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Toy brands have been wary of using digital media to appeal to children, happy with familiar TV ads. But they're starting now to play with the social and technological opportunities
In February the Barbie Facebook page topped 1.7m fans and attracted more than 100,000 Likes, while the doll's Twitter account grew by 5,000 followers to 34,000 (over 17%). Why? Because Mattel ran an emotive social media campaign around reuniting Barbie and long-term love Ken after a shock split in 2004.
The Valentine's Day campaign culminated in a Facebook poll that saw people vote on whether the couple should get back together. "You'll be pleased to know they now share a Facebook page," says Jenny Watson, senior marketing manager for girls at Mattel, who believes the company is ahead of the curve when it comes to digital.
Despite the UK being the fastest growing of Europe's top five toy markets last year at 6%, according to NPD Group, its take-up of new media has been slow. "The toy industry is relatively parochial in the way it markets," says Gary Pope, director of marketing consultancy Kids' Industries, adding that the sector is reluctant to move away from traditional media, in particular TV.
It's a widely held view. David Lawrence, planning director at creative agency Brave, says many toy firms still have an outdated media model that predominantly has TV advertising at its core. But this is changing.
David Becker, president of Blue Plate Media Services, affiliate partner to the Toy Industry Association, says, "The move online has been slow as most youth marketers continue to use TV to build awareness of products and content among kids of all ages. However, toy marketers are quietly seeking ways to reach and engage with their audiences online." As brands start to do this, there's a gradual shift towards building integrated campaigns around TV.
Mega Brands, which works with digital media agency Media Contacts, has embraced this. In April it launched its Mega Bloks Time to Build campaign, a 60-second interactive TV ad coupled with digital activity focused on pull strategies, including a campaign site, Facebook page and Twitter account. This was supported with search optimisation, a tactic Becker says he's seeing a "significant increase" in as toy brands harness...