How Cinema Inspires Marketers

“My mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get”.

Forrest Gump’s mother may not have been entirely right. Today, marketers have all the digital tools and methods they need to predict what the outcome of a campaign will be. The same is true for filmmakers who can anticipate the reception and success of their films.

By knowing their audience, positioning their film, creating suspense, and building a community, they create a highly engaging environment. With thousands of movies being made every year and platforms like Netflix or Amazon Prime also getting into the movie business, cinema is a huge market where nothing can be left to chance.

Initially perceived as a simple means of communication, creative expression and entertainment, cinema actually relies on thoughtful marketing strategies to ensure its success.

So let’s learn together how to stand out in an increasingly competitive market, as filmmakers do, in three key points!

Did you say Call to Action? “Elementary, my dear Watson”

Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson as Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman

Yes, Calls to Action are elementary tools to get customers to act. Like marketers, filmmakers want you to act. They want you to go see their movie!

And like marketers, they set up Calls to Action (CTAs) to influence your decision. In this, you could say that the movie industry is a master. Forget the big red buttons with “Only two hours left to order” or “Enjoy 15% now,” which can be quite oppressive. Movie producers know how to get people to act: they use trailers.

The power of trailers is to make people impatient, curious, and excited. Through the technique of three trailers, they create continuous excitement before the film is released in theatres. Indeed, they usually release three trailers, each spaced a few days or weeks apart, always with a little more detail. The idea is that each trailer announces the next one!

Godzilla trailers are a perfect example of this method. In all of them, viewers see devastated cities, chaos, and frightened people. But they don’t really see the entire creature, only glimpses. The suspense around the monster increases curiosity and each trailer reveals more detail.

Thus, trailers influence people’s decision to see the film or not. Without them, there would be less temptation. The feeling of not wanting to miss out on something, or FOMO, is key here.

After seeing the trailer, people react in such a way that they don’t want to miss out on a film that can be a hit and that everyone will talk about. It creates an unconscious anxiety about not being part of the group, about not having the same credentials as others. Marketers know it very well when they create their calls to action.

Nike, for example, makes good use of emotions in its advertising campaigns to encourage customers to buy its products. Its slogan “Just Do it” is already a CTA and speaks to people’s feelings. The message is that with Nike, they can achieve anything they want and they have no excuse not to do it. ‘Come here and be part of the group of successful people.’

Innovation keeps that excitement and curiosity alive. That’s what GoPro did with their Call to Action video.

They actually made a 3-minute short film that shows the qualities and all the possibilities of their new camera, inviting people to subscribe at the end. It’s a much nicer way for customers to take action after seeing beautiful and inspiring footage.

In a word, become a director! Don’t be afraid to use videos as CTAs and go touch the emotions of your customers! Create excitement, expectation and suspense as if you were announcing the biggest event of the century!

“You talkin’ to me? Then who the hell else are you talkin’ to? You talkin’ to me?”

Scene from taxi driver (1976) starring Robert De Niro

Just as a marketing director tailors the tone and voice of a marketing campaign to a specific segment, filmmakers will need to use a voice that speaks to a target audience.

Directors and producers need to know their audience. What’s the point of spending millions of dollars on a movie that won’t attract anyone?

We know, for example, that adventure films or comedies are more likely to be family films. Whereas teen-movies will really be aimed at teenagers or young adults and will use specific codes and references.

Netflix movies have found the recipe! By addressing topics that teens care about, such as relationships, friendship, betrayal, sex, partying, and school, they know that teens will watch the movies because they deal with topics they know and experience on a daily basis.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before netflix movie poster Staring Lana Condor

Targeting and positioning are important steps in the process of creating a film to ensure a good reception!

Spielberg’s 2018 film, Ready Player One is a great example here. At first glance, this movie seems like a fun family sci-fi movie, filled with action and adventure. However, we notice that Spielberg has fun making a lot of references to old movies like Mad Max, War of the Worlds, King Kong, Gremlins or Citizen Kane, to music like Van Halen’s Jump or Prince’s I wanna be your lover, and to video games like Pac-Man, Frogger and Space Invaders, all along the movie. Of course, depending on your age, you won’t catch all the references.

