How to Crack Steam's Monopoly in Digital Games Distribution

There's been a lot of talk recently about Steam having a monopoly in the digital distribution of games. Well, with about 60% market share that may be even true in the realm of PC and Mac games. However, the market is stirring. The digital distribution business is just too interesting and attractive a market to let one have it all. Traditional retailers, publishers and media companies are gearing up to get their share.

While I didn't exactly count it seems that a new digital distribution platform is popping up every month. It will be interesting to see how well all the newcomers will fare and how they are going to crack Steam's monopolistic market stance. And Steam isn't exactly sleeping. They just relaunched the entire service with new features and UI.

The service around digital distribution is getting more complex and involving. The introduction of more and more community features makes each platform even stickier. Assuming that this will increase consumer loyalty even further it will take much more than simply setting up a new digital distribution platform and providing a simple download service.

Instead, new competitors need to come up with a strong service, exclusive content and a host of comfort features like hassle-free installation or automatic patches to build a unique market positioning and to acquire and more importantly retain customers. There are examples that are taking different approaches to this: for example GamersGate is introducing its loyalty program with membership discounts and cash back concepts. Good old Games on the other hand seems to successfully build its own niche by focusing on gaming classics only. Additionally they are offering a strong service with uniform global pricing and by waiving any DRM.

Still, getting people away from Steam is not going to be easy. Probably the easiest option is to make users buy at multiple platforms.

Another growing issue is that there is no dedicated marketing space that brings together potential consumers with the new download platforms. Additionally, growing service complexity, privacy issues and different portfolios make it difficult for consumers to compare and choose. New online services with focus on digital content attempt to close this gap but there is still way to go.

The digital market is just about to become really big. My guess is that in 2010 we will see some real movement here - both from business but also from the consumer side. There is lots of room in the market for new participants. There are many areas of the online shopping experience that need innovation and offer potential for a unique positioning. To just name a few that come to my mind:

- The individual management of digital rights: consumers will want to resell, borrow or rent their digital properties as well.

- Integration with social networks to fully use the potential of social gaming and user generated content.

- Additional convenience features like fully automatic updates and installation, save game hosting and transfer, achievements.

And considering Steam's monopoly; I don't see it as a hindrance but rather I believe in the power of Schumpeter's "creative destruction" that will see market, competition and innovation grow. In the end we, the gamers, will win:-)

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How Social Media Destroys Your Product Launch

It is clear that social media is here to stay. It has proven to accelerate the success and stature of many pop culture icons, media campaigns, and viral videos. The question is will it work for you and your product launch?

We have all felt the pressure to create an account and start posting, but how are you applying social media to your launch campaigns? Did you try an integration strategy and experience limited results? Have you avoided it entirely because it sounds too confusing?

No matter your opinion, it is important to remember that social media is a value-add to your launch campaign and not a distraction. Here are the answers to some of the common questions about how to combine social media and product launch strategy.

Q: I just created my Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube accounts. I'm ready to begin the sequencing for my product launch. What should I do now?

A: Whoa! The first thing you should do is slow down...and re-think your strategy.

Q: What do you mean? I thought social media was the best way to get the message out about my information product. Why can't I start posting tweets like crazy?

A: Let me explain. First, there are a lot of platforms available. There are the big ones: Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, and there are many others such as Viddler and Four Square. There are probably hundreds of different social media tools available.

If you try to engage every platform at once, you will quickly see how challenging it is to manage them all. In essence, each new account you create becomes a "digital mouth to feed". Once you make a new profile you must feed it with continuous content. You have to write articles, microblog, tweet, and post at a steady rate.

Worst case scenario, you end up demoting yourself from business owner to social media manager. My advice is be very careful and deliberate with your social media strategy so that it doesn't overwhelm you and limit the success of your campaign.

Is it good to have a Twitter account? Yes. Is it good to have a Facebook account? Yes. If you are using social media as part of your product launch strategy think about the best integration method. What hashtags should you use? Which platforms are the most popular for your target market? Remember that it doesn't do your launch campaign any good if no one is viewing and engaging with your content.

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Is the Perfect Sale Possible?

