In 1967 the Monkees outsold the Beatles and Stones combined.
Having a tv show on Saturday didn’t hurt.
Correct. In the year of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", the Monkees vastly outsold The Beatles. It wasn't even close.
Another couple of hits, a trip to India and a well-rehearsed side-shuffle over there and The Monkees would have been the biggest selling band in the history of recorded music. The Beatles would have gone the way of Herman's Hermits and Gary Lewis & The Playboys.