The Kn
www.T
ow How
heKnow
Movie
How.co
m
What d o you kn ow?
Market ing Plan Lauren Pearce April 2 8, 200 9
E
CA
Introduction
ORANG
Introduction.........................................................................................1 Executive Summary..................................................................2 The Fundamentals....................................................................3 Target Audiences......................................................................4 Film Festival Strategy.........................................................................5 Target Festivals.........................................................................6 Festival Kit.................................................................................7 Marketing Strategies................................................................8 PR Strategies...........................................................................10 Business to Business Strategy........................................................11 Target Distributors................................................................12 Distribution Strategies..........................................................13 Consumer Strategy..........................................................................15 Release Strategy.....................................................................16 Advertising Strategy..............................................................17 Media Relations................................................................,.....18 Fan Relations..........................................................................19 Corporate Tie-Ins..................................................................20 Corporate Synergy................................................................21 Public Relations Strategies..................................................22 Publicity Pitch Schedule.................................................................23 Media Plan.........................................................................................28 Budget................................................................................................29
Table of Conte n
ts
E
CA
Introduction ORANG
In this marketing plan you will find a comprehensive plan for the film The Know How, a light-hearted documentary about discovering how little we know about the world around us. The objective of this plan is to create a strategy for A. Having the film screened in numerous festivals around the United States and France B. Secure a profitable distribution deal with a large distributor and C. Have a successful commercial launch.
Executive Sum
mary
This film is a sure success among college-aged men, travel/roadtrip enthusiasts, independent film connoisseur, and California lovers. We will promote the film while we attend film festivals through a cross-country, year-long road trip to 20 festivals in a Volkswagen Bus wrapped to promote the film. When the full consumer promotion begins we will promote the film with the hook “Do You Know?� prompting people to go to the Web site to discover what the phrase means. The Know How is positioned as the quintessential travel film of our generation. We will cross promote the film with MTV, California Travel and Tourism Commission, The Travel Channel, AAA,Volkswagen USA and Wahoo’s Fish Tacos. We will further promote the film through several events, including a surf competition to be held in Ocean Beach, San Diego, one of the key locations of the film. The marketing plan calls for an integral media connection. We will invite journalists on portions of the festival tour for them to write feature stories about the film. We will also coordinate with media in all towns we stop in during the festival tour. We plan on using innovative new technology in on-line press releases, which will have links, RSS feeds,YouTube videos and google search optimization imbedded to help the journalists obtain the information they need. Our online strategy is comprehensive and includes all major platforms including: Web page, blog, Facebook, MySpace,YouTube and Twitter. A public relations professional will manage these communication channels that we will use extensively to promote the film to all audiences: festivals, distributors, media and the consumer. Our marketing budget is $20 million.
E
CA
Introduction
ORANG
Film Synopsis
The Know How is a light-hearted documentary that shows Southern California through the eyes of an inexperienced traveller. As the quintessential travel film for this generation, the movie takes us to the deserts and beaches of The Southland as director Eric Lindstrom leads us into the outdoors to experience the stunning landscape, people and wildlife of California.
The Fundamen
tals
Told in the first person, Lindstrom allows us to follow along on the trip, living vicariously through his experiences. The Know How is about adventure, discovery and the realization of just how little we know about the world around us.
Concept Capsule
The Know How is a scenic adventure that unveils California while revealing how little we know about the world around us.
Marketable Elements
Southern California, travel, road trip, beach, desert, college, camping, surfing, experiment, adventure, s’mores, Joshua Tree National Park, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Ocean Beach, indie music, scenery, breaking stereotypes, Australian film maker
Plan Objectives
• To be screened at 15 festivals • To obtain a distribution deal • To be on 800 screens nation wide
Road trip route from The Know How
• To generate a profit of 20%
E
CA
Introduction
ORANG
Primary audience: Male college
students between the ages of 18-25 who are interested in travel, the outdoors and want to discover places they are unfamiliar with. We will also position the film as being a way for them to experience new places while playing up the college connection and the light hearted spirit of the film.
Target Audienc e
s
Secondary audience: Travel/road trip enthusiasts: people who enjoy getting out on the road and seeing the world. We will position the film to this audience as a way to experience new places, while honouring their appreciation for travel.
Tertiary audience: Independent film/documentary enthusiasts. For this niche we will position the film as being an independent documentary created by a college student who used innovative cinematography and music.
Quaternary Audience: Southern California Natives/Lovers: those who live in California, or have an
affinity for the state. For this group we will focus on the California connection through stunning visuals and the names of the locations the film visits.
