Droga5, Bing, Jay-Z Campaign, Case Study Example

Droga5

Pursuing the campaign idea is a smart investment for Droga5. This is fundamentally based on the costs associated with the project. While the project is going to generate considerably larger expenses than conventional marketing techniques such as television advertisements, a considerable portion of the project’s costs would be taken care of by Microsoft (Bing) (Newman). In this investment idea, Microsoft was the major client and sought to increase popularity of its search engine, Bing. The project would cost $2,013,000, most of which would go to cover the company’s operational expenses (Elberse and Owusu-Kesse).

Microsoft (Bing)

Bing was facing a problem with its popularity in the younger age groups within the market. According to research, it was found that individuals between 18 and 24 years consume up to 61% more search pages that most web users. It was also found that hip-hip listeners consumed 16% more web pages than the average web user (Gray). As such, this investment idea opens up Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, to a new demographic in which it had recorded poor performance in previous years.

The hip-hop genre solicits a considerably large global following. Affiliating the Bing brand with Jay-Z’s autobiography would considerably raise the company’s profile within the hip-hop industry. The hip-hop industry is designed to ensure success based on a given artist’s or company’s reputation within the industry. The project was designed to ensure Jay-Z authenticates and approves numerous aspects of the campaign. This would give the campaign an authentic Jay-Z experience, considerably improving the company’s reputation in the hip-hop industry.

In order to ensure quality, the project would use Bing’s search and map technologies. This would ensure that the campaign is of the highest standards possible, with the use of some the most innovative technology in the market.

Jay-Z (Roc Nation)

Jay-Z (Roc Nation) looks to considerably benefit from this investment idea based on sales on the hard copy realized after the launch of the online campaign using Bing. This marketing strategy has been tested in the market before and managed to deliver results. Offering free content to the public so as to increase market awareness of his autobiography would serve to ensure considerable revenue from sales. Furthermore, Jay-Z gets to control and validate every all the non-technical aspects of the campaign, giving it his identity and ensuring authenticity with his audience (Elberse and Owusu-Kesse). This would serve to increase his popularity amongst his fans and even generate a new online fan base.

This campaign would generate considerable buzz in the media, especially social media. Most social media platforms are found online and characteristically offer free advertising for Jay-Z’s autobiography. The involvement of social media would lead to increased online searches for Jay-Z, increasing his popularity within the United States.

Random House

As publishers of the book, conventional book advertising dictates that Random House take care of the marketing campaign costs. However, the company gets to have full control of the final production and design of the book, while incurring no costs for marketing. This would considerably increase the company’s profitability.

Power within the Partnership

The proposed investment idea would entail the development between the two main clients in the campaign, Microsoft (Bing) and Jay-Z (Roc Nation). However, these partners hold different types and levels of power within the partnership. Microsoft is the main client, footing the whole bill for the campaign. This would mean that Microsoft have control over the resources to be employed in the campaign.

However, the agreement with Roc Nation stipulates that Jay-Z would have to ratify non-technical aspects of the campaign. This gives Jay-Z considerable control over the direction the whole campaign takes. The campaign is pegged and centered on his autobiography and is the center piece of the campaign. This gives Jay-Z considerable power and control in the partnership.

Campaign Idea Evaluation

The campaign idea is a revolutionary 21^st Century marketing technique and strategy. Online marketing provides most businesses with instant access to the global market. Generating online trends may be difficult for the company. However, considering the popularity of the Roc Nation and Jay-Z brands, the campaign would realize considerable results within the first few weeks of its launch. The campaign seeks to promote two products at once, by using the features of the technological product (Bing Search Engine and Maps). By innovatively using the features of Bing Maps and the Bing Search Engine, users get to discover and familiarize themselves with the different features of the Bing.

On the other hand, the other hand, the campaign promotes Jay-Z’s autobiography in a unique manner. The market tends to respond well to unique and original marketing strategies. This particular strategy builds anticipation in the user’s requiring them to visit the Bing search engine at least twice a day. This exposes individuals to Jay-Z’s content more than usual.

Forecast

The nature of the techniques and strategies employed in this marketing campaign sets it apart from conventional book and online marketing strategies. The free content offered to the market builds up anticipation for the full hard cover product. Owing to the fact that the book’s content is scattered in numerous locations, it allows the users to read the content before its release. However, users do not generate complete utility from this kind of exposure to the content. Ideally a user would prefer seamless reading of the content as opposed to having to look for the content in different geographic locations. While the strategy builds anticipation in the short-run, users will have to purchase the book in the long-run. The publicity that would have been generated by the campaign would lead to a considerable following for the book. This would result in driving sales of Decoded upon release.

The nature of the campaign, by design, requires users to make regular visits to the provided campaign link to get first hand notifications on the clues to the next page that is being made available. With the chance to win a golden life-time pass to all of Jay-Z’s concerts, the campaign is sure to attract a considerable number of hip-hop enthusiasts. In order for a user to get full access to all clues, they would have to visit the campaign link at least three times in a day. This would result in a considerable increase in the number of visits and uses of the Bing Search Engine.

The exclusivity of the campaign ensures that only the parties involved benefit from the campaign. This would help Bing grab the hip-hop niche of web users in the market. This would serve to improve its positions against its rivals and competitors, Google and Yahoo! The increase in its market share would result in the increase in the usage of Bing in the long-run, as most hip-hop enthusiasts would readily use Bing as opposed to its competitors owing to the exclusivity of access to Jay-Z’s videos and opinions about the autobiography as well as the campaign.

Works Cited

Elberse, Anita and Kwame Owusu-Kesse. Droga5: Launching Jay-Z’s Decoded. Boston: Harvard Business School, 2012. Print.

Gray, Tyler. “Inside Jay-Z’s Launch of Decoded with Droga5, Bing.” 24 November 2010. FastCompany.com. Internet Source. 21 April 2015. <http://www.fastcompany.com/1704745/inside-jay-zs-launch-decoded-droga5-bing>.

Newman, Andrew A. “Find Jay-Z’s Memoir at a Bookstore, or on a Billboard.” 17 October 2010. The New York Times.Internet Source. 21 April 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/business/media/18adco.html?_r=0>.