Team meeting on whiteboard

The final season of HBO‘s flagship fantasy drama, Game of Thrones, returns to the UK on Sky Atlantic next week. On April 15th, eight years of shocking drama and unbelievable plot twists is building up to what will surely be a phenomenal conclusion. The show has its critics, and people who love it, but one thing that cannot be denied is that Digital Marketing agencies have had a blast with their tie-ins. See our Instagram Page (@biggundigital_uk) to see what jobs the main characters would play if they worked in a Digital Marketing Agency!

** Contains Game of Thrones Spoilers **

Game of Thrones: Leads are Coming

Game of Thrones started in 2011. It has since built a reputation for partnering with some of the biggest brands. They have done this to fund the crazy amount of money needed to produce the show! They list Oreo, Mountain Dew, Bud Light and others among their partners.

The show is set in Westeros, a fictional kingdom. It is set in a medieval timeline. This means that product placement is not an option. Creatives have had to really think outside the box to partner with advertising agencies. And it has made them up their game with phenomenal results!

Sponsorship and advertising relationships of this nature have caused brands to create adverts that stand out. Therefore, in this blog, the Social Media Team here at Big Gun Digital are looking into some of the more creative ways that marketers connect with the Game of Thrones world.

Oreo Cookies: The Opening Sequence

In what Mondelez claimed was their largest ever partnership, it meticulously reconstructed the stop-motion titles of the Game of Thrones franchise. It used over 2,500 Oreo cookies to promote its biggest brand collaboration to date.

Created by agency 360i, the detail is superb. It features an accurate shot-by-shot reconstruction of the iconic opening sequence. Everyone loves the Game of Thrones theme and everyone loves cookies. Makes sense right?! The embossed Houses and White Walkers are the epitome of this detail.

By clicking through the Oreo Website, fans of the show can pledge their biscuity loyalty to one of the houses. House Lannister, House Targaryan, House Stark, or the Night King. Pledging this loyalty provides you with a customised and sharable social media graphic. Mondelez has cryptically promised to ‘select fans throughout the season with a special treat for participating’ with this direct engagement.

Let’s see it, in all its glory. (Warning: If you click through to the site, the page uses cookies – sorry!)

Bud Light: The Return

Bud Light caused a stir in their Superbowl 53 half time advert when they killed off their popular “Dilly Dilly” knight. Or at least, that’s we thought! The Superbowl Ad saw Game of Thrones’ The Mountain defeat the so-called ‘Bud Knight’. Meanwhile, Daenerys Targaryen’s dragon burned the ‘Dilly Dilly’ kingdom to ash.

The adverts, now known for their comical ‘Dilly Dilly Aesthetic’ are regular and very popular. The Bud Knight is seen to be knocked off his horse in a jousting contest. However, it’s only when the gigantic silhouette of The Mountain loomed over that viewers realized they were also watching a promo for the final season of Game of Thrones.

The work saw an epic collaboration between BudLight’s ad agency Wieden+Kennedy and HBO’s Droga5. Two months later, a second spot has emerged. The week Game of Thrones was set to return to screens. It contained a reference to the ‘rebirth’ of Jon Snow from an earlier season.

Mountain Dew: A Can Has No Name

Mountain Dew has been delving into the psyche of Game of Thrones fans with their ‘A Can Has No Name’ advert. It plays on the storyline of Arya Stark and her journey with the Faceless Men.

They released a limited line of unbranded cans, under the hashtag, #acanhasnoname. To win an unbranded can, fans were sent to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, to tell it what they’d sacrifice for a can. Participants were then entered into a prize draw. It was a campaign that has proved to be engaging and extremely profitable.

 

Urban Decay: The Game of Thrones Collection

Urban Decay launched a collection of licensed beauty products inspired by Game of Thrones. Officially called the “Game of Thrones Collection“, they say they are “inspired by our favourite places in Westeros and the strong women of the Seven Kingdoms. From the shores of Dragonstone to the frozen lands beyond the Wall, this collection will let you create looks inspired by House Stark, House Targaryen, House Lannister, and the White Walkers.”

Fans of the show are urged to get the ‘For The Throne’ look with cosmetics kits modelled on the show. An eyeshadow set features a pop-up iron throne. If you’re a fan of the show, but not a makeup expert, you might be thinking, “Do you really WANT the Westerosi look?” – but trust us, it’s actually a great collecting.

The collection features palettes like ‘Lannister Red,’ ‘Winter is Here’ and ‘White Walker’.

The Bellagio, Las Vegas: The Fountains Takeover

Before all hell breaks loose in the kingdom of Westeros, the series was afforded a few evenings of respite in Las Vegas. The extravagant and somewhat bittersweet launch party in Vegas featured one of the most spectacular light shows the fountains has out on.

At the Bellagio Casino and hotel, the light show was projected onto the casinos iconic fountains, showing many of the themes we’ve grown accustomed to in the show. Furthermore, an undead dragon and the breaking of the Wall are featured.

Big Gun Digital: Leads are Coming

Finally, our subtle (or maybe not!) effort is playing off the catchphrase of the show, “Winter is Coming”. We pride ourselves on Lead Generation and our homage to Game of Thrones is based around the idea that, like Season 8 of the show, Leads are coming.

Big Gun Digital is a Google-Accredited Digital Marketing Agency, based in Bourne End in Buckinghamshire. For us, Digital Marketing is a way of life. It never stops evolving so, as a result, we never stop learning. Creativity is a strong passion of ours and we take great satisfaction from producing websites and digital marketing strategies that become instrumental in the success of businesses. Want to know more about us? Give us a shout on letschat@biggundigital.co.uk or on (01494) 629007 and come over for a coffee, a slice of cake and a chat!

Check out the Big Gun Digital Blog for all the latest news, info and gossip from Big Gun Towers.

In Conclusion, Game of Thrones has revolutionised television ads with its water-cooler storylines and brutal twists. It is also proving to be a launch pad for the actors involved, propelling them into the (sometimes) lucrative world of advertising.

Game of Thrones’ final season debuts in the US on Sunday 14 April 2019, simulcasting with the UK broadcast in the early hours of Monday 15 April on Sky.

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