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A PIs called “widgets,” which often feature a sweepstakes or some call to action and are virally spread
across Myspace, Facebook, and Meebo. Similarly a great trailer, sometimes “unauthorized” or
seemingly user-generated on YouTube, is often seen by more people than the official trailer, which is
placed on traditional TV and shown at theaters before current movies.
Second, I’d like to know, is this a studio film with big-name stars attached or an independent film? Is it a
branded title, like American Pie, or a new indie film without any brand recognition? This is going to
determine the number of screens on which it is shown. If it is a studio movie showing on 3,000 screens
the first week, then most of the marketing budget will be spent in the two weeks prior to the film’s
release. Ads will be placed on network TV during shows like American Idol. Billboards will be displayed
as well as signs on the side of a bus — the more traditional movie marketing efforts. If it is an indie film
being shown on 50 screens, then the limited budget has to be allocated toward the more viral online
environment. If the film does well and builds a buzz, then the distributor may kick in additional marketing
funds as the number of screens increase - think Slumdog Millionaire or The King’s Speech.
Pan-media “takeovers” are becoming more commonplace, as a film’s stars and creative team blitz
multiple outlets in hopes of achieving a massive opening weekend. In one day, for example, actress
Olivia Wilde might appear on Good Morning America, cut a ribbon in a ceremony in Central Park with
local TV crews, attend a charity luncheon (photographed for the tabloids) and hit Letterman and Jon
Stewart’s The Daily Show, in the evening — all while the studio is running multiple display ads across
Yahoo! and MSN’s landing pages. The idea is that “media ubiquity” will grab the attention of an
audience whose consumption habits are becoming increasingly fragmented.
In sum, like anything, you need to analyze the market as well as your product and figure where you’ll get
the best ROI (return on investment). And because technology is changing so quickly, you need to
constantly research new ways to get the word out.
Busi ress C ase Q uest ns i
Business case questions come in all shapes and sizes, but they usually fall into two categories: (1)
number cases and (2) business strategy and operations cases.
N u mer bC ases: There are pure number cases that are really just math problems you are expected
to do in your head. There are also “case-like” numbers cases, which seem like strategy cases but are
not. Case-like number cases are about numbers. They sound simple, but most people get them wrong
because they don’t listen to the question and try to turn it into a strategy case.
N P ue rnu m er b t Aases o i rhea
ryu
A ) The total widget market is $170 million and our sales are $30 million. What percentage of the market
share do we hold?
B ) Our total manufacturing costs are $20 million. With that we can make 39,379 units. What is our
approximate cost per unit?
C ) Our total costs are $75,000. Labor costs make up 25% of the total costs. How much are our labor
costs?
D ) You bought a stock for $36 a share. Today it jumped 6%. How much is your stock worth?
E ) You raised $3.5 million for a start-up. Your commission is 2.5%. What’s your commission in dollars?
F ) What’s 7 x 45?
p ) The number of current outstanding shares for UKL Inc. was 41,084,000. Institutional investors hold
25,171,000 shares. What is the approximate percentage of shares held by institutions?