WP3
Transforming Consumers Into Fans: How Toy Giant Mattel Turned the Barbie Film into One of the Biggest Marketing Campaigns
Part 1: Op-Ed
This past summer, I was one of the many people who participated in the “Barbenhemier” opening weekend. After months of seeing countless marketing for the Barbie film, I was excited to see if the film lived up to the hype finally. My childhood best friend and I sported our favorite pink attire and made our way to our local movie theater opening day to watch the premiere of Barbie. We left the theater feeling empowered and happy and wanting to wear lots and lots of pink. In the days following, my social media continued to be flooded with Barbie marketing, film reviews and commentary, and many Barbie TikTok trends. Barbie was all anyone could talk about, and it got me thinking: who was the marketing genius behind this “Barbie craze,” and more importantly, who benefited from it the most?
The highly anticipated Barbie movie, released on July 21, 2023, took the world by storm. Greta Gerwig directed the film, which starred Margot Robbie as stereotypical Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken. The film was the year’s highest-grossing film, grossing over $1.38 billion at the global box office. By every definition imaginable, the film was a raging success, garnering multiple award nominations and wins, including eight Academy Awards nominations and one Academy Award. This film shifted the perception of the stereotypical idea of Barbie in the eyes of people who grew up playing with Barbie, as well as the more significant population of moviegoers. The film attracted people from all walks of life and positively impacted moviegoers with its purpose-driven storyline.
Part of the build-up and immense anticipation for the film was a result of the incredible marketing that took the world, quite literally, by storm. The entire marketing team at Warner Bro. Pictures were working overtime after seeing the mass influx of Barbie collaborations, making sure no stone was left overturned in the marketing of the Barbie movie.“As for collaborations, the Barbie team secured over 100 brand partnerships prior to the movie’s release, this ensured that you were exposed to Barbie whether you went to see the movie or not.” (Kennouda, Medium) Some of the most talked about collaborations for the film were Airbnb, Bumble, Cold Stone Creamery, Bloomingdale's, Crocs, and Xbox, to name a few. The list goes on and on, from dating apps to luggage, roller skates, candles, and everything left in between. The CEO of Mattel, Ynon Kreiz, said, “during the call that the first wave of movie-related products had sold out, and that Mattel plans to release more products timed for the holidays. In total, he said Mattel has locked in more than 165 partnerships with brands and retailers that cover everything from clothing to candles, furniture, burgers, pasta and even Barbie-inspired sushi.” (Kavilanz, CNN).
The marketing for the Barbie movie was truly unmatched. You could not miss the marketing efforts if you tried. But there is something to be said about the true nature of what marketing is all about. At its essence, marketing is trying to persuade consumers to buy a product or service or sway their perception. Both of these were achieved through the Barbie movie. The movie achieved two major things: it increased the sales of Barbie dolls and positively shifted Mattel's brand image. Despite the lingering message throughout the film of being anti-capitalist and pro-women, both of these outcomes have Mattel on top. The overarching theme of the Barbie film was to inspire women and dismantle the societal issues that have plagued women for years at the hands of big corporations like Mattel. However, women were still disadvantaged despite this positive message and incredible filmmaking. Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie were snubbed out of Academy nominations at the Academy Awards. Ironically, it was Ryan Gosling who took home the only win from the Barbie film, despite it being one of the highest-grossing films of 2023 in the U.S. and worldwide; the two women who brought this film to life, all about advocating for equal rights for women, shows the reality of the world we live in today and the irony of the film and the genius of Mattel.
Mattel’s ability to take an already famous toy line that has been a staple in childhood since the 1950s and turn it into a film to garner even more attention and praise is remarkable. The film captives everyone from adults to children. After the film's release, the sales of Barbie dolls increased exponentially. According to CNN, “Barbie toy sales in the US increased 25% for the July-August combined months compared to the same two-month period a year ago” (Kavilanz, CNN), but the toy giant has no plans of stopping there and plans to continue to ride the barbie wave.
