barbie marketing case study 2023

Inside ‘Barbie’s’ Pink Publicity Machine: How Warner Bros. Pulled Off the Marketing Campaign of the Year

By Rebecca Rubin

Rebecca Rubin

Senior Film and Media Reporter

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Unless you’ve been trapped in a plastic toy box, there’s no escaping the Barbie -core movement that’s sweeping the globe — and potentially  contributing a nationwide shortage  of the color pink.

The marketing department at Warner Bros. has been working in overdrive to entice the masses for Greta Gerwig ’s cotton candy-colored fantasy “Barbie,” which has been everywhere this summer. A key factor has been a dizzying array of partnerships with products that range from a bright fuchsia Xbox ( for STEM Barbie ) to this $1,350 Balmain cropped hoodie (for Disposable Income Barbie).

Popular on Variety

The efforts of the extensive and expensive marketing campaign — which rival studio executives estimate to cost $150 million, not including the $145 million production budget — are already paying off.

“Barbie,” starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as life-size versions of the popular Mattel dolls, crushed box office expectations with $165 million in North America and a stunning $337 million globally. With the help of “Oppenheimer,” which debuted to $80.5 million, this weekend boasted the biggest collective box office turnout of the pandemic era, as well as the fourth-biggest in history. It’s an especially big deal at a time when Tom Cruise and Harrison Ford have struggled to save the box office.

In wake of its record-breaking debut , Warner Bros. president of global marketing Josh Goldstine spoke to Variety about the buzzy memes, must-have costumes and “Barbenheimer” phenomenon that led to this summer’s very pink smash hit.

When did you start to notice the “Barbie” marketing was resonating in a big way?

We had a lot of internal discussions about “What’s the right first piece of material?” and “When is the timing of it? How much of the story should we give away?” Each time we released something, the movie was getting to a new level of engagement in the culture.

Pink was a big part of the campaign. How did you decide to lean into that color palette?

Barbie Pink has been such a part of the brand. This movie has a wonderful girl-power element, and pink became the color of the movie. We saw it start to resonate in the culture very early in the long process. The concept of Barbie-core coming to life in fashion kept going. It didn’t have its moment; it sustained and kept growing and growing with the movie.

How much of the marketing was manufactured and how much took off organically?

We saw it as a breadcrumb strategy, where we gave people little elements of the movie to stimulate curiosity and that created conversation. In every campaign, there are elements of earned media [like social media buzz] and paid media [such as a trailer spot]. We believed this brand had the opportunity to generate some exciting earned media. Some of the choices we made stimulated that. Then it did totally take on a life of its own.

A movie of this scope and scale usually costs $100 million to $150 million to market. Did you go over budget?

I won’t comment on the budget. The reason people think we spent so much is that it’s so ubiquitous. That’s a combination of paid media and how many partners came to play with us. Because it pierced the zeitgeist, it has the impression that we spend so much. In fact, we spent responsibly for an event movie.

Can you talk about how some of the less-obvious partnerships, like Crocs or Flo from Progressive Insurance , came together?

Some of those were licensing deals with Mattel and some are brands that made their own decisions to be part of the color schema of the movie. Fashion, frankly, jumped onto the bandwagon. Brands wanted to become part of this because they saw the film was finding its way into culture in such a dynamic way. It stopped becoming a marketing campaign and took on the quality of a movement.

How rare is it that so many brands wanted to partner with the studio on a non-franchise movie?

I’ve been doing this for 35 years. This is one of the most unique experiences I’ve ever had.

Who came up with the Malibu Barbie Dreamhouse for rent on Airbnb?

That was a promotion our team did working with Airbnb. We had a partnership with a giant mansion in Malibu that was given a massive makeover and turned into a modern-day Malibu Dreamhouse. They had great aerial photography of it. It was a “Dreamhouse” in the Barbie sense of the word, but it was also just an incredible Malibu mansion that got this crazy makeover.

What was your favorite less-flashy aspect of the campaign?

Were you concerned that parodying “2001,” which is a film that was released in 1968, would go over the heads of people who actually play with Barbies?

Yes, that was absolutely a concern. We wanted to challenge people. We wanted to make something thought-provoking. People had preconceptions. We thought that, by shaking them, we could create a tremendous amount of curiosity.

How did you come up with the various taglines, like “If you love Barbie, if you hate Barbie, this movie is for you”?

That was a collaboration with our director. It was a thought that she had and we refined it with her. We wanted to recognize there were legions of Barbie fans, but that Barbie had quite a history and there are people who felt like Barbie wasn’t for them. This was a movie that understood that and was acknowledging it. Listen, the word “hate” is a tricky word for marketing and we don’t usually use it. But in this case, it allowed the tent of people to experience this movie and to realize that it understood the journey that Barbie has been on for the last 45 to 50 years.

How important is TikTok as a marketing resource?

We did promotional work with them, but a tremendous amount is organic. In a really exciting way, this whole “Barbenheimer” phenomenon created a series of conversations and engagements. It’s paid off in the sense that both movies are hitting the high side this weekend.

Have you seen the memes and joke s about the relentlessness of the “Barbie” marketing team?

Someone took a picture of a pink sunset and thanked the work of the Warner Bros. marketing department. I thought that was pretty amusing.

What has it been like to see people decked out in pink and dressed up in costumes to watch the movie in theaters?

Wearing pink became a way of acknowledging their connection to the movie. My wife just came back from taking my 86-year-old mother-in-law to the movie. She was sending me pictures of a sea of pink in the theater. It’s a way of being part of this really wonderful collective experience.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

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'Barbie' painted the town pink

For months, Mattel and Warner Bros. used a blockbuster press tour and multiple brand tie-ins to tease audiences with a taste of Barbie's pastel-colored world. It paid off at the box office — and it was cheaper than you think.

Warner Bros. and Mattel's huge marketing push for " Barbie " paid off. 

The comedy starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as the iconic dolls surpassed all box-office expectations opening weekend, debuting at $155 million domestically and $337 million worldwide . Not only is that the highest opening weekend domestically this year, beating "Super Mario Bros.," but it also gives filmmaker Greta Gerwig the highest-grossing domestic opening weekend for a female director ever . "Barbie" also had the best-ever Monday box office for WB, adding another $26 million to its total .

BoxofficePro, a magazine that covers the film industry, estimates that the film is tracking to hit $400 to $425 million domestically by the end of its theatrical run. If true, that would put the film among the highest-grossing movies of the year so far. 

"It's a fantastic result, a reflection of a marketing strategy done right," Daniel Loria, SVP of content strategy and editorial director at BoxofficePro, told Insider.

Barbie is inescapable

The film's success is in large part thanks to an aggressive campaign that Mattel and WB started brainstorming well over a year ago. According to a conversation Loria had with WB executive vice president Jeff Goldstein, the directive from Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav in January was to go "all-in on Barbie Summer."

"That is just such a very different approach from a company where its prior ownership put all of its movies out on its streaming platform on the same day when it was owned by AT&T," Loria said.

Spanning more than 100 international partnerships, "Barbie's" campaign has infiltrated homes to ensure awareness of its summer spectacle. There's Barbie-themed ice cream , roller skates , and a Barbie Xbox .  

A trip to any mall in the US means you'll likely see Barbie-licensed clothing, perfume, and sunglasses in both high-end and more affordable retailers — from Forever 21 and Zara to Gap and Bloomingdales , targeting a range of demographics.

In April, the campaign kicked into high gear when WB unleashed a poster generator online , allowing social media users to personalize and insert themselves into shareable content, which, of course, also served as free promotion. 

Related stories

When Warner Bros. officially declared Barbie Summer on June 21 , pink benches and billboards with nothing but a release date for the film conditioned the public to associate a mere color with the movie. 

—Grippopotamus (@moannthescammer) July 22, 2023

And Barbie Summer won't be over after the film's release. A Mattel representative told Insider that some of the campaigns are still to come in an effort to continue to drive interest in the movie.

The marketing budget is likely 'very industry standard'

Barbie has been so ubiquitous that many have casually joked that Mattel and WB must have a seemingly endless marketing budget for the film. 

The film has a reported production budget of $145 million.  Mattel and WB remain mum on confirming any number for an additional marketing budget. However, the majority of marketers Insider spoke with over the past two weeks believe that "Barbie's" marketing spend likely isn't as astronomical as people may believe.

"Honestly, their budget is probably very industry standard," Abigail Shapiro, a US marketing manager at programmatic lifecycle marketing firm Crimtan , told Insider.

She estimated the marketing budget may range from $125 million to $150 million. Variety reported that rival studios place the budget around $150 million . (Marketing costs for big-budget movies are usually around 50% of their production budget , but it's not out of the norm to see studios spend more on summer tentpoles ).

What may look like an unlimited cash flow may simply be smart partnerships. Shapiro pointed to Mattel's savvy strategy to license Barbie's recognizable IP to form partnerships that will likely result in huge profits for the toy company.  

"All of the marketing that's being done on those inline skates is coming out of the inline skates budget. That's not part of the movie budget and that will apply across every single partnership they're doing," Shapiro added. "That's all coming out of the marketing budgets of those individual brands."

Shapiro added: "Barbie kind of just sold its namesake to these companies to leverage the hype that's going on right now and it's very, very smart, but it's not something that hasn't been done before. They've just taken it to a different level."

A handful of events likely cost the most, including a free boat cruise party , a pop-up where guests can visit Barbie's Dreamhouse , and a Ken-themed Airbnb experience at the same Malibu residence Mattel partnered with in 2019 to celebrate Barbie's 60th anniversary .

After a record-breaking opening weekend, every film will likely want the "Barbie" treatment. But just because a blitz worked for Mattel and WB, doesn't mean the same approach will be a slam dunk for future films.

"I don't think that any movie can accomplish this, because not every movie is going to have something that's so already easily recognizable," Shapiro said of the Barbie brand.

