Dr. Strange and Marvel’s Signature Marketing Method You Should Steal

The latest Marvel movie came out and it made a lot of money. That’s not surprising. What was more interesting to me as I read about the box office results was what reporters learned after interviewing moviegoers about their reactions. The people who loved the film most were the ones who had watched the backstories of several of the characters unfold through their solo shows on Disney+. This big screen plus small screen strategy was seemingly the key to their success.

Most of us don’t have a big screen or the small screen that could rival Marvel. Yet the lesson from this strategy is one we all can use. At an event in Boston recently, I was asked about how a 75 year old brand could effectively introduce new unfamiliar products to the market. Marvel’s method could help. They have routinely used more popular superhero movies to introduce lesser known characters. With Dr. Strange, they used a TV show to explore the back story of a smaller character and then brought her in as a lead in a major film.