Cracked’s List Shows How A Viral Can Backfire Kris, June 18, 2010 When it comes to alternate reality games, the more believable and interactive, the better. It’s wonderful experience we love, except for when it backfires.I’m not talking about when its structured sloppy, I mean when it is far too real for its own good. Cracked made a list that covers such a topic. The article, “The 6 Most Insanely Misguided Attempts at Viral Marketing“, includes the Splinter Cell bar scene. To sum it up, what was supposed to be a played out as a bar room hold up and rescue got only half way through the 1st act because it was disastrously to convincing. Cops came in, took down the fake criminal, with a fake gun, in a fake hold up. The guy must have been a great actor. Movies have fallen victim to the same problem. Cracked’s list includes the Boston Bomb Scare from the cheap Aqua Teen Hunger Force campaign. Going back to our roots though, The Blair Witch Project viral, the father of all movie ARG advertising campaigns, did pretty gutsy moves. All it took was a website to make the movie convincing enough to be considered as an actual documentary. As a more recent example, Sony Pictures’ 2012 had a very wide and complex campaign. From the Jackson Curtis Facebook Page to Soren Ulfert’s blog and complex messages, it was hard for newcomers to tell if it was true or not. In fact, the marketing company had to explicitly brand their campaign to keep people from thinking the 2012 doomsday myth had been proven real (which some still did). It all comes down to planning, but sometimes even that’s not enough. But keep in mind: do you really want an obvious ARG? Is it better to confirm an ARG? Of course not, it dulls the experience, as we mentioned last year. For all intensive purposes, I say keep it realistic as possible. Not only is it more fun, but you gotta be brave enough to do it. Viral Marketing Viral News 2012Aqua Teen Hunger ForceCartoon NetworkSplinter CellThe Blair Witch Project
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” Website Opens Up Two Worlds January 26, 2014January 26, 2014A slick new web site promoting Dawn of the Planet of the Apes has kicked the sequel’s marketing into high-gear. The site takes you through different rain-soaked levels of human and ape locations, describing some of the struggles and showing a few character elements. Hit the jump to see more. Read More
YouTube Tuesday: Ziccup September 25, 2012September 25, 2012We at MovieViral know our viral videos pretty well, so we decided to share our knowledge to those looking to expand their Internet horizons. YouTube Tuesday is a weekly feature where we shine the spotlight on our favorite YouTube channels related to movies and television. We focus on channels that… Read More
The Crazies Viral Gets New Twitter January 6, 2010November 16, 2010A little over a month ago, we told you about a few new updates and sites to the viral campaign of The Crazies. One of those updates being from a company known as Dakon/Pendrill Chemicals. Well, and interesting twist has occurred in the viral world. Read More