'Barbie' is an event movie

Attending the movies is more expensive than ever . And when people know a film will be available to stream soon after its premiere, it gives them less reason to head to theaters.

But "Barbie" rewarded theater-going audiences with "Barbie Blowout Party" early screenings ahead of its premiere that gave freebies to ultimate fans, such as pink berets, sunglasses, "I ❤️ Barbie" pins, posters, and stickers.

Larger-than-life Barbie doll boxes appeared in theaters across the country for moviegoers to snap photos of themselves to share on social media.

Some theaters in Los Angeles and New York City actually made moviegoers feel like they were at a premiere, rolling out a pink carpet for guests. 

While there was some online backlash to the ubiquity of Barbie marketing, it's seemingly been just that.

In the real world, moviegoers not only sold out opening weekend tickets, but they showed up to theaters in droves wearing all shades of pink. The scene at three popular movie theaters on opening weekend in Los Angeles was reminiscent of the premieres of films in billion-dollar franchises like Star Wars and Harry Potter, when fans dressed in cloaks and wizard glasses.

Audiences loved the idea of a double feature

A lot of the fun around the release of "Barbie" was that the cheery, bubblegum-pink film opened opposite "Oppenheimer," Christopher Nolan 's serious biopic about creating the atomic bomb. People quickly latched onto the hilarity of the juxtaposition to create Barbenheimer, an internet phenomenon that studios and marketers could only dream of.

"Barbenheimer" quickly took on a life of its own, with memes and T-shirts remixing the two. The phenomenon became so popular that the National Association of Theatre Owners estimated more than 200,000 people purchased same-day tickets to watch both films on opening weekend.

People want to be connected to everybody else. They want to be part of a big event. And we have had so few of those in recent years. Bruce Nash, CEO and founder of the movie financial database The Numbers

"I think it's the craving for novelty," Bruce Nash, CEO and founder of movie financial database The Numbers , told Insider of people turning up for Barbenheimer. "People want to be connected to everybody else. They want to be part of a big event. And we have had so few of those in recent years." 

Nash added: "It's just people saying, I want to do something fun where I feel like I'm at a real event. This works in every theater in the country. People can show up and feel like they're in this sort of weird, crazy party."

The pairing helped lead to the fourth-biggest weekend at the domestic box office ever .

The movie itself was actually good and, more importantly, original

You can have the best campaign in the world, but if your movie stinks, audiences aren't going to recommend it to family and friends. That's a problem Marvel saw earlier this year when "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" had the studio's largest second-week drop in attendance . It's the worst-reviewed MCU film to date.

In the case of "Barbie," it's not only a critical hit , but it's also beloved by audiences. It received an A from market research firm CinemaScore , which polls moviegoers on opening night and holds a 90% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes . 

The other thing that "Barbie" had going for it was that it felt original. It wasn't a sequel, prequel, or part of a tired superhero franchise. 

"I think moviegoers connected with it just because they didn't have to see 37 other movies and three TV shows to find out what was going on," Loria said, explaining that while audiences aren't totally ditching cinematic universes, they are looking for something unique.

And after its large opening weekend, audiences are still flooding the theaters to get a glimpse of the plastic doll on the big screen. As of Sunday, evening showings of "Barbie" at a dozen popular AMC theaters in Los Angeles and New York City are nearly sold out through next Friday. 

After opening weekend, Loria expects word of mouth from those audiences will continue to help "Barbie" at the box office as people share their reactions and convince others to be part of the experience.

"When we look at the entire run of a movie, it all depends on weeks two, three, and four," Loria said, adding of the film's final domestic gross, "I do think $300 million is a lock and $400 million plus is a very viable path for a title like this." 

Barbie really can be anything — including a box-office smash.

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Barbie Movie Boosts: How the Barbie Movie Redefined Brand Marketing

In 2023, the renowned toy company Mattel , famous for creating the iconic Barbie doll , faced challenging times amidst a competitive market. However, a recent development has the potential to reshape the company’s trajectory and revitalize its brand presence: the release of the much-anticipated Barbie movie . This article explores how this cinematic venture has impacted Mattel’s stock performance and discusses the potential implications it may have for the company’s survival.

Overview of Mattel & the Barbie Brand 

Mattel is a globally recognized toy company that has been a pioneer in the industry for decades. Established in 1945, the company quickly rose to prominence with its innovative and beloved toys. However, its most iconic creation, the Barbie doll, was introduced in 1959.

Barbie became an instant cultural phenomenon, capturing the imagination of millions of children worldwide and setting a standard for fashion dolls. Over the years, Barbie has undergone various transformations, adapting to changing times and promoting diversity and inclusivity . 

Despite these efforts, Mattel faced challenges in recent years, struggling to keep up with digital entertainment and other competitors.

Mattel’s Struggles & Stock Performance

In the early 2020s, Mattel experienced various setbacks that impacted its financial performance and stock value. 

With the rise of digital toys and entertainment options, traditional toy manufacturers faced stiff competition. Mattel’s revenues were affected as children’s play patterns shifted toward online gaming and virtual experiences. 

The company also faced difficulties with supply chain disruptions and rising production costs. These challenges culminated in a decline in Mattel’s stock performance, raising concerns about the company’s ability to stay relevant in an evolving market.

Mattel Reports First Quarter 2023 Financial Results

Mattel’s Second Quarter 2023 financial results will publish on Wednesday, July 26, 2023.

The Barbie Movie: A Cinematic Triumph 

To rejuvenate the Barbie brand, Mattel embarked on an ambitious cinematic venture – the release of a Barbie movie on July 21, 2023. The movie promised a fresh take on the iconic doll, featuring a compelling storyline and modern themes to resonate with today’s audiences.

Leading up to the premiere, even Google got all dolled up for this star studded movie of the summer, turning shades of pink for the brand’s famous color scheme. As the film hit theaters, it garnered widespread praise from both critics and viewers alike. 

The film exceeded all projections , grossing an impressive $155 million during its opening weekend in domestic markets and an additional $182 million internationally. The movie’s tremendous start was fueled by $22.3 million in previews on Thursday, making it one of the top 25 all-time preview performances and securing the highest opening of the year.

Comparing Barbie’s performance to other recent releases, it outshined the Super Mario Bros. Movie, which had a $146.3 million weekend but also benefited from a $58.2 million gross on Wednesday and Thursday, resulting in a $204.6 million five-day start.

Barbie’s remarkable Friday, combined with Wednesday and Thursday figures, totaled $70.5 million, setting a new record for the highest Friday (including previews) opening of the year.

What makes Barbie’s triumph even more noteworthy is that it boasts the best opening ever for a film co-directed or directed solely by a woman. Notably, both Captain Marvel ($153.4 million) and Frozen II ($130.2 million) had male co-directors, whereas Barbie stands as a pioneering example with a female solo or co-director.

This marks only the second time in cinematic history that a solo female director has achieved an opening weekend gross of over $100 million, with the other instance being Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman ($103.2 million).

The Barbie movie’s success was attributed to its captivating storytelling, stunning visuals, relevant play on nostalgia and positive messages promoting empowerment and self-expression. Not to mention all the city wide press this movie has created. 

Market Reaction and Stock Surge

Following the movie’s release, Mattel experienced a significant surge in its stock value . Investors responded positively to the success of the Barbie movie, recognizing it as a game-changer for the company’s prospects. The rise in stock value was not only indicative of renewed investor confidence but also a testament to the movie’s ability to revive the brand’s allure and profitability.

Barbie’s Appeal to Adult Audiences

The Barbie movie unexpectedly found a substantial audience among adults. Beyond its traditional target demographic of children, the film resonated with older viewers, including nostalgic adults who grew up with Barbie.

The movie’s ability to evoke a sense of nostalgia and connect with adult audiences created an unexpected marketing advantage for Mattel. This newfound appeal among adults potentially translated into increased interest in Barbie-related products and memorabilia.

Expanding Merchandising Opportunities

The success of the Barbie movie opened up new avenues for Mattel to capitalize on merchandising and licensing opportunities. With the movie’s characters and storyline capturing the hearts of audiences, Mattel had an opportunity to introduce a wide range of spin-off products and tie-ins. 

Collaborations with other companies for limited-edition Barbie merchandise , such as clothing, accessories, and collectibles , provided an additional revenue stream and reinforced the Barbie brand’s relevance.

Impact on Mattel’s Future Strategy

The triumph of the Barbie movie significantly influenced Mattel’s future strategic decisions. The success of the entertainment-driven approach demonstrated that storytelling and engaging narratives were vital components for the company’s product development. Consequently, Mattel might prioritize partnerships with filmmakers, screenwriters, and animators to create compelling content that goes beyond just physical toys.

Marketing Lessons from Mattel’s Barbie Movie Campaign

The release of the Barbie movie in 2023 marked a turning point for Mattel, reviving the company’s brand image and stock performance. The success of the film not only brought renewed interest from children but also unexpectedly resonated with adult audiences, further bolstering the Barbie brand’s status. 

With this newfound momentum, Mattel now has a unique opportunity to leverage the success of the Barbie movie to explore new horizons and ensure its survival and success in the ever-evolving toy industry.

