Two Important Marketing events

I couldn’t resist the temptation of writing on the two important marketing events across the world. First, the launch of iphone by Apple yesterday, and the launch of the seventh and the last book in the Harry potter series. Both of these events are I would say the most hyped events of the last few months. For the i-phone, Apple and Steve Jobs have done a fantastic job creating buzz in the blog world and there are many reviews on the internet. The phone itself would take time some to reach India, though the grey market is promising unlocked phones in a matter of few weeks.

The second event - the launch of the seventh Harry potter book would happen simultaneously in India and many of the country’s prominent book retailer are preparing for a gala launch for the book. The retailers expect the sale of the book to be good, but an article in Business week points out that the book is no longer profitable for the retailer in the US and UK , as most of the retailers are selling the book below cost. They are using the book a loss-leader to attract millions of consumers into their shops by offering heavy discount on the Potter book. Even the shares of the original publisher Bloomsbury also plummeted by three-quarters as revenues fell during the period the author was busy writing the book. If J K Rowling’s does end up killing the Harry in her seventh book, one can only guess what would happen to the shares of company. Though the consumer is not complaining about the discounts that they would getting in the new book .....