Brand Partnerships With Film Franchises

How These Partnerships Are Beneficial And Competitive

Film franchises: you either love them or hate them. Oftentimes, with these franchises, come huge fan bases and the rights to additional merchandise which can range from toys to home décor.

Partnering with a film franchise seems like a no brainer, but how can you get started and what goes into a partnership of this size? In this blog, Hollywood Branded will dive into past film franchise partnerships, how they work, and how your brand can start one.

What's A Film Franchise? 

A film franchise is a large business which usually stems from a successful film series. Generally, depending on the success of the films, additional revenue will come to the franchise from sales of merchandise, toys, video games, and the creation of TV show or film spin-offs.

One of the biggest and most recognizable film franchises is the Star Wars franchise. Now owned by Disney, the franchise includes the rights to all of the past films, the rights to make new films, the rights to TV show spinoffs, branded merchandise, themed amusement park rides and events, the film scores, and the name and likeness of all characters in the Star Wars Cinematic Universe.

There are several ongoing film franchises which you may also know, and how much the franchises have made in total.

• DC Comics - $5.47 Billion
• Harry Potter Cinematic Universe - $9.22 Billion
• James Bond - $280 Million
• Marvel Cinematic Universe - $22.56 Billion
• Mission Impossible - $3.57 Billion
• Star Wars - $10.23 Billion
• Star Trek - $2.27 Billion
• X-Men - $6.08 Billion

The numbers don’t lie. It’s clear how profitable film franchises can be in their own rights, and that success spreads to all of their partners.

The Benefits Of Film Franchise Partnerships

There are some obvious benefits to partnerships with film franchises, however, there are some others you may not have thought of.

1. The partnership is a guaranteed success
   • So long as they’ve shown success in their first film, the odds that your brand partnership will do well are very high. There is already an established fan base ready to be marketed your brand.
     
2. The contracts can be long term
   • They can last over several films and within other forms of media, making your brand's marketing work easier to manage.
     
3. Cast and crew often opt-in to using your brand over your competitors
   • At their offices and homes, they are more likely to use your brand or product after being exposed to it often and having a positive reputation or experience with it on set.
     
4. Your partnership goes outside of the films
   • Your brand could be featured in merchandise, marketing material, and collectible items, should you ask for it in your contract. Your brand is also typically a big feature at movie premieres, events, and social gatherings.
     
5. The brand association is powerful
   • Anytime someone thinks of their favorite movies, they will also think of your company and brand for years to come.
     
6. You can repurpose and take advantage of the partnership through alternative marketing
   • Take Audi, for example. In this TV commercial from 2017, they were able to advertise their brand, plug the new Spider-Man movie, and use it all to their advantage to increase sales. 

Past Brand Partnerships with Film Franchises

Film partnerships and the product placement of brands can sometimes be hard to spot because they mesh so well with the story line. To help give you a sense of what a partnership could look like with a film franchise, here are some past successful product placement examples in movies from large franchises. 

Fast & Furious

1. Dodge

2. Lamborghini 

3.Dell

4. Apple

5. Corona

James Bond

1. BMW

2. Omega Watches

3. Aston Martin

4. Smirnoff

5. Gillette

Marvel Cinematic Universe

1. Audi

2. Coca Cola

3. Harley Davidson

4. Mastercard

5. Geico

Mission Impossible

1. BMW

2. Apple

3. Oakley

4. Dell

5. Uber

Star Trek

1. Apple

2. Nokia

3. Glennfiddich Whiskey

Star Wars

1. Porsche (Starship design)

2. United Airlines

3. General Electric Appliances

4. Bose

5. General Mills

The Competitive World of Film Franchise Partnerships

If you’re considering partnering with a film that is part of a franchise, you should know that it can be a competitive opportunity if you want to fight for the best integrations for your brand. There are likely several dozen brands who are also under contract with the film, and some of your competitors could be looking into the same opportunities as you.

You may have noticed that there are some brands that are considered “franchise partners.” Think of Audi for Marvel and Corona for Fast & Furious. Both of these brands have had partnerships that have spanned across multiple films, commercial spots, and movie premiere events. They managed to workout a partnership that was beneficial for both the brand and the film, which left a good impression on the franchise.

Coming up with a mutually beneficial partnership is the key to becoming a long-term franchise partner. To do this, think about what your brand or company could do on their end to also benefit the film, or to “scratch each other’s backs,” if you will. This could involve providing free product to the production that can be used or destroyed as part of the story line, providing cash donations, or using your own marketing dollars to create partnered advertising material.

If we think again about the Audi x Marvel TV commercial, we can see that the automobile brand was able to advertise the smart technology in their cars and get viewers excited for the release of the new Spider-Man film.

How Film Partnerships Work & How You Can Get Started

The first step is to get yourself a middleman, if you don’t have one already. An agency will help you by using their connections to get you involved in productions that work best with your brand. After all, this business is a relationship business, and agencies specialize in relationships.

Next, you need to plan ahead and articulate what you want from the partnership to your agency. This means you need to spell it all out, to the very last detail. It can include which products of yours that you want featured, if you want a specific character to represent and use your brand, how many verbal mentions you want, if any, and if you want to be included at premiere events, etc. All of this is unique to the brand and the partnership.

Be cautious, however, on what you’re asking. If you decide to use a character as a type of spokesperson, make sure they are not a character who could eventually die off, because then your partnership will die with them. Also make sure the film you are partnering with will target the exact audience you want to reach.

You also want to outline a realistic budget. Keep in mind that the cost of film franchise partnerships can run higher than partnerships with non-franchise films or independent films. The price of your brand integration will vary depending on the level of fame cast members hold, the estimated box office numbers, the film studio and distributor, and the level of fame of the filmmakers themselves.

Next comes the negotiation process. Like any other brand partnership, this may take a couple of weeks or months before a final contract is agreed upon. This means you should also include some “fluff” in your contract that you could live without so that there is room for negotiation.

Learn More!

Interested in learning more about film partnerships, film franchises, and product placement? Check out some of our other agency blogs:

• The World Of The Fast & The Furious Franchise and Brand Partnerships
• The Brand Partners Of The Mission Impossible Franchise [Infographic]
• Franchise Film Success Case Study: Pirates Of The Caribbean
• Why Franchise Films And Book Spinoffs Create Great Brand Partnerships
• A Timeline Of Marvel's Top Brand Marketing Partnerships
• Toy Story Effect: How Film's Product Placement Increased Sales Of Toys

If you think you're ready to take the next step, check out our agency's infographic on Product Placement!