Take Action

• Understanding the Power of Brand Nostalgia: Mattel tapped into the nostalgia associated with the iconic Barbie brand, resonating not only with children but also with adults who grew up with the doll. Marketers can leverage nostalgia by revisiting and reimagining their brand’s heritage to evoke emotional connections with their target audience.
• Effective Audience Segmentation: The marketing campaign demonstrated a deep understanding of its target audience, recognizing both children and adults as potential consumers. Businesses should segment their target audience effectively to craft tailored messages that address specific needs and preferences.
• Leveraging Cross-Platform Promotion: Mattel maximized the impact of its marketing efforts by employing cross-platform promotion. Businesses can learn to integrate their campaigns across various channels, such as social media, television, print, and online advertising, to reach a wider audience and reinforce their brand message.
• Inclusivity and Diversity in Storytelling: The Barbie movie emphasized themes of empowerment and inclusivity, promoting diverse representations of characters. Marketers can learn from this approach and incorporate diverse and authentic storytelling that reflects the varied experiences and backgrounds of their audience.
• Building Anticipation with Previews: The use of previews to create buzz around the Barbie movie generated excitement and anticipation. Marketers can apply this tactic by offering sneak peeks, teasers, or exclusive content to build anticipation for their product launches or events.
• Collaborating with Influencers and Partners: Mattel collaborated with influencers, celebrities, and other partners to amplify the movie’s reach and create additional hype. Businesses can explore partnerships with influencers and other brands to extend their brand visibility and tap into new audiences.
• Emphasizing Female Leadership: The success of Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig, highlighted the impact of female-led projects. Businesses can embrace gender diversity and empower female leaders within their organizations, signaling their commitment to inclusivity and equality.
• Storytelling as a Central Element: The Barbie movie’s success was driven by compelling storytelling that resonated with the audience. Marketers can prioritize storytelling in their campaigns, creating narratives that connect emotionally with consumers and elevate their brand message.
• Measuring and Analyzing Results: Mattel’s campaign likely involved thorough monitoring and analysis of marketing efforts, allowing them to optimize their strategies. Marketers should invest in data analysis and performance tracking to measure the success of their campaigns and make data-driven decisions.
• Building a Comprehensive Merchandising Strategy: The success of the Barbie movie extended beyond the film itself, with a robust merchandising strategy. Businesses can learn to capitalize on their campaigns by offering related products and tie-ins to enhance brand exposure and generate additional revenue streams.

By drawing inspiration from Mattel’s successful marketing campaign for the Barbie movie, businesses can apply these valuable lessons to enhance their own marketing strategies and ultimately achieve greater brand impact and success.

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Barbie’s Marketing Genius: The Ultimate Case Study

It’s the biggest question of the summer: what are you doing on July 21? 

If you’re like me, the date is already carved out: you’re going to the movies. It’s the double-feature of the century: Barbie and Oppenheimer– Barbenheimer . 

The two films with the same opening day couldn’t be more different, but there’s a reason they can both stand on their own to compete at the box office—marketing. 

Since its initial tease in mid-2022, Barbie has taken the world by storm. Its bright aesthetic prompted the “Barbiecore” trend, which highlighted bright pastel colours in fashion and design. People have been promoting the movie as if they’re being paid to do it. Barbie is a marketing master-class, having generated major buzz for the better part of a year.

How did they do it? Here’s what everyone, even marketing pros, can learn from Barbie’s marketing skills. 

The Art of the Leak

Interactive marketing, collabs for days, the power of nostalgia.

In June 2022, a picture from the Barbie film shoot went viral: in neon 80s-style workout gear, stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling were captured rollerblading along Venice Beach.  

Similar leaks, like one of the stars in bedazzled Western getups, set the Internet on fire. People couldn’t get enough of the costumes, going so far as to share where to get the pieces or how to make them yourself.  

Although Internet trends seem to fade faster nowadays, it was impressive how sustained these efforts seemed to be, keeping the movie at the top of people’s minds even a year before its release. 

The best marketing strategies give your audience the ability to advertise for you. Barbie is the perfect example of this, utilizing meme-able content to spread like wildfire on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and TikTok.  

The first success was the laughable line “She’s everything, he’s just Ken”. Here, X users quickly hopped on to create memes about their own lives, their favorite fictional characters, or pop culture.

Another act of participatory marketing came with the movie’s casting announcements. Each character was announced on a bright poster with a quirky, memorable tagline. Using a movie-sponsored website, users could create their own versions of these posters and share them with their friends. Talk about low-cost marketing! 

Fans can try for recognition and virality with Barbie’s hashtag, which shows up on X with its own pastel icon. The movie is making sure it sticks out using its bubblegum palette, catching the eye and building a more cohesive image. Not to mention that its popularity attracts other brands, even unrelated ones like Wendy’s, to use it and draw an even bigger audience. 

It wouldn’t be a 21 st century promotion without excessive partnerships, and Barbie’s got that on lock . 

The movie has collaborated with over 30 brands to bring its iconic aesthetic to products like ice cream, lemonade, toothbrushes, cosmetics, apparel, luggage, video game consoles, and AirBnBs. 

With so many brands putting Barbie on their shelves, the movie was just about everywhere before its release. With this method, brands also benefit from Barbie ’s name recognition to sell product. It’s a win-win! 

Barbie hasn’t been limited to just brand collaborations, though. Its artist collaborations have been notable too: creating a fire soundtrack with the likes of Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice, Dua Lipa, and more. The music helps to promote the release and is used in everything from advertisements to unaffiliated TikToks. 

Nostalgia marketing is nothing new—there’s a reason it’s used so much. Tapping into an audience’s fond memories of their childhood has long been a successful tactic as a consumer begins to associate the product with older, positive memories.  

Barbie does this well; after all, almost everyone can relate to having or being around Barbie dolls, Kate McKinnon’s portrayal of a well-loved toy that has seen better days, and the bright plastic perfection of childhood fun. To viewers, the movie offers an escape from reality and a return to the simplicity of youth. 

Market research has seen that nostalgia marketing works especially well with millennials, who are looking for a more human connection with the brands they use. Barbie’s ability to keep up with trends in order to market nostalgia to the Internet generation has generated more buzz for a movie than any other in recent history. 

We could all learn something from Barbie ; not just from the doll’s message that anyone can be anything, but from the franchise’s marketing skills.  

Marketers should never stop the hype when it comes to announcing something new – that is, go beyond a simple social, blog, and newsletter campaign and seek collaborations and unique media platforms to get your message across in unique ways.

Ensure the most people know about your message as much as possible by putting yourself out there, in other people’s circles, and communicating through unconventional means.     Collaborations with others are an amazing way to connect with similar audiences and expand your reach especially if you don’t have millions of followers already.  

To stay relevant and engage audiences, it requires a perfect balance of anticipation, share-ability, and emotion. 

Let us know how you can translate some of Barbie’s tactics into your own content strategies! And, most importantly, enjoy the movie! 

This summer’s biggest hit? The Barbie marketing team.

Brand collabs and Barbenheimer memes catapulted Barbie hype to new heights.

by Whizy Kim

The fact is, it’ll be nearly impossible for Barbie to live up to its hype. Just as perfection only exists as an ideal never quite made flesh, Greta Gerwig’s desperately anticipated film based on the blonde plastic doll will necessarily disappoint some when the fantasy of its stunning promotion gives way to the reality of seeing the actual movie. That’s the double-edged sword of so much frenzied buzz.

A kind of mob hysteria has taken hold of us in the past few months: the people are demanding cinematic Barbie — the version artfully masterminded by an esteemed auteur director, starring two beautiful and seriously regarded actors. But of course, Barbie fever is in many ways manufactured mania, with the backing of a Hollywood blockbuster marketing budget. Barbie ’s total marketing spend hasn’t been confirmed, but it’s not uncommon for big studios to fork over $100 million or more on major releases (according to Deadline, global marketing for The Little Mermaid cost around $140 million .) After a few extremely shaky years for moviegoing , studios are ramping up to blowout ad campaigns again.

The Barbie movie, explained.

• Why is everyone so excited?
• What is the movie about?
• Why the marketing campaign has everyone talking.
• What is Barbieheimer?
• What does it mean to be Ken?
• Why did Vietnam ban Barbie?
• Why playing with Barbie gets so weird.

The biggest stars of Barbie arguably aren’t Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken but the movie’s uncanny marketing team, which has worked overtime to ensure the doll, movie, and brand are inescapable this summer. They’ve acquired an almost mythic stature, spawning memes and parodies of their terrifying prowess. Never mind all the traditional advertising you might see on the street or on TV, as well as the magazine covers, talk show interviews, and Margot Robbie’s to-die-for red carpet outfits that come with a press tour (a tour, however, that has been interrupted by the WGA/SAG-AFTRA double strike ). No, this Barbie is all about securing brand deals.

The amount of Barbie film branded merch is pretty mind-numbing. You could build an entire closet out of them: A collection with Gap, Barbie x Bloomingdales, hot pink roller suitcases with luxury luggage brand Beis , a capsule collection with sneaker brand Superga, more makeup and skin care sets than we’re willing to count, accessories with Fossil, even a full-on assortment of clothes and accessories at Hot Topic, which has in recent years become a bastion for feeding fandom obsession and millennial nostalgia. (Also important to note that Trisha Paytas did a haul vid of every Hot Topic x Barbie piece). Furniture brand Joybird has a slate of Barbie Dreamhouse-inspired seating to adorn your home. In Brazil, there’s even a limited-edition Barbie cheeseburger from Burger King that’s dressed with a disturbingly pink sauce .

There were some standout moments, like the blindingly neon Barbie rollerblades from Impala Skate, which went viral after the set photos leaked . An army of rollerbladers wearing those exact skates promoted the movie at New York City Pride this year. Or take the surprise reveal of a Barbie Dreamhouse in Malibu, bookable on Airbnb. There’s a Barbie Xbox that looks like a little dollhouse (though, personally, a Barbie-pink edition of the Nintendo Switch would have been way more enticing). If your brand exists in 2023, chances are you did some kind of Barbie collab: a Bumble event featuring online dating tips from Barbie and Ken ; a Progressive Insurance commercial set in the Barbieverse; a redesigned Roku City featuring Barbie’s Dreamhouse and a movie theater marquee advertising the film. A Barbie selfie generator went somewhat viral a few months back. Google any keywords related to the film right now, and watch the search engine’s typically staid colors turn pink, with pink sparkles raining down the screen.

What stands out for brand strategist Moshe Isaacian is how much of the promo around the film has savvily drawn on “what makes Barbie and the movie iconic,” he tells Vox — such as the rollerblades. In a viral Twitter thread listing Barbie’s copious brand tie-ins, Isaacian noted , “The devil works hard, but @Barbie’s marketing team is INSANE.”

