How many of you are inclined to plan to watch a newly released TV series solely because it's frequently mentioned or promoted by your favourite influencer?
Mostly all of us, right?
A decade ago, would we ever have imagined that a single tweet from an influential personality could send a movie's box-office sales soaring?
Or how could a simple Instagram reel from an influencer breathe new life into a five-year-old song, suddenly propelling it to immense fame and generating millions of interactions?
Yet, here we are, witnessing such acts of this nature as everyday occurrences, and it’s all because of the great boost that influencer marketing has given across the entertainment industry.
With the boundaries between conventional media and social networks gradually fading, we are witnessing influencers rise as the new ‘stars’ of the age – eventually refashioning the contexts in which we consume, perceive, and engage with the entertainment industry.
Remember when K-pop band BTS's collaboration with a global brand led to record-breaking product sales? These instances are just the tip of the iceberg, showcasing these digital personas' remarkable influence over their audience.
And this is precisely why this blog consists of everything you need to know about influencer marketing in the said industry and its transformative impact on the entertainment sector.
No matter if you are a marketing professional, an aspiring influencer or just a curious onlooker interested in the sector of entertainment and digital influence, we promise this blog will be insightful, exhilarating, and full of learning.
So come along as we dig into this rapidly progressing field of ‘Influencer Marketing in the Entertainment industry’, exploring how it's changing the face of entertainment and what this means for the future.
Let’s get into our blog!
What Is Entertainment Influencer Marketing?
Entertainment influencer marketing is the strategic deployment of influencers by brands to advocate for new launches, TV/OTT series, occasions/ films, or merchandise via genuine, high-quality social media content that mirrors the influencer's life and choices. This umbrella extends to various entertainment brands, spanning book publishing, filmmaking, music, and much more.
For their audience, influences use their social media platforms and personal brands to promote entertainment-related products, services, or content.
This approach hinges on the influencer's perceived sincerity and their bond with their audience, aiming to boost awareness, engagement, and, ultimately, conversions.
Consequently, it amplifies the reach and influence of the entertainment industry.
Why does the Entertainment Industry Need Influencer Marketing?
1. Taming the Entertainment Jungle: The Role of Influencer Marketing for Entertainment Companies
The entertainment world is brimming with talent, creativity, and fierce rivalry. The battle for the viewer's attention is more intense in an era defined by the rise of OTTs and short films.
At this point, influencers step onto the stage, equipped with knowledge on niche-specific areas as well as having large numbers of followings. As brand catalysts, they pave the way for entertainment brands to reach their audience more effectively, thereby making entertainment influencer marketing an important aspect of the industry’s competitive environment.
Let me tell you an example about Disney+ and HBO Max. These two are competing against each other not just in terms of streaming content but also in employing marketing strategies. For instance, Disney+ used influencers from the Star Wars universe to generate buzz around “The Mandalorian.” By doing this, it attracted a wider audience thus making Disney+ gain an upper hand over its competitor.
2. Budget-Friendly Tactic: Low-cost Promotions through Entertainment Niche-Influencers
Remember when Netflix’s utterly famous series “Stranger Things” partnered with influencers to promote the third season by providing them with an early look?
These influencers made their followers anticipate this sneak peek by creating interesting content. This approach was economical for Netflix as it did not involve the usual promotional expenses.
Perhaps, the digital age has ushered in a new era of cost-effective promotions. Social media platforms offer a stage where influencers and entertainment icons can create engagement ripples with short-form content shot in budget-friendly studios.
As a result, this method reduces the cost of promotions, making it a win-win strategy for the entertainment industry.
3. Targeting the Bullseye: Entertainment Influencers Helping Reach the Right Audience
Aligning the interests of the entertainment industry with influencers forms the cornerstone of successful influencer marketing for entertainment company.
This commonality forms a strong connection with the target audience, making it easier for the entertainment industry to hit the bull's eye with its promotional efforts.
For example, in launching “The Handmaid's Tale,” Hulu collaborated with feminist influencers whose followers aligned with the show's target audience.
