One of my favorite marketing mantras of late is the one that goes, "The best thing a marketer can do is get out of the way of the brand." There's a similar one that contends that -- and I'm paraphrasing here -- word of mouth is what happens when marketers stop and consumers actually use the product or interact with the brand.
There's no greater example of the truth in these sentiments than the groundswell that is building for the upcoming film, "Snakes on a Plane." The movie, starring Samuel L. Jackson, has become something of a sensation in the online community, and serves as a testament to the power of buzz-building. And the best part is that New Line, the studio releasing the movie, has barely done a thing so far.
Why "Snakes"?
Let's first dive into the components that make the movie so attractive to the internet community. First off, Jackson is a fan favorite. In addition to being a great actor who has appeared in some big buzz movies like Pulp Fiction, he also has a reputation for being just a cool cat, which helps.
Secondly, it sports a title that's...well... just fantastic. It's reminiscent of old movies with names like "Giant Spiders from Outer Space" or "Atomic Iguana." It's big, brash and effectively serves as its own plot synopsis. And this plot -- that someone is trying to assassinate a government witness by releasing thousands of snakes on the plane he's flying on -- is hilariously ridiculous. It's hard not to type (or read) that description without snickering, isn't it?
But the movie itself only goes so far to explain the buzz, especially when no one has seen it yet. The rest can be found in New Line's willingness to let the community do its thing with the movie, which is still three months from opening.
"Snakes on a Plane" has redefined the term Consumer-Generated Content. There have been blogs, fake trailers, role playing games, fan-designed T-shirts sold on EBay and all sorts of other materials created by the online community. They all take what the British would call "a bit of a piss" with the movie; meaning they're mocking and making fun of it, but always with a genuine sense of affection. The material they've created has been, at turns, reverent, funny, mocking and respectful.
The biggest and brightest of the consumer content is Snakes on a Blog. The author, Brian Finkelstein, started the blog in January 2006 as part of an effort to get invited to the premiere of the movie. Since then, it's become sort of a one-stop shop for anyone looking for SoaP information and content. He links to just about everything that exists on the internet relating to the movie. I could do my own list of those sites here, but instead want to encourage you to immerse yourself in that world by checking it out for yourself.
Another notable component is the TagWorld SoaP song contest. The site asked fans to submit their homegrown Snakes on a Plane-related song to the site, where site viewers will determine their favorites by an online vote. New Line itself will choose the winning song, which it will include on the film's soundtrack.
Beyond building buzz
Not only is the internet community having fun with the movie, they're also influencing it. The movie went through a brief re-naming to the much blander "Flight 121," but that didn't last long. Not only did online commentators react poorly, but Jackson himself reportedly demanded the movie return to its original name.
Moreover, after receiving some early fan feedback, New Line reshot some existing scenes, and filmed some new ones as well, to meet the stated expectations of the movie.
So what's left for New Line to do?
Right now, New Line has created a placeholder official website, a trailer and most recently a poster. That's it so far and, in my opinion, that's all they need to create. And here's the takeaway lesson other studios can learn from: Sometimes, instead of turning an official site into a bland piece of corporate communication, turn it over to the fans and let it act as an aggregator, not only for consumer-generated content but also as a buzz-tracker of the ongoing conversation. Hold a competition for fans to submit their poster designs, and actually use them. In other words, let the fans have their fun and increase the stake they already are holding in a film. This is how New Line can potentially sustain the buzz for another three months, and how other films can leverage fan interest in general.
The greatest lesson to come so far from the "Snakes on a Plane" story is that of the power of the community. This is a groundswell that's unprecedented, even for the big movies that would seem to be natural fits for "fanboy" engagement. If as many people currently talking about the movie turn out to buy tickets, it will likely be one of the biggest hits of the summer. And that's all because New Line knew enough to get out of the way of their brand.
Chris Thilk has been writing about movie marketing for since May 2004. He lives and works in the Chicago area. Read full bio.
