Ready Player One demonstrates there’s such thing as too much Marketing

(This is a repost from my Medium blog which you can find here)

Ready Player One has not had a good marketing campaign thus far. To say it’s been rocky might be downplaying it a bit.

Based off the Ernest Cline novel of the same title, Ready Player One is a movie set in the not too distant, dystopian future about a teenage boy who becomes obsessed with solving an elaborate puzzle within the OASIS, a hyper-real virtual reality simulation, where the eventual winner wins a crapload of money.

It’s not a terrible premise, and considering that the book wasn’t exactly the Great Gatsby of its era, it really didn’t have a high benchmark for expectations. Helmed by Steven Spielberg, it could still very well become a great movie, it’s just…..well, the movie is already on the cusp of a box office implosion due to its shaky trailer, social media backlash, and poor marketing efforts.

Let’s examine, starting with the problematic trailer:

The trailer is chalk-full of what some people might consider “Easter Eggs”-an intentional message, joke, or nod to fans who may get a reference to earlier work.

Except, when executed poorly, Easter Eggs can creep into another territory altogether.

It’s a concept called “Intertextuality”, which was masterfully covered by the Nerdwriter over on YouTube.

He defines intertextuality as “something in a movie that is shaped by another text, usually another movie, or book, or play”. Basically, it’s a cultural reference to something outside of the movie. He goes on to argue that films are increasingly using intertextual references as a substitute for emotion or solid storytelling.

Because intertextuality isn’t a bad thing in itself, but when incorrectly used, or in the case of this trailer, overused, it can leave audiences feeling dull, flat, and worst of all….bored.

If at any point during this trailer you said to yourself, “Hey, I know that thing” then you just experienced weaponized intertextuality.

How Ready Player One abuses its intertextual ancestry

Yes, I’ve read the book, and I realize that the book is also structured around its sentimentality ridden narrative, possibly subverting the hero’s expectations as it relates to his obsession with video game culture and nostalgia.

But that doesn’t excuse the marketing teams behind Ready Player One for absolutely going HAM on their audiences expectations of intertextuality. Instead of going for something more subtle, they simply photoshopped old, classic movie posters and substituted the stars of Ready Player One on top of it like it was some sort of crying Jordan meme.

How to conjure up nostalgia the right way

I can think of two specific examples of intertextuality working the way it should be. The first most obvious choice, is Stranger Things. The genius about Stranger Things is that while it relies pretty heavily on 80’s references, it doesn’t use it as a substitute for story. At it’s heart, Stranger Things is really about a group of kids trying to find their way through adolescence, against the backdrop of an interdimensional threat that threatens their way of life. That story isn’t about the 80’s. The 80’s are merely the supporting character.

The 80’s weren’t that bad kids

Another great example is one of my favorite comic book movies of all time, Logan.

Comic books aren’t real kids

In Logan, there are definitely references to the comic books, and previous X-men movies. But the story isn’t bogged down by these references, and most importantly, the director James Mangold intentionally didn’t want to go down the path of creating just another superhero movie.

That’s because most superhero movies are guilty of weaponized intertextuality. How many times has a friend leaned over to you in the theater and said “Ooh, a character I know from the comic books!” or “ooh, I bet that’s an easter egg for the next movie!”

Constant character references from obscure comic book issues and movies that serve as an appetizer for bigger, better movies, don’t really make a good movie in itself, do they?

All this is to say that in the modern age of filmmaking and marketing, we need to be smarter about how to connect with and resonate with audiences. People love being reminded about their past, but in a way that’s not shoved in their face, and right on the nose. Because just like advertising, people do not fall in love with products, references, or easter eggs, they fall in love with a feeling.

Turn customers into fans with social media

When you hear the term "social media", what goes through your mind? 

If you're over 35, the chances are that you think social media is this satan's spawn of a creation that will ultimately prove to be the downfall of civilization (which you'd be wrong about. You're thinking of Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Duh) all while screaming "Get off my lawn!"

And if you're under 35, you probably think social media is just this thing that has been around since Jesus times, and you can't believe how stupid old people are because they don't know how to tweet or make themselves puke rainbows on SnapChat. 

Well I'm here to say that both camps are right. Social media is inherently evil. But a necessary, sometimes entertaining, evil. 

When people approach me about social media, and by "people" I mean my mom, the first question I ask is "Is your router plugged in?" After that I say: Don't take social media too seriously, because no one else really does. 

For all the hoopla we make about strategizing an effective social media campaign, trying to look smart and professional, you should keep in mind that the best strategy for engaging your audience is to be entertaining. I've probably said it elsewhere on the blog but it bears repeating once again-people don't like to be "marketed" to, and it's double true on social media. 

The thing to keep in mind is this: The goal of your social media campaign shouldn't be to attract more followers, because followers aren't an effective measurement. The goal should be turning your customers into fans. 

Let's take a look at an example-Arby's (@arbys). 

Now I haven't eaten at Arby's since college and I wouldn't eat there if it was the last food remaining after the apocalypse...which is a very real possibility because I'm pretty sure their meat is radioactive anyway and could survive a nuclear fallout. 

But I follow them on Twitter because they are endlessly entertaining. They get it. They've found a way to tie their brand into the pop culture phenomena of Twitter. Ex:

This tweet is awesome because it promotes their brand, while playing into the "Walking Dead" (a horribly written but entertaining show) crowd. 

It appears effortless, but this one took some thought. And it was retweeted 1,000 times. 

Another favorite of mine is Chipotle (@chipotletweets). Their social media account tweets with a relatable, humorous tone that most companies wish they could capture. Here's some examples:

These tweets are funny, lighthearted, yet still speak to their brand. People eat this shit up like a bowl of beans covered with E.Coli and they love it. And their use of puns is legendary at this point. 

The truth is that the best brands on social media are the ones that don't take themselves too seriously. Have fun with it, and you may just get something more than customers, you may get fans.