The above link leads to a YouTube video entitled, "The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made #airnzhobbit ". Putting a new twist on the ever-dreaded flight safety instructions given at the beginning of any plane trip, this video turns the process into something travelers can actually enjoy. In fact, the video was so popular that its reach extended the airplanes in which it was being shown and became an Internet sensation, having received 12,910,840 views since it was posted on October 22.
As the "official airline of Middle-earth," marketing persons at Air New Zealand took it upon themselves to promote the final installment of The Hobbit Trilogy - The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in a way somewhat different from traditional movie trailers. For Hobbit fans both travelling with the airline and located elsewhere, the video was a hit. By taking advantage of their location, the airline has managed to make a mundane process seem not only entertaining, but also something actually worth sharing online with one's friends and followers - a task which, with so much to look at on the Internet, is becoming increasingly difficult.
I think this video essentially became popular due to the potential expanse of its reach and appeal to a large demographic; most anyone who is a fan of the book or movie series is sure to enjoy the way everyday flight attendants are turned into residents of Middle-earth and take the viewer on a trip not only to where the plane is headed, but seemingly into Middle-earth itself. However, the airline then takes its advertisement cast one step further by also including celebrities in addition to its own employees. It is well-known that celebrities are often an excellent marketing strategy when it comes to making a product appeal to viewers; in this particular video, the Air New Zealand went so far as to include celebrities from the movie series in order to make it all the more appealing. Peter Jackson, Elijah Wood, and Sylvester McCoy all make special cameo appearances in the video. As some of the individuals who are most often associated with the movies, their use in the video was a sure way to entertain fans of the series. Richard Taylor and Dean O'Gorman also make appearances, further including cast and crew into the creation of a simple safety video.
"The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made" is definitely a fitting title for a video with more than 12 million views. There probably haven't been many occasions where a flight safety video has been viewed - at least, not voluntarily - by such a large number of individuals. For Air New Zealand to have come up with a way to take the dreaded process of instructing passengers how to fasten a seat belt and make it one that both flight attendant and passenger can enjoy shows excellent marketing skills. Being able to then take that video and make it a viral hit shows cleverness and good use of video, advertising, and social media. It is for these reasons I think the video became popular.
Apparently, this video is not the first of its kind done by Air New Zealand. In 2012, they posted their first hobbit-themed safety video. This video matches the one posted this year in cleverness and has almost as many viewers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBlRbrB_Gnc&src_vid=qOw44VFNk8Y&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_541399643
No comments:
Post a Comment