These influencers helped Hulu reach its intended audience effectively, demonstrating how vital influencer marketing is in targeting the suitable viewers.
4. Leveraging Credibility in Entertainment Influencer Marketing: The Power of Trust:
Advertisements lack personal connection with their audiences as compared to what entertainment influencers have. The relationship that influencers have built, around trust and credibility, is why they hold such power in marketing.
When Sony Interactive Entertainment released “The Last of Us Part II,” they partnered with gaming influencers who had built trust with their followers over the years.
This meant that their positive reviews and gameplay videos carried more weight, significantly impacting the game's sales and popularity.
Today's audiences trust their favourite influencers almost as much as they trust their close friends or family, making influencer marketing an effective tool for the entertainment industry.
5. The Short-form Content Power: How Entertainment Influencers Intensify Content Exposure
The ones who once rejected the short-form content have now realized the potential they had failed to recognize in the past.
A perfect example is TikTok, which reshaped the short-form content.
As a matter of fact, Universal Pictures used this platform to help advertise the film “The Secret Life of Pets 2”. They partnered with popluar TikTok influencers to produce short, entertaining, and creative videos involving their pets, thereby capturing people’s attention toward the movie in a different yet interesting way.
Hence, short-form content’s importance is now widely recognised by entertainment personalities who understand the impact influencers can have in promoting their work through short, engaging content.
6. Breaking Boundaries: Influencers in Extending Audience Outreach
At one point in time, the main ways of marketing a new film were promotional tours, press interviews and appearances on TV. The ultimate objective was to attract people’s attention and create some sense of expectation towards it so that it might succeed.
While the endgame remains unchanged in today's era, the roadmap has expanded with the dawn of social media influencers.
Just like during the release of the Amazon Prime series “Good Omens,” the marketing team collaborated with bookish influencers who were fans of Neil Gaiman.
Influencer marketing, hence, becomes a powerful tool, extending your outreach to a broader audience and creating a louder buzz in the crowd.
7. Sparks of Engagement: Influencers as Catalysts in the Entertainment Industry
Remember when “Westworld” premiered on HBO? The network leveraged the power of influencer marketing to generate online conversations.
They invited tech influencers to pre-movie screenings and urged them to post their experiences on social media, which, of course, generates conversation and participation among fans.
One of the undeniable boons of incorporating influencer marketing is the tremendous surge in social media engagement. We are well aware of the magnitude of the traction influencers command on these platforms.
Thus, when professionals in the entertainment industry join forces with popular influencers, they are betting on increased engagement, which translates into a wider audience reach.e
However, as with any solid plan, a well-thought-out strategy is as important as that.
Click here to know about the top entertainment YouTubers in India.
Here are some ways to devise an effective strategy for influencer marketing in the entertainment industry.
How Can The Entertainment Brands/Industry Do Influencer Marketing?
1. Craft a plan
When it comes to influencer marketing in the entertainment industry, having a well-thought-out plan is imperative. The rise of social media and an insatiable urge to go viral have made it impossible for the online public to forget.
Take, for instance, a newbie musician aiming to release their debut album. They could devise a plan involving partnering with popular music influencers with a strong online presence.
Strategically planning content releases, sneak peeks, and live performances with influencers can create excitement and anticipation among specific audience groups, resulting in a successful album launch.
2. Know your audience
Let's consider a scenario where a comedy film is set to hit theatres. Prior to reaching out to influencers, the filmmakers conduct thorough research to identify their target demographic—comedy enthusiasts.
By partnering with influential comedy YouTubers who share similar comedic styles, the film gains exposure to an audience that appreciates humour, ensuring a higher chance of success.
What may seem like an open-and-shut case could actually require time and energy to fully comprehend your objectives and target customers.
In spite of challenges that may seem to exist, engaging influencers in a campaign within an entertainment industry is easier when you work with the right influencer marketing agencies.
