Learn the language of those who sit on the Iron Throne: Learn how this app generated buzz for this show!
It’s because this marketing strategy embodies unparalleled creativity and unconventionality. Guerrilla marketing campaigns provide opportunities for marketers to foster interaction, build brand awareness, and evoke genuine, organic reactions. Today, let’s explore another remarkable example of this unconventional strategy. Continue reading to know a production company generated buzz for its prequel series!
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Learn the language of those who sit on the Iron Throne: Learn how this app generated buzz for this show! “Game of Thrones,” a.k.a. GOT, is considered as one of the most critically and commercially acclaimed television drama series to be ever released. The series was an adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s “Game of Thrones,” a series of fantasy novels. Set on the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos, the story of GOT follows several story arcs throughout the course of the series. Throughout its eight-season run that ended in 2019, GOT attracted record viewership for HBO and was able to capture a large audience from various parts of the globe. Simply said, the fantasy series was one of the best shows to be ever produced during its time. Due to GOT’s success and popularity, HBO greenlit the production of “House of the Dragon,” a prequel series set nearly 200 years before the events of GOT. So, how did HBO generate buzz for the prequel series? The answer is simple: The network had its fans learn a new language! In 2022, HBO partnered with language learning app Duolingo as part of the network’s efforts to promote and market the “House of the Dragon” series before its August 2022 release.
As part of the guerrilla marketing initiative, Duolingo created a course that enabled users and fans of GOT to learn “High Valyrian,” the fictional language from the show. For those who might now know, “High Valyrian” is an example of a “constructed language.” The fictional language was created by David J. Peterson for GOT. Aside from designing a course that revolved around “High Valyrian,” Duolingo and HBO bombarded Times Square with billboards written in the fictional language.
Additionally, Duolingo hosted a challenge with a life-size Valyrian Steel sword as the prize was also hosted for fans. With all this fanfare, was Duolingo and HBO’s guerrilla marketing campaign successful? Yes! The “High Valyrian” lessons became the most talked about campaign for Duolingo and helped “House of the Dragon” gain over 9 million viewers for its premiere episode. Additionally, the campaign generated more than 150 press mentions and over 700 million earned media impressions around the world. In fact, a single TikTok video from the guerrilla marketing campaign received over 10 million views. It was also found that over 30,000 fans started learning “High Valyrian,” with 43% of them expressing plans to learn other languages like Spanish and French. Aside from these results, the guerrilla marketing campaign also earned the following accolades:
Kudos and a round of applause to HBO, Duolingo, and the team behind the guerrilla marketing campaign! — The success of Duolingo’s guerrilla marketing campaign shows the importance of unconventional thinking when promoting a brand or product. By creating a guerrilla marketing campaign that allowed fans to learn the fictional language of the world of GOT, HBO and Duilingo were able to generate buzz for its new prequel show. More importantly, the initiative rekindled fan interest for the show and the book it was based on. The next time you come up with your own guerrilla marketing campaign, try to look for specific aspects of your brand that you can put a creative spin on! This just might be what you need to emulate the success seen by HBO and Duolingo! Hope you’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful. EXCITING NEWS AHEAD The world of work has shifted, and there’s no going back. The barriers to entry have never been lower for talented professionals to work independently, and today’s massive external workforce is hardly a pandemic-produced fad. Business owners can only survive in the new work landscape by partnering with this deep talent pool. With decades of experience in both small-business entrepreneurship and executive management at PwC, I truly believe that the future of work is independent. With that, I’m happy to share with you that my book, co-authored with Walter Scott Lamb, is now available for pre-order on Amazon! Free Birds Revolution: The Future of Work & The Independent Mind This is an essential read for both independent professionals and corporate executives. Here, we provide educational and practical guides to unpack the ever-growing workforce and offer you crucial ways to become a client of choice. Click on the link above to pre-order your copy. Let this book help you future-proof your career and organization in the new world of work. Stay tuned for next Thursday’s Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing! |
