Ever since I saw the Muppets trailer a few months ago, I knew that it was a movie I had to see. But why ?
Is it my association with happy childhood times? Have I been seduced by an extremely effective social media marketing and PR campaign? Is it the clever mix of messages and both on and off-line advertising? Lets have a look at how the professionals market and why it is important to use killer tricks when marketing or business, service, brand or product.
The revival of The Muppets is no accident, yes we love them anyway but it’s been enhanced by an effective marketing campaign on a wide range of platforms. You already know that when marketing online you need to be using the biggest platforms such as, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Google + etc. But I have never seen it done so seamlessly than with the Muppets campaign.
Let’s take a closer look. The Muppets Fan Page boasts 1,143, 002 likes and 57,000 people talking about ‘The Muppets’ on Facebook. If you head over to the Facebook Page right after this, you will see that it is extremely active and kept up to date, no doubt someone is being meticulous in keeping the masses knowledgeable about new content, videos, news and more. What I thought was really cool was the fact that most of the Muppets have their own individual Fanpages who are interlinked and liking one another.
Cool features include highly creative and ingenious Fan-A-Thon a never ending Mahna-Mahna (do-do-do-do-da) soundtrack previews, a Muppets Mobile App, parody and spoof trailers. All of which encourage you to share.
The Muppets Twitter side of he marketing, is equally as active and well polished and has been drip feeding The Muppets news over a number of months. And…. as with any good launch it all came to a head around Thanks-giving in the US.
What I particularly love is the use of Statler and Waldorf as the Twitterers. Two Muppets we have grown to be synonymous with critiquing the show and adding their side of things. Can’t think of any better way to compliment the rest of the marketing. Whilst the volume of public involvement is not so much as on Facebook The Muppets Studio Twitter account has well over 72,000 followers, which is massive considering only 300 tweets have gone out.
Not content with the impressive Facebook and Twitter campaign, the Muppets Brand was actually one of the first brands on Google+. Just check out the Muppets official page and the use of the Google+ Hangouts!
So it isn’t surprising that YouTube is integral to the social marketing campaign, enter news, parodies, trailers, themetunes, clips and more. The official Muppets Studio YouTube Channel is here.
So what do you think? Do you think the Muppets crew have managed to pull off a really effective on and offline marketing strategy? Can you see why it’s important to interlink your marketing efforts for added traction? OK we don’t all have the same amount of time and money to pull something off on this scale, but what do have mostly free social media platforms on which to have a good go.
Check out how well this campaign has been put together and try and come up with some ideas for your own, business, brand or product launch?
To Your Success
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November 27th, 2011 at 1:42 am
Hi Beth,
I love the Muppets!! Although I’ve been offline quite a bit lately, I happened to be on YouTube the night of their Google+ hangout and learned about the movie. Exciting!
One lesson learned from my personal experience and from all that you pointed out is that marketers shouldn’t rely on just one online point of contact. Using an integrated strategy across all likely platforms is the way to go.
Great post, Beth
Dena
Dena-Lynn´s last [type] ..Spotlight on The Elements of Success
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November 28th, 2011 at 9:56 am
Oh Beth, this is classic!! I LOVE the muppets – and I now get an excuse to watch them on YouTube for ‘business related purposes’ too. How cool!
I so agree with your point about the clever mix of online and offline and the importance of interlinking your marketing efforts for added traction.
One point I would like to add is that the Muppets already had their own MASSIVE personal brand before they kicked this off. Who has never heard of the infamous Miss Piggy karate chop?? Without the weight of that powerful branding I wonder if they would have been able to pull it off? (Important point for all online marketers there).
What do you think?
Mahna, Mahna!
Mandy Swift @ Understanding Online Marketing´s last [type] ..Relationship Marketing- Why Is Video Such A Powerful Tool?
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November 29th, 2011 at 7:21 am
Way back before I dont like the Muppets until my daughter keeps on watching this show
.. Awesome presentation Miss Beth about The Muppets Show and Marketing 
Herbert´s last [type] ..Pros and Cons of SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act)
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bethhewitt80 Reply:
November 29th, 2011 at 12:11 pm
aww, arent Kids great at keeping us in touch with the fun stuff….I am almost tempted to set up a petition to bring them back to our small screens. Thanks for your comment.
