strong and true, take not these words in vain. Know only that Her Ladyship wills a night of storm and squall, fast approaching, to lay Her kin. Come that day, thou shouldst make fast the doors of thy home, withdraw to thine own room, and put no eye at door-slit, nor foot outside to enquire. Heed this, and Benzaiten will grow thy riches ten-fold in reward. Such is my message, in sum.”

Hearing this, the man grew ecstatic—rapturous, even. He spared nothing treating his guest, servants and all, to the very end of their departure.

In less than a fortnight came a dawn with greying skies, and by afternoon rain was falling, the wind slowly rising. On this day the man chose to fast, thinking it the day Benzaiten would descend, and so admonished his family and cohorts, warning them to keep the doors firmly shut and let no-one out after dark.

As the night crept toward second-watch,⁴ the wind grew wilder and wilder, until all the trees and bamboo in the garden could be heard thrashing, and all the water in the pond roiling. Now every breath was held, every head bowed, every heart thundering, thinking it time for She to come. Gradually the rain stopped and the wind ebbed, and the master, unable to wait for dawn, immediately threw open the door, eyes cast on the garden and its pond. There, he saw fish darting—more than the prior day—and thought, Benzaiten, your fellows are sown. Then, thinking of the promised reward, he rushed to check his stores. But as he swept up and down the row of vaults behind his shop, what did he find? Every lock undone, and every door open! Now uneasy, he entered, and found nothing left! Not the pawn-goods, nor the furniture, nor the thousand-ryō boxes. Floor to ceiling, everything was nigh-bare. He stood alone, dumbfounded and gaping.

Now, it happened that a shrine sat in the mountains on Kōshū-Kaidō Road, and before this shrine came men in packs, reeking of banditry, laying down their fresh and ill-gotten gains, eager for a proper portioning.

Onto this the shrine opened its doors, and who should be shocked to see the bandits' chief! No older than twenty-eight years she stood, with beauty to shame the sky and stars. A beauty that laughed aloud and said—

“My, what lovely work, boys!”

It was this very enchantress who had gulled the shop-master by claiming to be a goddess's envoy—and then, catching the slightest storm, sent all these men to his shop in dead of night. Some had hitched ropes to trees and bamboo all around his garden, and whipped them to bluff the sounds of a roaring wind, while others had beaten at the pond to affect waves. Under such clamor they had cunningly hidden any sounds of vault doors opening, of wares being moved.

A most unusual—most phantasmic—thief, no?

—Eishirō Suzuki, Strange Worlds: Tall Tales and Oddities (1908).

¹ Approx. 1684–1688 CE. ² No relation to Kappei. That we know of. ³ Wealth goddess strongly associated with rivers and lakes. One of Japan's Seven Lucky Gods. ⁴ Approx. 9—11pm. Adapted from Old China's gēng-diǎn system, each "watch" marking one-fifth of the time between sunset and dawn.

[souptastical]

💾Cursed Child Repository Info

All I ask in return for access to this collection is that you read this all & abide by the disclaimers in the directory file within the repository as its of legal importance💖

The above file delves more into it, but a quick & public disclaimer for Masters (not viewers) is here

Repository Updates Tags: #repoupdate (general)

#importantrepo (important, look through before messaging me)

New Requirement:

❗️If your coming from an empty/new blog, please tell me where you came from.❗️

MAJOR NOTE PLS ABIDE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD:

Stop mentioning my repo to others on tiktok. I love you all, but long story short, that app is insanely public & having this public like that ruins my ability to archive these performances, ruins your ability to have them/ones in the future, and drives this theatre niche underground. So please, stop mentioning it, stop posting clips there.

Now for the public disclaimers:

Disclaimer 1: I didn't originally record the performances, and I make no profit from them while also standing firmly against making any profit whatsoever by the sharing of media I do not own.

Disclaimer 2: Don't sell these files. You can gauge why but for further explanation, read all below.

Disclaimer 3: Do NOT post edits/clips/full videos of this on TikTok, Youtube, etc- making it ENTIRELY public is how access to these types of media dies. Even if its just a clip, then Encora gets back into the public eye which has been entirely wiped once already & made it so these files were insanely hard to find for a long time. Also, its against every single social media platform's terms & conditions to post bootlegged content, which they all take seriously. I know edits are fun, I get it, but please help keep this community alive & the joy in seeing this play accessible.

