Marketing

Even if you have a great team, smooth operation, and a wonderful game, you won't get anywhere without somebody knowing that you exist. Promoting your company, like any business, is required from day one. You have to think in terms of the here-and-now, the long road to completion, and the period after success when you're on store shelves.

For each step in promoting yourself, you have to determine what it is you want from being noticed. If it's early in the project you might not have enough to show, but it's always useful to at least set up a website and attract visitors. Once development begins, you can expect to start creating contacts with others and giving out irresistible tidbits of information to pique interest. And then you have to think of ways to maximize exposure once you get a deal, even in addition to the marketing that a publisher might provide.

Blatant and unsupportable hype are not good marketing tactics. Customers will know if you are blowing hot air, and you should not attempt to hype any feature that is not implemented or supported by a demo of some sort. Having said that, minor hype is okay so long as it is based on realistic plans. There is a difference between claiming, "This product is better than anything out there!" and suggesting, "This product has some innovative features that make it stand out!" Tactful wording is the key.

Achieving Your Goals