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It is a marketing campaign designed to generate reg. Marketing is about getting the right message to the right people in a way that they prefer to hear that me

It is a marketing campaign designed to generate reg. Marketing is about getting the right message to the right people in a way that they prefer to hear that message. In this case existing users are not the right people. People who have been thinking about trying AWS but don't want to shell out any cash are the right people. It is not really alienation. They are investing money in converting people to their platform. Offering this to existing users makes no sense from that perspective. It is pretty standard across many industries to offer exclusive deals to new customers.

YooLi 16y ago
Perhaps the parent is in the same position I, and I'm sure lots of others, am in. We signed up for AWS already to check it out, but haven't used it. We are essentially the same as a new user because we currently don't subscribe to any of the paid services, but we registered too early to take advantage of this offer.
- cperciva 16y ago
  No, I'm using enough of AWS that I really wouldn't notice the free usage quota. It's the optics I care about, not the $s.
cperciva 16y ago
I understand the business argument. I just think it's a poor marketing decision. But then again, I'm HN's resident marketing ignoramus, so what do I know? ;-)
- kwamenum86 16y ago
  Fair enough. I feel like marketing is subjective unless you can back things up with concrete numbers/facts, which i can't :)
dkarl 16y ago
Marketing is about getting the right message to the right people in a way that they prefer to hear that message. In this case existing users are not the right people. That's why it's a mistake. Existing users (the wrong people) hear the message much louder than potential users, and possibly in greater numbers.
- blantonl 16y ago
  I'm sorry, but I'm unable to understand why an existing paying user should in any way, shape, or form expect to participate in a promotion to attract new users to the platform. No matter how you look at it, this is a promotion for new users. Period. These expectations are analogous to you being a paying member on some platform, and they announce a "30 days free" promotion for new members, and you demanding that you should get to participate in that promotion. Shenanigans. And just because AWS is pay as you go doesn't make this any different.
  - detst 16y ago
    Why is that "shenanigans"? I've asked to be put on promotional pricing many times as an existing user of other companies and you know what... they often give it to me. Why? Because I'm free to give my money to someone else. It's a way of showing appreciation and that they don't take you for granted. Period. (sorry, I had to) If you aren't negotiating better terms for recurring services, then you are giving money away. Promotions are just a nice bit of leverage in negotiations.
    - sp4rki 16y ago
      So you believe every Amazon customer should get in the promotion of X amount of free service for a whole year without any retention mechanism? In comparison if you ask your internet provider to bump you up from 1mbps to 2mbps (or to lower the price from 50 bucks to 40) because they have a promotion for new users, and they give it to you, providing you sign a contract for another 12 months, is not equivalent to telling the internet provider that because they are offering a free year of service (up to lets say 5 gigs of downstream bandwidth) to new customers you should do to and without a contract specifying that you're staying with the company afterwards.
rishabhverma 16y ago
Though you maybe right in the aspect that "Marketing is about getting the right message to the right people", but this way Amazon is showing that it takes its existing customers for granted.
lwhi 16y ago
If you treat your existing customers well, they'll do your bidding for you. New users are important - but if you treat your existing users well, they'll go out of their way to tell other people how great you are. I think the most effective type of marketing will always be the personal recommendation from a current user.

YooLi 16y ago

Perhaps the parent is in the same position I, and I'm sure lots of others, am in. We signed up for AWS already to check it out, but haven't used it. We are essentially the same as a new user because we currently don't subscribe to any of the paid services, but we registered too early to take advantage of this offer.

cperciva 16y ago
No, I'm using enough of AWS that I really wouldn't notice the free usage quota. It's the optics I care about, not the $s.

cperciva 16y ago

I understand the business argument. I just think it's a poor marketing decision. But then again, I'm HN's resident marketing ignoramus, so what do I know? ;-)

kwamenum86 16y ago
Fair enough. I feel like marketing is subjective unless you can back things up with concrete numbers/facts, which i can't :)

dkarl 16y ago

Marketing is about getting the right message to the right people in a way that they prefer to hear that message. In this case existing users are not the right people. That's why it's a mistake. Existing users (the wrong people) hear the message much louder than potential users, and possibly in greater numbers.

blantonl 16y ago
I'm sorry, but I'm unable to understand why an existing paying user should in any way, shape, or form expect to participate in a promotion to attract new users to the platform. No matter how you look at it, this is a promotion for new users. Period. These expectations are analogous to you being a paying member on some platform, and they announce a "30 days free" promotion for new members, and you demanding that you should get to participate in that promotion. Shenanigans. And just because AWS is pay as you go doesn't make this any different.
- detst 16y ago
  Why is that "shenanigans"? I've asked to be put on promotional pricing many times as an existing user of other companies and you know what... they often give it to me. Why? Because I'm free to give my money to someone else. It's a way of showing appreciation and that they don't take you for granted. Period. (sorry, I had to) If you aren't negotiating better terms for recurring services, then you are giving money away. Promotions are just a nice bit of leverage in negotiations.
  - sp4rki 16y ago
    So you believe every Amazon customer should get in the promotion of X amount of free service for a whole year without any retention mechanism? In comparison if you ask your internet provider to bump you up from 1mbps to 2mbps (or to lower the price from 50 bucks to 40) because they have a promotion for new users, and they give it to you, providing you sign a contract for another 12 months, is not equivalent to telling the internet provider that because they are offering a free year of service (up to lets say 5 gigs of downstream bandwidth) to new customers you should do to and without a contract specifying that you're staying with the company afterwards.

rishabhverma 16y ago

Though you maybe right in the aspect that "Marketing is about getting the right message to the right people", but this way Amazon is showing that it takes its existing customers for granted.

lwhi 16y ago

If you treat your existing customers well, they'll do your bidding for you. New users are important - but if you treat your existing users well, they'll go out of their way to tell other people how great you are. I think the most effective type of marketing will always be the personal recommendation from a current user.