Why Did Hush-Hush Marketing Work for Spider-Man: No Way Home and Could It Work for You?

Few movies in today’s climate garner the level of obsession and speculation like Marvel Studios. With a larger-than-life fanbase, a multiverse full of characters (and duplications of characters), and highly secretive plots, Marvel has perfected its marketing strategy by utilizing the current tools at its disposal (i.e., the internet).?

Marvel’s 2021 release of SpiderMan: No Way Home is no exception. The lead-up to the launch of this film saw more spoilers, conversations online, and fan-based speculation than most films ever see in a lifetime.?

Marvel’s Initial Marketing Plan for the Spider-Man: No Way Home Trailer

We already know we have an impressive case study to decipher with the entire Spiderverse, not to mention Marvel’s tactics and approach to their marketing strategies.

As Tom Holland, the most recent Spider-Man, told publications after the film was released, Marvel’s initial plan for marketing the trailer was to plant the idea that Spider-Man and Benedict Cumberbatch’s character, Doctor Strange, were at odds in the film, which could lead to another Civil War in the MCU.?

Because fans of Marvel and all its characters are next-level obsessed and can be serious detectives, Marvel thought that presenting potential feuds and conflicts in the trailer would throw fans off and leave them surprised when they finally saw the film in theaters.?

Marvel is notorious for using the marketing strategy of secrets and faux-feuds to trick fans, and it’s a brilliant method to market the film before launch and keep the conversation moving after it is in theaters and the world has experienced its magic.

However, because there were so many characters in No Way Home from previous Spider-Man films, it was inevitable that one of them would accidentally spill the beans.

How Marvel Addressed the Spider-Man No Way Home Trailer Leak

As secrets and spoilers were leaked before Spider-Man’s official launch, Marvel took the “No comment” approach to heart.?

When Alfred Molina, who plays Doc Ock in Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man, acknowledged his role in No Way Home, fans’ theories and speculation about which other previous characters may show up in No Way Home took off at an alarming rate.

Rather than acknowledging the major speculation that the two previous Spider-Men, roles played by Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, would be in the upcoming film, they stayed silent.?

Post-film, Tom Holland expressed his struggle with lying to MCU fans and the guilty conscience he experienced, but Marvel would not budge. In turn, the obsession multiplied, and the web chatter, #NoWayHome hashtags, and social media craze for Spider-Man became one of the industry’s biggest campaigns to date.?

Marketers can certainly take this campaign strategy to heart for their own product launches and digital campaigns.?

Marvel is proficient at utilizing its fans’ loyalty power to market the films to untouched audiences. Their word-of-mouth marketing has pushed through to new target audiences — Marvel films attract much more than just teen/ young adult audiences, although this age group can certainly get some credit for the success of its strategy.?

Revamp Your Branding & Marketing Strategy with Web Development?

We’ve learned from Spider-Man and every other Marvel film that with great content comes great results. By avoiding comments on spoilers and barely giving anything away in movie trailers, Marvel dramatically increases conversations online about their films prior to launch. Boosting non-existing feuds is a classic Marvel move in order to build excitement for their movies.

We may not be film producers, but when it comes to building excitement and chatter around products and services online, Web Content Development has our own version of spidey-sense, and we’ve been helping brands grow online for years. Contact us today if you are looking for a partner to support your company’s growth online through targeted digital campaigns.