The Kn
www.T
ow How
heKnow
Hey,
Movie
How.co
m
The fes tiv are get al tour is goin tin g where w g great revie great! We ws eve e ry our fes go and every one LO tival kit VES ! I’ll tell y ou all a bout it back. when w e get
Film Fe
stival S
trategy
E
CA
Film Festival Strategy
ORANG
Our festival plan includes a year-long, nation-wide festival tour. We will target the following festivals for consideration:
2009 April 23: Debut at Newport Beach Film Festival May 13: Cannes June 10: CineVegas June 18: Los Angeles Film Festival June 23: Palm Springs International Shortfest Aug 28: Malibu International Film Festival Sept 25: San Diego Film Festival Sept 29: Telluride Film Festival Oct 8: Chicago International Film Festival Nov 10: Columbus International Film Festival Nov 13: St. Louis International Film Festival Nov 12: Redrock Film Festival 2010 Jan 21: Sundance Film Festival Feb 5: Portland International Film Festival Feb 19: San Francisco Ocean Film Festival Feb 22: Sedona Film Festival March 6: San Luis Obispo International Film Festival March 13: South by Southwest Festival April 5: Beverley Hills International Film Festival April 22: Tribeca Film Festival
Target Festival s
CA
Film Festival Strategy ORANG
E
We will create a festival kit to send to our target festivals. This kit will include: • A cover letter • Director’s biography • Press release • Film synopsis & facts • A CD with key art • Business card • Take-away postcards, pen and road map
Festival Kit
CA
ORANG
E
Film Festival Strategy Guerrilla Marketing
We will have a Volkswagen Bus customized and wrapped with The Know How artwork by MTV’s Pimp My Ride. This bus will travel to all of the festivals during the year-long festival tour. Lindstrom will film the tour for a reality show on MTV, and a second documentary that will set out to break the stereotypes of America, focusing on small town living and the lives of people who live on the road. In festival cities the film’s street team, or “Know it Alls,” will hand out promotional items as well as attach magnetic bumper stickers that say “Do You Know?” with the Web site URL to random vehicles and road signs.
Marketing Stra
tegies
The Know How Bus will also be parked in strategic locations in festival cities. It will be left in front of hotels and restaurants where industry leaders frequent, make rounds at the airport, and be left in front of the festival venue. “Know it Alls” will place postcard racks with The Know How themed postcards in key places, such as airports, hotels, local stores, and inside the festival itself. Wild postings will also be done in festival cities, some of them will be the “Do You Know” message, while others will be the full one sheet.
E
CA
Film Festival Strategy
ORANG
Internet Marketing
We will create the Web site: www.TheKnowHow.com as well as a blog: www.theknowhowmovie.blogspot.com where the road trip will be documented with information from each stop and video posts of the trip. The videos recorded for the blog, as well as viral videos, will also be uploaded to YouTube. We will collaborate with road trip enthusiasts via multiple online communities including: www.roadtripamerica.com, www.rvforum.com, and www.lovemybus.com in order to meet up with this target market and have them join us for portions of the road trip. They will also be interviewed for the upcoming documentary.
Marketing Stra
tegies
Facebook and Movies.MySpace groups will be created so members can read about, and see images from, the road trip. A Twitter account will provide followers with frequent updates from the road trip, and the happenings at festivals.
Viral Marketing
Viral marketing will rely heavily on word of mouth from the blog, videos, Bus, and “Do You Know� messages that are disseminated throughout festival cities. We also will work to ensure the YouTube videos become viral.
CA E
Film Festival Strategy
ORANG
Media Relations
On-line press releases will be emailed to media in every town we will stop at, announcing the upcoming arrival of The Know How road trip. In festival towns, we will send on-line press releases and do follow-up calls to the media. In several cities on the tour Lindstrom will perform interviews on local radio and television talk shows. On-line press releases will include imbedded videos, RSS feeds, Google links and other opportunities form making them more interesting and vital to reporters.
PR Strategies
Distributor Relations
We will create a small pocket-sized book to hand to distributors at the festivals with information about the film, and our contact information. The book will also include a small quiz, testing their California knowledge. They will have to go online to view their results, driving them directly to our Web site. We will gather their information and use it later in our distribution strategy.
Networking
Our street team will allow us to network with industry insiders, the media, and potential fans during the festival tour. The “Know It Alls” will be well versed on the concept capsule and synopsis of the film, and armed with merchandise and the pocket books Lauren Pearce The Know How Head of Marketing 1 University Drive Orange, CA 92866 (949) 456-7890 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Oct 18, 2009 FILM MAKER COMING TO TULSA OK ON TUESDAY A documentary on small town America and Road Trips will be filmed OKLAHOMA CITY.—Going cross country in a Volkswagen Bus is an iconic American tradition. Once again this classic road trip symbol will traverse the American terrain, only this time it will make the voyage with a film maker on board, a caravan of fellow road trip enthusiasts in tow, and with a refreshed exterior courtesy of MTV’s Pimp My Ride. The road trip is part of the promotion for a new film, The Know How, a lighthearted documentary that follows creator Eric Lindstrom on a two week road trip throughout Southern California. A native of Australia, Lindstrom admits that much of the learning in the film was his own. “I always assumed that Southern California was this sprawling metropolis hundreds of miles away from anything that magnificent, what I learned was beauty is everywhere if you look for it.” Lindstrom says about his
The Kn
www.T
ow How
heKnow
Whats
Movie
How.co
m
up?