Mattel's success in turning Barbie dolls into a film is a formula that will continue to be used with its other toy lines. Per Highsnobirty, “Mattel's decision to turn its product into a movie and, in turn, transform the movie into an even more expansive line of products…Mattel's strategy is one the company will likely employ with its future films. This entire cinematic universe will apparently include films based on its Hot Wheels and UNO toy lines.” (Pauly, Highsnobilitey) There is something inherently genius about this formula. Barbie dolls have been around since 1959 and have been Mattel’s best-selling toy since then. Barbie doll owners were essential consumers of the brand until the film's release when consumers became fans of the brand.
The success of the Barbie movie was instrumental for Mattel. It was a turning point in the Barbie brand, which has faced controversy for many years. The film was a great success worldwide and changed the conversation surrounding the Barbie brand, from which Mattel inherently benefited. The interesting component is that throughout the Barbie film, Mattel's role is that of a villain. In the film, the Mattel CEO is the overarching antagonist. Throughout the film, Mattel is shown in a bad light as the CEO tries to physically and metaphorically put Margot Robbie’s character back into the box. At the end of the film, the CEO has a change of heart and lets Barbie stay in the real world, and yet this is not out of the kindness of the character’s heart but for selfish reasons that will make the company make more money. And yet, despite playing this role, Mattel came out on top after the film's release due to increased media coverage of the Barbie brand and the skyrocket of sales in merchandising, and overall brand image was positively impacted.
The whole film was essentially an advertisement for the Barbie brand. It was a clever play for Mattel to allow the Paramount film to be made. Throughout the film, Mattel’s purpose in the Barbie film was to portray the villain in the eyes of movie-goers. But, despite Mattel’s role as the villain and the film being a critique of Mattel’s faux-feminist business strategy, Mattel simultaneously brought in a big payday. There is something to be said about the genius idea of being the butt of the joke in the film, and it leads everyone to believe the film was the one in the driver’s seat with the narrative of Mattel being the villain. But at the end of the day, Mattel had the last laugh. The company benefitted the most from the Barbie film and the business strategy that was poked fun at in the film. They used the film to their advantage to shift the perspective of Barbie dolls and their overall brand image and capitalize off movie merchandise and new product lines. The film leads the audience to believe that the joke was on Mattel when it was really on us.
Part 2: Reflection
I decided writing my piece in the op-ed genre would be best. I chose this genre because op-eds aim to persuade readers to take a specific action or reconsider their perspectives. In addition to this, it is my personal belief that op-eds are the most personable genre of writing. Op-eds are also frequently written in response to current events or societal issues, allowing authors to offer their insights, analyses, or critiques of culture or society. The op-ed genre made the most sense to me because Barbie is an iconic cultural symbol with a complex legacy, representing ideals of beauty, femininity, and consumerism.
To add to this, the nature of the op-ed’s tone is to be engaging and persuasive while simultaneously providing personal anecdotes or storytelling techniques to help connect with readers on an emotional level. I felt that given the topic of writing on a current event such as the Barbie film, which was released this past summer and has remained a popular topic in society and the press, an op-ed would be an excellent choice of genre. Keeping with this idea, my paper was written with the purpose of shifting readers and Barbie moviegoers' perspectives. I wanted to be able to provide my own personal anecdote of seeing the film, how I felt afterward, and my own perspective on the marketing of Barbie. The op-ed genre felt the most natural for this type of writing to take place.
