Making a Buzz before the launch, the new marketing trend

Web has changed, tools have changed, habits have changed and so did marketing and the way of making business online. I can hardly remember the times when companies used to announce a new product, put some money in some banners and then promote it via classic channels. That’s old school marketing folks!

Modern product launch

Things have changed lately, as companies have started to ‘leak’ Beta versions, to give to users free of charge technological previews and release candidates (Windows 7 is one such example). Stirring a Buzz before the actual/official launch of a products is now an active part of the marketing process.

That’s a good thing because now users are involved from the development stage and companies can adjust/rethink their products before it’s too late for them. Of course, you must be careful to not stir a Buzz and then not be capable of launching the product in time, see Sony Ericsson with Xperia X1, which made everyone droll but it came too late, at about one year after the first presentation, in which time other manufacturers launched better products to market.

This is what I call making good use of the social factor that seems to drive the web right now.