Continue to post under cut↓

|𝐁𝐄𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐅𝐎𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐑|

*note: password includes brackets*

》 I don't include NFT recordings. When they expire, I will include them. If you don't know, just ask & I'm more than happy to let you know when they do.

》 The Cursed Child Repository is not only password protected, but the password & link will cycle once every day. This is to avoid the repository being entirely public. Only PM me for the password when you're able to download- but am totally still down for you to PM me anytime about inquiries regarding which performances are in the folder, as well as asking for the cycled password/link.

》 I NEED you to read the "Directory" file in the repository before downloading- mainly, the disclaimers about the recordings & the revised script transcription/translation as well as noting file sizes before you attempt to download. I tried my best to catalogue information correctly but if you find I have made a mistake, feel free to reach out.

》 Keep in mind that the entire collection is over 50 GB. This is an important note if you are downloading on low bandwith, as well as an important note regarding Mega's transfer quota. The transfer cap from Mega does cap usually under 10 GB, but that all depends on server traffic / other, so i can't really tell you what your cap would be within a 24 hr period.

》 I kindly ask that you not share these downloads in fully public folders/links, and strongly command that you not sell them. I would like to lessen the possibility of law violation as much as possible, despite the fact I wasn't the one to record any of these. This repository/its files are not meant for profit, and I strongly am against them being sold due to the fact it takes financial revenue away from rights holders like JKR, Warner Bros and Broadway Licensing/associated theatre companies. This is media archiving & making hard-to-view media accessible. That's all it is.

[astroismypassion]

✨PART OF FORTUNE IN SIGNS AND HOUSES SERIES: 12TH HOUSE✨

Credit: astrology blog @astroismypassion

Today we are finishing strong with Part of Fortune series in signs and houses, finishing off with the 12th house! Enjoy😊

ARIES PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Aries and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via engaging in research related to psychology, spirituality, consciousness, via dream analysis, meditation and study of the unconscious mind, via work in roles that involve creating content behind the scenes, such as film production, editing, writing, via exploring and tapping into niche market that focus on spiritual, esoteric or unconventional interests. You feel abundant when you innovate in hidden or esoteric fields and work behind the scenes.

TAURUS PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Taurus and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via music, dance or art therapy, via message therapy, aromatherapy, acupuncture, via managing or operating spiritual retreat centres that offer meditation, yoga or other wellness programs, via work in production roles for media projects, spiritual organizations or arts communities. You feel abundant when you combine beauty with purpose, embrace solitude and reflection and focus on healing and comfort.

GEMINI PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Gemini and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via writing scripts or produce media connected with spiritual or psychological themes, when you create podcasts or videos that explore spiritual topics, esoteric subjects or personal development, via work as a freelance writer or journalist, especially on topics related to spirituality, mental health and societal issues. You feel abundant when consider freelance or remote opportunities, balance solitude and social interaction and use your adaptability.

CANCER PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Cancer and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via managing or operating spiritual or wellness retreat centres that offer a comforting and healing environment, via caregiving for the elderly, via running a daycare centre, engaging in charitable work, particularly with groups such as the elderly, homeless or those dealing with addiction. You feel abundant when you focus on emotional and spiritual healing, when you balance solitude with compassionate outreach, when you work behind the scenes and when you provide emotional and practical support.

LEO PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Leo and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via leading spiritual groups, retreats or workshops that focus on personal growth, self-expression and spiritual awakening. You could take on leadership roles in non-profit organizations, focused on arts, spirituality or support for marginalized communities. You could produce films, documentaries or other media content that explores deep, often hidden aspects of life, spirituality or human condition. You feel the most abundant when you lead with compassion and charisma, when you embrace your creative and expressive nature.

VIRGO PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Virgo and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via studying and writing about spiritual practices, work in holistic or alternative medicine fields (acupuncture, herbalism, naturopathy), via teaching mindfulness, meditation or other spiritual practices. You feel abundant when you are precise and focus on details, when you operate quietly and efficiently.

LIBRA PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Libra and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via set design, costume design, holistic counselling, relationship counselling, meditation, work in music, dance, through non-profit work in organizations that advocate for justice, equality, work with law in connection to human right and social justice or advocating for marginalized groups. You feel abundant when you use your natural inclination towards beauty and harmony in your work.

