Tag: Sivakarthikeyan

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Inside ‘Amaran’s’ Marketing: How Audiences Embranced the Movie

Inside ‘Amaran’s’ Marketing: How Audiences Embranced the Movie

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I watched ‘Amaran’ at PVR Sathyam in Royapettah during its second weekend after release, and the theatre was completely packed. When the movie’s title sequence began, there was heartfelt applause upon seeing Major Mukund Varadarajan’s photo displayed alongside some text. At that moment, I felt that the audience’s reaction reflected all the buzz and positive reviews the film had been receiving since its release. Upon deliberating about the buzz and response later, I also felt that the marketing strategy for the movie by Raaj Kamal Films International (RKFI), Sony Pictures Films India and Turmeric Media had a big hand in generating such an enthusiastic response.

You know, Tamil Cinema doesn’t serve up biopics often. And when we do get one, the marketing usually focuses on all the behind-the-scenes stuff instead of the actual story being told. Take ‘Soorarai Pottru’ for example. It’s about Captain GR Gopinath, the person who started Air Deccan, a budget airline aimed at appealing to middle-class travellers. The movie is an inspirational and emotional drama, but I don’t remember its pre-release marketing materials emphasizing it enough. A couple of strategies were touching it upon albeit in a way the core idea being diluted. One was when 100 underprivileged kids were taken along with Suriya aboard a Spicejet Boeing 737 aircraft to launch the movie’s song, ‘Veyyon Silli’. Another strategy was a guerrilla marketing stunt, wherein a board featuring the autographs of thousands of Suriya’s fans for ‘Soorarai Pottru’ was fastened to an unmanned high-altitude balloon that seemed to have flown 35 km above the earth. Both attracted attention but did not emotionally make one connect with the movie’s core idea. I consider these strategies to have diluted the movie’s core idea because they put the movie’s lead star at the front instead of emphasizing the experience / the emotion that the movie will offer.

Now, coming back to Amaran. Tamil audiences embraced the movie like never before in recent memory. The emotional bonding started, grew well, and was firmly established mainly because of how the movie was positioned and marketed.

Setting expectations for the film featuring Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role:

When a Sivakarthikeyan movie is announced, audiences typically expect a blend of drama with plenty of fun and entertainment. The producers of ‘Amaran’ had made their intentions clear regarding the type of film they were creating with Sivakarthikeyan. This clarity has been evident in their marketing campaign so far.

 The marketing campaign for the movie officially began with the announcement of ‘Netflix Pandigai 2024’. On January 17, during the Pongal 2024 celebrations, Netflix India revealed its line-up of nine films that will be part of the streaming platform’s licensed content for the year. Among these films is Amaran’, which was initially announced under the working title ‘SK21’.

The above post’s copy used words like “battle”, which captures the movie’s essence. This approach of selecting precise language to reflect what the movie offers has been consistent throughout all marketing content so far.

 As a follow-up, a month later, on the eve of Sivakarthikeyan’s birthday, February 17th, the movie was titled ‘Amaran’, and its first look, showcasing Sivakarthikeyan’s muscular appearance, was released.

The beefed-up look was captivating at the time, as Sivakarthikeyan had never appeared in such a way before. Until then, unofficial content showcasing his unprecedented demeanour had been circulating online.

 On the same date, Sivakarthikeyan announced on social media that he would be portraying the character Major Mukund Varadarajan in the film ‘Amaran’. This marked the first official announcement regarding his role in the movie.

Apart from his demeanour, information about his role in Amaran was also circulating online. The above post of Sivakarthikeyan confirmed the same.

Fans of actor Vijay began sharing a photo of Vijay and Major Mukund Varadarajan’s daughter that had been posted on social media around 2014.  

 On the very next day, which was also Sivakarthikeyan’s birthday, RKFI revealed a poster featuring the actor in an Indian Army outfit.

In this way, RKFI utilized the early stages of the pre-release marketing phase of ‘Amaran’ to communicate to the audience what type of Sivakarthikeyan film this would be.

On the occasion of Major Mukund Varadarajan’s 10th year of remembrance…

 On the 10th anniversary of Major Mukund’s remembrance, which falls on April 25th, RKFI released a video titled ‘Saluting Major Mukund’. This video would have introduced him to new audiences while also helping others remember his legacy. It was a clever move by the team to incorporate the Indian cricket team’s 1983 World Cup victory as part of the video’s narrative.

Many prominent actors in Tamil cinema, who have substantial fan followings, often overlook the importance of announcing theatrical release dates well in advance. Even when they do announce these dates, they frequently fail to adhere to them. In contrast, RKFI demonstrated promptness with its planning for Sivakarthikeyan’s ‘Amaran’.

