Thursday, September 15, 2016

Candy Kid Press Release

A Press Release is an official statement issued to give information on particular matters e.g. Video Games! Here is the official Press Release for Retro Candy Kid and its full implementation with the assistance from @PhilipGHarris [writer, developer, designer] using MailChimp to distribute the Press Release accordingly.

Let's check it out!

MailChimp
MailChimp is an email marketing service used to directly send commercial messages, typically to a group of people, using email. MailChimp offers these main features: Campaigns | Templates | Lists | Reports:
 Campaigns   Campaigns are how you send template emails to the contacts in your MailChimp list.
 Templates   A template is an HTML file used to create the layout and basic design for a campaign.
 Lists   A MailChimp list is a powerful and flexible tool that helps you manage your contacts.
 Reports   MailChimp reports analyze clicks, opens, subscribers’ social activity, e-commerce data.

Therefore, let's use MailChimp to complete Press Release for Retro Candy Kid. Action the following tasks:
  • Get Promo Codes
  • Build Email List
  • Build Template
  • Send Campaign
Promo Codes
Generate iOS promo codes: Log in iTunes Connect. Select My Apps | Candy Kid | Features | Promo Codes.
Enter a number of Promo Codes required for Press Release (e.g. max 100) | Click Generate Codes button. Check "I have read and agree to the terms presented above". Generate Codes and download as a txt file.

Lists
MailChimp | Lists | Create List | Create List | Enter the following details to complete the list information:
 List name  CandyKidList
 Default From email address  steven_boland@hotmail.com
 Default From name  StevePro Studios
 Remind people how they signed up to your list  Enter reminder information
 Contact information for this list  Enter contact information

Next page: View subscribers | Import subscribers | CSV or tab-delimited text file | Next | Upload CSV file. Browse to CSV file and Check "I understand that my billing plan may be automatically upgraded" | Next. Match any unmatched columns: "Make a Selection" | New column name | e.g. COUPON | Save | Import.

Finally, ensure columns can be used as placeholders in Template: Settings | List fields and *|MERGE|* tags. Ensure the "Field label and type" values are aligned to the "Put this tag in your content" values!
 FULLNAME  FNAME  LNAME  COMPANY  EMAIL  COUPON
 Steven Boland  Steven  Boland  StevePro Studios  steve@stevepro.com  YY3FR7L7NNY3
 Suzanne Boland  Suzanne  Boland  FN Days Ltd  suzanne@stevepro.com  7YHALRJ39FJX
 Adriana Boland  Adriana  Boland  Stinky Inky Co.  adriana@stevepro.com  N6X4L79KKLNK
IMPORTANT: tags have maximum 10x characters thus better use "COMPANY" instead of ORGANIZATION.

Templates
MailChimp | Templates | Create Template | Code your own | Paste in code | Select | Edit code | ENTER:

Retro Candy Kid is a top-down maze chase video game inspired by the 8-bit title "Candy Kid".

Candy Mama enemies are always out to get you as you try and eat all the candy to complete the level. Simple!

Try it for yourself with this free iOS Promo Code: *|COUPON|*

Retro Candy Kid is available on mobile platforms (iOS / Android / Kindle) and PC.

You Tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEWGOwq4yAI
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/CandyKidVideoGame



Retro Candy Kid includes the following key features that were not available in the original 8-bit title:
 - All 100x levels are unlocked.
 - Double bonus pts available.
 - Giant candy for extra lives.
 - Free man every 20,000 pts.
 - Open tunnels or closed exits.
 - Avoid trees or Death trees.
 - God mode for invincibility.
 - Unlimited game continues.

Company Bio
StevePro Studios is an independent game developer that builds and publishes 80s retro arcade video games! The studio was founded by Steven Boland "SteveProXNA" in January 2007 as a "one man team of one" and is currently based in Dublin, Ireland.

Fact Sheet
The original 8-bit title Candy Kid was a "type-in" video game published by New Zealand's Sega Computer Magazine in the September 1984 issue, pages 17-18. Inspired by the Sega Retro Gaming scene, "Candy Kid" was re-written as "Retro Candy Kid" by StevePro Studios in September 2015.

Price point
 USD   0.99
 GBP   0.79
 EUR   0.99
 JPY     120
 AUD   1.49
 CAD   1.19
 NZD   1.29
 CNY   6.00

Contact
 Blog
 Email
 Phone
 StevePro Studios
 steven_boland@hotmail.com
 +353 877 541 327
 Linked In
 Twitter
 Skype
 StevePro Studios
 @SteveProXNA
 SteveProXNA

Best,
Steven Boland.
Note: *|COUPON|* placeholder in the Press Release text will be substituted with promo code from list.

Campaigns
Although you can create campaigns directly from Campaigns tab, a simpler method is through Templates:

MailChimp | Templates | Click "Edit" dropdown to right of Template saved | Create Campaign. Choose a list to get started e.g. CandyKidList. Send to entire list | Next [bottom]. Enter following Campaign Info:
 Campaign name  RetroCandyKidCampaign
 Email subject  Retro Candy Kid – Awesome Arcade Action
 From name  StevePro Studios
 From email address  steven_boland@hotmail.com

Note: leave all checkboxes unchecked except the Personalize the "To" field. Set *|FNAME|* for recipient. Next Template | Next Confirm | Review summary all correct. Finally, Prepare for launch and Send Now!
Note re-send: MailChimp | Campaigns | Click "View Report" dropdown to right of Campaign | Replicate.

Summary
After campaign is successfully sent, the main Dashboard will report all activity; which includes: 24-hour performance, Top links clicked, Subscribers with most opens, Top locations by opens and much more...!