How "Wicked" Mastered Marketing Magic

As many of you know, the movie Wicked was released in November 2024. But, how do you know this information? All of the campaigning, partnering, and word of mouth became so successful, that even the people who have never heard of this Broadway show, or shown any interest in musicals, became aware about it.

To get people to purchase a ticket for watching the movie, we need to persuade them, and for some it does not take much. Wicked’s main target audience include musical theatre lovers (like me), who likely saw Wicked on stage and loved the performance. When they heard it was made into a film, many were already sold.

However, many people did not see the live show, making it more challenging to reach audiences unfamiliar with Wicked. That is where the marketing magic happens. We make campaigns and craft them into experiences and to evoke emotions. Using the six methods of persuasion (reciprocity, consistency, liking, scarcity, authority, and consensus) given to us by Robert Cialdini & Steve Martin, the campaign ensured the movie resonated with a wide audience. Let us break this down to see how they play a crucial role:

·      Reciprocity: partnering with brands like Starbucks or Legos created a sense of desirable items, encouraging fans to buy tickets. For event promotions, they announced the trailer during the Super Bowl, allowing the fans to feel special and eager for early access to the movie. Additionally, the University of Shiz webpage lets users not only dive into the information of the movie but even get their Student ID for Shiz. In case that one is unfamiliar with the film, University of Shiz is the school in which the main characters attend, click here for more information.

·      Consensus: Collaborations with brands such as Starbucks or Legos, made people think to themselves “if they are partnering with them, it must be worth watching”. Furthermore, seeing the trailer during big events, such as the Super Bowl, Olympics, and others gave signals to the audience that this is a movie worth watching. On social media, there are challenges based off the movie that went viral, creating awareness of the movie.

·      Liking: The cast, including Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, and others are beloved by many outsides of this film and invited them into a musical theater world. For instance, Ariana Grande’s fanbase likely purchased tickets to show their support. Event promotions, such as panels or interviews, allowed the cast to connect with the audience; and connections happened not only in person, but on social media as well. For example, Ariana Grande has posted content of her fans before, during; or after the movie on her story, thanking them for their support.

·      Scarcity:  Limited time Starbucks merchandise for Wicked, and only in select stores, made Wicked more desirable. By promoting Wicked for early access, it gives the sensation of urgency, making fans feel like insiders. Social media generated awareness by viral challenges that are only trending for a certain amount of time. Even though the second part of the film will be released in November 2025, it is likely that the challenges will change by then.

·      Authority: Partnerships not only with brands but with influencers invited to the premier, are going to be talking about the movie on their social media. If fans trust the influencer, they might be persuaded into buying tickets. 

·      Consistency: Wicked kept its magical charm throughout the campaign with the same branding, including the collaboration of brands, event promotions, and even outfits for the panels and interviews. In other words, it has kept the iconic green and pink associated with Elphaba and Glinda. 

As mentioned, for any movie the end goal is to sell tickets. This required a process, in this case a funnel, for guiding the audience. See the image below.

1.    Awareness: People need to know the movie exists. This was achieved through trailers, posters, brand collaboration, and social media.

2.    Interest: Once people know about the existence of a movie, we need to get them to want to learn more. This could include topics such as behind the scenes, interviews, interactions, etc.

3.    Motivation: After sparking interest, we can create a sense of urgency to buy tickets. This could be with merchandise or presales.

4.    Sales: in this step, people have already purchased their ticket - yay!

All this being said, it is important to acknowledge that although you sold the tickets, it is critical to keep the excitement alive. In other words, continue being loyal to your audience. Sharing reviews, deleted scenes, and continued engagement helps maintain loyalty and relationships with fans.

However, the Wicked campaign was close in becoming obnoxious. When I first started learning about marketing strategies, I believed the more we push on a subject to our target audience, the better results we will get. I quickly learned that was not the case. In one of my campaigns, I wanted people to sign up for a webinar. I pushed and pushed multiple emails within five days. Unfortunately, I overdid it, and users unsubscribed. Viewing it as a consumer standpoint, I realized even I would likely unsubscribe from someone spamming me with the same content. Unfortunately, I ruined relationships by managing a campaign poorly; thus, we now have loss of trust, increased unsubscribes, negative word-of-mouth, and decline in customer retention. All that takes a toll on the company reputation.

Effective marketing is not just about selling, it is about the process, connections, and audience. Wicked did a phenomenal job in keeping everyone on their toes before, during, and after the movie.