Homework 6: Iron Man 2 Marketing Campaign research task

The sequel of Iron Man was released two years after the extremely well-received, open-ended prequel. They had a huge $100 million budget for the film’s marketing campaign alone.

Posters

The first posters released for this movie featured two of the new characters, Micky Rourke and Scarlett Johansson to promote the movie as they are big Hollywood names. The iconic font meant that only the “2” was used instead of the film’s full title. Also, the dark, plain backgrounds created an enigma which urged the fans of the Iron Man to watch the sequel in order to reveal the mysteries. 

Trailers

The trailers and TV spots showcased the film’s comedy, narrative, new characters, and most importantly, the advanced graphics. They were strategically released on the right dates to ensure the audience were teased and left excited to watch the film.

Website

Like most film websites, ‘Iron Man 2’s website offered links which allowed people to share features and spread games etc. to friends. Users were able to interact with a special feature called “I am Iron Man 2” allowing them to use a webcam to “simulate an Iron Man adventure online”. Being so high-tech and futuristic, the site showcased the high-budget CGI the film had to offer. 

Partnerships

A record 11 companies partnered with the movie to promote is. These include: Audi, Burger King, 7-Eleven, Land O’Frost, Dr Pepper, LG, Hershey’s, Oracle, Royal Purple, and Symantec. These sponsorships with big name brands ensured that everyone had heard of the film before its release. 

Fictional Newspaper Clippings

In my opinion, the most interesting part of the marketing campaign was the fictional newspaper clippings which were published well in advance before the film’s release. They revealed the “true identity” of Tony Stark and clues about the movie’s plot leaving readers curious. 

Merchandise

Being a superhero movie, Marvel saw this as a good opportunity to reap a younger audience as well as adults. Action figures were aimed at children who became interested in the film for its action. 

Spin-offs

Spin-offs of Iron Man included videogames (for several platforms) as well as a remake of the classis comics. These were aimed at a younger audience who could have heard about the film in the first place through these spin-offs.

 

As a whole, Marvel used a huge range of platforms from which to market Iron Man 2. The variety of methods meant that a very wide audience was reached and a large fan base for the film was generated well before release. Having such a large marketing budget, I think the marketing campaign was extremely effectively developed for this film which is why it generated a very successful $623,433,331 gross revenue.