3. Collaborate with Relevant Influencers
Consider the recent instance when a new movie starring Vicky Kaushal and Sara Ali Khan was about to hit the screens. The soundtrack of the film – Tere Waste Falak Se Main Chand Launga, caught the fancy of audiences, resonating wildly with listeners.
Even though, it would have been quite a missed opportunity if the movie's promotional strategies had not capitalised on this musical success, especially the strategy where they joined forces with dance influencers who command a loyal following.
After all, these influencers’ fans definitely enjoyed the combination of the movie’s music and the influencers’ dances so much so that it turned into the most loved trend!
The above instance clearly demonstrates that strategic partnerships hold a great deal of importance, as does picking out suitable platforms for influencer advertisement.
An example is IPL 2023’s final match, where Chennai Super Kings were up against their Gujarat Titans. It is no secret that cricket has been a favourite sport among Indians of all ages.
The filmmakers took advantage of this golden opportunity to showcase their movie by playing their hit song in a packed stadium with many enthusiastic fans. The large bunch of videos that spread across social media increased the effectiveness of their marketing campaign.
5. Understand what audience needs
Recent times have witnessed significant behavioral shifts among consumers. Audiences are transitioning from mere star worship to seeking relatability in their idols.
They yearn to identify common threads that connect them to the personalities they admire. It’s more like audiences seek relatability in their favourite stars.
Imagine if you were the most famous movie star seeking to build a lifestyle brand. You would connect with influencers who represent the values and ethics of your fans by comprehending their interests and preferences.
For instance, collaborating with influencers who advocate for sustainability and well-being resonates with your brand’s message while also appealing to an audience that shares similar values. This tactic develops a genuine bond with your followers and increases the reliability and crediblity of your brand.
Having comprehended the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of influencer marketing in the entertainment industry, we can now focus on successful campaign ideas meant for this active sector.
Campaign Ideas for the Entertainment Industry
In the entertainment industry, it's essential for stars and actors to collaborate with influencers in a balanced way, ensuring they don't overshadow them but instead create a synergistic partnership. Consider, for instance, an actor renowned for his dramatic roles teaming up with a well-known fashion influencer. Rather than overpowering the influencer, he could adopt their style and use it in his own dressing. This way, they can develop a relatable and down-to-earth persona that would appeal to the audiences and show authenticity in the collaboration.
An excellent example of balanced collaboration is when actor Ryan Reynolds partnered with various YouTube creators to promote his movie “Deadpool.”
Reynolds, instead of using traditional marketing, started appearing in videos with different known YouTubers. Therefore, he was able to utilize their humour and style in such videos. The results of this were two-fold: on the one hand, it created a buzz about the movie while at the same time creating an authentic connection between Reynolds and his target audience through the followers of known influencers.
2. Throwing Online Challenges at the Audience to Increase Engagement
Challenges on social media platforms have become a go-to strategy for influencer marketing campaigns in the entertainment industry. Whether trying a new product, replicating a dance move, reading a book, or creating fan theories for shows, these challenges fuel audience engagement.
Influencer marketing campaigns in the entertainment industry have increasingly relied on social media platform-based challenges as a common tactic. Audience interaction is driven by these challenges whether it is about sampling product, replicating a dance move, reading books or creating fan theories for shows.
3. Personalized Meetings through Contests or Lucky Draws
The media and entertainment industry becomes particularly daunting regarding influencer marketing due to the fan base of actors and influencers. While it can be next to impossible to meet them personally, it is an effective technique in the media and entertainment industry influencer marketing.
It creates a faithful audience that will support the actor and their works regardless of the circumstances. While this may not assure you of creating viral content, it goes a long way in adding value, thus having a special place in the heart of each fan.
A perfect example of personalized meetings led by Taylor Swift in her “Secret Sessions.” Before she releases any new album to the public, Taylor cherry-picks a few fans, who are then selected exclusively for listening sessions to her new songs. These personal get-togethers allow them to understand her as an artist, know the stories behind the music pieces and finally provide exquisite moments for her diehard followers.
