Sorry if there is a misunderstanding, but what I meant is that I feel like manga has not hit the mainstream in the west so generally people will not hear about any particular manga unless they have a friend who is really into mangas.

You might have a different experience. I basically don’t know anyone who frequently reads mangas. Some people might follow one or two mangas because they watch the anime (eg. One piece) but they will usually not read any other mangas.