One Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal and Three Big, Hairy Ideas to Make Superman a Truly Iconic GLOBAL Superhero

BHAG: Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal

BHAG: To make Superman the de-facto, number one, iconic superhero throughout the globe, particularly in the G20 and OECD countries, by increasing his presence and visibility overseas 100% (doubled) over the next 2 years in preparation for a worldwide release of The Man of Steel in 2012, in which he saves the WORLD and not just America. To increase international ticket sales of The Man of Steel by 100% (doubled to $382 million (Box Office Mojo)) over that of its predecessor Superman Returns in 2006.

BHIs: Big, Hairy Ideas

BHI (1): To establish Superman headquarters and marketing teams in each of the G20 and OCED nations to promote Superman’s image abroad. These teams should be made up of a good deal of natives of each country, with American brand managers at their head, to determine the best ways to incorporate local culture into the promotion of Superman while still maintaining his brand identity.

BHI (2): Establish short comics for print ads, newspapers, or other in-country media (tailored to the needs of each country), and posters, flyers, T-shirts, and other promotional materials that use relevant places and culture associated with each country. Allow each country’s marketing and promotional teams to have a hand at adding to the Superman legend in a way that is relevant for people within those countries – either by saving their own countries and landmarks, or by dealing with issues that citizens have strong emotional connections to. The native teams will be key to determining the best way to approach these subjects for their consumers.

BHI (3): In each country, choose highly visible and popular local heroes (possibly supporting social causes) to represent Superman’s ideals. Develop marketing and promotional materials that feature these local heroes, their charities, the Superman logo, his ideals, and ways for people to get involved. A great example would be to create posters with local heroes in the iconic “T-shirt reveal” pose, with a slogan somewhere along the lines of “Be a Superman” and directions about how to get involved or help out with some relevant issue. This should help to make that term “Superman” a universal vocabulary word that describes someone who is not only strong, but who embodies the ideals of the Superman brand and character.

Rationale for BHIs

Rationale (1): Creating promotional teams in each of the G20 and OECD countries will reinforce the idea that Superman is a global hero, and not just an American, or Metropolis City hero. It will elevate the brand by making Superman more relevant to international audiences, and it will extend the brand and add value to it by not just promoting a movie, but attempting to make Superman highly visible and appealing in other countries. Then, the teams will be able to deliver on the BHAG when it comes time to promoting The Man of Steel, and will draw in a much larger international audience who are more in tune with Superman’s appeal.

Rationale (2): Creating short comic strips (or animations) for local media will reinforce the brand because Superman began in comics. It will elevate the brand by extending Superman’s reach into international markets with stories they can relate to. It will add value to the brand by allowing different nations to participate in the Superman legend with their own take on his continuing story (with some brand control). It will deliver on the BHAG by further increasing Superman’s international visibility and appeal.

Rationale (3): Partnering with local heroes for materials that jointly promote Superman and social causes will reinforce the brand by reinforcing Superman’s own ideals, vision, morals, and ethics through the actual representations of real people. It will elevate the brand by using real life heroes, and extend the brand by reaching out to international audiences on an emotional level with local heroes and causes. It will add value to the brand by encouraging people to become “global citizens” by volunteering, helping others, getting involved in social causes, and living to a higher moral standard. Finally, it will deliver on the BHAG by spreading using local culture to spread the Superman brand and ideals to international markets.

What about you?

What kinds of Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals or Big, Hairy Ideas do you think will make Superman soar once again?

References

Box Office Mojo. (2006, Oct. 29). Superman Returns: Foreign Total. Retrieved July 16, 2010 from http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=intl&id=superman06.htm