German carmaker BMW rides the coattails of the “Spider-Man” blockbuster with a product placement and also peripheral tie-in marketing for its new iX3 midsized vehicle and 5 Series midsized sedan.
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” is delivering blockbuster boxoffice since its July 31 premiere domestically; boxoffice is $2 billion worldwide. With that, BMW rides a cinema blockbuster with more exposure to come in video streaming, DVD home video and TV.
The cinema audience skews heavily young-adult male, and over-indexes with blacks, Hispanics and Asians, according to Boxoffice Pro. Another over-index: Males are 61% of ticket buyers (versus 49% of the population), and that demographic is a good fit for BMW with affluent males a prime buyer for its sporty cars.
The RottenTomatoes.com opinion website logs a 98% favorable rating from moviegoers and 90% from professional critics (known as the Popcornmeter), which are well above the 60% mark for positive, or “fresh.”
Recognizable BMWs are visible in the movie itself and BMW uses the Spider-Man character in its own car-marketing materials.
The BMW iX3 and BMW 5 Series get showcased for “advanced vehicle technologies such as the BMW Panoramic Display, innovative driver assistance systems, the panoramic glass sunroof and the outstanding driving dynamics delivered by the Sport Mode,” says carmaker marketing. Bernd Körber, senior vice president BMW Brand and Product Management, is quoted in PRs.
An iX3 car is painted with a Spider-Man-inspired external markings; that car is on display in Munich and getting press attention.
BMW also placed a “Spider-Man” movie commercial on the entire network of its in-car video screens, which irked some car drivers.
BMW described the in-car video as follows: “The Spider-Man™ Animation will be available (in participating markets) to all customers with suitably equipped vehicles from 27 July to 10 August. Starting the car brings up a special banner in the Control Display. Clicking on it then activates the Spider-Man™ animation, comprising a full-screen festive animation in the Control Display with aptly chosen backing music and an accompanying light show courtesy of the ambient lighting system.”
BMW continues: “These festive animations will be available in more than 70 countries worldwide for vehicles equipped with the relevant optional equipment and BMW Operating System 7, 8, 8.5, 9 or BMW Operating System X, as well as a production date after 7/2020.”
BMW is in the top tier of automobile manufacturers that are Hollywood movie promotion partners; most active is another German brand, VW’s Audi division. But BMW is near the top after linking with movie blogger Reece Feldman/@guywithamoviecamera, sponsorship for the Cannes Film Festival, Paramount Pictures’ “Mission: Impossible” movies (putting Tom Cruise behind the wheel!), Universal Pictures’ “Fast and Furious” franchise and some James Bond spy flicks now at Amazon/MGM.
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