Homework 7: Iron Man 2 marketing research

One of the strong points of the marketing of Iron Man 2 is the brand tie-ins. The film collaborated with over 12 different brands, including Audi, Burger King and LG. This meant that you were bound to see a tie-in with some sort of brand that you like or know, building a trust and recognition with the audience. These tie-ins benefited both the film and the companies, as both subjects are being simultaneously advertised. Tie-ins included websites, adverts, branded products and competitions. This gives a vast variety of ways for the audience to interact with the film.

You cannot bring out a film these days without an accompanying website, and IM2 is not short of these. Among them are an LG microsite, an Audi microsite, a Royal Purple microsite, a Land O' Frost online game, a viral Stark Expo site, an Oracle microsite and an augmented reality app, as well as the film's main website. Unfortunately, as IM2  has come and gone, most of these websites have now been shut down. All these websites help the audience  really delve deep into the film and make them excited about the film, creating a hype.

Creating a hype in the lead up to a film is vital, and IM2 managed to do this well. By leaking small snippets  of information about the film before its release, audiences become intrigued, and want to learn more about the film. One way of doing this is through social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, where people associated with IM2 like Jon Favreau, the movie's director, write about creating the film and generate yet more interest. Initially, there was a single teaser poster, right, as well as a fake newspaper clipping, left. These were gradually followed up by various full trailers and posters, for example this interactive trailer, which I cannot embed for some reason.

As well as all this, there were various products made to market the release of IM2. The soundtrack was a fairly big part of this film, and to fit with this, Sony Music released an ACDC collectors box set, with IM posters and comics. There was also an official game released, which is fairly normal for the superhero genre. Following are also images of just a few of the products released in association with IM2; Dr Pepper limited edition cans, Burger King toys and Diesel Cologne.

I think the IM2 marketing was, if not that innovative, then still very effective. After all, over $100 000 was spent on the marketing of this film, and if that won't pay for effective marketing, then nothing will. The film's main focus was on a strong brand association, and I think this was achieved very well. I think the marketers had a pretty easy job to do, as whatever marketing they did, there would be a large fan base from the previous IM film, as well as IM comic book fans, ready to see the film no matter what. In the end, the film grossed $312,433,331, so I think it's safe to say that IM2's marketing strategy was very effective