But all that hustle seems poised to pay off. National Research Group , which releases box office projections, is now expecting Barbie to make $110 million in its opening weekend . (Meanwhile, rival Oppenheimer’s projections are a more modest $49 million.) To compare that with other blockbuster openers, Top Gun: Maverick banked $124 million in its domestic opening weekend. Over $100 million in the first three days is pretty impressive for a film about a popular child’s toy that’s aimed at adults — though we do live in a world where the Super Mario Bros. movie destroyed box office records . Not unlike Barbie , Super Mario Bros. also snared a lot of brand deals in the lead-up to its release: a mushroom-heavy Shake Shack menu and a line of body care products with Lush Cosmetic, just to name two.

Isaacian says that such quirky, at times outlandish brand tie-ins are a callback to how big and bold movie marketing was in the ’90s — like the now-coveted McDonald’s Szechuan sauce , which was originally released to promote Disney’s Mulan . “What we’re seeing [that’s] different is that with Barbie , it’s not about getting all this movie marketing to sell Barbie toys,” says Isaacian. “It’s to bring what Barbie stands for to our real world.” 

“It’s been appealing to the gamers, it’s been appealing for people who like collecting stuff for their home, people who love skating, and shoes,” he continued. That’s a large part of the appeal — the world of Barbie has always been hyper-surreal fantasy. A doll living in a perfect world, who jumps from career to career with no barriers in her way and a million friends by her side. A doll whose feet literally never quite touch the ground. With each new piece of Barbie promo, we’re asked to imagine, what if it were all real and possible? Wouldn’t la vie en rose be so delightful?

Gerwig’s Barbie , with its tongue-in-cheek tone and PG-13 rating, is not for young children. It’s camp that promises to hit hardest for adults of a certain generation — with a cast that includes Helen Mirren, Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Michael Cera, and Rhea Perlman. 

Beyond the tangible Barbie logo stuff stans can buy, much of the promo has targeted a kind of digital culture cachet — catnip for adults who keep tabs on art, design, and whatever the latest vibe shift is. Of course there was an Architectural Digest tour of Barbie’s house. The alleged discovery of Margot Robbie’s secret Letterboxd list of films to watch for Barbie (with the likes of Jacques Demy’s The Umbrellas of Cherbourg appearing on it) set cinephiles trembling. Recently, Gerwig did an actual interview with Letterboxd of her “official Barbie watchlist” (it did in fact include Umbrellas ). The very fact that it’s a project helmed by Gerwig — whose past work includes Little Women , Lady Bird , Frances Ha — with a screenplay co-written with Noah Baumbach, was an absurd enough premise to draw an audience in. With their names attached, there’s been a permeating sense that the film is bound to be subversive, boundary-breaking, a technicolor acid trip. Axios reports that almost half a million Barbie pieces have been published in 2023 — reports, essays, takes, odes to all that Barbie means in the culture — like this Artsy deep dive into the film’s “hyperfeminine” kitsch. Tumblr and Instagram accounts dedicated to aesthetic film stills will be eating good off Gerwig’s Barbie for decades. 

It’s also coming at more or less the right time, in the post-bimbo wave of pop culture theory , which says that there’s actually no need to choose between hyperfemininity, in whatever forms we typically conceive of it (like, for example, wearing a lot of pink) and being taken seriously as a smart, competent person — that was always an illusory choice anyway. Meanwhile, the platonic ideal of a man is pretty much Ken, a himbo who displays an unpracticed wisdom, and impeccable taste, through his total awe and adoration of the Barbie in his life. You see, he’s the polar opposite of a dude who’ll smugly observe that you’re not like the other girls. A few years earlier, and Gerwig’s Barbie might not have seemed so cool; a few years later, it could have felt extremely stale.

And then there are the memes. Barbie fever isn’t just driven by nostalgia or Gerwig heads or the prospect of a big theater-worthy event to look forward to after the lean pandemic years. Hype itself is the energizing pleasure, a wink and nod that you’re in on the joke. The biggest catalyst, without a doubt, is the fortuitous fact that Christopher Nolan’s gritty biopic Oppenheimer , about the man who created the atomic bomb, is opening on the same day as Barbie . On social media, there’s been joke after joke about the movie’s made-up rivalry. People are arguing about the correct itinerary for what amounts to summiting Mount Everest in terms of moviegoing this summer: the Barbie-Oppenheimer Double Feature. We have to ask ourselves, would Barbie thirst as we know it today exist without Oppenheimer ? If the Extremely Online writers and meme purveyors weren’t so tickled by the situational irony of it?

To be clear, the online memes have spilled over into the real world. Barbie ’s virality has taken on a life of its own, growing into a self-sustaining creature that no marketing team on Earth could predict or wrangle. I actually don’t know many people are clamoring to buy Barbie merch — but, according to AMC, over 40,000 people have bought tickets to both Barbie and Oppenheimer this weekend (somewhere in the world, Nicole Kidman is beaming with pride ). I went to a Barbie-themed birthday party last weekend, the first in my life, adult or child. A few weeks ago at the Soho REI store, among the Camelbaks and carabiners, employees were conducting a poll asking customers whether they were seeing Barbie or Oppenheimer first. (An REI spokesperson confirmed that the company wasn’t a part of either film’s marketing campaigns.)

We’ve talked each other’s ears off about the movie for free — a thing that no marketing strategy, no matter how savvy or well-funded, could buy. The real Barbie (2023) was all the friends we made along the way. 

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Barbie: A Marketing Case Study that Will Last For Years

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Whether you’ve just spent last weekend reading the Barbie reviews or managed to go watch the movie, one thing is for certain: there’s almost nobody who isn’t wildly impressed by the movie’s mega marketing campaigns.

And as we are amongst the humble few who get to take a page out of the Barbie textbook, we decided to dissect this world-famous marketing case study and how it has reshaped movie marketing for years to come.

Barbie Re-defines the Marketing Spectrum

If there was ever a rule that you can only market within a certain range of ideas, Barbie certainly defied said rule. With an estimated  $150 million marketing budget , Barbie became an experience everyone wanted to enjoy. From scented candles, and merchandise, to Xbox controllers, and an Airbnb dreamhouse, the movie acquired massive excitement for its release; even from non-Barbie fans.

So, let’s see all the stops the Barbie team pulled out for its movie launch.

Retail Collaborations

In this particular marketing case, the Barbie marketing team proved that mere merchandise was passé; and opted for more creative marketing stunts. Collaborating with 100+  brands , pink was an ever-green trend this summer. ZARA, Forever21, Xbox, Crocs, GAP, Krispy Kreme, Burger King, Pinkberry, Balmain, and Coldstone Creamery are just among the herd of retail partnerships that Barbie sealed ahead of its movie premiere.

Health & Beauty Collaborations

Another admirable marketing tactic Mattel used was creating Barbie clones worldwide. And that meant giving them the right beauty tools. From an NYX Cosmetics makeup kit to an LÓreal  Barbie flat iron, Barbie fans had  12 collaborations to impersonate their favorite Barbie dolls.

Travel Collaborations

Had enough of Barbie merch? How about a tour of Barbie’s Dreamhouse by Margot Robbie ? Better yet, why not stay in the Malibu Dreamhouse yourself through Airbnb ?

Sparing no expense in submersing people in the Barbie experience, the marketing team managed to secure a Malibu mansion that underwent a great makeover and became Barbie’s Malibu dreamhouse that people can now rent for vacations through Airbnb.

Media Collaborations

If you think media collaboration is meant in the traditional sense here, think again. Barbie’s marketing team sought out certain platforms that would uniquely generate Barbie buzz. Amongst its  9 media collaborations , Barbie collaborated with the Washington Post in producing a newsletter called  Unboxed .

In addition to that, they also joined forces with Pinterest ; where an ad called “Not Just Ken” promotes Barbie collaborations on curated Barbie- and Ken-themed boards. Another fun partnership was one with  Google where the screen turns pink and sparkles appear when you search for “Barbie”, “Barbie movie”, or “Margot Robbie”.

Organic Media: Barbie’s Real Force Majeure

In a recent Variety interview , Warner Bros. president of global marketing Josh Goldstin asserted that the bigger portion of Barbie’s success was organically earned; once again proving that Barbie’s marketing team is a force to be reckoned with .

Utilizing the breadcrumb strategy , Barbie’s marketing team slowly reeled their customers in by evoking curiosity and excitement at several customer touchpoints ahead of the premiere.

This started with their teaser trailer where world-famous director  Grega Gerwig lured her audiences in with a rather unconventional opening scene. This is because it was a parody rendition of Stanley Kubrick’s acclaimed 2001: Space Odyssey ; where Margot Robbie replaced the famed monolith. Naturally, this stimulated a conversation amongst Barbie audiences that just kept on growing.

Four months later, Warner Bros. released the second teaser trailer which featured more shots from the film.

This, in turn, created a lot of organic circulation of Barbie’s content. Shortly after that, the Barbie team no longer had to worry about organic engagement. Their job was done.

Barbenheimer: A Coincidence that Worked in Barbie’s Favor

Aside from the Barbie team’s radical efforts to promote the movie, there is also another force to be reckoned with. And that is the dual premiere of Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s biographical thriller; Oppenheimer .

Once again creating organic buzz around this topic, fans started producing meme-like content about choosing which movie to watch since both shared the same opening night.

Everyone is A Barbie

If you browse through your Instagram feed at least once a day, you’ve surely come across the Barbie filter and selfie generator. Once again putting the concept of individuality to excellent use, this filter generator allowed fans and influencers to hop aboard the Barbie bandwagon and enjoy being a Barbie.

In fact, the filter became so popular that even Instagram businesses used it under the hashtag #ThisBarbie, as well as meme-related pages, Korean drama pages, fitness businesses, real estate brokers, and many more.