Since the Barbie film has a broad audience and Mattel’s Barbie brand as a whole has an extremely diverse and wide range of fans across many generations, it made sense to use a genre that can reach a wide audience. Op-eds are generally written to target the general public, informing and persuading readers about important issues, events, or trends. In addition to op-eds being written to the general public op-eds, they are also written to opposing viewpoints. Op-eds provide the opportunity to present alternative perspectives, foster debate, and promote understanding across diverse perspectives. My paper aimed to be read by anyone interested in the topic of the Barbie brand, people who have seen the Barbie movie, and people who witnessed the mass influx of Barbie marketing. As with anyone interested in the conversation about Mattel’s advertising strategy, as someone studying public relations and wanting to work in the advertising industry, this topic was particularly interesting to me. It is easy to be a consumer and see films, merchandising, and marketing efforts and not think twice, but I wanted to stimulate conversation. I want to get people thinking about the film's intention, Mattels’ role in the film, and how things may not be as they appear. On the surface, the general audience may not have thought twice about Mattel's villainization in the film and the overall benefit that Mattel had from the film's making. Therefore, another possible audience is outside of the general public or to engage with opposing viewpoints. Op-eds can be directed toward professionals within a specific industry or field, providing insights, analysis, and commentary on relevant topics or trends. Therefore, I wanted to reach another audience through my piece: advertising and marketing students and industry professionals.
After writing this piece, my overall goal is to get people thinking about the purpose behind marketing and advertising campaigns and how not everything that meets the eye is the reality of the situation. For instance, I left the Barbie film inspired and wondered how Paramount convinced Mattel to be portrayed as the villain. This was a reoccurring thought in my head and a topic I knew I wanted to explore more. After learning more about the film’s marketing and the immense amount of benefit that Mattel had after the release of the film, it all made sense to me. As audience members, we felt empowered by the film’s critique of a major corporation like Mattel. Still, in the end, the joke was on us, which, as a future advertising professional, is incredibly interesting to me. Mattel benefited the most from the film, which shows how the entire Barbie film was an amazing marketing campaign for the company. It is also my hope with the piece to get people thinking about the intention behind marketing and how it is not all that meets the eye. As mentioned in my writing, the formula used for the Barbie film is one that Mattel and other companies will employ with other toy brands, and it is important for consumers to remain aware and recognize the power of these corporations.
Works Cited
Buckley, Thomas, and Bloomberg. “Barbie Doll Sales Boom for Mattel after the Namesake’s Movie Became a Global Blockbuster.” Fortune, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2023, fortune.com/2023/10/25/barbie-sales-mattel-movie-film-doll/.
Coleman, Julie. “Mattel CEO Talks Barbie’s Official Big Screen Debut: ‘This Was Not about Making a Movie, This Was about Creating an Iconic Cultural Moment.’” CNBC, CNBC, 20 July 2023, www.cnbc.com/2023/07/19/mattel-ceo-talks-barbies-official-big-screen-debut.html#:~:text=Kreiz%20clarified%20that%20Mattel%20does,in%20the%20film’s%20business%20side.
Dockterman, Eliana, and Cady Lang. “How Barbie Took over the World.” Time, Time, 25 July 2023, time.com/6294121/barbie-movie-popularity-impact/.
Kavilanz, Parija. “Barbie Toy Sales Shoot up 25% after Film’s Release | CNN Business.” CNN, Cable News Network, 13 Sept. 2023, www.cnn.com/2023/09/13/business/barbie-toy-sales-circana/index.html.
Kennouda, Salma. “The Barbie Movie Is a Genius MINDF*CK.” Medium, Medium, 20 Aug. 2023, medium.com/@salmakennouda/the-barbie-movie-is-a-genius-mindf-ck-88d0101219fd.
Pauly, Words By Alexandra, and Alexandra Pauly. “The ‘Barbie’ Movie Isn’t out yet, but Its 30-plus Collabs Are.” Highsnobiety, 20 July 2023, www.highsnobiety.com/p/barbie-movie-collaborations-2023/.
Verdon, Joan. “Barbie Movie Boosted Mattel’s Sales, but Investors Held Their Applause.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 27 Oct. 2023, www.forbes.com/sites/joanverdon/2023/10/25/barbie-movie-boosted-mattels-sales-but-investors-held-their-applause/?sh=7bda2aeb1bd4.
Wang, Jessica. “Everything to Know about Margot Robbie’s ‘Barbie’ Movie.” EW.Com, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Dec. 2023, ew.com/movies/everything-we-know-barbie/.