Assess the importance of
marketing in the media area you have studied.
When producing a film,
the marketing aspect can include magazines, commercials, billboards,
merchandise, brand deals, and more. Without marketing, a film will not be able
to gain a following, determine profitability, or decide the most successful
time to release the film and where. The importance of marketing can be seen
specifically in these several successful films: Beauty and the Beast, Black
Panther, Furious 7, and spider-man homecoming. Marketing is a key component, as
without an audience a film will not be able to profit.
In 2017, Disney produced a live-action Beauty and the Beast
and although this classic Disney tale was already a staple in cinema, Disney
needed to gain a following and get fans excited for the film. As a Disney
movie, they could take advantage of the large child following by producing
Belle dolls, dresses, and other toys to get the kids excited for the movie to
come out, this would be an example of merchandising. Additionally, they used
cross-promotion of the film with a special edition on ‘The Bachelor’ hosted by
the stars, an example of corporate synergy as Disney owns ABC. This increased
the reach of the film to a wider audience of adults and teens who would be
watching the bachelor and possibly reminiscing on the Disney tale they watched
as a child. By utilizing these different marketing strategies Disney was able
to create a wide following for the film, ensuring theatres would be full-on
opening day, and that the movie would profit. This marketing was essential to
the film's success as it worldwide made $1,263,521,126 (1.3 billion) from the
merchandise from the ticket sales alone not incorporating the profit from the
merchandise.
Even in the increasingly popular world of marvel, the film
produced in 2017, Spider-Man Homecoming needed to be marketed to profit and
fill theatres come release day. With a mission to gain a following for this
upcoming movie, one tactic was a partnership with the popular cereal brand
cinnamon toast crunch. By cooperating with a different organization marvel was
able to get fans excited for the movie and let them know it would be coming out
soon. The release of merchandise was also a major way that this film ensured a
fan base for when it did release. One example of merchandising was the release
of a new Spiderman game for the ps4, by releasing this game before the movie
came out, fans from the marvel universe were able to excitedly anticipate the
release of the movie. Cross-promotion was also used in a merchandising
collaboration with Target which created a younger kid fan base as well as the
teen's video gaming, with children's spiderman toys to excite the younger
viewers as well.
In 2018 Disney took a
different approach to how they decided to market Black panther. They had
decided to market using cross channeling. The object was to get the name
everywhere and quickly. Disney used a bunch of different styles such as social
media, mobile apps, websites, and word-of-mouth recommendations. Social media
picked up the news when during an NBA finals game some of the filmings for the
trailer were done. It traveled due to the large audience attending the game.
This form of cross platforming got the targeted audience excited for the film's
completion and debut. Lexus made a special commercial drawing inspiration from
Black Panther to reveal the 2018 Lexus LS 500. The cross between these two
companies was an excellent way to market the movie's release. It worked out
well because of the same style used in the commercial as in the film. Lexus
used a car chase to keep the same action aspect as the movie is.
At the trailer launch event
(Road to Furious 7) a red-carpet event was held to spur excitement for the
franchise's 7th film. The objective of this was to give the fans a chance to
ask the cast any questions they had about the movie to increase their
enthusiasm for the film's opening. The main character's motto is heavily based
on family, and it stays the same throughout the previous 6 movies, so long-term
fans of the franchise will feel welcomed with the interactive Q&A at the
event. Universal Studios also marketed the movie with a video game
cross-promotion; the company Forza Horizon created a special edition game
called “Forza Horizon 2 presents Fast and Furious 7.” I am a long-time fan of
the movies and the video game promotion raised my eagerness for the film's
release even more.
When looking into the
marketing strategies used for high grossing films like Beauty and the Beast,
Spiderman Homecoming, Black Panther, and Fast 7 they utilize a lot of the same
tactics. By creating merchandise and cooperating with several different
organizations these films were able to build a large following leading up to
the release dates. Even these film concepts that undoubtedly would be popular
with fans of the marvel universe, Disney princesses and the Fast and Furious
franchise had to be presented to fans to get them excited for the release and
to show them that the movie is being released. After analyzing the marketing
strategies of these wildly successful films, it is seen how essential the
marketing process is for all films big or small, and new concepts or old.
Personally, part of the excitement for a new film is the anticipation for its
release and the associated merchandise that comes with it.
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