We’ve s tarted sending screen ers to distribu out our nervous tor , but ho peful th s. I’m HUGE at su help me ccess. Are yo we’ll have u se Friday? nd out postca still going to rds on I’ll call y ou later
B-2-B S
trategy
CA
B-2-B Strategy
E
ORANG
Distribution Target customers:
The film will be distributed by MTV Films. We have selected MTV Films because they create films for the college-aged demographic. Distribution with MTV also gives us the best opportunities for synergy through MTV’s television shows.
Target Distribu t
ors
In our search for a distributor, we will create a database of a number of distributors in our attempt to secure a deal. We will use this database to help us execute a number of tactics during our communications efforts with the distributors.
CA
B-2-B Strategy We will call the distributors on our database to gauge their interest. The distributors who prove to be viable options will be sent a distributor kit, take away, and screener. They will also be added to an e-blast list where we will send them updates and information of accolades periodically.
Guerrilla/Mail
Two days after receiving the screener, we will send a The Know How postcard to the distributors with a handwritten note from me.
Telemarketing
E
ORANG
Distiburtion St
rategies
Follow up calls will be made after the first postcard is sent to push a distribution deal. Those not interested can be crossed off the list and we can focus our attention on distributors who are interested in the film. We will continue to send them updates, postcards and make follow up calls until a distribution deal is struck.
B-2-B Strategy CA
Networking
E
ORANG
During the festival tour we hope to establish relations with distributors at the respective festivals. During these meetings, we will give the distributors a business card as well as a small book with facts and a synopsis of the film. We will give them the ability to sign up for updates at this time, and add their contact information to our distributor database.
Screenings
Distiburtion St
rategies
We will host screenings in Los Angeles and New York for distributors.
Film
Syno
What Do You Know?
psis
The K umen now Ho w is tary t al throu h What percentage of Californian’s live in gh th at shows ight-heart e e S trave ller. A eyes of a outhern C d doLos c- Angeles County? n s for th a Laure is gen the quint inexperien lifor nia □ 5% n essen the d eratio c e d Head Pearce ti e n □ 10% land serts and , the mov al travel fi o as lm b ie tak □ 30% 1 Un f Marketi es us us int director eaches of i n v e T E o t □ 45% Oran rsity Way g stunn the outd ric Lindstr he South- o g o in o Califo g landsca ors to exp m leads (949) e, CA 928 pe, pe rnia. erien 6 4 How many national parks does Califorople c Laure 56-7890 6 and w e the nia have? n ildlife Told Twitt @thekno in of □3 er : kn lows the first w pe u owho how.com □5 vicari s to follow rson, Lin w ds o □7 Know usly throu along on trom alt g h H his ex he trip, ow is □8 ery a living per ab n we k d the real out adven iences. Th now i abou zation of ture, disc e Is San Luis Obispo on the coast? t the ju o world st how li v □ True ttle aroun d us. □ False
The K
now
www .TheK
nowH
ow.co m
How
The Kn
www.T
ow How
heKnow
Hey,
Movie
How.co
m
I have g re distribu at news! We ha to off mar r!!! Now it’s t ve a ime to k ke ick have so ting to the co me gre nsumer at .I wait to tell you ideas and I ca all abou n t them. ’t See yo u soon!
Consum
er Strat
egy
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
Release Strateg
y
Release Dates: June 18, 2010, July 1, 2010 Strategy: Platform Rating: PG Genre: Documentary The film will be released June 18 in: • Los Angeles • San Diego • San Francisco • Seattle • New York • Miami • Chicago We have selected these cities due to their size, influence, artistic focus, and general young and fun spirit that jibes with our target markets. On July 1 the film will go to wide release around the United States.
CA
Consumer Strategy
ORANG
E
We will start our ad campaign with a guerrilla campaign featuring advertisement with the message “DO YOU KNOW?” and a web URL. These ads will go up a month before the respective release dates. Two weeks prior to the film’s release they will be replaced with the full ad campaign featuring the one sheet and message. These ads will be on: • Billboards • Transit shelters • Taxis • City Buses • Magazines • Select TV
Advertising St
rategy
When the most extensive advertising campaign starts we will also expand it more venues as well, including more magazines and television.
