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Health & Fitness

AMAZON'S DRONE DELIVERY. IS IT JUST A BIG MARKETING STUNT? (Atlanta Video Production)

I'm the first to admit that I was beyond impressed when I saw Amazon's announcement of their new "Amazon Prime Air" flying drone delivery system.  Now that I've had a chance to think about it, I'm beginning to think it's one of the greatest marketing ploys of all-time.  As an Atlanta Video Production Company, I say: Kudos to you, Jeff Bezos!

In case you missed it, last Sunday, Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, was featured on '60 Minutes' where he unveiled a new home delivery system called, "Amazon Prime Air".  These self-guiding, self-sensing, octocopters are supposed to deliver packages in 30 minutes or less.  Of course, Mr. Bezos stated that this technology is still years in the making.  But, is it?  Let's look at some facts:


The Timing
Does it surprise anyone that Amazon made their spectacular announcement on Thanksgiving weekend?  After all, this is the same weekend that shoppers go berserk in the effort to find just the right treasure to display under their tree.  What better timing for Bezos to remind customers that Amazon.com allows you to buy just about anything on planet earth from the comfort of your couch?


The Risk
There are the obvious risks: a drone landing on someone's head, crashing into traffic on the interstate, smashing through a window next to a sleeping baby.  What about other risks?  I don't know about you, but I can probably think of at least 10 friends who'd get one hell of a giggle out of shooting one of Amazon's drones out of the sky.  It'd be some sort of weird fusion of 'Duck Dynasty' meets 'Blade Runner'.  Additionally, I can see teenage boys smiling with delight at the chance to whack the flying-electric-piñata to pieces and stake their claim at YouTube immortality.  


The Laws
Have you ever looked up the laws regarding the operation of remote control planes and/or helicopters?  They can be rather intimidating.  Not to mention they can vary from state-to-state, county-to-county, and city-to-city,  For Amazon to comply with each and every variation of these laws in every jurisdiction would be a formidable task.  Even if they complied with the laws and obtained the proper permits for each jurisdiction, they would still have to address the insurance requirements for each and every jurisdiction.  What a nightmare!


Their Own Video
The video that Amazon submitted to 60 Minutes was impressive.....at first.  The buzzing-whirly-gig in the video lands in what appears to be 'the customers' backyard.  Really, Amazon?  You couldn't even land at their front door?  That's a not only a bad editing choice, but it leads me to believe that the "drone" was being operated by a remote control operator onsite.  That kind of undermines Amazon's entire pitch!  The video has since gone viral.  As of today, 12-5-13, the video has been viewed almost 12,000,000 times in just 4 days.

(SEE THE PRIME AIR VIDEO HERE)


I hope for '60 Minutes' sake that the story is true.  The last thing they need is another bad reporting story.  It was just a few weeks ago that they aired a flawed story regarding the events on September 11, 2012 in Benghazi.  Laura Logan has since taken a leave of absence and the show suffered a significant ding to their credibility.  (It's still my FAVORITE show on television!)

All-in-all, to me, it looks like Amazon has pulled off a viral video / marketing stunt that's sure to increase their sales and get people talking;  P.T. Barnum would be proud.  Who knows, maybe I'm wrong, but for now you can put me down in the skeptics column.  


Blog posted by: Jennifer Gullick

#TAGS
Atlanta Marketing Videos | Atlanta Promotional Videos | Atlanta Viral Videos
  

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