Harry Potter: the marketing of a success

JK Rowling took her time to wrote the history of Harry Potter because she started to write it when she was an English Teacher in Portugal in the 90′s. Later, she decided to come back and she moved in Edinburgh. In 1996, Bloomsbury accept to publish her story. The first three books were a great success and at the fourth, it was a phenomenon all around the world. Her book has been translated in 60 languages.

The 21st of July, the last book is going to be sold in shop, and it is an important events for a lot of fans.

Because these books are a real success, many directors have decided to make films. Some rumors had said that JK Rowling had played a large role in the choice of the actors. She wanted that the film was a “British one” with British actors.

Is there a risk to produce this kind of movies? The main risk is that fans are really disappointed by the film because it doesn’t respect the story of the book. For Harry Potter, Chris Columbus worked with JK Rowling; this risk was mainly treated. Moreover, the problem could be the targer. In fact, Harry Potter should seduce a large part of children but many teenagers and young adults love the story. The announcement of the film had to do the same.  

Here is the trailer of the first film:

In my opinion, this film and the book are mainly for children. This film is introducing the childhood of Harry Potter and what can happen if Lord Voldemort become alive. It is not really a dramatic one.

The 4th one is more dramatic because there is a death and it is introducing the return Lord Voldemort. The story is targeting teenagers and young adults. Moreover, this is the same actor so we can see the evolution, the maturity.

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These films are a real success. People want to see them. But there are a lot of others products. For children, there is the set of magical articles . There are also many video games (for Play Station, the XBox…:

 

Moreover, for the fans, it is possible to decorate the rooms with Harry Potter: you can buy wallpapers, bedclothes …

Finally, JK Rowling wants to keep a private life and give few interviews. But, at the launch of the 6th book, she created a magical evenment because she organised, at minight, a private meeting with some fans at the Edinburgh Castle. All the magic is still there…