Macy?s, in partnership with DreamWorks, is centering its branded campaign for the new animated film Trolls around a mobile hub, showcasing mobile?s central place in omnichannel marketing.

The partnership will see a large variety of marketing efforts on Macy?s part, from branded Trolls products in-store, all the way up to a Trolls-themed float in the Macy?s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The marketing campaign will be multifaceted, with efforts being pushed on social media, print, digital, in-store and out-of-home.

?Unifying the Trolls campaign across all channels, mobile, digital, social and physical is essential to reaching the largest audience to create Troll mania,? said David Naumann, vice president of marketing at Boston Retail Partners. ?While there is a small risk that some consumers will get tired of the pervasive Troll messaging from Macy?s, there is more up-side than down-side to this approach.?

Trolls in NYC
The main mobile method that Macy?s will employ to promote Trolls will be the #gethappy hashtag, a tagline of the movie, that Macy?s will push out on all avenues of its social media presence.

Other digital touchpoints will include both live-action and animated spots online and on TV. All of the digital content associated with the campaign will be available through Macy?s mobile-optimized hub, which will collect all of the digital content as well as allow users to browse Trolls-themed products, incentivizing them to buy online and through mobile.

Outside of digital, the Trolls campaign will touch on nearly every aspect of the Macy?s experience.

The retailer will be selling a large variety of Trolls-themed products, including a fashion line inspired by the movie. The line was created in collaboration with fashion designer Betsey Johnson and is branded as Betsey Johnson xox Trolls.

The fashion line debuted at this year?s New York Fashion Week. Also coming to New York at Macy?s flagship location in Herald Square is a redecoration of the iconic Macy?s sign with Trolls characters hiding within it.

The promotion will continue to ramp up as the film gets closer to its November 4th release date.

Macy?s will also create a replica of a crown worn by one of the film?s characters worth $750,000. The crown will be housed in the Herald Square location and is available for purchase.

The campaign will culminate in the inclusion of a Trolls-themed float in Macy?s annual Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Mobile hub
Macy?s partnership with DreamWorks for this campaign shows the power of mobile as a central factor in the increasingly omnichannel world of marketing.

With the large amount of different marketing tactics and campaigns that make up the larger Trolls push, it is vital that brands have a central hub from which consumers can access all of the content produced. Mobile provides that option for Macy?s, whose hub can be accessed at macys.com/trolls.

Macy?s has previously taken advantage of mobile for a different use with the release of its AI-enhanced mobile companion, which helps customers find what they?re looking for in-store (see story).

The retailer has also released an emoji keyboard to celebrate fall and target consumers who are increasingly looking for more functionality from their messaging apps (see story).

?The cross-media consistency and high frequency of the Troll message is key to creating the consumer frenzy that will cultivate a viral Trolls phenomenon and make Macy?s a must visit destination,? Mr. Naumann said. ?When retailers take a moderate approach and limit the frequency and channels for their marketing campaigns, it usually results in lackluster consumer awareness, interest and impact. 

"Macy?s ?all-in? approach is the right strategy and it will be interesting to see how much it fuels Trolls mania. It is exciting to see retailers like Macy?s focusing on the entertainment of shopping and making shopping fun.?