The Devil Works Hard but the Barbie Team Works Even Harder

Aside from their pink-infused collaborations, the Barbie marketing team has had a long-standing history of marketing triumphs of its own.

As we very well know,  nostalgic marketing works best with older generations who have had the time to build a sentiment toward a product. And what better nostalgia to leverage than that of a Barbie doll?

Since the first Barbie doll was released in 1959 , the toymaking giant, Mattel has since created several touchpoints for Barbie consumers and buyers to forge a relationship with the doll. Be it as a parent or older sibling who used to buy it for a child; or the child who has grown to like playing with the doll and has preserved it since.

Moreover, as social issues such as racism raised, Mattel cunningly released the first black Barbie doll in 1980 to promote social inclusion amongst Barbie users. In the  early 2000s , the enterprise delved into other marketing tactics such as the release of its first movie;  Barbie in The Nutcracker , followed by figurines and marketing campaigns that paid tribute to globally influential female figures.

And because of this rather impressive streak of decisions, the movie premiere drew in both avid Barbie fans and newly acquired admirers.

The True Power of A Multi-Racial Community

By now, you might have realized something: Barbie’s movie premiere curated a rather diverse pool of admirers.

But did you ponder its contribution to the movie’s blitzing success?

Barbie’s choice of protagonists and secondary performers served as a magnetic force of its own when it came to gathering a crowd. By choosing both highly popular actors -Robbie and Gosling- and a multi-racial cast , the movie attracted viewers from several nationalities as well as new Barbie fans that solely came to see their favorite actors in a brand new movie. Featuring British, French, American, and Canadian actors all in the same movie certainly served the movie premier well.

Another form of social inclusion that was realized through Barbie’s marketing is the monumental diversity of brand collaborations they managed to secure. By making such affiliations with those brands, Barbie immediately gained the emotional appeal of those brand’s customers; even if they hadn’t gone to see the movie.

A closing statement? 

Less may be more, but in Barbie’s case, more was definitely better.

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The Digital CRM & Loyalty Marketing Agency

Take it from Barbie: A Masterclass in Loyalty Marketing

Thanks to a strong performance at the box office and a juggernaut marketing strategy, Barbie is everywhere right now. The iconic, decades-old brand simultaneously reinvented itself with a 2023 blockbuster hit movie while building upon a loyal customer base and reputation. Of course, having a healthy marketing budget, say $150 million , also helps. Still, there are several lessons marketers should note when analyzing the success of the Barbie movie marketing campaign.

1. Create an Emotional Connection

Humans are wired (literally) to remember and connect with stories; whenever you communicate, consider taking a storytelling approach . Your marketing tactics should zero in on the specific story you want to tell your audience, and of course, your audience should be the main character in that story. Although the Barbie movie chronicles the individual journey of the titular character, it always connects back to the viewer watching the film. 

2. Embrace the Power of Nostalgia

The Barbie movie ignited a wave of shared experiences across generations by leaning into some of the most recognizable aspects of the Barbie brand in its marketing. For example, many of their social posts, like the image shown below, featured graphic designs that mimicked the packaging of a Barbie box. Consider the shared experiences of your target audience and some of the most beloved campaigns or products you’ve executed in the past; how can you refresh them for a new strategy?

3. Remember Representation Matters

The Barbie movie features actors of different racial and ethnic backgrounds, body types, and abilities, reflecting the realities of the world we live in . To connect with your brand and marketing, your audience needs to see themselves in your campaigns, literally. Take some time to audit and critically reflect upon your existing marketing collateral. Use data (not assumptions) if you have it to understand the demographic makeup of your target audience. If your marketing doesn’t reflect your audience, you’re doing yourself (and your customers) a disservice to say the least.

4. Leverage Merchandising

The Barbie franchise has long mastered the art of merchandising and co-marketing. The film has done the same with tremendous success. Again, this can take a lot more resources and planning than simply sending an additional email in an existing campaign. But if you’re able to identify that emotional connection or brand story we discussed earlier in this post, then you already have a place to start. Consider how you can expand the story you want to tell your audience into merchandise that makes sense for your brand.

Putting it Together: Customer-Centric Marketing

Ultimately, the Barbie movie shows that a customer-centric marketing approach can drive tremendous results. The customer-centric approach emphasizes the relationship a brand or organization has with its customers. When the mindset shifts from a message-driven strategy to a customer-driven strategy, tactics foster a more meaningful, mutually beneficial relationship between both parties.

With experts in loyalty marketing, CRM, paid media, and data analysis, Response Labs can help you build a customer-centric marketing strategy that builds upon the lessons learned from Barbie’s spectacular marketing efforts. We love helping brands create meaningful connections with their customers. Our driving purpose: Make Every Message Matter ™.

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Barbie – a marketing case study that can last years

The hit movie was able to forge partnerships with more than 100 brands and captivate a wide audience.

Several factors come to mind: nostalgia-driven marketing, audience empowerment, top-notch cast and content.

But for the sake of keeping this article shorter than Ken’s short-lived attempts at a new career, let’s dive into another big player: excellent brand collaborations.

While most companies collaborate with a handful of brands for a campaign, Barbie was able to forge partnerships with more than 100 brands.

What’s interesting is that these partnerships weren’t the run-of-the-mill kinds. The brands spanned an array of different industries. Together with them, Barbie was able to captivate a wider audience than ever before.

Retail royalty joining the pink revolution

Starting with retail collaborations, eminent brands like Zara, Aldo and Crocs all embraced the ‘pink wave’.

Starbucks and Pinkberry introduced scrumptious new pink drinks and frozen yogurts. Burger King even caught the fervour by introducing a new burger in Brazil with a vibrant pink sauce (the flavour, a mystery we shall leave unsolved) and a theme-based meal to celebrate the movie’s premiere.

Undoubtedly, in the world of marketing it’s a universal truth that brand collaborations can create a lot of hype when done right.

Clothing buyers from Zara, for example, who might never have contemplated indulging in anything pink were now swayed in order to fit into the social currency.

Yet another rule of persuasion/influence is authority and liking. We naturally trust who we know and like.

When Aldo drew inspiration from the wondrous world of Barbie to craft its dreamy collection, customers instantly engaged with the products.

Aldo was able to align with Barbie’s values (the signature style, creativity, fashion, imagination) while still remaining true to its own (quality, innovation, inspiration).

  Multimedia magic

Then there were the multimedia collaborations. A simple search for ‘Barbie’ on Google made our search page explode with pink fireworks.

Even related words like Greta Gerwig (director) or Margot Robbie (actress portraying Barbie) produced the same effect. Unconventional, daring, sumptuous. And splendidly bold.

  The pinnacle of everybody’s astonishment was reserved for the travel collaboration between Barbie and Airbnb.

The very dream house we had long admired on our screens was brought to life in Malibu, even being available for rent. With this collaboration, Barbie was even able to have a space in the travel and vacation affinity.

Wrapping up

  Leveraging the might of colossal companies like these helped create a social buzz. As a result, Barbie became an experience that tapped into culture in a dynamic way.

A cultural zeitgeist, I should say. (Other great examples are Disney, LEGO and L’Oréal).

So for now and for many years to come, after repositioning its brand in such an exceptional manner, Barbie will remain the quintessential ‘marketing done right’ case study.

The marketing strategies unveiled are like a secret sauce to brand success, and it’s so good, even Ken might want a taste.

By Saania Saxena , strategy intern at Grey

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The ‘Barbie’ Marketing Strategy: Let’s Go Party

Mattel is flooding the summer season with brand collaborations from Xboxes to an Airbnb

Ahead of the July 21 film starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, the Barbie parent company has been on a marketing blitz, ensuring that whether or not shoppers actually go see the movie, they will still stumble on the 100-plus Barbie collaborations.

Warner Bros./Everett Collection

At the mall, there are Barbie and Ken T-shirts from the Gap and pink gingham Barbie cardigans at Hot Topic. Neiman Marcus will sell pink Barbie handbags from Balmain, and at Bloomingdale’s there will be life-size Barbie DreamHouse installations. Ulta Beauty has hot-pink Barbie electric toothbrushes. Target and Amazon have Barbie pool floats. Microsoft made a Barbie Xbox.

Mattel wants to get “everyone playing with Barbie,” said president and COO Richard Dickson, “and that doesn’t necessarily mean playing with a doll.”

Airbnb/Reuters

The movie and its accompanying avalanche of product is part of Mattel’s strategy to expand the Barbie world beyond toys. The company, which also owns Hot Wheels, American Girl Doll and Fisher-Price, banked $5.43 billion in revenue in 2022, but sees the growth opportunity in these franchise deals as “exponential.”

Jon Kopaloff/Getty

“The bigger opportunity for us is going to be outside of the toy aisle,” said Dickson. “That is the drive for where we see the monetization for the brand moving forward.”

Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg News

The movie is meant to drive brand awareness while moving Barbie, if not ironically, into the center of a conversation about feminism and beauty standards. Dickson declined to discuss the movie’s profit breakdown with Warner Bros., but Jefferies estimates Warner Bros paid Mattel $25 to $50 million for making the film (Warner Bros. and Mattel declined to comment on the deal terms.)

Mattel has been approaching partners over the last 18 months, eager to fill the market with Barbie products. In some agreements, a brand pays Mattel a flat licensing fee, while others give Mattel a 5% to 15% cut of sales.

Dickson said Mattel’s merchandising strategy targets all ages , but said many collaborations tend to skew toward teens and adults since the movie is rated PG-13.

“We go from our core customer, little girls, all the way through grandmas, or what we call ‘glam-mas,’” he said.

A new Airbnb listing for a Barbie Malibu DreamHouse went viral in June. Amenities of the hot-pink ocean-view mansion include a closet full of Ken’s clothing and an outdoor disco dance floor. Not included: a kitchen or TV. Staying there will cost nothing, but it is to be available for just two one-time stays.