SCORPIO PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Scorpio and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via psychotherapy, counselling, holistic and alternative healing, spiritual guidance and mentorship, mysticism and esoteric studies, psychological and medical research, investigative work, private counselling, non-profit or charitable work, writing on deep topics, content creation for healing or via art with emotional depth. You feel abundant when you balance intensity with compassion or when you explore hidden or unconventional paths.

SAGITTARIUS PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Sagittarius and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via teaching courses or workshops in philosophical, spiritual or holistic subjects, via motivational speaking, writing and multimedia projects that explore thems of personal growth and spirituality. You feel abundant when you create transformational and inspirational content, when you combine travel with purpose and when you use your expansive nature to guide you through teaching, writing and spiritual guidance.

CAPRICORN PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Capricorn and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via strategic planning, psychotherapy, counselling, writing books, articles or guide on topics related to personal development, spirituality or practical strategies for achieving goals. You feel abundant when you pursue research and development, work behind the scenes and when you focus on structured healing work.

AQUARIUS PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Aquarius and Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via social issues, mental health and spiritual development, via developing or managing community programs that address societal needs, via teaching, mentoring, artistic expression, innovative creative content and research in social sciences, work on projects or in organizations focused on social reform, human rights or global issues. You feel abundant when you create inspirational and impactful content, when you work behind the scenes and when you focus on humanitarian and spiritual goals.

PISCES PART OF FORTUNE IN THE 12TH HOUSE

You feel the most abundant when you have Pisces Sun people in your life. You can earn money via coordinating or managing programs that provide support and services to marginalized or underserved communities, via study of mystical, esoteric or spiritual subjects, teaching workshops or courses on spiritual growth, creativity or healing arts. You feel abundant when you integrate spiritual and holistic practices, when you pursue creative or artistic projects that allow you to express your unique vision and contribute to the well-being of others.

Credit: astrology blog @astroismypassion

[8figurehustler]

Where & How I Finally Started Getting Paid With Affiliate Programs | 💰💰💰

The Harsh Truth About Affiliate Programs (And What Actually Worked for Me)

Let’s be real—not all affiliate programs are worth your time, especially if you’re just starting out. I tried a few, and let me tell you straight up: some of them SUCKED.

The Flops:

1. Digistore24

Absolutely not. From faulty links, unreliable dashboards, to emails that wouldn’t stop even after deleting my account, Digistore24 was a complete waste of time for me. I’m not even going into details—it’s just that bad.

2. Amazon Associates

Trash. The only way you’re making even $100/month is if you have a blog on your own domain, 100+ affiliate links, and consistent traffic. And even then? That payout takes forever to build up—and don’t forget the payout fees and percentages they take. Imagine earning 50 cents and having to pay a fee just to cash it out. No, thanks.

Better Option: The Amazon Storefront

If you’ve got a face-based brand on TikTok, YouTube, or Twitter, consider applying for an Amazon Storefront instead. It’s more creator-focused, but they’re picky.

What Actually Worked:

3. Small Brand Collaborations

When I was starting out, I personally emailed a bunch of small fashion and beauty brands. Most of them didn’t even have an affiliate program—but because I reached out, they created one with me or offered me a custom collab.

Why it worked:

• I had a solid email pitch highlighting my strengths and how it would benefit them

• Small brands are more likely to say yes

• They’re open to flexible deals

• It’s mutually beneficial if you grow together

• Just don’t overcharge—be realistic. These are small businesses, not Nike.

The Game Changer:

4. ShareASale

This is where the real affiliate income started for me. ShareASale is a marketplace—meaning it’s not just one business, but hundreds. You sign up once and can apply to merchants in your niche (fashion, beauty, finance—you name it).

What I love about it:

• No need for a huge following—you can have a Tumblr, Pinterest, or Insta

• Most merchants approve you easily

• You can earn flat rates or commission

• It’s now partnering with Awin (even more brands!)

• You’re not locked into one niche—you can explore multiple

If you’re a beginner and want to see actual results, start with ShareASale. Take note that AWIN has owned ShareASale since 2017 and from the end of 2025 onwards, ShareASale will be completely renewed through AWIN, so if you’re signing up for the first time, I suggest starting now with a profile on AWIN so you won’t need to worry about the transfer unless you’re just looking to explore and don’t plan on doing affiliation long term.

