Universal Pictures unleashes the power of 3D audio to promote Jurassic World: Dominion
How do you promote a beloved movie franchise that gives viewers a major thrill? Create an equally thrilling 3D audio campaign. Universal Pictures had already been experimenting with creative audio formats, but through their partnership with Spotify, the brand was able to develop a unique way to promote their new film, Jurassic World: Dominion. The campaign helped Universal lean further into the audio space, scale the campaign for testing, and deliver an immersive audio experience for fans.
The media mix:
Brand vertical: Entertainment
Objective: Awareness
Market: US
Flight dates: 5/27/22–6/10/22
Format: Audio
The Brief:
To generate awareness and excitement about the next iteration of the Jurassic World franchise, Universal Pictures wanted to create a mighty audio ad experience worthy of such an action-packed film. The solution? Partner with Spotify to reach Jurassic Franchise fans.
Knowing that fans had pre-existing awareness of the Jurassic World brand, the challenge was to find fresh ways to excite them while also capitalizing on the franchise's long-standing reputation for bringing a serious "wow" factor. For a high-concept thriller like Jurassic World: Dominion, the brand needed a campaign with bite.
The Solution:
Universal Pictures had experience buying audio ads, and they were already comfortable with easy-to-use audience targeting tools and various audio formats including 3D audio.
With global sales totaling $6.6 billion in 2021 and a projected market growth of 15.3% by 2032,1 3D audio creates a listening experience similar to how humans perceive sound in the real world. This meant Universal Pictures could create the audio effect of a dinosaur running through one ear and out the other. There was no question that the format was the perfect fit for their Spotify advertising campaign.
Ultimately, Universal Pictures supplemented standard audio ad spots on Spotify with immersive, custom-built 3D ads to create a campaign that drew moviegoers into the action. To maximize impact, the brand leveraged Spotify's Audio Everywhere format to reach their target audiences.
The Impact:
The Jurassic World: Dominion Universal Pictures campaign generated significant results overall—and with the dino-sized power of 3D, the Jurassic World audio ad outperformed standard audio in a head-to-head test. Here are a few notable metrics from the campaign, measured in percentage points (pts) against a control group of Spotify users who were not exposed to the media:
3D audio ad results vs. standard audio:
- +39
pts lift in ad recall for 3D audio
vs. +14 pts lift in ad recall for standard audio - +23
pts lift in movie awareness of the film compared with other similar titles for 3D audio
vs. +11 pts lift in awareness of the film for standard audio - +14
pts lift in must-see rating for 3D audio
vs. +9 pts lift in must-see rating for standard audio
The Takeaway:
Universal's successful campaign demonstrates not only that audio is a sound ad format for entertainment advertising, but also that 3D audio ads present an exciting opportunity for brands to get their message heard loud and clear—whether there’s a dinosaur involved or not.
Interested in Spotify's 3D audio ads? Learn more about Spotify's digital audio ads and how 3D audio can create dynamic, sensory experiences for your brand.
Source:
- "3D Audio Market," Future Market Insights. April 2022.