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Marketing Lessons We Can Learn from the Star Wars Brand

Today, I was kindly reminded that it is T-14 days until the new Star Wars movie–something that I get reminded about each and every day since we purchased our tickets back in October. You see, my fiance’ is a HUGE Star Wars fan – and “HUGE” might even be an understatement. With the upcoming premier of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I find my home and life being infiltrated with more and more Star Wars paraphernalia. Last night, I was standing in the cereal aisle buying a grown man a box of Lucky Charms because it had Darth Vader on it when it dawned on me how effective the Star Wars franchise is with their marketing campaigns. The Star Wars marketing geniuses having me watching entire football games for a 30-second video short, decorating my Christmas tree with Star Wars character ornaments whose backstories I don’t even know, and buying a coffee creamer that is mediocre in taste because Chewbacca is featured on the bottle. And the crazy part of all of this – I am not even a diehard Star Wars fan. So what does all of this mean for our marketing minds?

“Your focus determines your reality” – Qui-Gon Jinn

The Star Wars franchise is “lightsaber” focused with their marketing campaigns and are utilizing strategies that any business can learn from. Here are just some of the lessons that Star Wars has taught us.

“He will learn patience.” – Obi-Wan Kenobi Star Wars has certainly taught the art of patience. Much like the almost 30-year span of the six-episode Star Wars saga, great ideas take time. If you build the right brand, you can build the anticipation. Content & search marketing are much like a long-awaited Star Wars movie; it takes a lot of planning, patience and a defined strategy.

“You can’t win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine.” Obi-Wan Kenobi–  A good brand will prevail. The Star Wars franchise has gone through some rocky times. Ask any diehard fan and they will tell you how off-brand Episodes 1, 2, and 3 were; these are the same people who will be standing in line to see Episode 7 the day it opens and the same people buying Star Wars Christmas ornaments (guilty). If you have created a strong brand for your business with a consistent message, your fans will support you.

“Search for your feelings, you know it to be true.” Darth Vader It goes without saying that the Star Wars franchise elicits strong emotions within their fanbase and it isn’t just the powerful story lines. They effectively market to people of all ages. My seven-year-old niece insisted on being Darth Vader for Halloween. She begs her mom to buy Star Wars mac-n-cheese and wants a Darth Vader toaster for Christmas. Why? Everywhere you look, Star Wars is there.

“They’ll soon be back, and in great numbers.” Obi-Wan Kenobi Star Wars is eliciting brand emotions through the connections that they are making with each and every fan, regardless of age. Your brand can build emotions that are just as meaningful as long as you continue to nurture the responses that your fans give you.- One thing we can count on is the continuation of the Star Wars saga and that’s because the franchise has done a great job of teasing us. They are effectively executing a drip campaign to each and every fan without any fan realizing that they are knee deep in a push marketing campaign. And why doesn’t it bother us? Because we have a strong attachment to the brand. Build a buzz for your brand and trickle the information to your fans so that they build a connection and want to engage with your business.

 

Lesson Learned –  You might not have the means to pull off a major digital marketing campaign like Star Wars, but these simple pointers can help align your brand with the right methods and marketing strategies to “Stay on target.” – Gold Five

XOXO,

Monique