Bonus Tip: Pinterest = Goldmine

Pinterest has become my go-to platform. If you’re serious about building traffic without showing your face, Pinterest is perfect. I created an eBook, the M3, that teaches you how to get 1 million monthly views in under 6 months (yes, it’s possible, if i did it you can too)

I’ve already helped over 20 people, and I’m proud of it. If you’re new to Pinterest or trying to scale your account, the M3 is your guide.

If you’re already doing well on Pinterest but don’t know how to monetise it, download my new ebook Pin to Profit which teaches you how to analyse, learn more on SEO & more.

all links down below

⸻

If you’ve tried the affiliate game and you’re tired of the fluff, I hope this helped clear the air. This is real talk from someone who’s been through it, earned the cents, and finally found what works.

Sign Up Now For Free On ShareASale(AWIN): click here

New to Pinterest & looking to grow your audience : click here

Don’t know how to monetise your Pinterest : click here

[starksh]

Struggling to find your blog niche? Follow these 5 practical tips to discover a profitable, engaging niche that resonates with your audience!

[digitalvision01]

How To Pick A Profitable Blog Niche in 2023

Creating a successful blog in 2023 requires more than just great content; it also necessitates selecting a Profitable Blog Niche that is both interesting to you and profitable. Selecting the right Profitable Blog Niche is essential as it can significantly impact your blog’s growth and income potential. In this comprehensive guide, we will go through steps and considerations in choosing a…

[arimiadev]

(you can read this article down below or on my blog!)

How to Sell Visual Novels at Conventions

Or, “how do you table at an anime convention and actually get people to stop by your booth and actually get interested in visual novels????”

Picture this – me, someone who’s never been to California nor flown alone arrived to the Hyatt at the San Francisco Bay, being greeted by several online friends I’d known for years but never met in person. After a great time walking around the surrounding Burlingame area and meeting back up with the rest of our group, we had to actually put in some work for the day.

That is, setting up our booth for the convention starting the next day.

We unpacked box after box, taking turns standing around with our hands on our hips and heads tilted wondering “how the hell are we going to set all of this up?”. I decided to make it my job to set up our keychain display. All I had to do was get a copy of each keychain we had and pin them up – we even had a box from prior conventions that had a single copy of (most) of our keychains, for displaying. But as I opened more boxes, I found more and more keychains…

After threatening to change the password on their Vograce account, I found we had 10+ boxes of merchandise for niche visual novels that we were trying to sell at a vtuber convention. Not an anime convention, not a gaming convention, a vtuber convention! Going to bed that night, already tired, I was sure there was no way we would make a profit…..

…And yet, we made more on Friday than they had for the entire convention in 2023. By Sunday, we had made more than double that, having sold items to over 100 customers with most purchases around $40 each. We weren’t selling fanart, we were selling a majority completely original art.

We lived the dream of a lot of indie developers – we sold physicals of our indie games and people bought them. But how did we do it??

a little context

Some background – OffKai Expo is an annual vtuber-oriented convention in Burlingame, California, a suburb of San Francisco and just 15 minutes away from their airport. If you don’t know what a vtuber is, just go watch my oshi Gavis Bettel. In 2023, Studio Élan had a booth at the convention as it’s somewhat local to some of our members. We decided to have another booth at the convention for 2024 and I offered to work at it (what’s a booth without a marketer?).

The only anime convention I’ve ever been to was the local one in Memphis, namely Anime Blues Con, but those are….lacking, to say the least. Not much to do, very limited artist alley, waning attendance (which was already small to begin with), barely any new artists nor sights year after year… I’ve always wanted to go to a convention outside my area, to say the least.

But how did we manage to make the weekend successful?

conceits

What we did won’t be entirely replicable for most devs reading this, but there will be some insights and takeaways that I’ll highlight that are applicable to anyone wanting to table at conventions and sell their games.

Our table was for Studio Élan x VirPro – it was a joint table between our yuri visual novel studio and our indie vtuber friend streaming group, Virtuality Project. We sold some merch for VirPro, but I’d estimate that was no more than 20% of our sales – we still would have made a profit even if we weren’t selling that merch.

this table held our limited VirPro merch. we were able to hang our Élan prints on the wall behind it thanks to our friends at Studio Nekomata allowing us to tape our prints to the backside of their display. we also had a Miho cutout, but she didn’t want to stand up this weekend…

However, it is important to note that Studio Élan is not a new studio. We’ve been around for years, have 15k followers on Twitter, and have several visual novels released. We’re not extremely well known, as we are within a niche within a niche, but we aren’t unknown either. Some people actually cosplayed our characters at the convention! It’s definitely possible some locals came to OffKai Expo just to see our booth & panel (we also held a panel on Saturday where we announced 2 new games).