On July 17, 2024, RKFI announced that the theatrical release date of ‘Amaran’ is October 31, 2024, which coincides with Deepavali.

Content to market the fantastic and immersive action set pieces:

‘Amaran’ features fantastic and immersive action set pieces. After watching the movie, I understand why the creators released intriguing content for it. I find that the content serves as glimpses into the action sequences.

Here’s one such video…

After you watch the video, you can get to know Vishwaroopam’s soundtrack, ‘Anu Vidhaitha Boomiyile’ being used, and the context for its usage. ‘Vishwaroopam’ was also produced by RKFI. So, you understand the liberty in the song’s usage.

The video was re-shared on Independence Day i.e., August 15 along with a brand-new poster. Below is the post…

Coming back with content for the lead star…

 A post from RKFI on 11th September showcased Sivakarthikeyan dubbing for a key segment of the movie that precedes an adrenaline-pumping sequence leading to the interval.

A promotional piece that provides a glimpse into the heart of ‘Amaran’:

On 27th September, an important piece of marketing content was released by the filmmakers—a video titled ‘Heart of Amaran’. This marked a significant turning point in the movie’s pre-release marketing phase, generating much more interest in the film. The video introduces the character ‘Indhu Rebecca Verghese’, played by Sai Pallavi in ‘Amaran’. I can’t recall the last time I encountered such a soothing promotional clip. It carried the promise of a much higher quality product within Sivakarthikeyan’s filmography. Sai Pallavi’s screen presence was captivating, and I hoped her role would be substantial. Having watched the movie now, I can say I am not disappointed.

The score was an instant hit and was released on Spotify on 30th September 2024.

It’s time for some spectacular events…

It has been a while since Tamil Cinema has seen spectacular events beyond the usual audio launches, meet-and-greet sessions, and success celebrations. The film ‘Amaran’ also held an audio launch, but its marketing campaign also featured an additional event titled ‘Amaran – An Introduction’. The team covered the event by producing bite-sized and succinct videos. They initially released each episode regularly by uploading them to the RKFI’s YouTube channel and sharing them on other social media platforms. Once they rolled out all the parts, they uploaded the complete episode to the channel.

This event marked one of the few marketing occasions for the movie in which Kamal Haasan participated. Additionally, it was the event where Indhu Rebecca Verghese officially joined the pre-release marketing phase of the film. Inviting her to participate in the event and involving her in the interactions was a brilliant move by RKFI. She was also a featured guest in the eight-part video series titled ‘Evolution of Amaran’, as well as at the star-studded audio launch held at Sairam Engineering College on 18th October 2024. The RKFI YouTube channel regularly uploaded the episodes of ‘Evolution of Amaran’, just like the videos from ‘Amaran – An Introduction’, and shared them on social media.

There was also a video that offered a glimpse into the lives of soldiers stationed at the border.

Consolidating the acknowledgements to a wide range of high-profile appreciations…

RKFI has been consolidating the numerous high-profile accolades it has received on its social media handle. Below is an account of the same:

Before its theatrical release, the movie was specially screened for Indian Army personnel and their families.

The Officer’s Training Academy honoured Sivakarthikeyan for his role as Major Mukund Varadarajan in ‘Amaran’.

The movie was screened at Air Force Station, Chennai.

The core theme of ‘Amaran’ resonates deeply across India, and its execution stays true to this theme. So, politicians from various parties in Tamil Nadu took time to watch and appreciate the film.

It all began when the movie was watched by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on the day before its theatrical release, 30th October 2024.

The team behind the movie ‘Amaran’ met with India’s Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, to receive his congratulations.

The list of politicians who also had watched and appreciated the team in person include, K. Selvaperunthagai (MLA and President of Tamil Nadu Congress party) and Seeman (Politician, actor, and former filmmaker).

 RKFI was proud to announce that the people from army families from in and around Rajapalayam in Tamil Nadu’s Virudhanagar district and Ranuvapettai, a village from Tamil Nadu’s Vellore district renowned for inspiring young recruits to join the Indian Army, watched the movie in theatres.

K R M public school from Perambur, Chennai and Velammal Nexus school from Mogappair East, Chennai screened ‘Amaran’ as an educational movie for their students and NCC Cadets.

Members of the film fraternity watched the movie and extended their wishes to the team. This included notable figures such as Rajinikanth, Sivakumar, Suriya, Prabhu, Jyothika, and Vikram Prabhu. The film was screened exclusively for the Tamil Nadu Film Directors Association. Celebrities like STR, Anirudh, Venkat Prabhu, Kalaippuli S. Thanu, K.E. Gnanavelraja of Studio Green, Archana Kalpathi, and Atlee took the time to share their congratulations on social media after watching the movie. RKFI was quick to capitalize on these timely opportunities to promote the film through their social media platforms.

