Scholastic unveils marketing campaign for DH

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Early this morning, Scholastic announced “There Will Soon Be 7,” a multi-million dollar marketing campaign for the seventh and final book. Deathly Hallows will hit shelves on July 21st, with a record-breaking print run of 12 million copies, breaking the previous record set by Half-Blood Prince (10.8m).

“There Will Soon Be 7” launches on April 17th and includes the following:

  • 7 Questions of Harry Potter campaign – Beginning on April 17 and ending on July 7, 2007, Scholastic will release one question every two weeks. These are the big questions fans debate at great length online, at book clubs and in everyday conversations, and that they hope J.K. Rowling will answer in this final installment. The questions will be posted on scholastic.com and released through advertising and publicity outlets.
  • Knight Bus National Tour – On June 2nd, exactly seven weeks prior to publication, a touring Knight Bus based on the unique vehicle in the Harry Potter books will take off from New York City and travel to 40 libraries in 10 major metropolitan areas across the country. In each location where the bus stops, fans will be invited to visit the Knight Bus and share on video their thoughts and feelings about the Harry Potter books. Select video clips from each location will be uploaded for viewing and sharing on www.scholastic.com/harrypotter
  • Retail Promotions – Scholastic will send “There Will Soon Be 7” table-top easelbacks and millions of collectible bookmarks to retail accounts and libraries throughout the country. Both the easelbacks and the bookmarks will feature one of the seven questions as each is released. Between June 2nd and July 7th, “There Will Soon Be 7” countdown standees (a five-foot corrugated promotional piece featuring Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows cover art and a countdown to July 21st feature) will land in retail accounts and libraries. And finally, to celebrate the big day, Scholastic will distribute numerous tattoos for giveaways at what is sure to be a record number of Harry Potter midnight parties.