Viral marketing is a strategic approach used by film production companies to enhance film promotion through social media, word of mouth, and interactive content. Successful examples include 'Cloverfield' and '2012', which effectively engaged audiences and generated significant revenue through interactive websites and teaser campaigns. However, not all attempts, such as those for 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Snakes on a Plane', met expectations due to ambitious goals or excessive audience involvement.

1. VIRAL MARKETING

2. Viral Marketing is a form marketing strategy used by film production companies to promote a newly released film. As part of the strategy, many different components can be used:Social Networking SitesWord of MouthVideo ClipsInteractive Flash GamesText Messages/Voice CallsPosters/Leaflets

3. Films that have usedVIRALMARKETINGThe Best and Worst

4. CLOVERFIELD The budget of Cloverfield was $22 million and it made a gross revenue of $107,764,026. This shows that it was successful due to its viral marketing campaign.Paramount Pictures carried out the Viral Marketing.An official website called 1-18-08.com was set up.Fans who had registered at the Slusho! website for Cloverfield received e-mails of fictional sonar images before the film's release that showed a deep-sea creature heading toward Manhattan.It contained a series of photos which could be pieced together by the audience to reveal events from the film. www.cloverfieldmovie.com was created; this site provided both a trailer and a number, 33287, which, when texted to from a mobile phone, provided a ringtone of the monster's roar and a wallpaper of a decimated Manhattan.A drink, called Slusho! has served as a tie-in. Viral websites for Slusho! and a Japanese drilling company named Tagruato were launched to add to the mythology of Cloverfield.

5. 2012 The film’s gross revenue was $769,675,494; proving the viral campaign a huge success.The viral campaign was carried out by Columbia PicturesA teaser trailer was released showing a tsunami surging over the Himalayas, prompting people to believe the world would end in 2012.A short television advertisement was broadcast across America and England showing the destruction of Los Angeles. It was estimated that approximately 110 million people watched it.A viral website was created which enabled audiences to register for a lottery number which would then be used to save individuals from the global destruction.Over 1000 people contacted NASA asking whether this global destruction was real. Some teenagers contemplated suicide as they didn’t want to see the end of the world.

6. WantedA teaser trailer was released showing an office worker tearing up his cubicle. There were many views and the trailer became quite a hot topic. However, the trailer gave little idea of whatthe film was actually advertising.The Da Vinci CodeA Google Quest was setup where people could solve cryptic clues and puzzles to win prizes. However the quest experienced some hitches which meant it did not live up to its standard. The project was deemed too ambitious and nothing like this wasattempted again.Fight ClubDirector David Fincher released two Public Service Announcements to get people talking about Fight Club. At the time hardly anyone saw the videos and the Fight Club website was a mess. He was also attempting this before the time of YouTube.Snakes on a PlaneJosh Friedman published his ideas of the film on his popular blog and there was plenty of outside input on how the film should be made. People posted home-made trailers and script adaptations. Although it was a good idea, the input became too much and Snakeson a Plane did quitebadly at box office.

7. USINGVIRAL MARKETINGWe shall produce a teaser trailer showing small glimpses of the film. This will give the audience an idea of the plot of the film but will not give too much away.Instead of a conventional website, we shall create a website that is much more interactive and that creates a sense of realism. The website will include character profiles and just like that of Facebook, the character would have posted messages such as “Really looking forward to Friday night! =]”The film will carry with it a trademark phrase which will be on posters and the teaser trailer. This phrase is directed at the audience themselves so gives a sense of interactivity.“Did no one ever tell you, not to go out at… Midnight.”