Challenge
TEMPLE THEATRE Have you ever wanted to run a movie theatre? In 2016, hundreds of passionate movie buffs, business owners, and dreamers took their shot to win the Temple Theatre, a historic movie theater in beautiful downtown Houlton, Maine. The essay contest drew attention coast to coast from major media outlets, including the New York Times and the Boston Globe as well as niche industry publications like The Hollywood Reporter and BigScreenBiz, and viral word-of-mouth, in part due to the highly detailed marketing strategy, social media services, and public relations efforts of digital marketing services provider, Dream Local Digital. Generating Social Media Contest Exposure Through a Digital Marketing Campaign When Temple Theatre Owner Mike Hurley reached out to Dream Local Digital, he was looking to find a new owner for his movie theatre in northern Maine. Being located in a rural town, the historic theater had been a staple in the community for more than 100 years. Mike wanted to do more than just sell a business, he wanted to sell a dream, thus launching the “Win a movie theater in Maine essay contest.” As a national digital marketing agency in Maine, Dream Local Digital was able to clearly understand the story and the charm of the theater, its owners, and the community. The goal became to capture the imagination of the rest of the country, and even the world, with this exciting opportunity where everyone had a chance to be in the movie biz.
Solution
Using Social Media, Digital Advertising, and PR to Maximize Online Marketing Reach Our team began by working directly with the owners to develop a detailed marketing strategy to maximize the contest’s exposure nationally. With only four months to gather contest submissions, we needed to make the process clear and simple for our audience. We began by developing a landing page to gather essay contest submissions. This page would use branding and messaging, along with the contest rules and description to act as the focal point and central hub of our efforts. All of our social marketing, digital advertising, and PR tactics would serve to drive qualified traffic to this site. As a full-service digital marketing agency, we used a multi-tiered approach, tapping into a number of internal resources on our team to execute the plan in a timely and highly-effective way; including industry organization websites and social media research, as well as identifying key publications and contacts that would assist us in reaching large, targeted audiences in one synchronized effort. Using organic social content, we managed and monitored Temple Theatre’s social media channels and helped to build buzz across online groups and communities online.
Results
While our team knew that this campaign had the potential to gain national interest, it was through the thoughtful, strategic approach that we were able to see it reach viral status. In just three months, Dream Local Digital helped the Temple Theatre Essay Contest reach 275,996 people, driving 15,656 Clicks on Ads. These metrics are certainly impressive, but the most significant exposure came from our PR efforts, where we garnered 95,102 Backlinks to the essay contest landing page. This earned media exposure helped to capture the imagination of anyone that’s ever wanted to work in the movie business.
Dream Local Digital
Empower your growth and propel your business to new heights with Dream Local Digital, your trusted partner in digital marketing excellence. Why Choose Dream Local Digital? At Dream Local Digital, we don't just focus on marketing; we focus on your growth and Return on Investment (ROI). With 14 years of unwavering commitment...
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