Marketing to Moviegoers: A Handbook of Strategies and Tactics, Third Edition

2. Market Research

43 2 Market Research I don’t want any yes-men around me. I want everybody to tell me the truth, even if it costs them their jobs. —Samuel Goldwyn Movies experience a charmed life early in their existence because layers of cheerleaders surround them. The upper-management executives who made the decision to produce a film (or acquire a finished movie for distribution) feel vested with a sense of ownership. The creative talent that sold the project to the movie company and then made the film itself becomes more certain that it is sitting on top of a blockbuster with each hurdle that it clears. The publicity and distribution departments are presented the film by the top brass—their bosses who approved the film in the first place—and also by the enthusiastic creative talent. Then, reality sets in. The task of getting the first opinions from outside this small, adoring circle of admirers falls to the research department. It exposes the film to a small slice of the “real” world—the test audiences. In the best case, the audience reaction is what the inside admirers expected. In other instances, the public’s reaction is mixed but not disastrous. Then there’s the worst-case scenario, which would make even the legendary producer Samuel Goldwyn wish that he hadn’t insisted on the unvarnished truth. Of all the components of the theatrical distribution process, research is the least understood and the most misunderstood. The dichotomy exists because 44 Market Research research is the most secretive part of the marketing process, and its impact is supposed to never be seen or heard by the outside world. “Research serves the straightforward purpose of providing more information,” said Henry Sha­ piro, vice president and general manager of entertainment research company MarketCast. “It’s a tool for risk management and resource allocation, and a relatively inexpensive source of insurance that introduces accountability and objectivity into the marketing process. But it’s certainly not a replacement for the gut instincts of creative executives.” Boiled to its essence, consumer research is the science of polling a small, defined sample of people. Done correctly, consumer research provides information that is representative of a larger population. In Hollywood, the main role of research is to help identify target audiences for films and to determine which advertising and promotions have the most impact on each one, without sending confusing or irrelevant marketing messages. “Moviegoers today have so many more choices for entertainment consumption than just a few years ago and more ways to learn about movies,” said Shelley Zalis, chief executive officer of Ipsos OTX Research. “Reflecting the latter, we have incorporated social media metrics in our research.” Eight main classes of research are regularly performed in the movie business. • script assessment. Before production, script is evaluated for playability and marketability of the film. • concept testing. Audience reactions to film ideas and casting for proposed films in development are evaluated. • title testing. In a related activity to concept testing, alternative titles for a film are evaluated in audience testing at an early stage to settle on a name by the time a film finishes production. • positioning study. A finished script is analyzed to evaluate strengths and weaknesses of the prospective movie. The goal is to shed light at a very early stage on what to emphasize in subsequent marketing. • test screening. Viewings of both nearly finished and finished films often are conducted before a chosen audience prior to theatrical release. Sometimes, even rough assemblages, the first, crude version of a film, are test screened. Such showings are also referred to as preview screenings. • advertising testing. Response to marketing materials, usually trailers, television advertising, and ads on the Internet, is evaluated. The objective is to find out what ads are most and least effective with various demographic target groups. • tracking survey. This method gauges the public’s awareness of an array of movies on a weekly basis prior to theatrical release. A final phase of tracking is a forecast of opening-weekend box office just before a film opens. Market Research 45 •exitsurveys.Whenfilmsareincommercialrelease inmovietheaters,moviegoers are intercepted immediately after they view a film to elicit their reactions in what are called exit surveys. The goal is to identify the demographic groups supporting a film and the impact of various marketing materials. The initial four—script assessment, concept testing, title testing, and positioning —are closely related. Two...