Posted by Rhys Heron at Tuesday, August 4, 2015 4:55:36 PM WST
Everyone’s seen it, it’s adored by the young and old and revered by marketers the world over. But why has the Lego Movie been toted as the best example of brand storytelling ever? They may not have re-invented the wheel, but they sure as hell raised the bar.
1. It’s a reminder of the Lego brand; its legacy
On the surface the film is all about Lego. Dig deeper however and you discover the core story, which doesn’t sell plastic bricks, it sells an emotional idea that spans generations.
As a brand, Lego has always been fun and vivid, energetic and limitless, a symbol for the ‘possible’. The film’s story arc is almost methodical in following this thread.
When you combine a deep and meaningful brand story with a masterpiece of filming - in which the product floods every frame – you’re onto a winner.
2. It’s storytelling, supercharged
Credit to Lego for having the courage to mount such an ambitious campaign to rekindle our love for those tiny pieces of plastic. Testament to the broad appeal of the brand is how effective the campaign has been across all age groups and backgrounds. It truly is a universally appealing story.
The enormous scale of the campaign is what sets it apart from competing examples. The sheer audacity that a brand would create a critically acclaimed blockbuster is evidence enough of the shift we’re witnessing in modern communications.
3. It’s really just a 90 minute ad!
When you break away the layers you are left with what is essentially a movie-length advert for those small plastic bricks.
Yes it was a massive hit as a stand-alone movie – raking in over $450 million from its $120 million budget – but the real success lies in the firm’s ability to convince consumers to actually pay to have something sold to them so blatantly. It was bold and inspiring and it’s paying big dividends. In the year that followed the advert movie’s success, Lego saw a 13% increase in revenue, adding around $750 million to the company’s coffers.
What’s harder to measure, but just as worthy of celebration, is the long-term benefit to the Lego brand and the Lego story
Everyone’s seen it, it’s adored by the young and old and revered by marketers the world over. But why has the Lego Movie been toted as the best example of brand storytelling ever? They may not have re-invented the wheel, but they sure as hell raised the bar.
1. It’s a reminder of the Lego brand; its legacy
On the surface the film is all about Lego. Dig deeper however and you discover the core story, which doesn’t sell plastic bricks, it sells an emotional idea that spans generations.
As a brand, Lego has always been fun and vivid, energetic and limitless, a symbol for the ‘possible’. The film’s story arc is almost methodical in following this thread.
When you combine a deep and meaningful brand story with a masterpiece of filming - in which the product floods every frame – you’re onto a winner.
2. It’s storytelling, supercharged
Credit to Lego for having the courage to mount such an ambitious campaign to rekindle our love for those tiny pieces of plastic. Testament to the broad appeal of the brand is how effective the campaign has been across all age groups and backgrounds. It truly is a universally appealing story.
The enormous scale of the campaign is what sets it apart from competing examples. The sheer audacity that a brand would create a critically acclaimed blockbuster is evidence enough of the shift we’re witnessing in modern communications.
3. It’s really just a 90 minute ad!
When you break away the layers you are left with what is essentially a movie-length advert for those small plastic bricks.
Yes it was a massive hit as a stand-alone movie – raking in over $450 million from its $120 million budget – but the real success lies in the firm’s ability to convince consumers to actually pay to have something sold to them so blatantly. It was bold and inspiring and it’s paying big dividends. In the year that followed the advert movie’s success, Lego saw a 13% increase in revenue, adding around $750 million to the company’s coffers.
What’s harder to measure, but just as worthy of celebration, is the long-term benefit to the Lego brand and the Lego story