This spring, when consumers walk into the soft drink section of their grocery store, they’ll see ads for “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” in the form of five collectible Dr Pepper cans featuring Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor and Lois Lane. Dr Pepper is just one of several promotional partners teaming up with Warner Bros. to promote DC Comics’ newest movie, joining Aston Martin, CNN, EMC, Jeep, Jolly Rancher, Marathon Shipping, Oil of Olay and Turkish Airlines. Successful movie marketers know forming these types of marketing and merchandising partnerships is key to successful movie promotion. Here are four ways movie studios use merchandising to promote their films and boost licensing profits in the process.
Food and Drinks
Dr Pepper’s “Batman v Superman” campaign illustrates the natural partnership between movie promoters and soft drinks. Because moviegoers are already buying soft drinks at the concession stand, it makes perfect sense for movie studios and soft drink companies to form these promotional partnerships. Marvel and Coca-Cola took a page from the same playbook during this year’s Super Bowl by featuring an ad pairing Ant-Man with Hulk in a battle over Coke Mini.
From soft drinks, it’s a natural progression for movie studios to partner with fast-food chains. Both DC and Marvel have joined forces with McDonald’s to promote superhero Happy Meals. Movie-themed breakfast cereals are another popular merchandising method, as illustrated by General Mills’ “Batman v Superman” cereal promotion. Meantime, candy and gum are other easy ways to combine movies with food and beverage merchandising.
Toys and Games
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” merchandise sales pulled in an estimated $5 billion in 2015, according to Macquarie Securities analyst Tim Nollen. Altogether, Star Wars merchandise has generated an estimated $12 billion since 1977, making the franchise more valuable than Harry Potter and James Bond combined. A significant percentage of this fortune has come from toys, such as replicas of BB-8, one of last year’s hottest-selling toys. Superhero action figures, Disney princess dolls, “Jurassic World” dinosaurs and “Despicable Me” plush toys serve as other examples of movie toy merchandising.
Board games and video games are other natural movie marketing fits. For example, Lego has significantly expanded its marketing prowess by creating video games that tie into movie franchises, such as its popular “Star Wars” Lego video games.
Clothes, Shoes and Accessories
Clothing is another popular avenue for movie merchandising, with T-shirts serving as one of the top attire choices. A search for best-selling T-shirts at AllPosters.com turns up gear from notable Blockbuster films like “The Godfather,” “Jaws,” “Rocky,” “Star Wars,” “Superman,” “Ghostbusters,” “The Karate Kid,” “Back to the Future,” “Jurassic Park” and “Forest Gump.” CCS’ e-commerce store features Disney-themed Vans skate shoes with patterns from “The Jungle Book” and “101 Dalmatians.” Other popular movie-themed clothing items and accessories include hats, hoodies, socks, pajamas, belts, jewelry, necklaces, bracelets, watches, wallets and cellphone cases.
School Supplies
School supplies are another popular form of merchandising, working well in conjunction with seasonal marketing for back-to-school sales. Disney Store’s back-to-school section features items such as “Captain America” backpacks and “Frozen” highlighter pens. Backpacks, tote bags, luggage, notebooks, pens, pencils, pencil cases, folders and rulers are all examples of school supplies that lend themselves well to movie merchandising.
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