Other notable marketing endeavours from the ‘Amaran’ team…

 RKFI has made significant promotional efforts for their movie, including having Sivakarthikeyan appear on an episode of Bigg Boss Tamil. Additionally, Sivakarthikeyan, Sai Pallavi, and Director Rajkumar Periyasamy shared the stage with Nagarjuna in a Bigg Boss Telugu episode. The team participated in promotional events across India, including Madurai, Trichy, Coimbatore, Cochin, and Hyderabad, as well as internationally in Dubai and Malaysia.

 One of the key advantages of these events is that the movie team focuses on sharing information directly related to what the film intends to showcase.

‘Amaran’ is a film that does not feature any peppy dance numbers but instead boasts soulful songs, which is one of its greatest strengths. The Telugu version of the song ‘Hey Minnale’, titled ‘Hey Rangule’ was released by the Telugu actor Nithin.

‘Ananda Vikatan,’ a leading Tamil weekly magazine, released a special issue titled ‘Amaran Special’ on November 6th. This issue helped spread awareness about the movie beyond the confines of social media.

 Digital billboards promoting ‘Amaran’ were installed at railway stations, bus stops, and airports in various Indian cities. Together, these ads garnered 1.7 billion views per day.

 A couple of days before the movie’s theatrical release, the ads below were rolled out in daily newspapers…

Gopi Prasanna’s posters were true to the movie’s offerings. Here’s a sample poster…

To add to the excitement, there was the trailer. Often, trailers set expectations that the movie fails to meet, but in the case of ‘Amaran,’ the film delivered on what the trailer promised. The trailer was released in five languages: Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi. RKFI enlisted big names such as Kamal Haasan, Aamir Khan, Shiva Rajkumar, Nani, and Tovino Thomas to launch the versions of the trailers in their respective languages.

In conclusion, ‘Amaran’ from RKFI, Sony Pictures Films India, and Turmeric India (Marketing) serve as an exemplary case study for the positioning and marketing of biopics.

A still, featuring Sivakarthikeyan, from 'Maaveeran'
Look Back: A “Natural” Billboard to Promote ‘Maaveeran’

Look Back: A “Natural” Billboard to Promote ‘Maaveeran’

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After a brief hiatus from blogging, I’m here again!

This time, I’ve come up with my second article in the ‘Look Back‘ series, wherein I share interesting aspects I gather on the marketing of the movie or web series, which I watched on an over-the-top (OTT) platform and felt satisfied.

Recently, I watched the Sivakarthikeyan-starring ‘Maaveeran‘ on prime video. I loved the movie a lot. It’s a very interesting film that brilliantly blends a fantasy aspect into a sensible narration. Having been so satisfied with the movie, I’ll share information about an activation that Maaveeran‘s producer, ‘Shanthi Talkies‘ had executed to promote the movie’s theatrical release.

About the movie, ‘Maaveeran’…

The movie is about how a cowardly character named Sathya (played by Sivakarthikeyan) transforms into a brave personage and takes on a corrupt politician. In the movie, following an accident, Sathya starts hearing a voice, which foretells the problem that lies ahead for him. Whenever he hears it, he gives an overhead stare in anxiety as to where the voice comes from. And that ‘overhead stare’ has been leveraged by the film’s producer to conceive a brilliant marketing idea.

About the marketing idea…

On 13th July, a day prior to Maaveeran‘s theatrical release, ‘Shanthi Talkies‘ posted a video on its official X account on the installation of a transparent banner, featuring the movie’s poster, on the facade of PVR Sathyam Cinemas at Royapettah, Chennai. The video shows the poster being hand-drawn using black paint. The banner is then mounted overhead using four poles. So, when the light, especially the sunlight around noon, is blocked by the black paint in the banner, the poster’s shadow appears on the floor beneath the set-up. The shadow nudged anyone who passed through the installation to look at the overhead artwork. In the process, the person recreated the iconic ‘overhead stare’ of Siva Karthikeyan in ‘Maaveeran‘.

Below is the post from ‘Shanthi Talkies‘ on its official X account…

VJ Abhishek ideated this innovative concept.

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Recognition…

Karthik Gowda, Executive Producer of ‘Hombale Films‘ (The production house behind the movies, ‘K. G. F: Chapter 1’, ‘K. G. F: Chapter 2’ and ‘Kantara’ which became pan-Indian sensations) has appreciated the marketing idea via his official X account.

Below is the post from Karthik Gowda on his official X account…

Sivakarthikeyan has a history of some unique, interesting and brilliantly executed marketing ideas for his movies like ‘Remo‘, ‘Velaikkaran‘ and ‘Seema Raja‘. Now, with the aforementioned marketing idea, Maaveeran has joined the admirable list!