Beth
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Herbert Reply:
November 29th, 2011 at 3:01 pm
Thank you also for the lovely write up Beth
Herbert´s last [type] ..Thomas Suarez – The 6th Grader App Master
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November 29th, 2011 at 12:47 pm
Beth,
Great Blog. You can tell when you are doing something right if the big dogs like the Muppets are using the same platforms. I really couldn’t believe that so many people follow The Muppets.
Jaden
Jaden Daniels´s last [type] ..Are You Passionate About Your Dream?
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November 29th, 2011 at 3:19 pm
Even with their relatively botched hangout on Google+ that disappointed many fans because it was blatantly “traditional” marketing and not as social as anticipated… there is much love for the muppets… AND love for how darn hard they are TRYING to get social right. They are not there yet but man are they trying. I have nothing but respect for the efforts and that’s something we can all learn from. I’m super excited and wanting to see the movie!
Kim
Kimberly Castleberry @ WordPress & Facebook Marketing´s last [type] ..Podcasts, My New Found Media
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bethhewitt80 Reply:
November 29th, 2011 at 11:04 pm
me too…if we were close by I would share my popcorn with ya
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November 29th, 2011 at 3:26 pm
It’s amazing to see how SM now has such a big role in everyone’s marketing campaigns. I’d agree with you, the Muppets are doing something right!
Monyelle´s last [type] ..Facebook Insights That Increase Page Enagement
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November 29th, 2011 at 3:32 pm
Hi Beth,
Talk about branding… This is a lesson to us all. We need to follow the big guys out there and emulate what they are doing. I like the counter. It all looks like a lot of fun. It is a great reminder that our own business is fun too. The entire platform they use teaches us what we have to be doing. Thanks Beth this was awesome!
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November 29th, 2011 at 7:34 pm
Hi Beth,
Many thanks for sharing this up date is a great example of branding and thanks for sharing. All the best Rosemary
Rosemary O’Shaughnessy´s last [type] ..Do You Carry Sensitive Personal or Business Data on your iPhone or iPad ???
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November 30th, 2011 at 4:32 am
Hey Beth! I just saw the Muppets with my son this weekend so this post caught my eye. It really is amazing to see how social media has transformed how everyone markets.
Angela´s last [type] ..4 WordPress Plugins To Help Advertise Your Blog
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November 30th, 2011 at 8:12 am
Hey Beth,
This is branding at its core. Its amazing how international the Muppet Show are. I watched it when I was I young girl back home in Kenya and its just amazing that its growing stronger day by day!
Elizabeth´s last [type] ..Are You A Network Marketer?
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bethhewitt80 Reply:
November 30th, 2011 at 12:34 pm
Hi Elizabeth,
Thanks for stopping by. Ye I agree it is amazing to see them embrace new technology.
Beth
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November 30th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
I think you are definitely right. One way to tie your things together is to use something like hootsuite to twitter and facebook the same update. We don’t have the budget to do exactly what they did, but we can map it out on paper and strategize.
Lynda Cromar´s last [type] ..Why I Decided To Enter The Top MLM Blog Contest For The First Time Ever!
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November 30th, 2011 at 8:40 pm
Oh I love the Muppets! I agree they’ve really aced the branding with what they’ve done. Of course it doesn’t hurt that they bring humor such awesome creativity to the mix.
marquita herald´s last [type] ..This Year Challenge Yourself to Reflect Before You Resolve
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December 3rd, 2011 at 5:12 am
I really enjoyed this post. Great job and your study on how The Muppets have built their social media campaign is well done. Thank you for taking the time to write a post like this. May God Richly Bless You and your blog is really cool!
Justin Hammonds´s last [type] ..Childlike Wisdom Leads To Godly Rewards
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December 6th, 2011 at 10:08 pm
Good Day Beth
Love The Muppet, Great idea about linking social marketing. I will have to check out their facebook.
Wishing You and Your Loved a Very Merry Christmas and The Best In The New Year
Sharon
Sharon Johnson´s last [type] ..Starting Over On Internet Marketing
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bethhewitt80 Reply:
December 9th, 2011 at 11:47 pm
Thanks Sharon,
I am glad you liked it, have a great Christmas and New Year too
Beth
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