Marketing Lessons From A Crime Movie In The '90s

Tony Montana was a Cuban immigrant who journeyed to America in search of a better life but soon found himself immersed in a perilous world of crime, wealth, and power.

Despite the cards stacked against him as an outsider and the dangers posed in this foreign territory, Tony was determined to rise above all odds.

Besides the thrill of the guns and the drugs which were part of the theme in the story, Scarface conjured up an image we all identified with and aspired to be.

Fearless, confident, and ambitious, just like Tony Montana.

We all have dreams we are striving to achieve, and to bring them to fruition, it's no secret that we need to possess the traits listed above. Tony was an embodiment of those traits, that's why we all liked him. He stood firmly on his words and executed his plans ruthlessly.

And although his greed and erratic bravado proved to be fatal for him in the end, the staggering confidence Tony exuded in his words and actions triggered a subtle admiration we felt while watching him.

Secretly, we envied the courage this Cuban gangster had, he was a force to be reckoned with. A man who never shied away from confrontation, no matter how dangerous it was. Put simply, he had guts!

Growing up, we were all inspired by his tough character and upbeat mannerism, not to become a hitman or drug dealer like he was, but to forge a more confident, dare I say, dangerous version of ourselves.

As the movie drew to a close, Tony's wrongdoings eventually caught up with him, as his conflicts with friends and rivals (and himself) spiraled out of control, resulting in his early demise.

But he didn't go down without a fight. The last scene of the movie was one for the books, as Al Pacino's final performance as Tony Montana immortalized the character and sealed its place in the records as one of the greatest moments in TV history.

Scarface evoked a massive cultural shift, leading to the eruption of trends that reverberated across the movie and music (hip-hop) industries and is still referenced in pop culture to date.

I mean, people still have picture frames of Tony hung up on walls in their homes and workplaces. If that isn't crazy, I don't know what is.

You might wonder what made so many people excited about this movie.

And the answer to that is something more powerful than the automatic rifles or the drugs flaunted in this movie.

It's a feeling that fuels us to be more, do more. The grit to say what you mean and mean what you say. The guts to stand by your words and back them up with the integrity of your actions. The poise to never back down from challenges, and always strive to accomplish your goals.

It's a way of life, a mindset.

An energy of self-sufficiency surging through our veins, reassuring us that we can be all that we want to be and have all that we wish to if we're confident in ourselves.

An ethos perfectly encapsulated in the movie's infamous maxim: "The World Is Yours"

That's what we, the viewers, identified with. Not the guns or drugs but the aura of confidence, the iconic Tony Montana radiated in every scene and his sheer force of will to do whatever it takes to succeed.

And that feeling, my friend never goes out of style, as the movie's relevance has stood the test of time and has been passed down from generation to generation as a cult classic.

Breaking Bad, a series of the same caliber, regarded as one of the greatest of all time, featured the last scene from Scarface in one of its episodes. And get this, it aired 25 years after Scarface was made. That's how influential Scarface was!

I understand a lot of people still have their reservations about this movie and that's fine. But there is no denying that AI Pacino (Tony Montana) did a fine job of playing a role we all revered and loved, even though it was portrayed in the most gruesome way imagined.

Tony Montana wasn't a perfect character by any stretch. He often came across as narcissistic and overly aggressive.

But his flaws are part of what made his character so likable because it was raw and relatable.

And to an extent, one could argue that he was noble, as he had certain moral codes he stood by even as the vicious gangster he was.

Now, the aim of this article isn't just to sing praises of the Scarface movie, countless articles have done that already.

In the midst of the chaos in this story, there is a profound lesson on audience building that I want to illuminate, so stick with me here.

One of the reasons few brands stand head and shoulders above the rest in their market is because they've created narratives around their products or services their target audience deeply identifies with.

They've succeeded in creating a persona their audience aspires to be and positioned their product/services as a means of becoming it.

You see, your brand is more than your logo. It's more than the mere features of your product or services. Everyone has that, what makes you different?

I'll tell you what does, it's how you make people feel. Their perception of your brand. Now, what does this tell you?

Brands are built on feelings!

Yes, feelings!!

It's all about how you make your target audience feel about your product or services.

People are emotional beings, so if your brand doesn't spark a unique sense of identification in them, they won't connect with it.

Now, I know there are a lot of factors that play into the dynamics of successful brand building, but they're all held together by the sentiments oozing around your brand. The mood and experience associated with it.

And that's why you need a solid marketing strategy, engineered to evoke memorable feelings from your audience, something that connects them to your business emotionally.

This is how you build a legion of raving customers for your business. Customers that share the same conviction for your brand, a cult-like fanbase just like Scarface's own.

But first, you have to forge something authentic and relatable that people can identify with. A theme. A movement. A scheme. A vision. A reputation. A personality. Whatever you wanna call it. The bottom line is people should feel a certain way about it, that's what defines your brand and sets it apart from the crowd. Al Pacino did that with his role as Tony Montana in Scarface and you can too with your brand.

Here's an analogy to drive the hammer to the nail:

I want you to think of your brand as a character in a movie, your business USP as your unique character traits, and your marketing as your acts and stunts put together.

With all that set up, It's now up to you to give your audience a memorable brand experience and leave a unique impression on them across your digital touchpoints.

The success of the movie Scarface is one that could be replicated by any brand through strategic marketing.

By creating relatable narratives around your business that immerse your audience emotionally into your own world, you can bolster your audience engagement and grow a herd of loyal customers in the long run.

The World Is Yours.

Stay ahead of the curve,

Akeem.

PS: By no means is this post meant to justify the violence and immorality shown in the Scarface movie. Rather, it's a simple study of one of the factors that played a role in the huge success and cult-like fanbase this movie amassed over the years. And how you can extract the lesson embedded in it and model it in building a trusty audience for your business.

Alright, that's a wrap! I hope you found this article helpful.

Till next time...

Say goodnight to the bad guy! (if you don't get this joke, I suggest you check out the Scarface movie)

Cheers!