This document outlines a marketing strategy for the launch of the new Star Wars Battlefront console game. The strategy is divided into three phases: 1) Raise anticipation through teaser advertising and social media seeding to generate interest; 2) Announce the official launch through an event and direct marketing; 3) Drive sales after launch with advertising, promotional offers, and retail partnerships. Research showed that immersion, role-playing, and escapism are key features for console gamers. The target audience is primarily male adolescents and adult males. The strategy aims to position the game as immersive and engaging to invite consumers to feel like they are within the virtual world. Success will be measured through awareness, attendance, sales and testing different promotional

1. Launch Strategy for Star Wars Battlefront
gaming product
Dominic Oliver
All rights reserved ©2016

2. Marketing Strategy Rationale
Contents
Marketing Strategy Rationale.................................................................................................................2
Terms of reference..............................................................................................................................2
Planning basis......................................................................................................................................2
Strategic planning model....................................................................................................................3
Description of phases of marketing activity .......................................................................................3
Conclusion...........................................................................................................................................4
References ..............................................................................................................................................5
Appendix 1: Detailed Marketing Strategy...............................................................................................7
Terms of reference
The purpose of this marketing strategy is to create demand for a new themed console game;
StarWars Battlefront.
Initial research into the product category and target market found that ‘immersion’ within a
virtual world of a console game is a key feature for consumers, providing a powerful experience
when consumers are effectively engaged by the game (Brown & Cairns, 2004). Immersive games set
out to create a virtual reality, which at its most powerful, allows the “virtual” frame of the
environment to fall away leading to a temporary suspension of real world consciousness (Calleja,
2007). During gameplay this effect can lead to the participant adopting and believing that they are a
persona within the imaginary world (Calleja, 2011). Role play is another important feature giving a
player a functional role and initial ‘status level’ within a loosely structured hierarchical community.
Players gain experience and acquire higher skill levels through gameplay, raising their level and
status within the game. In this way, role and status contribute to the structure, development and
order of a community (Pan, Kuo & Lee, 2007).
These features – immersion in the virtual world, or distracting/engaging the player through
role play & status combine to form a framework of escapism (Calleja, 2010). Further studies adding
weight to the case for escapism have explored the role of excessive gaming as a coping mechanism
for responding to an increase in real life pressures (Kardefelt-Winther, 2014).
Planning basis
This strategy therefore aims to position StarWars Battlefront as being immersive and
engaging, seeking to invite the consumer to imagine that the game pivots around them as an
individual. The target audience for console gaming is primarily male adolescents, as they have been
found to spend more time gaming than the average person (Griffiths, Davies & Chappell, 2004).
However the strategy will also aim to target a wider audience of men in general, as contrasting
evidence has been found to suggest a segment of adult males who game as much or more than
adolescents (Griffiths, Davies & Chappell, 2004).

3. Strategic planning model
The model applied to plan the marketing strategy is the ‘why-how-what’ or golden circle tool
advocated by Simon Sinek in one of the ‘most viewed’ TED presentations (Sinek, 2009). The Sinek
model provides a simplified framework to be sure that objectives or ‘mission’ precede strategy,
which in turn shapes the planning of tactics and marketing activity in a clear and logical sequence.
Description of phases of marketing activity
The first phase of the strategy is to raise anticipation for the launch of the product. Specific
tactics and activities include the use of “teaser advertising” to generate product awareness and
interest. Under this advertising approach the consumer is teased with very little information in an
advertisement, with-holding further details at this stage to create an information gap, inviting a
need and desire to know in the mind of the consumer (Trehan & Mann, 2012). This has been shown
to be highly effective in generating word of mouth discussion about a new product (Thorbjørnsen et
al, 2015). Social media marketing also features through the “seeding” of targeted social media
networks to generate discussion about a new product, with the aim of this discussion spreading to a
wider audience (Hinz et al, 2011). Successful seeding activity selects well connected, influential
individuals to participate in a product trial. The Hawthorne effect can apply whereby persuading an
individual that they are privileged in trialling something new can lead to the forming of a positive
opinion regardless of the actual experience of the trial itself (Kirby & Marsden, 2006). The activity
sets out to generate positive reviews of the game. Using the positive effect of opinion leaders is vital
in transferring information to the average consumer (Evans and Fill, 2000). The success of this phase
can be assessed using studies of spontaneous awareness of the new product, prompted awareness
of it, positive preview product reviews or comments.
The second phase is to announce the official product launch. Event marketing is used to
create a “launchday” event, cited as highly effective in gaming (Johnston, 2007). Launch events can
Mission
First phase
Raise
anticipation
Second
phase
Launch
Third phase
Drive sales