These pop culture references, from the 50s to the 2000s, help target a very specific audience like Gen Y and Gen X. The goal is clear: to create a connection with the audience. By making these references, Spielberg allows the audience to feel closer to him and create a special relationship.

One company that has managed to create a stable relationship of trust with its target audience is none other than Starbucks! Targeting middle and upper class men and women, the company set out to create the “third place,” perfect for busy people who like to drink coffee and work outside their home, in a place that feels like home. Starbucks uses a warm and personalized tone to attract its target customers and create a special relationship with them.

Therefore, it is essential to know the audience to target them in the most effective way. Like Spielberg, you need to know what environment they grew up in or are currently in to evoke things they know and trust!

Girls sitting at a Starbucks with a Starbucks cup and a macbook

“Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship”

via GIPHY

Finally, one of the great challenges for a film is to last in time. Since many films are released every year, they cannot last more than a few months in theatres. That’s where the brand identity comes into play.

To maintain engagement and passion, producers create a true brand identity around the film, and thus build a beautiful friendship with their fans.

These can be derivative objects such as t-shirts, notebooks, caps, bags, etc. But also, adaptations in video games, adaptations in parks like Disney, meetings with the actors, events, etc. Buying a derivative item or participating in an event is not only a way to show what you like, but it is a way to be part of a group, a community.

In addition, creating this need to be part of a group, they set up what is called participatory marketing. In a nutshell, all the fans who buy merchandise participate in the promotion of the film.

We can see this through Disney’s successful films like Frozen or Toy Story. Indeed, children are a relatively influential audience, especially through their environment, their classmates, and the movies they watch. They will be very easily tempted to ask for toys, clothes or other gadgets related to their favorite movie, and will participate in the promotion of it.

A much more recent example is the South Korean series Squid Game, released in 2021 and now the most watched series on Netflix. Even if it is easier for a series to last in time, thanks to the broadcast of several seasons and weekly episodes, participatory marketing also has its place.

It involves the purchase of items such as the famous golden candy, red outfits of the henchmen, or green outfits of participants. It also involves TikTok videos with the famous “red light, green light” soundtrack or different challenges that promote the film.

@breezytyty How I would cheat if I was In The Squid Game 😂 (Credit: @Tyree Smitty Smith) #thesquidgame #breezytyty #redlightgreenlight ♬ How I Would Cheat In The Squid Game – BreezyTyTy

Today, everyone knows where the gold candy with a little symbol on it comes from. This is how we can measure the impact of the brand identity.

Global companies have also shaped their brand identity to be recognized everywhere. Apple, for example, is known for its unique, minimalist designs and colours, coupled with high-quality products, and is considered by most to be an innovative and leading high-tech company. For most Apple consumers, it is unthinkable to switch to another brand, as they are so attached to its quality and like being part of a group. This is a great proof of friendship and loyalty!

As marketers, it’s important to build a friendship with our clients based on trust and experience, which must be maintained over the long term. People find it harder to let go of something when the relationship has lasted a long time. So, make them your besties!

So, what do you need to remember?

Cinema is not only an artistic field in which filmmakers have fun and convey messages. More importantly, it is governed by marketing codes and strategies, just like an advertising campaign for the new iPhone.

Marketing strategies help to engage viewers, build long-term loyalty and create a community in which the flame stays lit and the film’s success does not fade.

So it’s safe to say that directors and producers are actually great marketers and have a lot to teach us!

Video content is increasingly used in marketing campaigns and allows us to easily reach a target audience, especially via social networks.

So, Let’s put ourselves in the shoes of a director and write a story that speaks to our clients. Let’s take inspiration from the masters of the camera to create suspense, expectation, clicks and loyalty among our customers!

So, silence… and action!