Photo Courtesy: Shanthi Talkies

Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘The Nun’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Seema Raja’

Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘The Nun’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Seema Raja’

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Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘The Nun’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Seema Raja’

Previously, in my article titled, ‘Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘IT’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Velaikkaran’’, I presented you the similarities between the marketing tactics of ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’ for the 2017 American supernatural horror film, ‘IT’ and Tamil social thriller movie, ‘Velaikkaran’ respectively. As a follow-up, in this write-up, I share my thoughts about the Experiential Marketing Campaigns of ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’ for their recent offerings, ‘The Nun’, an American gothic horror film and ‘Seema Raja’, a Tamil action comedy drama film, respectively.

Warner Bros. Pictures’s photo booth at ‘FANEXPO Canada 2018’ for ‘The Nun’:

Fan Expo Canada is a fan convention being held year after year in Toronto, Ontario. As part of the event for 2018 (August 30th 2018 – September 2nd 2018), ‘Warner Bros. Pictures Canada’ had put up The Nun-branded photo booth for the purpose of activation for the movie. Wherein, the fans stepped inside a mobile mirror room and clicked a selfie with the lookalike of the scary Valak. Taking a snap with the entity’s double in a room with an eerie backdrop created an illusion of posing with 100 of such creepy Valaks. When exiting the booth, people were provided with a complimentary photo, sharable in social media. Also, it was advertised that fans will get a chance to win prizes including passes for the advance screening of ‘The Nun’. The customized photos had the movie’s name and theatrical release date i.e. September 7.

Atop the booth was the call-to-action, ‘SHARE YOUR #LASTPRAYER’, which was prominent enough to encourage people to share their photos using the hashtag, ‘#LastPrayer’ in social networking sites. The phrase, ‘WITNESS THE DARKEST CHAPTER IN THE CONJURING UNIVERSE’ was imprinted over the exteriors of the booth along with the movie’s name, theatrical release date and the technologies in which the flick is going to be available in theatres like IMAX and Dolby Cinema.

To prepare audience for the feel, which the movie is going to deliver them, replicas of tombstones rigged with bells (Reminiscent of a nightmarish graveyard sequence from ‘The Nun’) were erected over a couple of false burials at the booth’s entryway. And, a couple of effigies of a faceless nun (Reminiscent of the character appearing in the movie) were placed at the top of the booth.

An announcement, about The Nun-branded photo booth, was put out by ‘Warner Bros. Pictures Canada’ and ‘FANEXPO Canada’ in social media.

Check the replies to the below tweet to have a look at the customised versions of the photos, captured at the activation!

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24AM STUDIOS’s karaoke booth at popular multiplexes for ‘Seema Raja’:

Karaoke Booth in Luxe
Couple of karaoke booths (One for adults and the mini version for kids) placed at ‘Jazz Cinemas Luxe‘ at ‘Phoenix Market City‘ in Chennai

‘24AM STUDIOS’, apart from deploying traditional marketing tactics, has been a production house, which has been interacting with the movie going audience using innovative ways for their films.

For their debut venture ‘Remo’, the studios had employed ‘Cupid Standees’ campaign, which served as a perfect example of how content can be personalized in such a way that it resonates with the target audience.

For ‘Velaikkaran’ (24AM STUDIOS’s second film), the makers had made the slum set, featured in the movie, open for a public visit.

“People do not pay attention to advertising; they pay attention only to things that interest them.”

I came across the above phrase in the book, ‘Guerrilla Marketing: Easy and Inexpensive Strategies for making big profits from your small business’ written by the late American Business Writer Jay Conrad Levinson. The recent promotional strategy of ‘24AM STUDIOS’, for their third production venture, ‘Seema Raja’, Seema Raja-branded karaoke booth appears as a perfect illustration of the above quote.

Of late, a lot of people seem to actively express themselves in platforms like ‘musical.ly’ and ‘Dubsmash’. So, there seems to be no better time than the present to roll-out the offline customer engagement marketing tool, karaoke booth. Karaoke booth is where people can privately render their vocals for pre-recorded music and eventually combine both.

The booth unveiled for Seema Raja, emphasizes the movie by offering the pre-recorded musical tracks of five songs from the film as of now. Also, it contains the lyric videos and the trailer of the movie. People can also try out Dubsmash with the teaser of Seema Raja.

The best from among the performers in the karaoke booth will be picked and provided with an opportunity to meet D.Imman (Music Director of Seema Raja). It has also been advertised that the performances of the people will be uploaded in YouTube. In order to encourage an online conversation around the campaign, hashtags such as ‘SingAlongWithSeemaRaja’ and ‘#SeemaRajaKaraokeBooth’ have been created.

