The May 27 debut of the first seven episodes of “Stranger Things” Season 4 marked Netflix’s biggest premiere weekend ever, drawing in 287 million hours viewed in just three days. And, after the season’s first full week of availability, its success continued and broke another, and bigger, record: It’s Netflix’s third most popular English-language TV season ever. Netflix calculates that list based on viewership during a title’s first 28 days of availability, meaning the “Stranger Things” Season 4 still has 18 days to move even higher up the chart.
According the streamer’s newly released weekly Top 10 rankings, “Stranger Things” Season 4, Volume 1 has also smashed the record for most-viewed show in a week among Netflix’s English-language TV series, with 335 million hours watched from May 30 to June 5.
The continued relevance of the series is undeniable. Combined viewing of all four seasons made “Stranger Things” the third series ever to pull in over 5 billion minutes viewed in one week, and that statistic doesn’t account for viewing on mobile devices or in other countries. And culturally, the show continued to generate headlines, with fans analyzing everything from character’s sexual orientations to their birthdays and elevating ’80s anthems to new popularity.
With production values per episode estimated to be around $30 million USD it’s only befitting that the marketing campaign to support the series was as gargantuan. Both to create a buzz and sustain it, the supporting campaign has to produce. For season 4, the strategy focused on geographically and regionally aligned content properties, recaps of previous seasons, and lots of look and remember Hawkins theme. Our luxury digital marketing agency explores a few ways in which Netflix put together an exciting and engaging campaign,
Announcement & Teaser Drops - Building Anticipation
Two years is a long wait and none more so than in the world of TV where new series battle for the attention of viewers. In the streaming era, and with more choice than ever, it is vital to make sure that your property is at the forefront of new and existing audiences. To start the campaign, announcements and teaser drops showed snippets of the core show theme – the town, the upside-down, and more.
A Stranger Morning Cartoon Series
Understanding the audience and the attachment they have to the characters, the producers created a series of cartoon snippets that would resonate with viewers. Channelling the idea of 80’s cartoon mornings, the short-form animations were reimaginings of popular scenes from the first three series in a range of different animation styles. Not only did this give exposure to artists but they also provided a recap for existing viewers and served as a hook for new audiences unfamiliar with the series.
Global Reach- Tailoring your message to your audiences
From the start, Stranger Things was a global smash hit and Netflix’s strategy of creating regional content that was tailored to specific audiences was used once again. From creating posters that adorned the streets of the UK and Ireland to open creating a portal to the Upside Down on the Empire State Building - the company went all out in tis promotion,
To promote the upcoming Tamil and Telugu dub of the season, Netflix made a promotional film with Musical Maestro Ilaiyarajaa - a particularly popular genre in the region. Elsewhere, and to better reach Indian audiences, Netflix partnered with influencer and actor Ayush Mehra and Yashaswini R Dayama, who took a walk down the Hawkins memory lane.
Brand Collaborations - Work with your partners to spread the word
Not only did Netflix use their own channels to promote the series but they also collaborated with brands to support the messaging. From clothing - Quiksilver’s Stranger Things themed apparel, to food - the makers reached new audiences in unique ways on a global scale through limited-edition goods.
Cryptic posts and memes
Far from being the reserve of basement dwellers on Reddit, memes are a serious marketing tool and the Stranger Things team leveraged the quick to spread, malleable nature of memes to get the message out. Both on the official show and Netflix accounts, posts that included recaps, behind-the-scenes images and on set footage helped to build excitement for the show.
Adding to the regular posts around the release of the show, the makers shared a mysterious clue with a bunch of numbers and the city’s name at the bottom, dated May 26. The cities in the post covered different parts of the world.
Following these mysterious co-ordinates, on the said date, 14 countries around the world saw the infamous ‘Upside Down’ rift open, covering 15 landmarks including Empire State Building in New York City, Bondi Beach in Australia, and The Gateway of India in Mumbai to name a few.
Bringing Hawkins to the real world…
Given the dedication of fans, Netflix’s final way to keep the attention on the new series and spread the word was to bring the world of Hawkins to the real world. Across the globe, fully immersive Stranger Things experiences are taking place that allows visitors to step into the series. From the Hawkins lab to an 80’s arcade, the high-production event is perfect for spreading the word with visitors tagging and sharing the content on social media. Indeed, Surfer Boy Pizza - a takeout place in the show - even appeared in Shoreditch where visitors stepped through a 'portal' and were met with the taste, smells and feel of the Stranger Things world. The fully immersive experience was complete with actors and even some free pizza in the shape of demogorgons.
Final Thoughts…
Whilst we may not all have the budget for such a monumental campaign, we can take inspiration from the scale and scope of Netflix’s promotion. From building anticipation, shadow drops and collaborations - all possible - we can see how the marketing experience of the 21st century has to be creative, engaging and omnichannel. For more information about our luxury digital marketing agency get in touch via hello@theluxurymarketingagency.com or call +44(0)7835 233607.
