Go Viral - The Squid Way

If you're not living under a rock, you probably know about the Netflix series Squid Games, which made people go frantic over their storyline and kept them on the edge of their seats; literally! This South Korean survival drama series has crossed borders and hit the charts of top 10 TV shows to binge on the streaming giant.

The creator Hwang Dong-hyuk?has knitted the storyline with the real lives of viewers like a pro. If you are a marketer, you do know a thing or two about engaging audiences and gaining results by arousing emotions. But, Squid Games not only made its viewers flooded with emotions but also managed to creep into their lives with some subtle yet genius touchpoints. As a show viewer, I am a fan, and I am hooked!

Without further ado, let's get on to discussing the six ingenious ways Squid Games marketed the show and made us fall head over heels, holding onto our dear life;

1. Allow us to hit you hard with something refreshing!

The plot of the show was so new and refreshing that it made people travel to this world without leaving their seats on their couches. They managed to cook up something so unique and different and yet so relatable. Quirks of the show like; the recruitment, thought-provoking challenges, and insane amounts of money distributed were so distant from other shows out there. On the other hand, part of the storyline; being broke to the bottom, characters making stupid life choices, coming together to fight even in an individual competition, getting thrown back into the chaotic real world, if voted that way (gives the effect of 'you voted; you suffer' - US voters can understand) made us relate to the show and its characters like chums of childhood! How does this relate to marketing you ask? Every marketer champions having a good product to market, there has to be some USP or grip within the product itself to run. And Squid Games did that.

Moreover, they intentionally adapted the friendly and child-like shapes and colour schemes, which is so giddy yet unsettling to watch. The directors of the show had every tiny detail of the story right.

“Since modern society is constant competition to climb the ladder, we thought about portraying that in the bed design.”

-?art director Chae Kyung-sun

She won Guild Award for the heart-breaking gut-punching episode 'Gganbu', where the story of Kang Sae-Byeok about her family and the husband and wife pitted against each other are both devastating yet splendid for the plot twist.

2. Everyone is talking about it

The marketers of the show ensured that their story got told, by hiring influencers right and left, even with a smaller budget of just $2.4 Million per episode than other shows like $10 Million for The Crown and $8 Million for Stranger Things.

And while in the world of Social Media, where topics come and go very quickly, they managed to intrigue the interest of the viewers by making the influencers participate in Squid Games challenges of their own keeping an alignment with their present content scheme. This aided in a bond with the viewers where they got personally attached to the show and saw their favourite influencer go through the experiences, and also created a hype to get hooked.

3. These brands.. As usual...

This may be a side eye information but in today's marketing world, brands really help push any product which is even on a brink of going viral. I always do this categorization with all the products I am going to market; ''Which brand this product can be associated to?" And here yet again Squid Games has topped the charts! And the brands they got associated with, did not only created simple marketing articles but quirky, creative and funny ones in its own way.

Only the viewers of the show can understand the punch behind this latte in this image!

4. Memes memes memes

The definition of going viral is ending up as a meme on Social Media. Which Squid Games did plenty. To their never ending list of memes there are some oscar level relatable content which made it irresistable for the audience to keep away from the show. And as we all know, as soon as you've made to Episode 2; you're already addicted. With their small marketing budget and pandameic restrictions there weren't many physical events which were going to happen, so what could be a better way to reach the feeds of millions in one click?

YASSS Memes!

5. You guys are everywhere! Are you God?

One of the hardest thing to do; is being on the right place at the right time; just like that one sock you're always looking for! Did you know that the script of Squid Games was rejected by every stremer for over 10 years; according to wall street journal. So did the impacts of pandemic played extensively in favour of the show? I would say yes! Squid Games aired when almost everyone was penniless, hopeless or simply out of sanitizers! What way better than playing a game and earning an almost endless supply of money? Only ofcourse you can get killed brutally during the process; but hey outside of my home its almost the same so; what else?

So the unfortunate wait to stream proved to be just the opposite for the director of the show, by just being at the right place at the right time.

6. Ye olde Gorrila!

It might be a step back when it comes to marketing innovation but why stop using something if it works well? Netflix marketing team has done it again! They used a Gorrila marketing tactic and placed a Squid Games themed play area at subway stations in Korea. This piqued the traveller's interest to stream the show while on the way or at least watch the trailer. This shows even with a comparative smaller budget if allocated rightly it can still make big bucks!

And now if you tell me you haven't seen the show yet; then what are you doing?!?

Tell me in the comments how did you like these strategies? And also give your suggestions on which show's marketing technique I should perform and autopsy next!