I've failed at marketing 2 games, and then formed a company with other people, one of whom knows a few things about marketing.
The key is to do something that makes you stand out. For the big players, it's easy enough to do by throwing your weight around. For the small players, you have to look for a hack; something that nobody else is doing. Something crazy that makes people look up from their humdrum lives and take notice and say "hey, cool!".
Marketing is a continual task that never ends. Unless you manage to capture the mythical "virality" (which 99.9% of products don't), your sales will always be tied to your continued marketing effort.
The key is to do something that makes you stand out. For the big players, it's easy enough to do by throwing your weight around. For the small players, you have to look for a hack; something that nobody else is doing. Something crazy that makes people look up from their humdrum lives and take notice and say "hey, cool!".
Marketing is a continual task that never ends. Unless you manage to capture the mythical "virality" (which 99.9% of products don't), your sales will always be tied to your continued marketing effort.