4. YouTube/ Instagram/Facebook Marketing
Social media is a source of wealth for the entertainment industry. With proper strategies, it is capable of bringing forth plentiful benefits.
From sharing movie review snippets as YouTube ads, and connecting with fans on Facebook to creating captivating Instagram posts and reels, these platforms offer myriad opportunities for outreach.
When used correctly, each tool can become a way of establishing vast and interested audiences because social networks are invaluable for influencer marketing campaigns in the entertainment industry.
A musician, for example, can use Instagram to share behind-the-scenes moments from their recording sessions, exclusive sneak peeks of upcoming music videos, and interact with fans through interactive features like Q&A sessions or live streams. Facebook can be utilised for longer-form content, such as hosting live concerts or premiering new music videos.
Well, by now, what's better than actually understanding the strategy mentioned above through some case studies?
Entertainment Influencer Marketing Campaigns Examples
Case Study 1: “Dil Bechara” – Using Balanced Collaboration
In 2020, to promote the film “Dil Bechara,” a balanced collaboration was orchestrated between Bollywood stars and influencers. The film was the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput's last, and the marketing strategy involved influencers from various walks of life.
One of the most effective promotions was the one made by famous Indian YouTuber, CarryMinati, whose fan base is huge. He mentioned this film in one of his videos and encouraged his viewers to watch it. He expressed his love for Sushant Singh Rajput in a genuine way, which connected with his followers.
When it came to handling interactions with influencers, a major part of the campaign depended upon showing admiration and gratitude for their work and respecting their space. This made the audience think that this was genuine, not just plain marketing gimmickry because those influences were respected greatly.
Case Study 2: “Gully Boy” – Engaging Audience through Online Challenges
An Indian movie, Gully Boy 2019, relied on online challenges to boost the involvement of the audiences, using the fame of rap music in India. The filmmakers of the Gully Boy movie started a social media campaign under the “Gully Boy Challenge”, through which fans were encouraged to come up with their rap songs and share them as well.
Leading actors of the film, Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, also joined in, challenging their followers to participate. This resulted in the participation of several influencers and the creation of countless rap videos by fans, leading to a massive online buzz around the movie.
Moreover, the film also utilized personalized interactions by hosting contest winners at special screening events, creating a deeper bond with fans.
In addition, the campaign was continued on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook to promote the movie's release. It is noteworthy that the trailer and songs were actively promoted on YouTube. On the other hand, Instagram and Facebook were used to post behind-the-scenes photos and interact with the fandom, which helped develop a huge and responsive audience.
One of the most successful influencer marketing campaigns in the Indian music industry was deployed to promote the song “Paani Paani” by Badshah and Jacqueline Fernandez in 2021. The song was released on the music label Saregama India's YouTube channel, which was already popular among youth.
To promote this song, a brilliant marketing strategy was deployed, including an online dance challenge, “#PaaniPaaniDanceChallenge.” The challenge was promoted on various social media platforms, including Instagram and TikTok, where fans were asked to create and share their dance covers of the song.
The strategy involved popular influencers from the Indian TikTok community with millions of followers. They created their own dance videos on the song and posted them on their profiles, challenging their followers to do the same.
Badshah, known for his active presence on social media, also joined in and shared some of the best fan-made dance videos on his Instagram account, providing a huge morale boost to the fans and participants.
Conclusion
Looking ahead, it’s apparent that in this swiftly changing entertainment industry, influencers will be in control.
Though, for that matter, utilizing this power requires a deep understanding of the complicated dynamics of influencer marketing in the entertainment sector. Worried? Don’t panic; expert agencies such as Grynow will help you navigate them.
Grynow is the best influencer marketing agency in India for entertainment brands. With over 8 years of experience in the industry, Grynow is a reputed player in the arena of influencer marketing. Having worked with over 1500 brands, and a database of over 300 million influencers, Grynow has established a name for itself in the Indian market.
Grynow’s team speaks dedication and works with a results-oriented approach, which makes them an ideal partner for your brand to launch an influencer marketing campaign.