Another thing to note is that we have a stock of merch from running an online store and having held Kickstarters before. Specifically, we have physical copies of almost all of our games as well as artbooks, soundtracks, clothing, and more. We had tons of keychains and 11×17 prints, sure, but we also sold a lot of merch that is much harder and more expensive to produce.

So, tl;dr, things we had going for us:

We are established developers with a following & released games

We have a sizeable amount of merch already made for our online store, including physical games & artbooks

We were boothing with our indie vtuber friend group and selling their merch on the side

But our main problem:

We were boothing at a vtuber convention, not an anime or gaming convention

Now, with all of that out of the way….

convention standards

First off, let’s look at some basic things you can expect while tabling at a convention. (for the purposes of being specific to visual novels, when I say “convention” I’m only referring to anime & gaming-adjacent conventions—OffKai falls under this as vtubers are both anime & gaming-adjacent)

At a convention, you will typically be selling in either the artist alley or the dealer’s room, which are both referred to as the vendor’s hall. For small conventions, these two may be the same area. The artist alley is typically for artists selling keychains, prints, and more. The dealers room is for vendors that sell larger merch or have more items to sell – this can include artists but also includes people selling imported items (such as anime figures) and companies.

Conventions have a set amount of hours that the events go on and the vendor’s hall is usually not open the entire time. These rooms will usually open in the morning, around 10AM or so, and allow vendors an extra hour for fixing things before opening every day. For OffKai, we had to stay at our booth for about 8~ hours every day, except for Sunday. Sundays are always the shortest days for 3-day conventions, as the convention will usually wrap up around dinner time (if not earlier).

Vendors get time the night before the convention starts (usually Thursday night, with most conventions I’m referencing being Friday-Sunday events) to set up their booths. It took us around 3 hours to fully set up our booth, with 4 of us working on it. Setting up your booth will go a lot smoother if you do a trial run before the convention.

Every convention I’ve tabled at or known a vendor at provides vendors with at least 1 table and a chair. More chairs are usually easy to get, you just need to ask staff before the vendors hall opens up.

tip 1 – bring a friend

Conventions provide tables and chairs, but they don’t provide helping hands! You’re probably going to need help unpacking and setting up the table, but you’ll definitely need to take breaks during the convention for the bathroom, food, and more. You can’t just ask staff to sit at your table and you can’t just hide everything while you’re gone. Bring a friend to help out!

If you have to go alone, make friends with the people boothing next to you and ask them to watch over your table if need be. Be sure to keep your money and payment processors with you if you ever have to step away. And bring snacks & water!

our merch

Like I said, at Élan we have typical merchandise for our visual novels like keychains and acrylic standees, but we also have physical copies of our games for PC & consoles, artbooks, soundtracks, and more.

We had these types of merch:

Acrylic & wooden items

Keychains

Standees

Pins

Print media

PC discs

Console discs & cartridges (Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 & 5)

Artbooks (game artbooks, limited edition anniversary artbooks)

Soundtrack discs

4×6 prints (CGs, key artworks)

11×17 prints (key artworks, exclusive convention artworks)

Clothing & fabric

T-shirts (4 designs, 1 color each)

Hoodie (new collaboration design, for all of our games)

Scarf (new collaboration design, for 1 of our games)

Fabric flags (key visuals)

Misc.

Grab bag (misc small items)

$5 bin (misc small items)

Pencil bag

Mousepad

Enamel pin

Plushie (limited Makeship leftovers)

Some of these were items we’d never sold before such as the hoodie, scarf, and 11×17 prints. Some of them were also much more of a hassle than others.

In terms of storage and cheapness to make, prints and stickers are by far the winners (we didn’t sell stickers at OffKai but plan to in the future). Prints are basically the best thing you can sell for production cost:profit, as a 4×6 print can cost you $0.20 but sell for $5+ and an 11×17 print can cost $0.60 and sell for $15-20.

