I'm currently developing my marketing strategy for my film, Scum of the Earth. According to Shama Hyder Kabani in her book The Zen of Social Media Marketing, I need to identify my "hook" or something that differentiates my film from others.
With this film, that's not difficult. While there have been some magazine articles, newspaper stories, and tv segments that address the issues surrounding sex offenders, there have been no serious in-depth documentary films about it. This film offers that and does it in a very unique way. By filming over a three-year period, the film examines more than just a snapshot of what happens to offenders after being released from prison which is where other media start and stop; it documents the ongoing and unrelenting struggles that strip them of their humanity and any chance that they may have to successfully reintegrate back into society.
Through social media marketing, I want to attract viewers to the website to educate, market, and sell. The website will be a clearinghouse of resources by which the visitor will be offered education about any concern they have about the topic. The site will market the film through several means: blogposts by sex offenders, 2) a two minute trailer, 3) a 20-minute teaser, 4) photographs and stories of the 75 offenders interviewed, and 5) possible live-streaming from the trailer park where the 100 offenders live in St. Petersburg.
This marketing will hopefully sell the film which will be available for download for a nominal fee. Additional income will be secured through advertising on the site from third party vendors (related to the topic of sex offenders) such as writers, attorneys, support groups, political action committees and others.
The goal for social media marketing of this film will be to attract, convert and transform consumers into customers. Each social media outlet works toward these goals from different angles.
On Facebook the goal will be disseminate information about the film through a core audience to a much broader audience through likes, friending, commentary, and sharing of the content about the film. The user-generated content will be tracked through Weekly Total Reach to monitor the reach of the film's Page in an attempt to redefine strategies that will help make the film go viral.
Twitter will provide consistently updated content that will keep viewers/consumers/customers interested in the project. The Twitter feeds will come from characters in the film (administrators and offenders) and the filmmakers. This information is bound to attract many followers due to the controversial issue and the newsworthy qualities of the content.
Blogging will be a very dynamic aspect of the website. I plan to establish blogs for at least five of the people in the film, three offenders, the therapist and the program administrator. They will be able to address the issues from very different perspectives and will appeal to very different audiences thus drawing a larger crowd to the site.
Reform Sex Offender Laws is a newsletter and website that is followed by thousands of members including offenders and their families, social workers, therapists, lawyers and others who have an interest in the field. I have already made contact with the publisher of the site. He blogged about the film last year while we were in production. Now that we're almost finished with post, I'll be contacting him again to encourage him to blog about the film and to link to our website. The letter would be something like this:
Hello Paul,
It's good to see that RSOL is still serving the community and growing. The recent posts regarding changes in the laws in several states are very encouraging.
You may recall the trailer I provided last year for our documentary film SCUM of the EARTH. We are now completing the film and would like to share some clips with you. I'm also sending the clips to Mary Stewart, the Chair of Florida RSOL. She has visited the park where the men and women in the film live and was very moved by their stories.
After you've had a chance to watch the clips, I'd like to speak with you so that we can begin to form a partnership that will benefit both of us and the people we represent. I'll call you early next week. Perhaps we can do a conference call with Mary at that time as well.
Kind regards,
Phyllis
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