This participatory tool powered by ‘CanLah! Studio’, has been placed in popular multiplexes like ‘Palazzo’ at ‘The Forum Vijaya Mall’ and ‘Jazz Cinemas Luxe’ at ‘Phoenix Market city’ in Chennai, ‘Cinipriya Complex’ in Madurai and ‘FunCinema’ at ‘Fun Republic Mall’ in Coimbatore. This approach should have helped the movie to gain more exposure among the theatre-going audience.

A Special Midnight Screening for ‘The Nun’:

To make fans feel utterly terrified, ‘Warner Bros. UK’ offered them an opportunity to watch ‘The Nun’ at midnight on September 6th 2018, inside Brompton Cemetery (a London cemetery in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea). To get a pair of tickets, the fans had to visit www.seeitfirst.com and enter the code, BCM37X.

Click here and watch fans appearing panic-stricken by faceless nuns, jumping out at them at the cemetery, before the screening!

A Special Touring Talkies Screening for ‘Seema Raja’:

‘Touring Talkies’, an almost defunct concept, is the practice of screening films under a tent, usually covered with a thatched roof or a ceiling using asbestos sheets. ‘24AM STUDIOS’ tried reviving this thing of the past by arranging ‘Seema Raja’ shows at three locations of Tamil Nadu namely ‘S.E.V Matriculation School’ (Natham Road, Madurai), ‘St. John’s Vestry Anglo Indian School’ (Trichy) and ‘Cluster Media Academy’ (Peelamedu, Coimbatore) at 7:00 PM on September 16th 2017. The hashtag, ‘#SeemaRajaTouringTalkies’ was created to nurture an online dialogue around the campaign.

Apart from karaoke booths and touring talkies shows, ‘24AM STUDIOS’ came up with Seema Raja-branded mini trucks, carrying bioscopes equipped with head phones, which traveled across Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry. Wherein, people were able to watch the videos of Seema Raja. Customized hashtags, ‘#SeemaRajaBioscope’ and ‘#SeemaRajaBioscopeVandi’ were launched to integrate this street marketing drive with the online space.

Leveraging the marketing tool, ‘360° video’ to encourage the audience to go through an immersive experience:

To promote ‘The Nun’, ‘Warner Bros. Pictures UK’ had released a 360° video titled, ‘The Nun – 360 Experience – Official Warner Bros. UK’ in its YouTube channel. In the video, the fans get a chance to virtually traverse through the cloistered abbey, featured in the movie.

Click here to watch the 360° video!

Conclusion:

In addition to being interesting, the aforementioned experiential marketing campaigns of ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’, for ‘The Nun’ and ‘Seema Raja’, offer some important takeaways such as the right place (or) platform where a campaign has to be deployed and the ideal partnership to be involved in, to plan and implement a striking marketing strategy. To top it all, the campaigns had boosted a significant pre-release buzz for the respective movies and have become memorable!

And, here ends my blog post about the Experiential Marketing Campaigns of ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’ for ‘The Nun’ and ‘Seema Raja’ respectively. Now, let me know your opinion on my article in the comments section!

Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘IT’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Velaikkaran’

Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘IT’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Velaikkaran’

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Experiential Marketing Campaigns: Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘IT’ vs 24AM STUDIOS’s ‘Velaikkaran’

It’s been a while since I had written my last post in this blog. In fact, for a period of time, I wasn’t in touch with the changes that have been happening in the marketing sphere. A few days ago, when I had plunged again into one of my favorite parallel world (i.e. Marketing) to know the latest updates, I felt excited on knowing about a couple of movie marketing campaigns. One campaign being the ‘Neibolt House’ visit for public in Los Angeles, for the 2017 American supernatural horror flick, ‘IT’. Another being, the ‘Cooliekkara kuppam’ set visit for public in Chennai, for the 2017 Tamil social thriller movie, ‘Velaikkaran’. However, both the strategies could well be tagged to one topic i.e. Experiential Marketing.

Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘Neibolt House’ visit for ‘IT’:

‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ in association with the out-of-home agency, ‘Grandesign’ created the ‘Neibolt House’ (inspired by a haunted house that appears in the movie, ‘IT’) in the corner of Hollywood Blvd and Vine St. in Los Angeles. The house was opened for public daily, from August 14th, 2017 – September 10th, 2017 from 11am – 11pm. The public visit was scheduled well ahead of the movie’s theatrical release as the film premiered on September 5th, 2017. The haunted house visit seemed thoroughly immersive.

Warner Bros. Pictures’s ‘Neibolt House’ visit for ‘IT’
‘Neibolt House’ located in the corner of Hollywood Blvd and Vine St. in Los Angeles

‘Slum Set’ visit for ‘Velaikkaran’:

Following their captivating Content Marketing campaign for ‘Remo’, ‘24AM STUDIOS’ have come up with the appealing ‘Cooliekkara kuppam’ set for ‘Velaikkaran’. The set was designed and erected by the movie’s art director T Muthuraj and team for the film. The set, located inside Prasad Labs at Vadapalani in Chennai, has been opened for public from December 30th, 2017 to January 20th, 2018 from 9am – 5pm. The public visit was scheduled after the theatrical release of ‘Velaikkaran’ as the movie released on December 22nd, 2017.