4. also act as an opportunity to communicate key information and begin to push sales to the consumer
(Hoyle, 2002). It can also be effective to reach out to known prospective customers using database
marketing. This approach collects and uses personal customer data to increase sales through
promoting directly to individuals to encourage commitment and loyalty (Tao & Yeh, 2003).
Furthermore, database marketing at scale can allow market segmentation through analysis of
behaviour and product spend by individual customers to group them into targetable segments
(Kahan, 1998). Database marketing activity could be optimised through a focus on customers within
the target audience who have previously purchased similar products from game developer
Electronic Arts. Thirdly Kotler & Mindak (1978) stress that PR can play a role, working hand in hand
with marketing to create newsworthy information about the launch. Success can be measured
through prompted awareness of launch date, queuing & attendance at launches.
The third and final phase will be to drive product sales following launch. This will be
achieved partly through advertising applying a clear and obvious ‘call to action’ (CTA). This applies
the principle that at this stage awareness and interest have been established, so consumers now
need to know what to do rather than what to think (Smith, 2006). It is considered the centrepiece of
social media marketing, which suggests that customers need to be prompted to perform a specific
action (Smith, 2006). Two promotional offers can be tested against each other through appropriate
marketing channels such as website banners. Performance can be improved through the most
effective offer becoming the ‘lead offer’ after careful measurement and analysis of early results.
Thirdly a partnering relationship with large scale retail distributors can also be pursued, this has
been shown to increase productivity and efficiency in distribution, leading to improved sales volume
(Lynagh & Poist, 1984). Success measures are sales by offer, results of the testing of offers & retail
volume sold by targeted partnering retailer(s).
Conclusion
In conclusion, this marketing strategy has aimed to provide a carefully planned and detailed
methodology to create demand for a new StarWars Battlefront console game product. The
marketing tactics and activities proposed have been phased in a logical sequence to raise
anticipation, deliver a successful launch then follow through to generate product sales.

5. References
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Calleja, G. (2007). Digital game involvement, a conceptual model. Games and Culture, 2(3),
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Calleja, G. (2010). Digital games and escapism. Games and Culture, 5(4), 335-353.
Calleja, G. (2011). In game: From immersion to incorporation. Massachusetts: MIT Press.
Evans, M., & Fill, C. (2000). Extending the communication process: the significance of
personal influencers in UK motor markets. International Journal of Advertising, 19(3), 377-396.
Griffiths, M. D., Davies, M. N., & Chappell, D. (2014). Online computer gaming: a comparison
of adolescent and adult gamers. Journal of Adolescence, 27(1), 87-96.
Hinz, O., Skiera, B., Barrot, C., & Becker, J. U. (2011). Seeding strategies for viral marketing:
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Hoyle, L. H. (2002). Event marketing: How to successfully promote events, festivals,
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Johnston, M. A. (2007). A review of the application of event studies in marketing. Academy
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Kahan, R. (1998). Using database marketing techniques to enhance your one-to-one
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Kardefelt-Winther, D. (2014). The moderating role of psychosocial well-being on the
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Kirby, J., & Marsden, P. (2006). Connected marketing: the viral, buzz and word of mouth
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Kotler, P., & Mindak, W. (1978). Marketing and public relations. Journal of Marketing, 42(4),
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Lynagh, P. M., & Poist, R. F. (1984). Managing physical distribution/marketing interface
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Pan, Y., Kuo, L., & Lee, J. (2007). Sociability Design Guidelines for the Online Gaming
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Sinek, S. (2009). Start With Why. London: Penguin
Thorbjørnsen, H., Ketelaar, P., Van't Riet, J., & Dahlén, M. (2015). How Do Teaser
Advertisements Boost Word of Mouth about New Products?. Journal of Advertising research, 55(1),
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Tao, Y. H., & Yeh, C. C. R. (2003). Simple database marketing tools in customer analysis and
retention. International Journal of Information Management, 23(4), 291-301.

6. Trehan, K, & Maan, G. S. (2012). Teaser Campaigns: An Effective Advertising Execution for
Varied Goods, Services and Ideas. Journal of Mass Communication and Journalism, 2(11).
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7. Appendix 1: Detailed Marketing Strategy