A movie in theaters now continues to break box office records. As I hear about the film’s continued success, I got to thinking about it a little more, and realized that it actually had a lot to teach us about marketing a business.
Here are four lessons I picked up from the blockbuster.
(Spoiler alert!)
Don’t focus on one thing. Cross promote your platforms.
In the movie, it was when all the main characters, or the “good guys”, worked together that they were they able to defeat the enemy. Granted, in your world you’re not trying to fight any bad guys. But you are trying to win.
By cross promoting your business using different marketing channels, and furthermore, using different marketing channels to cross promote each other, you’ll strike gold.
Play to your strengths.
Each member of the team uses his or her strengths to win; one character uses his leadership, another uses his superhuman strength and another uses her agility and fearlessness.
When are you using different kinds of advertising channels to promote your business, be sure to have a clear understanding of how each channel can be best used. For example, use SMS text to send your current opt-in customers offers that are good for a limited time only, and use direct mail to accomplish the broader goal of customer acquisition and retention.
Be bold.
All the main characters take risks. Some get hurt. One character is overtaken by the enemy and another one gets stabbed. But they all survive and end up winning.
The same can be said about marketing and doing business in general, really. You’re an entrepreneur so risk isn’t something new to you. It’s important to think the same way about marketing.
Test new offers, new angles and new creative. Pull what doesn’t work and keep what does.
When you buck tradition, sometimes that’s when you find success. Just see how successful these well-known CEO’s are, while they broke the rules. Remember: It’s good to go bold as long as your risks are calculated and you’re not getting distracted by “Newfangled Whizbang syndrome.”
Continuously promote your brand for the ultimate response.
This one is a lesson in strategy from Hollywood’s promotion of the movie. Many of the preceding films did their part to promote this one – at the end of the earlier movies, there were teasers that these stories were not yet finished.
Filmmakers planned all along to create this blockbuster. Over the years, they’ve created excitement and used every opportunity to build momentum. Each film built on the other.
And the result? The movie broke box office records.
The same goes for marketing. It’s a long haul. It takes planning. It’s an investment. Sometimes results are immediate and sometimes they aren’t. It takes time and cross-promotion. But when sustained over time, it pays off.
If you haven’t seen the movie and you’re reading this, hopefully I didn’t spoil too much for you. If you have, what do you think about the marketing lessons I learned here? Can you think of any other lessons to add to the list?
Valpak
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