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
Media Relation
s
During our festival tour we will invite journalists on the Bus at different times in order for feature stories to be written to be published the month of the film’s release. Journalists will be from the following publications because their readership is comprised of our target markets: Budget Travel The Los Angeles Times Trail Blazer Car & Driver Maxim Performance VW Blender If Magazine We will also contact media in all towns the tour visited for follow up stories prior to the release. In California, we will contact numerous media outlets pitching them a story about a film that shows California culture in a truthful light. In key cities we will contact the media pitching a story about the release of the quintessential travel film of this generation.
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
Due to our extensive pre-release and film festival outreach, we anticipate a large fan base to be in place before the film is released. We will give the faithful following the attention they deserve by hosting a screening especially for them. The screening will also include a meet-and-greet/Q&A with Director Eric Lindstrom after the showing. We will also give them free gifts, such as t-shirts, bumper stickers and postcards to help them promote the film to others. The event will be broadcast live on the Web site, live-blogged and live-tweeted to make it accessible for all fans.
Fan Relations
A fan aspect of the Web site will also be created, with a Web forum and store for fans to buy their favorite The Know How wears. We will create a California themed quiz they can take to test their knowledge. They will be able to put their results on Facebook and challenge their friends to beat their score.
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
California Travel and Tourism Commission: By teaming up with this
government organization, we will promote the film while also encouraging travel to California. We will promote the film with a presence on www. visitcalifornia.com as well as a mention in a Visit California commercial at no cost to the film.
Corporate Tie-
Ins
Travel Channel: We will team up with Travel Channel to sponsor Road
Trip Week. The Know How will pay the Travel Channel for its sponsorship and in return receive a large amount of advertisement on the channel and Web site.
AAA: We will team up with AAA to promote road trips as well as on
road safety. This mutually beneficial relationship would come at low costs to The Know How.
Volkswagen USA: We will work with Volkswagen on cross promotion
advertisements featuring The Know How Bus.Volkswagen currently uses “Max the Beetle” as its spokesperson, The Know How Bus will become the co-host of these commercials as the hip, surfer-dude Bus.
Wahoo’s Fish Tacos: We will send stickers and posters to all 50
Wahoo’s fish tacos nation wide. In select California stores we will also pay to have employees wear The Know How t-shirts at work the week before and of the release. This cross promotion will cost The Know How money in supplies as well as for Wahoo’s involvement.
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
MTV will be our main tie in for the promotion of The Know How. First, we will have Pimp My Ride style The Know How Bus for a new episode that will air prior to the film’s theatrical release.
During the festival tour, MTV will broadcast the reality TV show of the festival tour. The show will document the festival culture, the struggle to become a known film maker, as well as the road trip itself. We will also launch the consumer campaign at MTV Spring Break, where the film and the Bus will have a strong presence, The full theatrical theater will play for the first time at Spring Break. The week before The Know How’s theatrical release, we will sponsor marathons of the reality tv show filmed during the festival tour as well as Pimp My Ride, leading up to the new episode featuring The Know How Bus. During this time we will also sponsor a contest with the grand prize being a road trip in California. The Know How soundtrack will be released on MTV’s music label.
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
Press Junkets: A Q&A with the director will be scheduled for the week of the premier in Los Angeles. The event will be held at the famous art-deco Georgian Hotel in Santa Monica, California. We have chosen the Georgian for its funky, fun, California feel and it’s beach-front location in Los Angeles.
Special events Festival tour: We will begin our consumer outreach strategy by
creating awareness through the media and by giving away promotional items for the movie.
MTV Spring Break 2010: Being a part of this event will be our first large-scale PR promotion for the film.
The Know How Surf Competition: We will host a surf competition in Ocean Beach, San Diego the weekend before the movie’s release. Due to the strong surf emphasis and Southern California connection this will be a good venue to promote the film to surfers.
CA
Consumer Strategy
E
ORANG
Premire: We will premiere the film at The Bridge: Cinema de Lux in The
Promenade at the Howard Hughes Center in Los Angeles. We have chosen this venue due to its beach-close location and its beautiful new facilities.
PR Strategies
CA
ORANG
E
Consumer Strategy Internet Strategy: During our festival tour we will use
www.theknowitallmovie.blogspot.com to keep followers updated on the road trip and news. The blog page will be linked directly to wwwTheKnowHow.com, which will have information on the film, the film maker, trailers, and prominently display the blog for people to use. We will have interactive features on the web site, including a quiz game for visitors to test their knowledge of California. This Web site will be put on all promotional items: the Bus, bumper stickers, t-shirts, etc.
PR Strategies
We will also create Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube accounts for the movie. During the road trip, these venues will inform our cult following of updates. As the release date nears, they will count down as well as provide information to all events, news and junkets. As the consumer advertisement starts, we will use these means to spread the “Do You Know� message. Simultaneously they will all switch to the full ad promotion two weeks before release. The internet plan will also involve web relations with some of our target audiences, particularly road trip enthusiasts, who are easily communicated to through travel web forums.