‘The Hunger Games’ Cross Media Campaign

As you probably know by now, The Hunger Games, a sci-fi novel by Suzanne Collins, is coming to the big screen. The highly anticipated film is utilizing an ongoing cross media campaign in order to build hype for its March 23 release.

The campaign is spread across multiple social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr, and that doesn’t even include the thousands of fan-created sites. The viral marketing operation also employed direct mail. Recently, a single white rose was sent to many members of the press on Valentine’s Day, along with a note from the fictional leader of Panem, President Snow. The note read, “From all of us here in the Capitol, I would like to wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day and a happy Hunger Games. I’ll see you on March 23^rd. President Coriolanus Snow.”

The film’s official Twitter account (@TheHungerGames) focuses on involving fans through hash tags, like #LookYourBest and #TheHungerGames. With 50 days leading up to the premiere, fans were encouraged to tweet #HungerGames50 to be entered to win tickets. Another account (@TheCapitolPN) tweets convincingly from the fictitious country as though it existed, and provides links to the other social media platforms.

The Facebook page, with over 2 million likes, recently added a feature to create your own D.I.P., or District Identification Pass. A countdown ticker advertises the film as the “74^th Annual Hunger Games,” and encourages you to reserve your seats. In fine print, it states: “Attendance is mandatory.” Further, there is a link to check out the mobile app set to be released soon (a specific date is not mentioned) from the iTunes App Store.

Perhaps the marketing team’s best strategy yet, Capitol Couture is a Tumblr page structured to resemble an online fashion magazine. It is dedicated to sharing the latest fashion and celebrity news from the Capitol. If you’re not up to date on your Hunger Games terminology, the Capitol is where the wealthy and powerful people of the nation of Panem reside. The site is entirely in-character, creating an alternate reality for fans of The Hunger Games. It offers personal advice and shares gossip from the characters. It features links to the high-fashion brand Rodarte, which is a partner of the site, and China Glaze, which is releasing nail polish colors inspired by the film.

Furthermore, motion posters featuring three of the movie’s male stars appeared online last week. However, these were not your average posters. Each one was a mock advertisement for a fake beauty product inspired by the film. The products, which can be found in the image-obsessed Capitol, are gold eyeliner, teeth whitener, and a 17-blade electric razor. The animated posters popped up on the MTV, E! Online, and IGN websites posed as authentic advertisements. They were, in fact, ads, but not for what people may have thought. Their emergence on these entertainment sites was no accident, and the mock ads certainly generated buzz for the films upcoming release.

This campaign has unquestionably garnered some discussion. What do you think? Is the utilization of cross media marketing effective in this instance? Would you recommend that it have been carried out any differently?

By: Mariah Dolloff, Tinhat Creative Marketing Intern