Mike Blake/Reuters

“You want to create products that are catchy and grab attention because you have to remember who Barbie is and what that style is about,” said Lorenzo Boglione, chief executive of Superga, an Italian footwear brand that debuted sky-high pink platform sneakers in early June.

“It is 50 shades of pink here,” said Forever 21 chief executive officer Winnie Park, who estimated pink products make up 15% of the company’s sales. “Pink appeals to men, women and them. It’s a major driver of our business.”

The Barbie Xbox Series S—a console nestled inside a three-story DreamHouse, available as a promotional contest prize—expands the franchise to gamers. Xbox sees the collab as a way to “motivate young girls in following their passions and highlight careers in STEM and gaming,” Kirsten Ward, Xbox’s vice president of integrated marketing, said in an email.

Microsoft/Xbox

Mattel has long been an aggressive marketer of products, said Einav Rabinovitch-Fox, a history lecturer at Case Western Reserve University. The company defied industry standards in the 1960s when its TV ads spoke directly to children, she said.

Advertising Archive/Everett Collection

Mattel has reinvented the doll several times to keep up with pop culture. In 2016, Barbie’s proportions were changed, in response to criticism that the doll’s shape wasn’t realistic. The company also issued dolls with more skin tones in response to diversity critiques. Rabinovitch-Fox said the company is now using the film to rebrand Barbie for adults.

Alisha Jucevic/Bloomberg News

Brands are hoping that if the bright colors and splashy patterns aren’t enough to lure adult customers, nostalgia will win them over.

Paradegoers promoting the "Barbie" movie skate in the NYC Pride March in New York. Charles Sykes/Invision/AP

Produced by: Matthew Riva

Additional photos: Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures; Mark Von Holden/AP Images for Forever 21; Gap; Matthew Riva/WSJ

Tracking the Barbie movie’s marketing success

On May 23, the world got a lot pinker: the Barbie trailer dropped, kickstarting a marketing success story. Over the next eight weeks, the Barbie movie marketing juggernaut produced a myriad of memorable moments, from the Barbie Dreamhouse to the pink carpet.

Its viral marketing campaign translated to box office success, with the film making $774m after its first week in theaters. Given this phenomenal performance, Relative Insight wanted to know what part of the Barbie movie hype resonated most with audiences.

To find out, we used a social listening tool to gather online conversations about the movie between its trailer launch and following its first week of release. This amounted to more than 2.5 million words — too many for a human to analyze efficiently and effectively. However, the Relative Insight platform can make sense of these conversations within minutes, making it easy to discern the most engaging elements of Barbie ‘s marketing.

Interpreting how conversations evolved over the nine-week period, based on the movie’s marketing strategy, began by analyzing what aspects of these discussions overindexed on a weekly basis using Relative Insight Explore . By comparing the topics, words, phrases, grammar and emotions tweeters used each week, Explore rapidly identified the aspects most prevalent in each of the nine weeks.

To visualize how the viral marketing campaign influenced conversations over this period, we used Relative Insight Heartbeat . We defined themes related to the movie’s marketing strategy using the elements uncovered in Explore. Then we plotted these themes into a Heartbeat chart to illustrate how they changed week by week.

Visualizing text data in this way shows that, while the Barbie movie marketing campaign did capture the imagination, the film’s success can be attributed to its soundtrack and sharing a release date with Oppenheimer .

Learn how Relative Insight’s tools unlock actionable insights

Barbie trailer unlocks nostalgia.

Warner Brothers dropped the film’s trailer on May 23rd to kickstart the Barbie marketing campaign. Beyond initial audience reactions to the trailer itself, the release evoked nostalgia among tweeters.

In the opening week, people were more likely to reference the Barbies they had when they ‘grew up’ ( 4.6x ), in their ‘childhood’ ( 2.4x ) and what their ‘parents’ ( 3.7x ) bought them.

“ Me and the generation of millennial women who grew up with Barbie, for better or worse, haven’t had a good rom com in a decade and want to see our childhood heroes fully realized on screen .”

While unplanned by movie makers, the movie remained in public discourse in the week following the trailer drop thanks to comments by comedian Avery Edison . Twitter users responded in force to her opinion that Barbie dolls were for rich kids — they were 28.9x more likely to talk about the doll’s ‘affordability’ in the week following the trailer. They also argued that the toy was ‘accessible’ ( 3.9x ) to all children, regardless or wealth.

“ I feel like she could just say she hates Barbie without making it into class discourse cause they were honestly one of the few truly affordable /accessible toys out there, not like American Girl or something! “

As the Heartbeat chart shows, these conversations were dominant before the movie executed its viral marketing campaign, before tailing off as the weeks went on. However, these two themes ensured Barbie remained in the public consciousness following the trailer launch, establishing a platform for marketing to come.

Soundtrack rather than activations power movie marketing strategy

On the surface, before analyzing online conversations, marketing activations such as the life-sized Barbie Dreamhouse, multiple pink carpet premieres and a menagerie of memes appeared to be driving the Barbie movie’s marketing success story. The Heartbeat chart shows that people began talking about different activations and the movie’s marketing strategy from the end of June, while its pink carpet premieres also drove discussions.

However, another aspect of the movie struck a wider a chord with audiences – and actually it seems that the hype around it should be credited to the soundtrack, rather then simply the clever marketing activations.

From the trailer onwards, discussions about music consistently exceeded those highlighting marketing activity, tie-ins and news related to the movie, such as pink paint shortages . These conversations peaked with the launch of Barbie World , Nicki Minaj’s remix of Aqua’s iconic song and, despite a consistent fall after this peak, it still dominated discourse around the movie.

“ Barbie World is gonna be the 1st rap song to hit #1 this year. “

The movie’s music also resonated with theater-goers, as shown by the increase in discussions after its release.

Barbenheimer sustains a viral marketing campaign

Warner Brothers’ choice to release Barbie on the same day as Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer has proven to be a masterstroke. While not a direct part of the movie’s marketing strategy, audiences have taken the contrast between the two and run with it — using the portmanteau ‘Barbenheimer’ to group them together.

Tweeters used the words ‘Oppenheimer’ and ‘Barbenheimer’ 1.6x more in the week leading up both films opening. However, as the Heartbeat chart illustrates, the relationship between both films has dominated conversations following the Barbie trailer release. Indeed, the week after the theme song release, Barbenheimer was the most prevalent element in conversations about the movie.

“ What’s the consensus on a Barbenheimer double feature? Is it Barbie first then Oppenheimer? Or vice versa? “

“ I really am putting a lot of thought into Barbenheimer this weekend. Right now I’m thinking Oppenheimer first. Barbie might be needed to bring up the mood after watching a film about mass murder 😌 🤞🏾 . What order are y’all watching in? “

Whether the matching release day was a deliberate ploy from the Barbie movie marketing team or a happy accident, it drove interest in both up until they opened on July 21st.

Barbie movie hype doesn’t translate into product interest

One of the hallmarks of the Barbie movie’s marketing strategy is the tie-in with products. While box office receipts is Warner Brothers’ primary measure of success, manufacturer Mattel will expect the movie to translate into toy sales .

Promotions linking the movie with products ranged from more traditional items, such as the Dreamhouse and Barbie-motifed clothing, through to less obvious items specifically launched to coincide with the movie’s release – including an Xbox, hoodies, Crocs and even insurance.

However, our analysis of online conversations showed that discussions about products fell as the Barbie movie hype accelerated. Online conversations referencing Barbie products peaked in late May, with tweeters discussing this aspect than any other theme. As the Heartbeat chart shows, this peak was followed by a substantial drop in people talking about Barbie products, before levelling off across the rest of the promotional cycle.

The second chart illustrates how product-related conversations compared to other themes. It shows that people were talking about the soundtrack and Barbenheimer far more, despite the movie’s marketing strategy incorporating Barbie products wherever possible.

Mattel will hope that audiences’ attention pivot from the movie to Barbie products as time passes, however, the chart again shows that this didn’t occur within the first week that it was released in theaters.

What text analytics reveals about Barbie movie marketing

Barbie movie marketing has been ubiquitous, however, analyzing social conversations shows what elements contributed most to this marketing success story.

Nostalgia and an organic social discussion about affordability kept the movie front of mind after the trailer release, before talk about Barbie products dominated. Despite a range of tie-ins and stunts forming the backbone of the viral marketing campaign, the movie’s soundtrack and relationship with Oppenheimer were the key drivers of audience conversations in the six weeks prior to its release.

While other movies won’t have the marketing budget Barbie enjoyed, these two elements are something they can replicate. Having a strong soundtrack – that features in the trailer and released in full prior to the movie’s release – has as much impact as any viral marketing activation. Filmmakers also shouldn’t be afraid of launching at the same time as other films, if it creates a memeworthy contrast .

Life in plastic is fantastic, and uncovering insight is a delight with text analytics. Find out how Relative Insight’s text analysis tools can make the insights process as fun as a week in the Barbie Dreamhouse.

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Barbie: a Case Study in 2023 Demographics

On the 21 st of July, the pop culture event of the year will take place: Barbie will be released in cinemas . Apart from the massive marketing campaign that – I’m pretty sure – at one point will be studied in schools, the cinematic event of the year is also teaching us a thing or two about why our industry needs to be open minded, especially when it comes to the audience they might want to address.

The traditional demographic for Barbie was of course pre-teenager girls with a passion for sparkly dresses and perfectly brushed hair. And no doubt this would have been the standard client brief before this year’s earthquake. Now Barbie is everywhere – even my grandma knew about the film (and seems lowkey excited about it?).

Everyone is talking about it, from working adults to the Twitterverse, from politicians to the LGBTQ+ community. Barbie has become a worldwide and intergenerational event.

