Paramount use Internet Marketting to Their Advantage on War of the Worlds

War of the WorldsWhile many summer blockbusters guard their insider secrets carefully -- strategically releasing only enough details to get moviegoers excited about a film's opening -- the star power behind the upcoming actioner "War of the Worlds," a Paramount domestic release co-produced by DreamWorks, opted for a much different approach.

Star Tom Cruise and director Steven Spielberg took time out of "War's" shooting schedule to sit down for a detailed early interview to target the hard-core sci-fi crowd. And the best place to reach that audience? Forget national television; it's all about the Internet.

"I think Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise understand the way the Internet interacts with their audience," says Gerry Rich, president of worldwide motion picture marketing at Paramount. "A camera crew went on the set and delivered questions, which they responded to through video. The questions were very specific and answered by the filmmakers, which was the first interview granted. The Web provides us with the opportunity to reach fans throughout the world on such an intimate level."

Getting the right message to the right target audience at the right time is the bottom line for every marketing professional, and as the discipline continues to evolve at lightning speed, savvy executives understand that it is crucial to harness new opportunities -- including online efforts, guerrilla marketing and branded entertainment -- in the most effective manner. Many of the industry's top marketers believe that it comes down to one word: technology.

"Going back only five, four or even three years ago, you would see the

Marketers have sung the Internet's praises since the emergence of the stationary banner ad, and the subsequent proliferation of wireless devices has made online marketing channels even more attractive as they can reach potential moviegoers day or night in their homes or cars, at work or anywhere else. But given the breakneck speed at which technology enters the market and becomes adopted widely, it can be especially challenging to patent campaigns and evaluate their effects before having to create something fresher to fit the next big technological thing.

"We are all still grappling with how to make the best use of the Internet and the emerging technologies that are in front of us," Universal Pictures president of marketing Adam Fogelson says. "I think we all acknowledge that they are critically important (and) valuable, (but) I haven't seen proof that any of us has yet completely figured it out. Having said that, though, there are pieces and subcomponents that we have (figured out), and one place where I've found the Internet can be of massive value is in gathering existing communities."

Fogelson and his team found great success last year when they used the Internet to hone in on the fan base most likely to turn out in large numbers for Universal's sleeper-hit remake "Dawn of the Dead."

"There were hard-core fans of not only the horror genre but specifically the zombie genre," Fogelson says. "The Internet is the only viable, economically efficient place to gather the most-devoted fans and equip them with the tools and the technology to go out and spread the word themselves."