The Blair Witch Project
In what is possibly my favorite marketing campaign of all time, The Blair Witch Project not only popularized the "found footage" genre of movies, but it also introduced an entirely new approach to movie marketing. The Blair Witch Project is a horror/found footage film released in the summer of 1999. It tells the story of three film students who go into the Black Hills near Burkittsville, Maryland filming a documentary on the Blair Witch. As their time in the woods progresses, odd sounds and sightings and a lost sense of direction leave the group panicked, angry and discombobulated, which culminated in a final night of terror. The story goes that their camera footage was found a year later, and that is what is being shown in the movie. While this might initially sound like a standard horror film, the viral marketing campaign that led up to its release is what makes The Blair Witch Project such a classic film, despite its low budget.
Website
Part of the genius behind the Blair Witch marketing strategy is the realness it portrayed. Instead of a traditional trailer and poster approach, the Blair Witch Project was able to convince people that this was true footage (at least for a little while). They began with passing out missing person
flyers for the three actors that starred in the film. They also released a brief trailer that featured some footage and audio from the movie, as well
as what appeared to be legitimate evidence and testimonials from the
families of the missing students. On both the leaflets and the trailer, there was a website people could visit to find more information on the Blair
Witch. People were presented with pictures of the film rolls that were
supposedly found, links to video and audio evidence, a history lesson on
the legend of the Blair Witch and even passages from "missing student",
Heather's, journal. With all of this information, there was really nothing to
tell people that it was all fabricated for the movie. "The website ended up massing over 160 million hits by the end of 1999, a time when virality was way less common than it is now" (Caister, 2021). People were so intrigued by the story that the marketing team presented and it created a massively successful film out of a low budget indie project.
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Sci - Fi Channel Mockumentary
The marketing campaign didn't stop at just the website and missing person leaflets. They also aired a short, fake documentary on the Sci-Fi Channel that went through a century long history of this apparent Blair Witch. It included interviews with actors who were supposed historians, local residents and officials, family members, and specialists connected to Burkittsville or the missing students. Similar to the website, when this "mockumentary" aired, there was nothing to say that this story was anything but true. It appeared to be completely legitimate and even tied in historical facts and fabricated evidence to really drive the story home. Thanks to these unique marketing efforts, The Blair Witch Project ended up grossing $248 million worldwide (Revisiting, 2021).
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Sources
Caister, V. R. (2021, April 14). This horror film basically created the idea of viral marketing. Game Rant. Retrieved October 28, 2021, from https://gamerant.com/blair-witch-project-viral-marketing/.
Revisiting one of the best viral marketing campaigns of all time. Speaking Human. (2021, June 16). Retrieved October 28, 2021, from https://thinkmonsters.com/speakinghuman/media/blair-witch-project-viral-marketing-campaign/.
Hershey's Kisses
In houses across America, a sign of the holiday season often begins with the airing of the
Hershey’s Kisses holiday advertising campaign. When I was growing up, hearing this commercial play on
my tv for the first time each year meant that it was officially time to break out the Christmas decorations and
turn up the holiday music. Every year since 1989, it has been a staple on televisions across the county,
“ringing” in the holiday season with the simple handbell performance of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”.
With over 30 years on the air, these commercials are a part of the longest running advertising campaign for
Hershey’s (Dwyer, 2019).
The Hershey Company is a household name around the world. Beyond just the Hershey’s Kisses, they also produce other treats like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, York Peppermint Patties, Twizzlers, and Skinny Pop Popcorn. They even have an amusement park, named Hersheypark, located in Hershey, Pennsylvania along with a ton of other chocolate themed activities for people of all ages. With such an established brand, Hershey’s is able to focus their ad campaign on creating a warm feeling for viewers rather than obviously selling their products. They don’t need to prominently display their brand name throughout the whole ad or try and convince people that their brand is better than another. People take one look at the commercial and know exactly what brand they are looking at. This allows Hershey’s to use the tune of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” with a brief message at the bottom of the screen as their entire ad. Its simplicity is refreshing and has made it an iconic holiday symbol over the years.
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Sources
Dwyer, K. (2019, December 10). Classic hershey's kisses bells ad turns 30 this year. here's how it came about. The Morning Call. Retrieved October 25, 2021, from https://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-hershey-holiday-bells-ad-20191210- bp6wp43lfncwbk5dwwjddjjdgm-story.html.