Slum Set’ visit for ‘Velaikkaran’
‘Cooliekkara kuppam’ set located inside Prasad Labs at Vadapalani in Chennai

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Campaigns offering opportunities for their target audience to experience their respective brands:

In both the campaigns, audiences were offered with opportunities to physically experience the demonstrations that were put up by the brands.

Branded hashtags, such as ‘#ThatsWhereITLives’ for ‘IT’ and ‘#VelaikkaranSetVisit’ for ‘Velaikkaran’, were created by the organizers and marketed in their respective social media posts prior to the visits and also were advertised in the sets.

Hashtag in tweet - IT Movie
‘#ThatsWhereITLives’ hashtag in the tweet from the official Twitter page of ‘IT Movie‘

Velaikkaran Set Visit hashtag
‘#VelaikkaranSetVisit’ hashtag incorporated to the image, posted in social media by ‘24AM STUDIOS’

Reminding attendees of the hashtag at the event had made it easier for them to share their experiences on social media.

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Reminding visitors of the hashtag, ‘#ThatsWhereITLives‘ at ‘Neibolt House‘ in Los Angeles

Velaikkaran Set Visit hashtag 2
Reminding attendees of the hashtag, ‘#VelaikkaranSetVisit‘ in the ‘VELAIKKARAN – SIGNATURE WALL‘ at ‘Cooliekkara Kuppam‘ set in Chennai

Via these hashtags, the organizers have engaged (such as Retweets and Likes in ‘Twitter’ and Shares in ‘Facebook’) well with their audience.

The slum set visit was made live in Facebook and Twitter in order to engage the people who couldn’t attend. As a follow-up to the ‘live’ activities, few of the attendees were allowed to talk about the sets. These were captured as videos and were shared in social media. As the brands connected well with the audience, prior to the set visit, in social media, there were deeper engagements at the event.

Click the link to know on what the audience has got to say about their ‘Neibolt House‘ set visit!

Even few from among the cast and crew of both the movies paid a visit to the respective sets. Photos and videos of the same were shared in social media.

Cast and crew visit - 'IT'
‘IT‘ Director Andrés Muschietti with the cast at ‘Neibolt House‘ in Los Angeles

Cast and crew visit - 'Velaikkaran'
‘Velaikkaran‘ star Sivakarthikeyan with a fan at ‘Cooliekkara Kuppam‘ set in Chennai

Click the link to view the visit of few from among the cast and crew of ‘Velaikkaran‘ to the set!

Providing online platforms and encouraging the audiences to go through an immersive experience:

In addition to offering an opportunity to experience the sets in a tangible, offline way, ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’ have also provided online platforms to the audience to go through an immersive experience of their products via the marketing tools, VR (Virtual Reality) and 360° videos respectively. ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ has released a video titled, ‘IT: FLOAT – A Cinematic VR Experience’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’ has released a video titled, ‘Velaikkaran Set Making 360° Video’ in their respective official YouTube channels. In the former video, one gets to experience the world of Pennywise the Dancing Clown. Whereas, in the latter, the viewer can avail the opportunity to visit the ‘Cooliekkara Kuppam’ set virtually and at the same time, listen to art director T Muthuraj sharing his moments that had transpired during the time of set’s design and construction.

Click here to watch the video, ‘IT: FLOAT – A Cinematic VR Experience’ and here to watch the ‘Velaikkaran Set Making 360° Video’!

A cursory view at the experiential tactics of both the organizers exhibits the manner in which they have effectively leveraged both the online and offline spaces for the purpose of marketing. Apart from people obtaining awareness about the uniqueness of these brands and the box office prospects of the movies getting boosted, these campaigns have rendered memorable moments for the audience to cherish.

So, that’s it with my blog post about the Experiential Marketing Campaigns of ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’ and ‘24AM STUDIOS’ for ‘IT’ and ‘Velaikkaran’ respectively. Now, let me know your viewpoints about my article in the comments section!

Emoji Marketing: 5 Smart Examples from Famous Brands

Emoji Marketing: 5 Smart Examples from Famous Brands

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Emoji Marketing 5 Smart Examples from Famous Brands
Emoji Marketing: 5 Smart Examples from Famous Brands

Taking a look at the history of emojis, and its evolution over the years since its inception, makes me feel awe over the monumental growth of the digital language. I feel that the uncomplicated nature of the emojis has been the primary reason for them to attain the status on what they are today. As people have been using the emojis in their day-to-day digital communications, brands have been pushed to leverage the icons effectively in such a way that their efforts benefit their products. By having a look at the usage of standard emojis (Unlike the custom emojis of films like Wonder Woman, War for the Planet of the Apes or Transformers: The Last Knight) by various brands across the social media circle, I have picked 5.

