Skip to ContentGo to accessibility pageKeyboard shortcuts menu
OpenStax Logo
Principles of Marketing

In the Spotlight

Principles of MarketingIn the Spotlight

A close-up of teardrop and round Swarovski crystals hanging from a chandelier.
Figure 10.1 A new product’s success is dependent on the product development cycle and why consumers adopt new products. New product development involves a process of stages. (credit: “Chandelier” by Drew Coffman/flickr, CC BY 2.0)

Swarovski, a well-known company that specializes in crystal cutting, developed a campaign around diversity and acceptance a few years ago in an effort to reach worldwide customers. One such campaign that was launched during the holiday season in China focused on the Advent calendar despite the fact that the observance of Advent is primarily a Western tradition. If you’re not familiar with Advent calendars, they’re a type of calendar that counts down the days from December 1 to December 25, Christmas day. On each day in December, you open a pouch or flap on the calendar where a small candy or toy is included. Swarovski took the concept to a whole new level.

The Swarovski Advent calendar retailed for $458 and contained 25 individual compartments with Swarovski crystals. You might be thinking that the price is a little high, but think again—the market supported the price, and the calendars sold out quickly. While the physical Advent calendars took off in the market, so did the digital version. With the digital calendar, users would play interactive games, earn game cards, and then swap the cards with other people. After they collected seven unique cards, they could turn them in to Swarovski for a gift.

Later in this chapter, we’re going to explore some measurement metrics for determining the success of new product launches, but one immediate indicator that a product launch was successful is a quick sellout. For Swarovski, the fact that their Advent calendar sold out so quickly is a testament to the successful product launch.1

Citation/Attribution

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

Want to cite, share, or modify this book? This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License and you must attribute OpenStax.

Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/principles-marketing/pages/1-unit-introduction
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a digital format, then you must include on every digital page view the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/principles-marketing/pages/1-unit-introduction
Citation information

© Jan 9, 2024 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.