DigitalLA hosted a crowd of nearly 300 for a recent “Movie Marketing: Online, Social, Mobile” panel on the Fox lot. Industry experts from Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox, and Lionsgate discussed the evolving process of integrated online marketing campaigns, the importance of online influencers and the critical need to know who your target audience is for a specific release.There is no ‘one-size fits all’ campaign. Online strategies vary with each release. If the movie is a wide release you will want a reach campaign viewed by as many as possible. If your film is independent or niche, there will be more focus on fan sites, bloggers and viral marketing opportunities.
As online marketing’s impact continues to grow, studios are evolving a process that provides online continuity through a films entire lifecycle as marketers from theatrical, home entertainment and digital distribution combine messaging and strategize for asset sharing with fans. All agreed that the release of exclusive content is important to nurturing a relationship with fans online. Directors like Judd Apatow specifically shoot for the web when filming. How and where you release assets is dependent upon your audience. It is critical to engage your audience where they live online. When you engage, what are you giving them? Behind the scenes? Breaking news? Cast commentary?
Campaigns getting props from the panel included District 9, 2012 and Paranormal Activity. Paranormal Activity came up with ‘hook’ positioning of “Scariest movie ever!” and just ran with it building buzz across the web. On the iPhone and widget front, panelists agreed that not all films are relevant for these platforms. Humor, horror and anything with Megan Fox play well in this territory, but not necessarily romantic comedy. The Bruno iPhone app was a noted winner for its ability to engage, entertain and extend brand. For marketing to go viral it needs to be organic, to have the ‘Wow, I found this cool game/app and now I want to share it’ effect. It is also important to market apps and make sure viral content and games are seeded properly with influencers and again, where your audience lives whether it is break.com or Facebook.
As for Twitter, the jury is clearly still out. Some say it is a good way to engage and start a dialogue with fans. CoTweet was mentioned as a great tool to elegantly manage a brand online. Others implied it is more hype and mostly relevant to a very small niche audience of moviegoers.
With sites, trailers remain the most important tool. Marketers want to engage the audience and have them return for fresh content and other brand experiences like sweepstakes and games. Online sweepstakes entries have passed their peak but are still an important data collection tool. Mobile text-to-win sweepstakes are gaining momentum for their immediacy and ease of use. When studios capture that data and can start a conversation with a fan it is a big win. Facebook Connect is another panel favorite for its ability to build community and broadcast to and from incluencers.
Overall, it was another strong panel presentation from DigitalLA. Online marketing strategies are evolving, budgets are growing and online, social and mobile are increasingly relevant marketing platforms that are being sampled and proven with each release. What tools are you using? What do you think is the next big online marketing trend? I would love to hear what you think.