On the other hand, t-shirts can be some of the most difficult merch to work with. They take up a lot of room (we had at least 2 boxes of just shirts/hoodies) and require you to have multiple different sizes. The plushies were great & easy to sell, but at the same time they cost a lot per unit and take up even more space than shirts.

The physical copies sold great, but the cost to produce & room to store them makes them unwieldy for most developers. I would recommend them over more bespoke merch like clothing, though—several people came to our booth, having never heard of our games, and left with a physical game. CD discs rather than DVD cases are much easier to store and can be handmade, although ours are manufactured.

tip 2 – be selective with what merch you make & bring

Unless you’re lucky enough to have a convention down the street from you, chances are you’re going to have to travel to the convention. That means packing everything up, possibly shipping it, etc…. You need to be picky with what you bring if you don’t have multiple cars to throw it all in.

My merch recommendations:

4×6 prints

Ours were $4-5

Dirt cheap to print, easy to store

Easy for people to buy because of the low price point and ease of carrying

Idea – these are so cheap to print, at the very least print some of your key visual & logo to hand out to people for free

Stickers (die-cut or sticker sheets)

Dirt cheap to print, easy to store

Easy for people to buy because of the low price point and ease of carrying

Idea – some conventions won’t allow you to hand out free stickers. For conventions that don’t, I would sell either singular die-cut stickers or sell them in packs

Keychains

Ours were $12-15

Cheap to print, not very hard to store

At this price point people want to have an attachment to the characters before buying

Idea – if your game is relatively unknown but you still want to print keychains, consider packaging them with something else like the game or a sampler CD of the demo / soundtrack

Physical CD disc games

Ours were $30

Not cheap to print, not very hard to store

People will buy copies of games they’ve never heard of because it’s an interesting item to own and seen as more value than a digital copy (even if physical is more expensive)

Idea – it doesn’t cost much to get a 50 pack of CDs, the cost comes from the packaging and time to make the entire thing. If you don’t have a finished game yet, consider printing your demo out on CDs in paper slips to hand out for free

our booth

Now that I’ve talked about basics for conventions and what merch we sold, what did our booth actually look like?

We didn’t have a pre-convention trial run, so we were essentially winging it. With all of the merch I outlined, could you believe we crammed all of the display copies on 1 table, 2 shelves, and 1 clothing rack?!

Our main focus was making sure each of our physical games were visible. After all, we were at a vtuber convention where most attendees didn’t know us, so we wanted to have a way to show off our games. We spent a lot of real estate on showing individual game copies and having brochures spread out.

tip 3 – have an idea of how you’re going to display things before the convention

We also brought several items to display merch. For keychains & pins, we had a simple corkboard leaning on a photo stand / easel. For acrylic standees, we had a clear nail polish stand. For physical copies, we had photo stands and bookends. For clothes, we had a small clothing rack. For physicals, we had 3 small bookcases. These were all extremely helpful, but they are added costs and more things to carry to the convention.

here’s a better look at our 2 bookshelves. the purple ladder one was at the back of the booth highlighting some items and storing various artbooks & bundles and the smaller one was at the front left of the booth by the VirPro merch, basically in the walking aisle

The corkboard and various photo stands were must-haves, regardless of what you’re selling. A corkboard makes it easy to display anything on it, whether it’s keychains, stickers, mini-prints, announcements, posters, and more. Photo stands were also super helpful for propping our corkboard on but also showing off individual physical copies.

this was me trying to arrange the corkboard and acrylic stands. photo stands and art easels can in handy!

Along with the display stands, we also brought some decorative items like pink table clothes and flowers. These aren’t required, but help make your booth more noticeable.

A few miscellaneous items I plan on bringing to our next convention are a hand sanitizer dispenser, a small air purifier, and fliers. I always keep hand sanitizer on me, but it’s easier to use it when it’s in a convenient bottle and place. Several of us got sick after the convention (despite me wearing a mask), so I’m also bringing a small air purifier to keep some germs away from the table. I also want to bring small fliers for our upcoming games—while brochures are wonderful, I want something that’s easy (and cheap) to hand out to anyone who looks at our booth, not just the people we talk to.

tip 4 – be aware of merch thieves

We arranged our table in a way that we didn’t have to worry much about people stealing merch, though that is a problem at some conventions. As you might’ve noticed from the pictures, our smaller items like the keychains are at the far back of the booth, right beside where we sit. That allowed us to keep a better eye on it.

