How Leisure Manufacturers Are Embracing Fandom to Higher Interact Audiences

In today’s media landscape, it’s more exciting than ever to be a fan and engage with characters and stories, not just through the traditional mediums of movies and TV, but also across podcasts, music, video games, toys, in-person experiences and more.

Also in recent times, enhanced customer experiences are presenting challenges for marketers looking to connect audiences with franchises they love. “Driving audience action is no longer as easy as exposing a consumer to content and selling them a movie ticket,” says Alexys Coronel, director and head of U.S. entertainment and telecommunications at Amazon Ads.

So how does new content stand out in the current attention economy? At Variety’s Entertainment Marketing Summit, industry experts from Amazon Ads, Circana, Hasbro and Paramount Pictures weighed in on how brands can harness the power of fandom to drive engagement. 

Discoverability Can Happen Anywhere
Historically, entertainment marketers viewed franchise discovery as more linear than they do today. The customer journey largely started with a film release, continued through in-home entertainment and was followed by consumer products and holiday sales. These days, the variations of how and when fans discover a franchise are more fluid. In a 2022 Kantar and Amazon Ads study, 68% of licensed product shoppers surveyed were likely to purchase a product featuring IP in anticipation of a movie or series release; 78% of them were likely to purchase after having watched that release.

“To be a theatrical event, you have to be everywhere,” says Danielle De Palma, executive VP of global marketing for Paramount Pictures. “You have to take over pop culture for a period of time. People need to see you on TV, in their social feeds, where they’re eating, where they’re shopping. Cross-category marketing is really part of the larger recipe for theatrical success.”

Brands may want to consider expanding their windows of investment to drive efficiency from zeitgeist moments. For example, Amazon Ads recently saw a double increase in searches during the month of a content release announcement. “There are noninvasive ways to engage, like running sponsored ad campaigns before and after the trailer’s been introduced, or connecting with those fans on core entertainment sites like IMDb,” Coronel says.

Fan interest may continue to trend upward even after and between major releases, according to the recent Kantar and Amazon Ads study. “You can also tailor your campaigns with sequential messaging, dynamic messaging during live events, like Thursday Night Football, or further elevate the campaign through a special sweepstakes or high-touch moment,” Coronel adds.

Create Customer-Centric Content Experiences
Fans today have high expectations — and they should. They have a deep affinity for their favorite stories, with nearly one in two survey respondents reporting they are likely to have an emotional connection to their favorite content and characters. Entertainment brands should strive to put customers at the heart of their campaigns and embrace collaboration to reach these audiences across categories.

“Fans repeatedly tell us that they see it all as interconnected: purchasing products, consuming content, and being a fan,” says Kristen McLean, executive director and industry analyst, books and entertainment, at Circana. “It’s a virtuous circle of discovery and fan celebration that benefits the entire franchise across verticals. This audience includes both new-to-brand consumers and core fans.”

When asked how Hasbro approaches customer-first campaigns, Sue Perez-Jackson, senior director of global ecommerce for licensed consumer products, says: “We aim to create the best brand experience, whether it’s content or commerce, and deliver on the fans’ high expectations. We are creating amazing brand destinations on Amazon with our partners and giving the consumer the opportunity to enter the world of their favorite franchise. They can buy tickets, watch content, explore characters and buy products all in one destination.”

Harness the Power of Cross-Category Collaboration
Finding new and more efficient ways to tap into the emotional charge behind franchises is essential for businesses looking to strengthen and scale their reach. Brands that look for synergies and see franchise content and consumer products as shared assets may unlock new revenue opportunities.

By collaborating across verticals, businesses may find that their marketing budgets can go further and that, ultimately, a single division does not need to lift the entire fandom alone. Amazon Ads has developed a new strategic framework, Franchise and Fandom Experiences, to help connect these businesses in their integrated campaign planning efforts.

“The practical application of cross-category collaboration can be challenging — aligning across various teams (marketing, media, distribution, search, etc.) and thinking about content and consumer products as shared assets. This is where we’ve found great success in Franchise and Fandom Experiences,” says Coronel. “Amazon is a connector — we bring together various businesses and then help maximize their collective appeal to drive results.”

Click here to learn more about how Amazon Ads can help you engage entertainment audiences.