'Monte Carlo' digital marketing campaign analysis

(Movie poster, Photo source: IMP Awards)

Monte Carlo
Distributor: 20^th Century Fox
Domestic release date: July 1, 2011 (Wide)
Rating: PG
Genre: Romantic comedy, Teen
Cast: Selena Gomez, Leighton Meester, Katie Cassidy, Cory Monteith, Andie MacDowell

Premise: Selena Gomez stars as a small-town young woman who is mistaken for an heiress while visiting Paris with her best friend and stepsister, which leads to an all-expense paid trip to Monte Carlo and living out the glamorous vacation of their dreams.

The hook:

• Selena Gomez’s first feature film as a lead
• Only romantic comedy aimed at younger audiences during the summer
• Destination film

Target audience: Tween and teen girls, 9-17

THE DIGITAL MARKETING CAMPAIGN
(Note: Analysis written on 7/12/11)

Twitter:

• Monte Carlo Twitter
• ~5,100 followers (as of 7/12/11)
• Utilized as a news feed for cast to retweet news
• Followers for :
  Selena Gomez: 6 mil+
  Leighton Meester: 968k+
  Cory Monteith: 730k+
  Katie Cassidy: 43k+
  Justin Bieber (Gomez's real life boyfriend): 11 mil+

On Target: The film's official Twitter account was used as a source to send news to its cast to retweet. Allowing the cast to speak directly to fans using their own Twitter accounts built credibility and trust with their fans.

Missed Opportunity?: Since Twitter was not a priority, it could have been used to tease upcoming news that will be on Facebook and publicize contests and challenges. Minor rewards could have been given if a tweet reached a certain number of retweets to a randomly selected tweeter.

For Facebook, Stardoll, YouTube analysis, and Recommendations:

Facebook:

• Monte Carlo Facebook
• ~204,000 likes (as of 7/12/11)
• Not flashy, used as the main hub
• Engaged with fans by posting Status Updates that asked for feedback when announcing news (trailer, Stardoll launch, dates for Gomez’s mall tour)
• “Monte Carlo Experience”: be part of the movie poster by uploading your own photo
• Posed challenges: if fans achieved over 100k fans, the page would "unlock" a new photo

On Target: By opening discussion, fans were allowed to contribute and feel empowered to be a part of the film. Seeing the excitement, new visitors are prone to join the discussion or like the page. Creating mini-challenges gave fans goals to complete.

Missed Opportunity?: For a page used in lieu of an Official Site, there isn't much here. I understand the need to be cost-effective, but there is no excuse for a disorganized photo gallery offering a paltry three stills. Also, it would have been nice to have links to blogs and websites 20th Century Fox partnered with for contests; I had to find them through search engine scouring.

Stardoll:

• Stardoll Monte Carlo Club
• Paper dolls for the digital age
• Aimed at girls and boys ages 9-12.
• Over 23 million users in U.S.
• Challenges to unlock new gifts for avatars

On Target: The most popular and memorable online games allow users to control their experience and manipulate content: taking on multiple identities, having the wish-fulfillment of becoming one of the characters, interacting and chatting with each other (hopefully about the trailer and Gomez's music video that can be streamed on the site).

People love completing goals, so promising exclusive avatar gifts (i.e. necklace from the film) for every increment of 10,000 members joining encourages repeat visitors and teamwork.

Missed Opportunity?: None, Stardoll is an excellent venue to reach the film's core audience (and vice versa).

YouTube:

• Monte Carlo YouTube Channel
• Two all-access, behind-the-scenes videos of Gomez taking audience on the red carpet
• Six videos in total, including standard trailers, Gomez’s “Who Says” music video with clips

On Target: By inviting her fans to come along as she preps for the premiere, Gomez shows her down-to-earth persona behind Hollywood's smoke and mirrors. Her fans are able to relate to her because she gets personal with them.

Missed Opportunity?: Two behind-the-scenes videos is sparse. Additional content, especially from co-stars Meester, Monteith, and Cassidy who have fan bases of their own, could draw interest from a slightly older audience.

OVERVIEW

The entire campaign was unique because it was extremely low key; the primary resources used were Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Stardoll, which mainly targeted only their young female audience.

The campaign heavily neglected reaching anyone outside the tween audience, possibly for return on investment reasons, but parents, especially moms of the tweens, were missed out on except for a few quiet blog contest partnerships.

OUTCOME

• Opened in 6th place with $7.5 million (for first three days) in 2,473 theaters
• Also opening:  

(Source: IMP Awards)
• Transformers: Rise of the Dark Moon, the franchise juggernaut aimed at young males 
• Larry Crowne, an adult romantic comedy headlined by Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts
• 82% of audience were female and 52% were under 18
• CinemaScore: A-
• Production budget: $20 million
• Total domestic gross: $22.9 million (Source: BoxOfficeMojo)

Diagnosis: The core audience showed up and liked it, but the opening weekend numbers were modest at best. While over half were under 18, the other half were likely the parents who accompanied their children.

Opening weekend comparison (not including inflation, Source: BoxOfficeMojo):

• The Lizzie McGuire Movie $17.3 million
• College Road Trip $13.6 million
• Letters to Juliet $13.5 million
• What A Girl Wants $11.4 million
• Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 $10.7 million
• Ramona and Beezus $7.8 million (Selena Gomez's first co-starring feature)  
• Monte Carlo $7.5 million 
• Aquamarine $7.5 million
• Prom $7.5 million
  

RECOMMENDATIONS

Monte Carlo’s digital marketing campaign definitely succeeded in reaching its target 9-17 female audience, but by being so narrowcasted, it failed to market to a broader audience who may have been interested.