To make money by selling something, there are two major ways to have an advantage: taking people's problems away or helping them achieve their dreams. Most people are aware of their problems and know exactly what their dreams are, but don't have a clue on how to turn the desire into reality. When you have the solution available, just speak to your customer's emotions, and you will have a sale.

Prior writing the text -- the sales letter -- to sell your product, you need to understand what really is your market, and what kind of emotional approach should motivate the purchase. The two most used motivational aspects related to emotions are ambition and pain.

After determining exactly what your market is and knowing if you'll approach them by ambition or pain, create or select products or services that solves your customer's problems, desires and expectations.

If you are successful identifying what your market want, and find the right approach, people will be glad to buy from you. To help this sale happen, show your potential customer you know how it feels to be in their shoes and that you know their problem better than they do. It will generate rapport and they will be happy to give you their credit card.

Even knowing each and every aspect of the problem you plan to solve, don't assume you are the biggest expert about it on the world. Always keep researching and studying your prospects, a they may deliver you a secret you would miss if you didn't hear them.

Knowing and mastering these techniques, making the perfect sale is easy and way closer to reality than ever.

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Why a Product Launch Fails

Product launches are sensitive operations, and like all operations some things may go wrong during any of the many phases. In this article we will look at some of the most common mistakes that may cause a launch to fail.

Product launch mistake number 1: You didn't write your own email copy

During your product launch you must strive to stand out. Never send out the same promo email everyone is sending, if you do that, you will blend in and that is the last thing you need during a new product launch.

Launch mistake number 2: You didn't review the product

It is absolutely crucial that you find out as much information as you can about the product you are launching. Use every tool at your disposal to do so. Don't pick the results from the data you like and ignore the bad yet true results that may come up during your research.

Product launch mistake number 3: You hyped up your promotion

Always be honest with your email promotions and don't send spam like many other companies do.

Launch mistake number 4: you didn't have your subscribers' interests at heart

Don't try to be like other marketers, having selling as your ultimate goal. This will eventually cause your subscribers to drift away from the constant pressure to buy. Instead try to provide value from time to time and don't try to sell with every email you send.

Product launch mistake number 5: You didn't offer any bonuses

One way to stand out from your competitors is to offer a bonus with your new product. Failing to do so may not cause a failure of the launch, but not doing it is a mistake.

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How a Product Launch Manager Can Help You Take Your Business to the Next Level

OK... So you want to know what a product launch manager can do for you?

If you want to take your business to the next level then a launch of a new or evergreen product is something you should definitely be considering

You know what? Before I became a product launch manager, I asked the same question. So when I was offered the opportunity of doing a full-on launch with a group of now fellow product launch managers, I grabbed it. Think about how successful other on line businesses are, how they seem to ramp up their revenue with seeming ease and how they manage this is in a relatively short space of time.

You need to get hold of the power strategies for success that these guys are using, many of which flow from multiple product launches. You wouldn't be reading this if you weren't doing some background checking on what this process involves so here's how it happened for me...

I have 4 friends who are all product launch managers and probably just like you I had a product to launch. So we got to chatting and pretty soon I had a product launch team on my hands. Even now, as a product launch manager myself, I would still get a fresh pair of eyes to look over my launch because it's too easy to miss opportunities when one is so close to the plan.

Anyway, I digress... I was particularly impressed by the fact that these PLMs were not just in it to make a hit by earning some quick cash. They wanted to form a long-term working relationship with my company.

Here are just some of the benefits I got from having my team of product launch managers and indeed the benefits you can expect from launching your new product...

· They brought a fresh perspective and looked at the bigger picture

· They were able to optimize the product by focusing it on the core market

· They were able to identify the pre-existing assets in the business and leverage them to the max

· They developed the pre-launch story and established a theme for it

· They wrote tons and tons of copy for email campaigns, websites and blogs

· They brought their project management skills to bear to ensure that the first and subsequent launches we ran together went off smoothly

· They only got paid when they made money for me [after the initial set up fee, of course]

Warning: One thing I learned early on is that an expert team of product launch managers is just that...expert. So don't try to second-guess them.

Three Tips on How to Market a New Product   Review of Auto Click Profits   Product Launch Tactics - Using Autoresponders to Boost Your Product Launches   The Best Ways to Launch a Product Online   Launching A New Product? 5 Necessary Questions to Ask