5 Ways to Market Your Movie Besides Social movie
There’s a lot of advice on the internet, as well as on this blog about marketing your film using social media. That’s with good reason, Social media is among the most cost-effective ways to market your project if you do it properly. Further, it helps you maintain a long-term relationship with potential customers. That being said, it’s not the only way to market your film. It might not even be the most efficient way when it’s the only thing you do. What follows are 5 ways to market your film other than social media.
For this blog, all 5 of these tactics can and should be used in conjunction with each other, and can greatly augment your social media marketing.
Before we begin, every once in a while I’ll take a question I get on Twitter and turn it into a blog. This question came @AmandaVerhagen a while back, but I’ve not had time to adequately address it until now. If you have a question about film distribution, marketing, financing, or sales, feel free to @Mention @TheGuerrillaRep and I might just write a blog to answer your question.
Events
Hosting an event to spread the word about your project can be a great way to build excitement and generate interest in your project. This can be something as simple as a happy hour at a local bar where you buy a few drinks for strong supporters, or as complex as renting an event space, supplying the booze, and having some people say a few words. Ideally with entertainment.
What you do really comes down to how much time you have to organize and what your budget it. The importance of the milestone you’re celebrating also plays a factor, although any milestone worthy of an event is also likely worthy of some time to organize it
Festivals
Shocking, I know. However what does bear mentioning is that festivals are only as useful as you make them. Getting into festivals can be a great way to expand your network and grow the reputation of the film, however the effect that will have will be limited unless you learn how to work the festival.
Essentially, getting into a festival provides you a space where you can utilize every other item on this list to grow your notoriety, your film’s reputation, and your professional network.
Flyers/Givaways
Having something tangible you can give away to people at events in festivals will help people remember you. They’ll remember you even more if you attach something to the card that has some immediate value beyond the information you’re handing out. This can be as simple as a tiny piece of chocolate attached to a card, a bottle of hand sanitizer, or even a small bottle of alcohol( if the demographic is right.)
Adding a giveaway will help you stand out in the minds of whoever you give your giveaway to .It’s easy to get lost in a pouch of postcards and flyers, but something as simple and cheap as a piece of chocolate can make all of the difference in how you’re remembered by the event goer.
Stunts
Pulling some sort of marketing stunt can be a great way to stand out and attract a bit of press. Whatever you do, you’ve got to make sure you do it safely though.
One of the most famous stunts at Cannes was when someone lit themselves on fire (in a fire suit) and then after they were put out, it was revealed to be an attractive your woman in a bikini who starred in the film she was promoting. Rumor has it the woman later lost that bikini while being interviewed, but that’s another matter. Also, that happened in the late 80’s/early 90’s, so the culture was different.
Your stunt doesn’t have to be as outlandish as that, but should be as memorable. If you have a war movie, you might want to consider throwing toy paratroopers from a rooftop you can gain access to. If you’re promoting at Sundance, a woman in a bikini making a quick walk through the cold with premier tickets would certainly grab some eyeballs and some attention. Especially if you can work in a joke about accidentally packing for Cannes. That said, make sure you have a trenchcoat and hot drinks on hand to help her out when she inevitably gets cold.
In any case, the goal of the stunt is to get eyeballs in a safe and legal way. It’s to help you and your movie be memorable and to ideally attract a bit of the final item on our list.
Publicity
Publicity is almost always the most cost-effective way to spread the word about your project. However, it’s not always the easiest thing to get. Generally, you’ll need a relationship with an outlet, something truly eye-catching, or a good publicist to get any substantial amount of coverage. Sometimes you’ll need all three.
There are a couple of ways you can disseminate a press release. PRNewswire.com is relatively affordable, but it’s unclear how much individual press coverage you’ll get out of it. It does still help with your SEO (Search Engine Optimization) to at least a degree though.
Generally, if you can afford a publicist, it’s the best way to go by far. My favorite publicist is October Coast, they’re very cost-effective for the value they provide. While it’s possible to get big marquee press coverage from October Coast it’s unlikely. This means you probably won’t get you the big outlets like Deadline, Variety, or THR, but you will get dozens of relevant niche blogs. In general, you’ll need a higher-cost publicist, or if you’re lucky your distributor, sales agent, or producer’s rep will handle this for you.
EDIT FROM THE FUTURE: There may be a few more things I’ve learned from Running Mutiny that I’ll share in a new blog around the efficacy of paid ads and sponsorships. Comment if that’s of interest.
Thanks for reading! If you want more help financing or distributing your movie, the best place to start is my film business resource pack. It’s got templates, an e-book, and a whole lot more to help you grow your indiefilm company and career. Oh, it’s completely free, get it below.
