Movie tie-in promotions, which were snuffed out by the pandemic, are gradually returning.
Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr., which are both owned by CKE Restaurants, just announced a tie-in with “Jurassic World Dominion,” while Applebee’s unveiled a promotion mid-month with “Top Gun: Maverick.”
Universal Pictures premieres the sixth full-length theatrical film of the dinosaur yarn June 10; Paramount Pictures opens “Maverick” on May 27 at 4,727 domestic theater locations, arguably the widest release ever (screen count should be about double locations). Both movies are rated PG-13.
The Hardee’s/Carl Jr.’s tie-in is built around a meat-centric menu that’s “primal” — a nod to the dinosaur theme and “that’s fit for dinosaurs and humans alike.” “Dino takeovers” of restaurants in Nashville and Los Angeles generated publicity and played off the “Jurassic” TV commercial in which a a velociraptor terrorizes a modern restaurant and its human customers. “Each spot is crafted around an epic bite moment that almost feels as if it could be part of the movie itself,” says a publicist for the restaurant.
The Hardee’s/Carl Jr.’s advertising was a mix of local and national media across traditional and digital channels, including television, cinema, radio, out-of-home, social media and print. “From TikTok to Waze, the brands invested in unique partnerships as well as captivating billboards to showcase this compelling collaboration,” Chad Crawford, chief brand officer of CKE Restaurants, said in a press release.
“With custom co-branded creative, guests will feel transported into the film with unique digital media including an Augmented Reality Lens through Snapchat, custom rich media with Yahoo!/Kargo, a branded digital game experience in Uber and Lyft via Octopus and much more,” said a CKE press release.
CKE mounted a tie-in with Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Godzilla vs. Kong” in March 2021. In 2015, the restaurant partner for Universal’s “Jurassic World” was the Dairy Queen chain.
Meanwhile, the casual dining Applebee’s chain offers one or two cinema tickets to “Top Gun: Maverick” with qualifying meal purchases, trying to connect with the grab-a-bite-with-a-movie custom. Also wrapped into that promotion is online cinema ticketing service Fandango, which handles fulfillment.
A key “Maverick” image of star Tom Cruise in costume is prominent on the Applebee’s website (see image, left), which is a coup in getting the Hollywood star directly on the restaurant chain’s media. The patriotic military-themed movie “highlights the power of community, service, family, and friends – all of which resonate with our brand’s core values,” said Applebee’s Chief Marketing Officer Joel Yashinsky. Applebee’s did a similar ticket-with-meals promotion for Walt Disney Pictures’ “Jungle Cruise” family yarn last summer, in what was the restaurant chains’ first movie tie-in.
The two summer movie promos follow Little Caesars pizza restaurants, which mounted a promotion with “The Batman” from Warner Bros. Pictures.
Tie-ins with consumer goods/services brands enable Hollywood distributors to off-load a big chunk of advertising costs on these promotional partners. “Consumer-goods companies spend millions of dollars — and in some cases tens of millions of dollars — in advertising that simultaneously promotes their products and the movie,” says the third edition of “Marketing to Moviegoers,” the academic/business book. “Hollywood’s promotional partners seek a halo effect from a movie for their consumer goods or services. Combining car, liquor, apparel, and other categories can marshal $100 million in tie-in-advertising support on a worldwide basis for big films.”
Of course, a film’s marketing message piggy-backs on the consumer brand, so it’s not as impactful as messaging originating from the film distributor that is wholly focused on the film. In an industry custom, promotions are almost always exclusive, meaning that a movie goes to one entity in any category.
Hollywood is not an automatic option for consumer goods companies looking to partner with media properties, as in years past. Earlier this month, the McDonald’s hamburger chain linked to Webtoon, the large online digital comics platform.
Privately owned CKE Restaurants is based in Franklin, Tenn., and operates 4,000 franchised or company-operated Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s restaurants in 44 states and over 35 international markets. CKE’s Hardee’s outlets are in the Midwest and Southeast; Carl’s Jr. are located in the Southwest and West.
Owned by publicly traded Dine Brands Global, Applebee’s franchises 1,680 restaurants in the United States, two U.S. territories and 11 other countries. Applebee’s is headquartered in Glendale, Calif.
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