No doubt manga and anime have a strong if not eternal foothold in many cultures outside of Japan these days.  While the majority of American adults, for example, wouldn’t be caught dead reading manga in public, their children’s’ lives are a universe removed from that sentiment.

In Japan, Tokyo University Hospital is using this generation-binder (manga) to depict a young pediatrician who is eager to save children’s lives.

No doubt, many cultures around the world dismiss this manga/anime genres as being filthy, violent and sexually titillating.  But there is equally no doubt that to reach the young generation, any means at our disposal must be used.

Manga could be used to teach manners, finances, appropriate and inappropriate touching to name just a few applications.  Moreover, it could be used to reach children for the promotion of products and services.

If you have dismissed the manga/anime genre as being unrelated to you or foul or for morons, you best reconsider.  The future will see it used to promote and market every conceivable product or service.

Jump on board now.  Remember that time when, as a child, you asked your Mom or Dad where babies came from?  Watch this video for an example of how anime can be used to give a humorous twist on birth.

The sketchings and manga in the public domain can be transformed into niche product line without copyright violation.

In the past dozen years, manga translations into non-Japanese languages have grown exponentially.  This, in turn, has spawned an anime industry which had little exposure overseas since the Tezuka hit cartoon “Atom Boy.”

Blockbuster anime and manga-based films such as Transformers and Kill Bill are modern-day testimonials to the wealth-creating possibilities of the Japanese art form.

The translation of American and other countries’ superhero-type comics into Japanese has scantly been tried.  Some might categorize doing that as a selling of ice to the Eskimos.  It is assumed that such comics could not compete with the local genre.

Remember:  Many people were rabidly skeptical that Japanese would not chomp down on Big Macs and Mr. Donuts’ jelly rolls as well.  The real blockbuster could be in making these manga characters into T-Shirts, stationary, or even mobile phone jackets.

Find a native Japanese collaborator who can assist you to translate the works of aspiring westerners creating unknown superhero comics in the States and elsewhere.  Alternatively, contact a local clothes wholesaler and produce clothing with such characters in your home country and export to Japan.

No doubt, they will be snatched up and a new fashion cult initiated.  A good starting reference is through the extensive, viral otaku network or finding importers in the Success in Japan Directory.

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F0rmer Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso has heeded the advice of a cultural advisory group.  Long isolated because of language and culture barriers, the ministry wants to use Japanese pop culture, including manga and anime, as a diplomatic tool.

The Council on the Movement of People Across Borders, the panel’s namesake, proposes that Japanese pop culture has a growing fan base overseas which can be exploited.   In fact, on the day of this writing EBay had classified nearly 2000 items for sale in the manga genre ranging from figurines to antique manga magazines to chains and other accessories.  Prices for these items ranged between $2 and $250.

Tap into this ongoing craze.  The manga magazine trading business is a thriving one. Gain permission from the publishers of anime and such to market stationary goods and clothing featuring the major characters in these comics and whatnot.

For those of you not into manga, gaming and such, what follows are the results of a recent poll released by the Cultural Affairs Ministry.  Their survey listed Godzilla, Game of Life, Othello, Super Mario Brothers, Final Fantasy VII, Yawaraka Sensha, The Phoenix, Doraemon, Black Jack, Jojo Bizarre Adventure, Slamdunk, Full Metal Alchemist, The White Snake Enchantess, Astro Boy, Nausica of the Valley of the Wind, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Mobile Suit Gundam as the most popular gaming figures and manga heroes from Japan.

Alternatively, you could create similar characters – free of copyright restrictions – and make your own goods to sell on manga and gaming-related sites.

And remember that these niche ideas are not to paint me as the imagination man, but to give you a chance to consider how to exploit a given goldmine.  Anime has endless possibilities.

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