Pure Marketing Genius

I mentioned in my post yesterday that Joe and I had the chance to take in The Simpsons Movie on Friday night. For all the hype that has surrounded it, the movie did not disappoint. We went looking for a few good laughs, and definitely got that. Being a longtime fan of the series, I'm sure I would have gone to see the movie in any case, but I really have to say that the marketing of this movie has been particularly good, and has found a way to get new energy and mileage out of characters that we've all seen before.

They started the blitz by changing 12 7-Elevens across the country into Kwik-E-Marts, the convenience store from the show. Everything from the sign, to the colors, to the coke machine has been switched over to resemble the store from the show. The Denver one is right down the street from our new house, so I got a chance to swing by, and its a fun, immersive experience, including products like Homer's favorite pink donuts, Buzz cola and Squishees.

Then, the other day at work, my entire department was distracted for a solid hour by the Simpsonize Me website, where you can upload a photo of yourself and it will turn you into what you might look like animated as a Springfield resident. The results of my foray on the site can be seen at right, I think it's not bad.

At the end of the day, this is all about promoting the movie and its partners like 7-11 and Burger King, but entrusted with such a cultural treasure as the Simpsons, the studio has done a nice job. Hey - they got me to blog about it - and after all that, it looks like it worked.