Now, let us begin our count down.

5) IMDb

After the release of the ‘IT’ trailer, the fans of ‘IT’, and probably those of the horror movies, would be mentally inclined towards the ‘horror’ factor. To capitalize on this aspect and engage the audience, IMDb offered a chance, via a tweet/post from their official Twitter/Facebook account, to its audience to comment their favourite scary movie in emojis.

IMDb Twitter
IMDb’s tweet to engage its audience

IMDb Twitter replies
Audience’s replies to IMDb’s tweet

IMDb Facebook
IMDb’s post to engage its audience

IMDb Facebook comments
Audience’s comments to IMDb’s post

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4) Target

Via creative means, Target had wished for the World Emoji Day 2017 from their official social media accounts, by recalling one of its significant occasions. Utilizing standard emojis like ‘Hot beverage’, ‘Dress’, ‘Womans hat’, ‘Womans sandal’, ‘Chocolate bar’, ‘Strawberry’, ‘Handbag’, ‘Nail polish’, ‘Notebook with decorative cover’, ‘Smiling face with open mouth’ and ‘Chequered flag’, Target had made a representation which they titled as ‘Classic Target Run’.

Target Twitter
Target’s ‘Classic #TargetRun‘ tweet

 

Target Facebook
Target’s ‘Classic #TargetRun‘ post

3) 24AM STUDIOS

In addition to promoting its movies using conventional approaches, 24AM STUDIOS – the makers of Sivakarthikeyan’s 2016 Tamil romantic comedy, ‘Remo’ – has been engaging with its audience in the social media circle via innovative means. On the Seventeenth of the July, the production house had embraced the World Emoji Day by coming up with an engaging tweet that was intertwined with the aspects of Remo. In the tweet, the followers of the twitter account of 24AM STUDIOS, were provided with four standard emojis such as ‘Information desk person’, ‘Syringe’, ‘Dancer(medium light skin tone)’ and ‘Older man (light skin tone)’, which symbolically referred to four among the different makeovers of Sivakarthikeyan in ‘Remo’ and were offered a chance to comment their favourite emoji. This activity was done in Facebook as well.

24AM STUDIOS Twitter
24AM STUDIOS’s tweet to engage with its audience

24AM STUDIOS Twitter replies
Audience’s replies to 24AM STUDIOS’s tweet

24AM STUDIOS Facebook
24AM STUDIOS’s post to engage with its audience

24AM STUDIOS Facebook comments
Audience’s replies to 24AM STUDIOS’s post

2) Rotten Tomatoes

In the case of the Twitter account of ‘Rotten Tomatoes’, the standard ‘Tomato’ emoji is utilized after the hashtag, ‘#Tomatometer’ in most of the tweets that contain the movie’s Tomatometer score or rating.

Rotten Tomatoes Twitter
Rotten Tomatoes’s tweet with the Tomatometer rating for the movie, ‘Atomic Blonde‘

In the case of the Facebook page of ‘Rotten Tomatoes’, the standard ‘Tomato’ emoji is utilized at end of most of the posts that inform the movie’s ‘Certified Fresh’ status.

Rotten Tomatoes Facebook
Rotten Tomatoes’s post announcing the ‘Certified Fresh‘ status for the movie, ‘Dunkirk‘

1) IT

In the official teaser and trailer of the film, the clip of the movie released in the MTV Awards, the Fan Art Contest conducted by the makers and the other promotional activities of ‘IT’, the red balloon has gained a prominence. This prominence has extended to the social media accounts of ‘IT’ as well, where the name of the movie’s Twitter account possesses the ‘Balloon’ emoji that already exists in Twitter. Occasionally, the tweets/posts of the movie’s Twitter/Facebook account possess the ‘Balloon’ emoji. It appears as if the ‘Balloon’ emoji is tailor-made for the social media accounts of ‘IT’.

IT Movie Twitter Profile Name
Standard ‘Balloon‘ emoji in the Twitter profile name of the movie, ‘IT’

IT Movie Tweet
Tweet from ‘IT Movie‘ containing the Standard ‘Balloon‘ emoji

IT Movie Tweet from Entertainment Weekly
Tweet from ‘Entertainment Weekly‘ containing the Standard ‘Balloon‘ emoji

IT Movie Facebook Post
Post from ‘IT Movie‘ containing the Standard ‘Balloon‘ emoji

What are your favourite emoji marketing picks? Share with me in the comments section!