Rather than sitting behind our tables, we arranged our booth to be where people would walk inside it. This allowed us a way to talk to people easier. We also made sure to hide our card readers, phones, and more when any of us left the table, though this was easy because we almost always had 2-3 people at the booth at any time.

my advice

If I were an indie dev looking to booth at a convention and had the time and spare change, I would if it were close enough to drive to and the booth cost under $500. Unless you’re an established developer or have a popular artist working on your project, it’s hard to justify that cost.

tip 5 – don’t forget to budget for…

booth costs

extra badges (most booths come with 2 free badges)

hotel

travel

food

merchandise manufacturing

any shipping fees (your luggage, merch, etc.)

display items, extra things for your booth

While you may find a booth for $250, you also have to remember the travel fees, cost of food, all of the extra items you’ll need aside from merchandise, and more. A $250 booth for a 3-day convention could easily end up costing you $2,000+, and that’s if you don’t pay yourself or coworkers for their time at the booth!

If you’ve never been to a convention before then definitely go to one as an attendee before becoming a vendor. Get a feel for the place and have some fun, even if it means you won’t be able to booth there for months or a year.

tip 6 – be sure to bring…

Some kind of handout for people with your game & logo on it (fliers, business cards, brochures, etc.)

Small stationary merch for your game (4×6 prints, stickers, etc.)

Corkboard to display things on and something to prop it up

A way to take card payments and cash for change

Hand sanitizer

Pen/pencil and sticky notes

Clamps

Tape

this is the inside of our old brochure! it details our different games and highlights some upcoming titles

I’d also try putting your demo on CDs to hand out to people who seem really interested if you can. CDs are pretty cheap to get now, and even if you just get a 50 pack that can run you around $12, which ends up being $0.25/CD. Not a bad cost for getting a potential fan, if you hand them out only to people who are really interested or package them with other merch and sell them.

Your main effort if you’re not an established developer, however, will be awareness. Talk to the people who stop by your booth. Tell them hi and explain to them what you make. I had several people clearly not understand what visual novels were, but I had many more who became interested once I mentioned we made these games. “Wait, you actually made them?!”

tip 7 – talk to people!!!

People at conventions think art is cool. They think indie games are cool. Be honest with them and show them your hard work. Yeah, this means you have to put on your extrovert cap for the weekend. Just don’t treat it like you’re a car salesman—you’re a game dev first and foremost and enjoy this line of work so much you want to share it with strangers at conventions. Let that shine through in your words.

All in all, conventions are stressful, tiring, and a lot of fun when they’re run well. If any of this sounds interesting to you and you find a convention close enough to you or one that will be relatively cheap to attend, I recommend trying it out.

------------

OffKai Expo was so, so much fun and I’m so happy I was able to attend. It was a well run convention, our booth did amazing, I got to meet actual fans IRL, and I was able to finally see a lot of my online friends in person. I was scared leading up to it but I’m so glad I pushed myself to go. Having an in-person panel there where the room was almost full absolutely blew me away—I kept asking “do they know what room they’re in? Did they get lost?” If you came to our panel or booth, thank you!!

— Arimia

read more of my articles on tumblr here!

[irradiatedpiratebooty]

i think what really bums me out about tumblr hitting the shitter, is that no other site offers the same kind of engagement. said that in another post, but lemme explain a little further. yes, theres other fandom sites. yes, technically speaking other sites have the same features tumblr does. but the way they encourage the use of these features are not for actual engagement. its for gathering a follower count, gathering silent likes. getting an audience so you can make a profit. but what if you dont care about follower count? dont care about being your own business? dont care about trending or how many likes you got? what i loved about the engagement from tumblr was that, it was encouraged to respond in *some way*. whether it be just a quiet tag of a keysmash, or just a "lol" or maybe even a full paragraph to add onto a post you liked and wanted to share. i posted my art, not to gather a huge audience and a follower count, but to make people laugh, or smile, or just relate a bit. i also posted art to express my own interests, especially since fallout and pirates are a hyperfixation of mine. (not using that as a buzzword, im autistic and struggle engaging with people outside of these interests.)

silent likes, silent retweets, a hot take here and there, hell even comment sections arent the same because theyre really only used now if something is controversial for an argument, dont give the same kind of engagement or feeling of community.

