It’s Barbie’s World and We’re All Living in It
On July 21st, the new live-action Barbie movie starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling came to the big screen. Greta Gerwig’s work features other big names including Will Ferrell, which meant that this movie was already set to be a hit. However, the marketing team would not rely on that.
The Launch
This pink phenomenon is projected to make $150 million on opening weekend alone. Just seeing Barbie is becoming a trend, especially among young adults and teens. Primarily on Tik Tok, we have seen viewers documenting their experience going to see the movie in their top-tier pink attire. By viewers doing this through their own discretion, the movie is receiving free content and more marketing in the form of UGC.
Que the Collabs
With an extensive marketing budget, this film took part in over 30 brand collaborations prior to its release. Some of these brands included Air B & B, Krispy Kreme, Burger King, NYX Cosmetics, Bumble, and many more. By hitting a variety of different brands, this film reached a vast target audience.
By partaking in a number of collaborations across a multitude of social media platforms in combination with paid advertisements, the reach of the Barbie movie is unlike any film we’ve seen before. The products in these partnerships are traditionally pink to stay on brand with the film. Pink being a popular color attracts consumers who may not even realize they are shopping from a Barbie collaboration.
The Billboard
Another one of the marketing team's efforts behind the Barbie movie included big pink billboards. What gained the attention of those in passing was the fact that these billboards were hot pink with no graphics. Just plain pink with the release date in the small text located in the bottom right corner. This had fans snapping pictures and uploading them to their social media as we’ve never seen something so plain yet so loud. Despite not providing any more intel on the movie through this billboard, we can distinguish that it is Barbie due to the carefully curated branding that the team adhered to.
Why it Works
Through strategic launches and collaborations, the Barbie movie adhered to a large target audience. As we all know, Barbie was a popular toy in the early 2000s meaning her primary fans are older now. We almost see Barbie through this new lens of growing with her audience through marketing efforts and appealing to those who once knew her as a playtime favorite. Although they made sure to age with the OG’s, they still found insightful ways to also loop in a younger audience making for a more diverse viewing age range.
In conclusion, the Barbie movie has taken over everyone's Instagram feeds and has mastered mass marketing in our eyes. Whether you grew up on Barbie or just love pink, this marketing makes us believe there’s something for everyone.