Then add to the equation an unlikely mash-up, caused by another – some say polar opposite – film sharing the same release date. Enter “ Barbenheimer ” on Google – a cultural phenomenon with 14+ million Google results and a dedicated Wikipedia page, blending Barbie with the story of the inventor of the nuclear bomb. Before 2023, any overlap between the two films would have been unthinkable. But now, these two distinct target audiences have come together on t-shirt prints and ultimately both may benefit, in a weird turn of events, from an unlikely joint marketing campaign.

Barbie emerged as a brand in 1959. Kids obviously now have many more options for play outside of plastic dolls – but regardless, I have never seen a bigger buzz online for a movie release – Barbie is EVERYWHERE .

The key takeaway here is that relying on the idea of “someone should like something” just because they fit into a certain stereotype may be out of date . And Greta Gerwig clearly understood that and made it the film’s key selling point – after all the key line in the film’s trailer is “If you like Barbie, this film is for you. If you don’t like Barbie, this film is also for you”.

In media terms, if Warner Bros had decided to only speak to Barbie’s staple audience, they would have missed out on much of the audience they now find queuing up to watch. They might even have negated an entire cultural event … because that is what they have ultimately created.

This is a philosophy close to Nano’s heart: we don’t really like stereotypes – we’ve even made it one of our core principles when building our latest offering, Intent Personas .

Demographic targeting might have served its purpose in the past, but with all that our industry has in store for us in the next two years (Google’s cookie Adpocalypse, Apple’s rapid improvement in privacy standards, etc.) we as marketers need to finally come to terms with the idea that it’s time to move forward.

If there’s one message to take away from this article: it’s 2023, and things are changing . Things have changed already, really (Barbie says so!) – and it looks like we might be slowly catching up.

Marco Perin

Product Sales Strategy Lead

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The cinematic pink wave sweeping the world hits Russia. 'Barbie' lands in Moscow

Charles Maynes

Bootleg screenings of the movie Barbie are a hit in Moscow's theaters — demonstrating the enduring allure of American popular culture despite Russia's isolation from the West.

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How Four Brands Won Gen Z Through Memes, Authenticity, and Community-Building

Updated: May 29, 2024

Published: May 28, 2024

Building brand awareness isn't just about making noise today — it's about laying the groundwork for generating consistent demand tomorrow .

Also, by reaching a broader audience, your brand can target customers from various backgrounds with different behaviors.

Increased brand visibility means more eyes on your products or service, which translates into heightened interest and curiosity. By expanding this starting point, you're casting a wider net, and scooping up more potential leads who might just turn into loyal customers.

The Importance of Captivating Gen Z Audiences

This is the era of the tech-savvy and socially conscious Gen Z . They represent a burgeoning consumer demographic with significant purchasing power and a penchant for authenticity in brand messaging.

According to a study by Edelman , more than 70% of Gen Zers said they would stay loyal to and buy from brands that share their values. As such, winning over Gen Z consumers sets you up for success in the coming years. When you capture their loyalty, you put yourself in a great position to reap long-term benefits and secure a sustainable future for your brand.

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Why You Need to Measure Brand Awareness

In today's ever-changing (and highly competitive) markets, widespread familiarity with your brand will help keep your sales consistent. However, implementing marketing efforts without measuring brand awareness is like shooting arrows in the dark.

If you want to maximize the results of your brand campaigns, you must measure brand awareness . Using robust brand tracking solutions will help you understand exactly how successful your marketing campaigns have been with your target audience.

With the right metrics and regular reports, you'll know exactly which parts of your lead funnels are doing well and which need improvement. This will help you save time, money, and effort, as you'll know where to focus.

Brand awareness data also allows you to communicate better with stakeholders and partners. You can use this data when pitching for budgets or even when presenting to investors.

4 Brands That Did a Phenomenal Job of Wooing Gen Z Audiences

When discussing strategies, it's often a good idea to learn from the very best. Here's a look at how these Australian and American brands — across four different categories — went on to win countless Gen Z hearts with their marketing moves.

1. tbh Skincare

He continues, “Gen Z have some of the most fragmented media consumption habits of any demographic segment. With access to more channels and content than any generation in history, it's important to recognize that no one Gen Z human is the same. Rather than focusing on channels or platforms, we focus on the things that we know are important to them — music, culture, partying, authenticity, and purpose.”

3. Liquid Death

Brand awareness growth with 18-34-year-olds since April 2023 : 12% / 7.4 million Americans

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Investors Reward Gender-Diverse Companies

Advocates have long made the case that hiring more women is the right thing to do, and that gender diversity helps firms be more effective. New research from Yale SOM’s Jennifer Dannals suggests another reason for a gender-diverse workforce: investors love to see it.

• Jennifer Dannals Assistant Professor of Organizational Behavior

Corporate America has never been known for its gender diversity; in 2015, fewer women ran large U.S. companies than men named John . While the numbers are slowly improving at senior levels—women CEOs finally outnumbered Johns as of 2023—many of the country’s biggest firms have a workforce that is significantly less gender diverse than the overall population.

New research suggests that these companies are leaving serious money on the table. A forthcoming study from Yale SOM’s Jennifer Dannals, co-authored with David P. Daniels of the National University of Singapore, Stanford’s Margaret A. Neale, and Northwestern’s Thomas Lys, found that firms reporting better than expected workforce gender diversity saw abnormal positive returns—that is, higher returns relative to the overall market’s performance that day—while firms with lower than expected diversity saw a negative reaction.

“Investors reward gender diverse firms,” Dannals says. For corporate leaders concerned about the costs of implementing a diversity program, she adds, “This is a financial argument for the rewards that you might reap."

Investors, the authors theorize, are likely familiar with existing research on workforce diversity through coverage in the popular press. This research has demonstrated potential upsides and downsides. For example, investors may believe diverse firms are more innovative, thanks to the broader range of perspectives, skills, and knowledge amongst their employees. They may also see diverse firms as less likely to be embroiled in costly discrimination lawsuits, or think of them as ethically minded firms, a quality that will then attract other investors.

However, investors may also believe that their peers, or stakeholders such as consumers, hold negative stereotypes about women (for example, that they are less qualified or technically skilled), and will react negatively to a firm reporting above-average gender diversity. They may also worry that employing people with diverse backgrounds and perspectives could lead to conflict.

In the study, the researchers set out to see how investors weigh the upsides and downsides of diversity, and find the positives appear to win out—and win big.

Dannals and her co-authors estimated the magnitude of this impact by conducting two event studies. They followed the stock market’s same-day reaction to the initial announcements by 12 large technology firms about their workforce diversity figures, beginning in 2014, when Google released its first diversity report, triggering peer firms to eventually follow suit, through 2018. They also followed the market’s reaction to the publication of diversity figures of 10 of the largest U.S. financial firms by the Financial Times on a single day in 2017.

For both event studies, the authors combed the news to ensure there were no other materially important announcements from a company on the same day its diversity figures came out, such as Apple releasing a new iPhone. They also checked to see that the returns they were observing were genuinely abnormal, by checking there were no moves of a similar magnitude for the 28 days before and the 7 days after the news announcements.

They found that on average, if a technology firm’s initial diversity report revealed one percentage point higher gender diversity, its market valuation increased by approximately $152 million; if the gender-diversity numbers were a full standard deviation higher, equivalent to 7.28 percentage points, the firm’s market valuation increased by a staggering $1.11 billion. For example, when Google first unveiled its figures in May of 2014, its share of workers who were women was just 31% , which triggered a negative share price reaction. By contrast, when eBay published its numbers in July and showed 42% women in its workforce, its stock price rose. (Overall, the percentages of women employees at tech firms ranged from 17% to 47% during the five-year period. )

The effect for financial firms was smaller but still significant: on average, one additional percentage point of gender diversity increased a firm’s market valuation by roughly $18.7 million; being one standard deviation higher, or 6.79 percentage points, boosted its market valuation by $127 million.

Why did investors see so much upside in increased diversity? It could be because, as Dannals and her co-authors note, major corporations are likely to have management processes in place to mitigate diversity’s potential productivity downsides. But upsides like lower legal liability and higher ethicality cannot be achieved with a homogenous workforce. They also theorized that the rewards were far larger for tech firms because the potential for increased creativity and innovation is arguably more important to a tech firm than a financial firm.

Of course, it’s impossible to know what investors are thinking, especially when it comes to the institutional investors whose trades are large enough to move markets. “There's also a pretty cynical way of reading the results,” Dannals acknowledges, “which is they think having more women protects these companies against lawsuits, rather than that they think that there's actually some benefit to their underlying performance.”

To understand better which of these beliefs mediated investor behavior, the researchers conducted an experiment with 494 real-life investors, roughly one-third women and two-thirds men. First, the investors were told that a real S&P 500 firm—known, for purposes of the experiment, as “Gamma Corporation”—either had more or fewer women employed than the average company. The researchers found that nearly 80% of individual investors predicted that firms with more women employees would see their share price rise. Then, the investors were asked to bet as much of a $1.00 bonus on their prediction as they wanted, with the caveat that if they were wrong, they’d lose everything they bet; the average bet was $0.49. Finally, the investors were asked how much they agreed with statements linking diversity to commonly cited potential upsides and downsides: creativity, legal risk, investment ethicality, stereotypes about ability, and task and relationship conflict.

They found that these individual investors’ behavior was almost entirely mediated by their beliefs in the upsides of diversity, especially their beliefs about creativity and legal risk. Although Dannals and her co-authors only analyzed gender diversity, “We would also hope that this would generalize to other forms of employee diversity,” she says.

Dannals says executives may want to take note of how positively investors perceive diversity as they weigh whether to prioritize workforce diversity when making management or investment decisions. “Lots of companies might say that they really want to improve their diversity, but what resources are they putting behind it? And what steps are they taking towards that?” she asks. One interpretation of the relative lack of progress in the past decade “could be that they just don't think it’s that relevant for their bottom line or that valuable,” she says. The evidence from the stock market’s reaction, as captured by Dannals and her co-authors, suggests otherwise.