Content Marketing Strategies: Coca-cola’s ‘Share-a-Coke’ vs ‘Cupid’ standee of ‘Remo’

Content Marketing Strategies: Coca-cola’s ‘Share-a-Coke’ vs ‘Cupid’ standee of ‘Remo’

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Content Marketing Strategies:  Coca-Cola’s ‘Share-a-Coke’ Vs ‘Cupid’ standee of ‘Remo’

Recently, I read an article titled, ‘8 (More) Absolutely Brilliant Content Marketing Innovations From the World’s Best Brands’ written by Neil Patel in the site, contentmarketinginstitute.com. There is a section in this write-up that briefs about Coca-Cola’s ‘Share-a-Coke’ campaign. After reading the section, I remembered a similar Content Marketing campaign (though without an unique name for it) deployed by 24AM Studios, the producer of the Sivakarthikeyan – Keerthy Suresh starrer, 2016 Tamil romantic comedy movie, ‘Remo’. Both the strategies could well be suggested as ideal case studies of successful Content Marketing Innovations as both had illustrated the concept of personalization of contents that resonated well with their respective target audience. In this article, let us have a look at both the strategies to know how they went on to become successful by adding considerable values to their respective products.

Coca-Cola’s ‘Share-a-Coke’ campaign converting the brand’s customers into its promoters:

Coca-Cola’s one of the most successful marketing campaigns, ‘Share-a-Coke’, which has been launched in more than 70 countries till date, was first introduced in Australia in 2011. In this campaign, Coca-Cola had printed the most popular names of individuals in its Coke cans and bottles by replacing its famous logo. As a follow-up to this, customers were offered with the opportunity to purchase customized Coke cans and bottles featuring the names those they wished to see on the products.

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Customized Coke Cans

All these efforts of Coca-Cola did pay rich dividends to the brand as the people felt emotionally touched and excited on seeing their names or the names of their beloved ones in the products of a popular brand like Coca-Cola, took pictures of them with the customized cans and bottles and shared the photos in their Facebook and Instagram accounts.

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Picture of a lady with the customized Coke bottle

In this way, the people had acted as influencers of the ‘Coca-Cola’ brand and made the marketing campaign, ‘Share-a-Coke’, one among the successful ones of all time.

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24AM Studios’s ‘Cupid Standees’ campaign converting Remo’s target audiences into its promoters:

Along the lines of Coca-Cola’s ‘Share-a-Coke’ campaign, in 2016, 24AM Studios came up with an interesting Content Marketing strategy by personalizing their content. In this strategy, the crux of the movie’s story line and its promotional tactics were cleverly intertwined.

‘A guy falls in love with a girl, at first sight’

The above line has been an age-old formula as far as the movies that deal with romance are concerned. The kick-starter in the story of Remo too, is this formula. But, in order to make this not-so-interesting sequence look eye-catching, the director introduces a fictional cum animated character called Cupid in the movie. By deftly bringing the character into the picture, the director makes the audience forget the fact that the scene is based around an old-fashioned idea.

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Cupid featured in the movie, ‘Remo’

The utilization of Cupid wasn’t confined to the movie alone. Around the movie’s release time, standees of Cupid were placed in the movie theaters where Remo was about to be screened. Standees were also placed in shopping malls. In other words, the standees were placed in locations where they could garner the attention of the audience towards the movie. The aura rendered by Cupid in the movie was recreated by the Cupid standees that were placed across various cine halls and shopping malls. Yes… the people got attracted by the Cupid standees and felt excited to the extent of taking selfies (current day’s crazy deed) with them. They were not only influenced by this marketing strategy but also played the role of influencers by posting the snapshots in their Facebook and Twitter accounts. The campaign, as its contribution to the pretty decent acceptability of the movie by the audience, would have driven a considerable number of people to throng the theaters those that screened ‘Remo’ then.

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Oscar & BAFTA winning and Remo’s Sound Mixer/Designer, Resul Pookutty taking selfie with   the Cupid standee

Despite the results of both the strategies possessing striking similarities, Coca-Cola’s campaign was carried out across multiple nations whereas the Cupid promotion unleashed by 24AM Studios was limited to a specific region in India. Though the products, Coca-Cola and Remo had various other interesting factors to garner the attention of the audience and ensure a good reach among them, the campaigns had actually widened the attention towards the products from their natural scope and subsequently yielded a significant reach to their brands.

So, that’s it with my blog post about the Content Marketing lessons that one could learn from Coca-Cola’s ‘Share-a’Coke’ campaign and 24AM Studios’s innovative Content Marketing strategy for Remo. Now, you get to know the similarities in the way in which the brands, Coca-Cola and 24AM Studios had personalized their contents that resonated well with their respective target audience. Let me know your opinions on the write-up in the comments section!