A quick Google search of “Barbie movie marketing” results in pages of news sources—including The Guardian, The Telegraph, Yahoo News, Entrepreneur, Fortune, and many more—fawning over the multi-million-dollar mega marketing campaign.
As a millennial and a massive fan of Barbie ever since I got my first doll in the late 1990s, I can’t help but wonder: how necessary is this splash—or, really, monsoon—of pink across the globe in having the Barbie movie succeed? Wouldn’t nostalgia be enough to sell movie tickets? Or is this campaign about something more significant?
I decided to ask marketing expert (and Kogod professor of marketing!) Ron Hill to share his thoughts.
Ron Hill: The Barbie movie is making such an impact because Barbie has been a universal symbol of womanhood to several generations of young girls, from the Baby Boomers to Millennials. Barbie has meant many things, good and bad, and it is a clear gateway to visualizing yourself as you mature.
This only happens if consumers want to make a good or service more integral to their lives. What makes it so special is that it is part of a consumer journey that leads young people from their original selves into a significant life transition that can be enhanced through fantasy. While we tend to think of fantasy as not reality, it is a safe place to practice becoming an adult without worrying about getting things right or wrong or social embarrassment. Instead, unlike middle school in the US, it is under the child’s control and can be directed in wholly positive ways.