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10 Key Revelations in the Idaho Murder Case

Court records unsealed this week provided vital and unsettling new details about the night that four University of Idaho students were killed.

By Mike Baker

MOSCOW, Idaho — After weeks of unease over the murders of four University of Idaho students in a house near campus, the authorities this week released their most detailed account yet of the investigation that led them to arrest a criminology student from a nearby university.

The documents detail an array of evidence about the suspect, Bryan Kohberger , 28, a graduate student at Washington State University, who said through a lawyer that he looks forward to being exonerated. The records also provided jarring new details about the night the four students were murdered, while raising fresh questions about a mystifying case in which authorities have not explained a possible motive.

Here are 10 key revelations made public on Thursday.

A roommate saw a masked man.

D.M. stated she opened her door for the third time after she heard the crying and saw a figure clad in black clothing and a mask that covered the person's mouth and nose walking towards her. D.M. described the figure as 5’10" or taller, male, not very muscular, but athletically built with bushy eyebrows. The male walked past D.M. as she stood in a "frozen shock phase." The male walked towards the back sliding glass door. D.M. locked herself in her room after seeing the male. D.M. did not state that she recognized the male. This leads investigators to believe that the murderer left the scene.

Investigators had previously suggested that two roommates who were inside the house on the night of the crime and were not attacked had been sleeping. But the records show that one of them awoke around 4 a.m. after hearing noises, a man’s voice and crying. That was around the time the authorities believe the killings occurred.

That roommate, according to the records, eventually watched from her room as a man in black clothing with a mask on his face walked past her toward the home’s back door. She reported locking her own bedroom door at that point, but it’s unclear from the records what transpired afterward.

Authorities were not summoned to the scene for more than seven hours.

Investigators found a knife sheath at the scene.

I also later noticed what appeared to be a tan leather knife sheath laying on the bed next to Mogen's right side (when viewed from the door).

On an upstairs bed where two victims — Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves — were found dead, investigators said they found a tan leather knife sheath.

The police said they were able to get a DNA sample from a button snap on the sheath, and later found a connection between that sample and DNA collected from Mr. Kohberger’s parents’ home in Pennsylvania.

That may prove to be a key piece of evidence, as authorities seek to tie Mr. Kohberger to the scene of the crime.

The suspect applied to work at a local police department.

Pursuant to records provided by a member of the interview panel for Pullman Police Department we learned that Kohberger's past education included undergraduate degrees in psychology and cloud-based forensics. These records also showed Kohberger wrote an essay when he applied for an internship with the Pullman Police Department in the fall of 2022. Kohberger wrote in his essay he had interest in assisting rural law enforcement agencies with how to better collect and analyze technological data in public safety operations.

Mr. Kohberger had long taken an interest in criminology and criminal law .

He studied in Pennsylvania in part under Katherine Ramsland, a forensic psychologist whose books include “The Mind of a Murderer” and “How to Catch a Killer.” He researched the psychology of criminals when they committed crimes.

At Washington State University, he was pursuing a Ph.D., engaging in a class on DNA evidence and forensics in the weeks before the killings, while continuing to grade papers in the weeks afterward.

Authorities also disclosed that Mr. Kohberger had applied in recent months for an internship at the police department in Pullman, Wash., less than 10 miles from the University of Idaho campus in Moscow. He wrote an essay as part of the application in which he described his interest in helping rural police departments collect and analyze data.

A car passed the victims’ house several times.

A review of footage from multiple videos obtained from the King Road Neighborhood showed multiple sightings of Suspect Vehicle 1 starting at 3:29 a.m. and ending at 4:20 a.m. These sightings show Suspect Vehicle 1 makes an initial three passes by the 1122 King Road residence and then leaves via Walenta Drive. Based off of my experience as a Patrol Officer this is a residential neighborhood with a very limited number of vehicles that travel in the area during the early morning hours. Upon review of the video there are only a few cars that enter and exit this area during this time frame. Suspect Vehicle 1 can be seen entering the area a fourth time at approximately 4:04 a.m. It can be seen driving eastbound on King Road, stopping and turning around in front of 500 Queen Road #52 and then driving back westbound on King Road.

On the night of the killings, investigators said, a white automobile could be seen on surveillance footage repeatedly passing through the dead-end street where the victims lived.

The vehicle, which the police said was a Hyundai Elantra, started appearing around 3:29 a.m., passing by the area three times before returning for a fourth time at 4:04 a.m., around the time that the surviving roommate was awakened and that the police believe the killings occurred. The vehicle, the police said, could be seen speeding away from the area at 4:20 a.m.

Audio captured a dog barking.

At approximately 4:17 a.m., a security camera located at 1112 King Road, a residence immediately to the northwest of 1122 King Road, picked up distorted audio of what sounded like voices or a whimper followed by a loud thud. A dog can also be heard barking numerous times starting at 4:17 a.m. The security camera is less than fifty feet from the west wall of Kernodle's bedroom.

At around 4:17 a.m., a security camera near the home of the victims picked up distorted audio of what sounded like a whimper and a loud thud, investigators said. They also said a dog could be heard barking numerous times.

After the killings were discovered, police officers arriving at the house found a dog in one of the rooms. The dog belonged to one of the victims, Kaylee Goncalves.

One of the victims may have been awake.

D.M. and B.F. both made statements during interviews that indicated the occupants of the King Road Residence were at home by 2:00 a.m. and asleep or at least in their rooms by approximately 4:00 a.m. This is with the exception of Kernodle, who received a DoorDash order at the residence at approximately 4:00 a.m. (law enforcement identified the DoorDash delivery driver who reported this information).

While the coroner has said that all four victims were probably asleep at the time of the killings, investigators suggested in the new court records that at least one of them may have been awake.

Xana Kernodle received a DoorDash delivery around 4 a.m., just before the arrival of the white vehicle, the investigators said. A forensic review of her phone also suggested that she was using the TikTok app at around 4:12 a.m.

A campus officer found Kohberger’s car.

On November 25, 2022, MPD asked area law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for white Hyundai Elantras in the area. On November 29, 2022, at approximately 12:28 a.m., Washington State University (WSU) Police Officer Danicl Tiengo, queried white Elantras registered at WSU. As a result of that query he located a 2015 white elantra with a Pennsylvania license plate LFZ-8649.

With the surveillance video in hand, the police began scouring the region for white Hyundai Elantras, and a campus police officer at Washington State University found one in November registered to Mr. Kohberger.

Investigators said they reviewed images of Mr. Kohberger and found that his physical appearance matched the recollection of the roommate who saw a man in the house, including his height, build and bushy eyebrows.

Police initially said they were looking for a 2011-13 Elantra, but later determined that it could also be from a model year as late as 2016. Mr. Kohberger had a 2015 Elantra.

Kohberger’s phone disconnected during the killings.

At approximately 2:47 a.m. the 8458 Phone stops reporting to the network, which is consistent with either the phone being in an area without cellular coverage, the connection to the network is disabled (such as putting the phone in airplane mode), or that the phone is turned off.

By the end of December, investigators were able to get records of the location of Mr. Kohberger’s cellphone.

The records showed that he had visited the neighborhood of the crime scene 12 times before the night of the killings, according to the police affidavit. On the night of the killings, his phone was in Pullman at 2:47 a.m., but then disconnected from the cell network.

The phone reconnected to the network at 4:48 a.m., at a location miles to the south of the University of Idaho. The phone eventually traveled back to Pullman.

The police suggest that the suspect may have returned to the crime scene.

Specifically, the 8458 Phone utilized cellular resources that would provide coverage to the King Road Residence between 9: 12 a.m. and 9:21 a.m.

Several hours after the killings, at around 9:12 a.m., Mr. Kohberger’s phone was detected in Moscow, connecting to the cellular network near the scene of the murders and staying there for nine minutes, according to the police records.

The phone then returned to the area of his home in Pullman. At that point in the morning, no one had called 911, so the police had not yet gone to the crime scene.

A DNA sample was taken from trash in Pennsylvania.

On December 27, 2022, Pennsylvania Agents recovered the trash from the Kohberger family residence located in Albrightsville, PA. That evidence was sent to the Idaho State Lab for testing. On December 28,2022, the Idaho State Lab reported that a DNA profile obtained from the trash and the DNA profile obtained from the sheath, identified a male as not being excluded as the biological father of Suspect Profile. At least 99.9998% of the male population would be expected to be excluded from the possibility of being the suspect's biological father.

In the days after obtaining Mr. Kohberger’s phone records, investigators were in Pennsylvania, where Mr. Kohberger had driven for the holidays with his father.

Agents there recovered trash from the home of Mr. Kohberger’s family and shipped it to Idaho. Investigators said they worked to match a DNA profile found in the trash to a DNA sample collected from the knife sheath found at the crime scene. The analysis, the police said, suggested a strong likelihood that the elder Mr. Kohberger was the father of whoever left DNA on the knife sheath.

Mike Baker is the Seattle bureau chief, reporting primarily from the Northwest and Alaska. More about Mike Baker

AVI CHAI concluded its general grant making on December 31, 2019.

Tzietz: Department of Jewish Studies at Moscow State University

AVI CHAI’s investment of philanthropic resources in this program has seen some noteworthy accomplishments. In 2007, with significant funding from AVI CHAI (close to $1 million since 2003, when the first grant was provided to the program), the status of what once was a “Center for Jewish Studies at Moscow State University” the most prestigious and influential university in the FSU, was officially recognized as a full-fledged “Department of Jewish Studies,” making it the first Department in Russian history. The official Department status enabled the program to receive additional classroom space, offices, a small library and student conference room and, importantly, added new full-time faculty positions and a growing number of university scholarship stipends for the most outstanding students. Enrollment in the program has grown from 60 students in the 2004/05 academic year to 101 in 2010/11 and, over this period, the academic staff has been joined by seven young faculty members, all alumni of the program. Tzietz at Moscow State University