Credit: Warner Bros.The marketing team for Barbie may go down in history after this wild campaign they’re pulling.
The branded marketing for the upcoming Warner Bros. hit Barbie has been, in the words of one Twitter user, “unrelenting,” especially in the past month, as the July 21 premiere draws ever-closer. The campaign has been wide ranging, with the latest addition being a hot pink, Barbie-branded Xbox that people can enter to win in a drawing.
The marketing for that #BarbieTheMovie has been unrelenting. Kudos to whoever is behind it. pic.twitter.com/Au7mSQBksa
— llouck7 🔰 (@llouck7) June 27, 2023
Related: ‘Barbie’ Promotes Diversity and Inclusivity, “No Right Way To Be Barbie”
The lucky winner will also get a specially-made model Barbie Dreamhouse to dock their new Xbox in. They’ve also released several themed controller skins – those will be available to anyone.
The Xbox isn’t the end of the Microsoft partnership, though; they’re also creating 10 Xbox-themed Barbie dolls, and adding the doll’s signature pink Corvette to the Forza Horizon 5 racing game.
Xbox aren’t the only ones the film’s team has partnered with for marketing, either – they’ve worked with stores like Hot Topic to open a series of themed cafes in select cities, they’ve released clothing with major brands like The Gap, and they recently announced a flavorful collaboration with Cold Stone Creamery.
(If you want to know what BarbieLand tastes like, apparently the answer is pink cotton candy.)
BEST. DAY. EVER! We’re going to Barbie Land with our NEW Creation & Cake inspired by the new film, BARBIE! 😍
🍦All That Glitters is Pink Creation™
🍰Best Cake Ever!The new film, BARBIE is only in theaters on July 21, 2023! 🎥 #barbiethemovie
©2023 WBEI
©2023 Mattel. pic.twitter.com/5DzsYUiZko— Cold Stone Creamery (@ColdStone) June 28, 2023
Related: Margot Robbie Says She Didn’t Need Special Effects To Become Barbie
Other marketing ploys have included the actual Barbie Dreamhouse that people can stay in in Malibu, an actual toy model of the Dreamhouse that Margot Robbie requested be made for the movie, and many, many more that we’re sure we just missed – because this marketing team has been doing far too much for anyone to really keep up with.
Mattel may have claimed that they aren’t making this movie to sell more stuff, but it’s definitely not hurting. Between the cool new merch, fan experiences, the music, and the endless interviews, it’s no surprise that excitement for the Barbie movie has reached a fever pitch.
In fact, they’ve all done such a good job marketing that they’re doing that thing Doritos did a few years ago – their billboards, rather than having any information on them, are simply a giant hot pink monochrome with “July 21” written out in the signature font. That’s all you need – that’s how pervasive this film has been this year. They can just put up a color and say “you know what it is.”
These billboards for #BarbieTheMovie are utterly fabulous! pic.twitter.com/r2mpZB002I
— Sebastian Groebner (@SGroebner) June 27, 2023
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It’s obvious that this marketing will pay off – the second advanced screening tickets for Barbie had been announced, theaters started selling out of them.
The question now is whether it will succeed in helping Barbie to beat out its competition for opening weekend – Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is a very big, very different film, and while everyone is saying they’ll make the perfect double feature, one of them is inevitably going to win.
The other question is: Who will win the Barbie Xbox?
Which part of the Barbie marketing do you think is most compelling? Do you think it’s a good strategy, or is it a little much? Let Inside the Magic know your thoughts in the comments.