i want a space where i can be "weird".people talk to me about my interests with the same kind of excitement i have, where we info dump without fear of being yelled at because "i thought that was obvious?" and "lol everyone knows that shut up." but now, everything has become sterile. even if you are openly neurodivergent, you have to be the kind where youre ACCEPTABLE, and more importantly, profitable. you cant be weird about anything, because then youre mocked and ridiculed by the same people who say "youve got to be more autistic about things". everything is public on other sites, your likes are public, your blocklist is public, your bio has to include personal details otherwise people dont want to engage with you. you have to keep up with everything and make sure youre "acceptable" to be around. TLDR: i miss the days when i went to the internet to escape, where i could drop the mask and be myself. without feeling like im being watched, or judged for just enjoying something. I miss the days where you had your own quirky blog and found people who enjoyed the same niche series you liked, and they had the same enthusiasm as you did even for the details everyone already knows.

[luthienne]

what do you do for a living? (/job?) I am currently in a crisis and need some guidance. I look up to you a lot, I love your blog, we have the same passions for poetry and writing and music, even daredevil! My crisis is that I dont know what to do. In university I take classes but I dont know what I want to be. My art and writing feel pointless sometimes. All the jobs i want to do I know im not skilled enough to achieve or itd be very hard to get by. If you dont mind giving out advice... please help! ❤

hi anon <3 i think that figuring out what we're supposed to do for a living often gets tied to the idea that we're supposed to find that one niche in the world where we fit, where we're meant to be and where we're meant to contribute; where we're meant to shine, and find deep meaning in our own lives. and maybe that does happen for some people. but in reality i think we're all capable of doing many different things, and finding purpose in many different things. and in working toward many different skillsets we acquire different skillsets that apply to many other types of work.

and i don't think anything is ever set in stone. i got my undergrad & grad degrees in music, and then i found that i didn't have it in me to be a part of that world anymore. and i felt that i had no meaning in my life without it. i was No One without music, i had no identity outside of my voice—despite the deep sense of purpose and fate, even, that i felt for my life up until that moment in music, in singing, in acting. up until that moment i knew in my bones my purpose in life. and then the ground was swept out from under me. it didn't matter that i had known with certainty what my life was supposed to be because it wasn't that any longer. and i realized that i could never again tie my identity to my art, to my music, to my writing, to my job. my voice has a purpose not because it must be enough to sustain me financially or because enough people have validated my talent but because it brings me joy. i came back to music because singing brought me joy again; i thought i would never feel that again.

something i have learned through this is 1) music, like most other art forms, is not a meritocracy; there is no such thing as "you are an excellent [artist/singer/writer] and therefore you will have the career owed to you" because so much more than merit and hard work go into careers like this. it takes not only talent and work ethic but circumstance and luck and wealth. lessons cost money, coachings costs money, auditions cost money, applications cost money, travel costs money, wardrobe costs money. 2) the process is not the career. i love to practice, i love to learn music, i love to get into character, and to engage with my colleagues in rehearsal rooms and onstage. i don't love the abuse thrown at singers from directors and teachers and coaches, i don't love auditions, i don’t love the unpredictability of gig work and contract work, i don't love the expendable lens through which singers are viewed by the industry. i've come back to music but my goals have shifted.

all that to say, i don't think we have to know what we want to be. we don't have to want to be anything. our lives have deep meaning whether we have "successful" careers or careers that just pay the bills while we continue to pursue our creative loves. i wouldn't place too much importance on needing to find what you are supposed to be because you will become who you are supposed to be regardless. it is never a waste to pursue something we love, and we will acquire and internalize new skills in any field that we can apply to other fields. and maybe your interests will dramatically shift, or maybe not. i think it's very natural to have vocational shifts throughout our lives, and it's not indicative of failure. art that is made personally or professionally doesn't have more or less value based on its financial profit. the money i make from singing isn't enough to sustain me—i have to do other self-employment gigs to make up the difference. most artists do. but i don't regret the time and the heart i have invested in music, and i am sustained through the work i put into it, and sustained by the relationships and friendships that i have developed through it.

i send you my whole heart. i know how it feels to look at the future and not know what you're supposed to do with your one, precious life. sometimes we have to live in the uncertainty and know that it won't be like that forever. on the flip side, the moments of certainty won't last forever either. and in-between there is all the living we do. i promise you're not alone in this <3