Whether or not you actually are a Harry Potter fan, as a business owner, you cannot ignore the success of the latest video game in the Harry Potter franchise. Even with the boycotting of JK Rowling going on , the game has been the biggest global launch ever of WB for a video game in history. If you’ve been paying attention to any other successful franchise, for example, Stranger Things, you’d notice that this game and that show have one tried and true thing in common, nostalgia. Every single adult who grew up during the Harry Potter movies, that includes me, has been running around Hogwarts Castle in all its beauty as if they were in the movies themselves, and this is why you need to be paying attention as a business owner.
Emotion
Now lets not get carried away, I’m not saying that you need to create a video game. The point I’m trying to make is that at this moment in time, with how social media has evolved into “anyone can go viral at any moment”, this can be your chance to get your business on the map with the right recipe. If you scroll TikTok, I guarantee you have seen at least 1 video regarding the new video game. That’s because all of the adults that are reliving their childhood want to show the world any of the Easter eggs that they found, or something cool that was only referenced in the books. Whatever it is, it’s going viral because the game touched on something that no sales pitch ever will, emotion. Emotion is what drives sales naturally and you can tap into that element just by paying attention. As a bakery, what’s stopping you from creating some Hogwarts themed cakes and desserts, play the game while eating, record it, and put it on TikTok.
Nostalgia
Back to my point about nostalgia, I’m sure you grew up in a different era than I have and have your own audience with their version of what nostalgia would look like. That thought is what I want you to walk away with from this article, what can you do as a business owner that would touch on your audiences emotion and bring out the inner child in them. Don’t ever think that your audience is ashamed top bring out their inner child, because Warner Brothers made a big bet and already made $850 million the first few weeks of launch on the fact that we all would do the same.
Analysis: How did they pull this off the right way?
This part might get technical, but for all the techies out there:
- Game Engine: They used the most beautiful game engine out there, Unreal Engine. This template can be used for other movies and books as well like Lord of the Rings, or Game of Thrones to capture those audiences as well (ME). Something as big as the Harry Potter universe needed to be pulled of right, and these guys absolutely nailed it. I’ve been playing video games for 30 years so I have seen my fair share of bombs and big wins, this game was a huge win and first impressions count here.
- Demographics: Perfect timing for demographics, they roped all the kids in that read the books and watched the movies at the right age when we all just want to relax in our late 20’s early 30’s and what better time than in the winter.
- Social Media: Not that they needed much help, but TikTok certainly helped spread the word of how great this game is. They gave exclusive 72 hour access to certain purchasers if they got the premium edition. What do you think they did? They went on TikTok to show off right! WB isn’t dumb, they knew that the best marketer in the entire world is the consumer and they helped to spread the word without WB lifting a finger.
In conclusion, as a business owner, you just need to create a multi million dollar video game in order to succeed.
No seriously though, all you need to do is bring out the emotion of your audience by tapping into nostalgia and you’d be surprised what the result could be for your brand and reputation.