The film is a delightful, light romantic comedy with themes that appealed to an older 13-34 female audience rather than the younger 9-12 set. My suggestions are meant to compliment the ones used and are aimed at courting an older audience, appealing Monte Carlo as a date-night or girls’ night out rom-com counterprogramming, which there was a drought of in early summer.

Official Site - Don't make your audience dig:

• Search term "Monte Carlo" is vague
• Make it easy for casual searchers with an official site, redirect website, or Google Ads
• Support the movie on the studio's website

The return on investment might not be there for an official site, but to claim “No one visits it at all” is hyperbole. Since the title is not unique to itself, a search for “Monte Carlo” on Google brought hits for the Las Vegas hotel and actual location, but not the movie on the first page.

If someone was vaguely interested after seeing a poster, TV spot, or article, make more information accessible to them or risk losing their attention. Without an official website, Google Ads, or redirect links, Monte Carlo was difficult to find (even on Facebook) for anyone who did not want to research.

The majority of its target tween audience are tech-savvy and would spend time looking for the film on Facebook and Twitter, but for casual movie-goers and an older audience (including parents), those extra few minutes would cause frustration, possibly resulting in giving up and indifference toward the film.

An official site gives a film placement on a search engine, and if Fox did not want to invest revenue, they could create a hub page or redirect web users to its Facebook account. At the very least, they could have bought Google Ads for the Facebook page.

Additionally, if one stumbled upon Fox Movies' website, the only mention they would find about Monte Carlo was a brief synopsis and an inactive tab titled "Official Site." There are no visuals, not even the one-sheet, to catch anyone's attention.

If the film's own studio doesn't feel the film is a priority, why should it be anyone else's?

Expand target audience - Aim older:

• Target 18-34
• Utilize older cast
• Film behind-the-scene clips to tease fans

It's not all about Selena. By focusing only on the tweens and failing to target women 18-34, who would have enjoyed the romantic comedy aspect, the campaign may have limited its success.

Audiences typically avoid films starring a protagonist younger than they are; Monte Carlo has the advantage of having a story that is as much about Gomez's Grace as three characters played by Hollywood’s hottest rising stars who appeal to an older demographic: Leighton Meester (Gossip Girl, Country Strong, fashion icon, singer), Katie Cassidy (Melrose Place, Gossip Girl), and Cory Monteith (Glee, heartthrob).

Rather than just having Meester, Cassidy, and Monteith retweet a post, they could actively join Gomez and take their fans behind the scenes in YouTube clips of prepping for production and red carpet screenings too; this would allow their fans to further feel a connection with them in context with the film.

With the trailer focusing so much on Gomez’s character, social media allows the three older cast members to explain more about their characters’ storylines and why their fans would relate to it.

Travel partnership - Picture perfect vacations:

• Destination movie
• Partner with travel sites for people to plan their own adventures
• Contest of uploading favorite travel photos

One of Monte Carlo’s draws is it is an affordable cinematic escape to a beautiful destination; planning one’s own vacation like the adventures the film characters experienced would be expensive and cumbersome.

Partnering with websites for travelers 18-34 such as Lonely Planet, Contiki, Semester at Sea, and study abroad programs would provide resources and make it easier to visit new and exciting places. College students represent approximately 20% of all international travelers, due to having more leisure time during spring and summer breaks.

In addition to promoting travel trips, people can enter a contest to upload their favorite travel photo with friends and family, explain why it holds a special memory, and why others should visit the destination too. This reinforces the Monte Carlo theme that the best memories created are when one is with good company and associates the film with these positive memories.

Check-In Adventures - Destination fun:

• Experience your own Monte Carlo-adventure with a Foursquare scavenger hunt
  
• Team up with demo-appropriate chains (i.e. ULTA, Sephora, Pinkberry)
• Build weekly check-in activities until release date

Since not everyone can book faraway trips, phone applications such as Foursquare can aid fans in creating their own localized adventure with friends; 75% of 14 to 29 year olds own a mobile device and their favorite things to do online include prizes, giveaways, discounts, and how-to beauty videos.

By teaming up with Foursquare, where users can check in at locations, see which friends have been there, and unlock special deals, the marketing campaign team can start a summer scavenger hunt to build momentum leading up to the release date.

Partnering with demographic-appropriate national chains, such as beauty stores Sephora and ULTA and hangout centrals Pinkberry and Cold Stone Creamery, each week, users are asked to check in at a store, sample a new product or take part in an experience that relates to the characters, and receive an exclusive Monte Carlo giveaway such as a tank top, t-shirt, pin, or necklace.

Eventually, this game leads users to check in at the movie theater on opening day, where they can unlocks an exclusive prize, such as a voucher for an exclusive nail polish color or poster; as mentioned, people love goals and interacting as a team to complete it. Each giveaway item is specifically tailored so people can wear it to the theater on opening day and be part of a communal experience.

Unlike Stardoll, by not being age-specific, the Foursquare scavenger hunt is open to anyone who loves discounts and games though it specifically targets mobile-using 18-34 users.