Build Buzz with Your Product or Service? PREPOSTEROUS!

Radiohead album bets on fast release

You've probably heard about the new Radiohead album release "In Rainbows" which is being offered online as a download for whatever you want to pay.

First, please go sample the music and buy if you like it. If this experiment works, music buyers everywhere will have shown the music industry what we want -- and that it works.

I've always said that marketing actually offers the first level of your product or service, even if it's only information about the product. Said another way, "how a product or service talks about itself to a market is one of it's most important features."

To me, the most choice tidbit from the article is this:

"Typically a band of Radiohead's stature would be signed to a major recording label, which would wait several months before releasing the music to allow time for buzz to develop and plan a tour and marketing campaign."

The assumptions is that the record labels have something to offer other than the music that has more value for the fans than the music itself. The thinking is that it is somehow better to hold the music back for a period of time.

We appreciate the thought, but just put the music out there. We'll handle the buzz form there.

Are you holding back your service or product? Are you trying to find ways for visitors to your Web site to sample/engage your offerings?

If you are, how is offering a product or service as a marketing tool different from offering a product or a service? Aren't we saying that marketing is actually delivering the first level product or service?

Hmmm. Maybe we should get those guys more involved in the development. Maybe we shouldn't hire marketers from marketing school, but hire marketers that have industry expertise.