Beyoncé Marketing Case Study Critique
In late 2013, singer/songwriter Beyoncé Knowles Carter (AKA Beyoncé) released her self-titled fifth album, Beyoncé. The release occurred at a pivotal time in Beyoncé’s life, less than a year after the birth of her first child and during her Mrs. Carter Show World Tour. On 28 August 2014, Anita Elberse and Stacie Smith of Harvard Business School published a case study on the album release, also entitled Beyoncé. This critique explores five marketing elements from that case study: product, partnerships, process, promotion, and place.
The main product identifiable in the case study is the album itself. Beyoncé had a strong vision of what she wanted the album to be: a body of work, meaning one cohesive album rather than releasing singles. She also wanted it to be something meaningful – a surprise gift “from me to my fans”. Beyoncé wanted each song to be accompanied by a video, to further express the imagery behind each song.
The study also suggests that Beyoncé herself is a product, an idea supported by the fact the album is self-titled. Moreover, in her 5-part mini-documentary series on YouTube and on Beyoncé.com, Beyoncé talks about and shares moments from her own life, including home videos and clips of her daughter and husband. As director Jake Nava explains, “It’s important for Beyoncé to sort of feel that she was sharing with her fans how far she’s developed as an artist and a woman”. This shows that the album really is a part of Beyoncé and that possibly the “gift” and product she refers to is her fans’ feeling of connection to her life.
One of the key partnerships that enabled the production of Beyoncé was the relationship between Sony’s Columbia Records (Beyoncé’s label) and Parkwood Entertainment (Beyoncé’s management and entertainment company). Both companies agreed on splitting the budget and revenues for distribution, marketing, and music production. During 2013, the year Beyoncé was released, Beyoncé signed a deal with soft drink company Pepsi. This partnership was beneficial in funding her projects and promoting the Mrs. Carter Show World Tour, which ran from April 2013 to March 2014.
Beyoncé’s partnership with Pepsi also saw her song ‘Grown Woman’ (an extra video on Beyoncé) debut in a Pepsi commercial. During her campaigns the making of the album was hidden from the public eye and media outlets, so the release of this song may have been a subtle hint that something bigger was to come. Other partnerships enabling the album’s release included those between Sony and the Parkwood team, technology company Apple and social media giant Facebook, which also owns Instagram.
Prior to the Beyoncé release, Parkwood general manager Lee Callaghan-Longo, head of marketing Jim Sabey, and two Sony representatives met with executives at Apple to discuss how to prevent the album being leaked. One process involved launching it exclusively on the online platform iTunes. The team chose to work with Apple because the company has a reputation “of sheer secrecy” and being “the number one music retailer in the world”. At the agreed launch time, Beyoncé’s album took over the iTunes homepage which could not be missed by any users, regardless of whether they were intentionally searching for Beyoncé. The same team, along with Parkwood’s head of digital, Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood, met with a team at Facebook who was also entrusted with safekeeping the plans of the album and facilitating the launch process.
The promotional process included the simultaneous launch of the album on iTunes and Facebook, including 30-second previews of the music videos and the Facebook notification to fans. This notification led them to the first part to her mini-documentary series. Each promotional aspect also featured links to iTunes and Beyoncé’s website making the album easily accessible. These approaches employed direct marketing to Beyoncé’s fans on global platforms. The only limitation to an online launch was the risk of technical glitches.
The methods used to promote Beyoncé were untraditional and arguably risky. With zero promotion prior to the release, there was no way to gauge how fans and the media would respond. With evolving technologies and increasing competition, Parkwood displayed ambition by introducing the album in such a unique way. Beyoncé’s surprise release generated immense hype, breaking the Guinness World Record for the fastest-selling album on iTunes with 430,000 digital copies purchased within the first 24 hours. Despite the potential risks, it is likely that Beyoncé was able to succeed due to the size of her following and celebrity status.
Due to the significant hype surrounding the production of Beyoncé’s mini-documentary series, Beyoncé was able to reach a broader audience. One YouTube user commented “When she said that they were just having fun while making the album, I definitely heard it. That's why it stuck out to me so much and I really like it. I'd have to say this album really made me a Beyoncé fan”. While other artists have attempted the same tactic of a surprise release, none have been as successful as Beyoncé.
Due to the risk of leaks and the exclusive online launch of Beyoncé, the album could not be sent to retailers until after its launch. This caused hostility among retailers, who were unable to prepare for the album and therefore potentially lost sales. Furthermore, it increased the waiting time for international markets to be able to stock physical copies of Beyoncé. However, the team managed to pull off a quick manufacturing turnaround; physical copies were ready to be sold by 20 December 2013 at Walmart stores throughout the United States. Beyoncé furthered the promotion to the general public by visiting a Walmart store to purchase the album and giving shoppers a $50 gift voucher.
Target, who had previously partnered with Beyoncé, refused to sell the album because of marketing decisions to prioritize iTunes. Erica Julkowski, a spokesperson for Target, stated “While there are many aspects that contribute to our approach and we have appreciated partnering with Beyoncé in the past, we are primarily focused on offering CDs that will be available in a physical format at the same time as all other formats”. This outcome would likely have caused regular Target customers to shop elsewhere for the album.
The launch of Beyoncé involved several smart decisions. Sony and Parkwood relied heavily on their partnerships with Facebook and Apple to complete the launch. An advantage of partnering with these companies, allowed for Beyoncé to reach a global market without previous promotion. A less favorable outcome may have occurred had the team chosen unreliable or untrustworthy partners. Arguably the only downside to the Beyoncé marketing strategy was the loss of a good relationship with the previous partner and stockist, Target. Ultimately, Beyoncé was able to successfully sell herself and her album and communicate the message that she has grown both “as an artist and a woman”. Despite a lack of publicity prior to the launch, the hype and extensive promotion that followed made up for it, exceeding all precedents.
