How Social Media Helped Toy Story 3 Win at the Box Office

Toy Story 3 was one of the biggest films of 2010. As Pixar’s 11th full-length film, the third and final chapter in the world of Buzz Lightyear and Woody hit theaters in June 2010.

Months before that, Disney and Pixar embarked in a wide-scale marketing blitz that covered television, print and social media. Using Facebook and YouTube to help promote the film, the studio raised awareness and successfully targeted demographics that don’t traditionally flock to Disney animated feature films.

In the following, we take a closer look at the Toy Story 3 social media campaign.

The Campaign
For Toy Story 3, Disney and Pixar heavily marketed the film across different demographics. Pixar films are unique in that they typically appeal to broader audiences and skew older than other animated films. Thanks to films like The Incredibles, WALL-E and Up, it’s not uncommon to see more adults than children packed into theaters when watching a Pixar movie.

From the very beginning, Disney and Pixar made it clear that individuals in their twenties would be a big target for Toy Story 3. The TV and print campaigns for the film largely targeted families and younger children. In an interesting move, however, Disney ran a parallel campaign targeting twenty-somethings via Facebook, YouTube and movie blogs.

In March of 2010, Disney and Pixar announced special cliffhanger screenings of Toy Story 3 at college campuses around the country.

Using Facebook, students with a valid college ID could sign up for special screenings of the film. These screenings were 65 minutes in length and designed to whet viewers appetites for the final release in June 2010.

Targeting college students and doing special campus screenings was the first sign that Disney was serious about targeting socially savvy audiences.

Pixar and Disney also targeted older Generation X viewers with its “Groovin’ with Ken” character profile. The clip, which is very Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous in its approach, introduces audiences to the character Ken. Voiced by Michael Keaton, Ken is one of the funniest characters in the film.

In April 2010, Disney and Pixar raised the ante for social media campaigns everywhere with the release of the Lots-o’Huggin’ Bear “vintage” YouTube commercials. Purportedly from the 1980s, these ads oozed nostalgia. From the lighting to the clothing, the ads could easily be mistaken for something from 1983. To add to the effect, the clips were given a “bad tracking” VHS effect.

Directed by Chris Cantwell, the two ads were shot in high-definition. The Toy Story 3 Blu-ray edition features a 90-second “making-of” clip showing the ads both untreated and then treated for YouTube.

The details in post-production — as well as the decision to release the clips on YouTube — made the Lotso spots a viral sensation.

To date, the main Lotso clip has been viewed more than 1 million times on YouTube — and we imagine that number can be multiplied several times to counter the variants and copies floating around the web.

These ads, which were released in late April 2010, immediately opened up a wave of press and blog coverage that extended far beyond the typical movie news cycle. The ads worked because it gave viewers a look into the the alternate reality of an animated film — while also acting as a genuinely cool Internet video.

Moreover, the ads managed to promote the film without promoting it. The advertisements were for a new character in the Toy Story universe. This character is integral to the film, however his role in the story is not revealed from the faux ads.

The faux ads were successful enough that Disney released an actual collector’s edition Lotso toy in the fall of 2010.