How "Dawson's Creek" Broke New Ground by Advertising in Theaters

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How The WB Broke New Ground by Promoting "Dawson's Creek" in Movie Theaters
by Lynette Rice
March 31, 2018


The WB’s marketing team knew they had something special in "Dawson’s Creek". And since the network tried to make their shows look like mini-movies, they came up with the perfect way to market their new drama from up-and-coming filmmaker Kevin Williamson:

The WB became the first network to run trailers in movie theaters.



“We were lucky enough to have six episodes in the can so we knew what we had and knew it was going to strike a chord with young females,” recalls Lew Goldstein, who ran the network’s marketing division with Bob Bibb.

“We had to get it into theaters to make this thing feel important. We had the window of the holiday and since the show was going to be launching in January, we got the teasers into the system early.”






Goldstein also installed "Dawson’s Creek" standees in the theaters that looked like actual movie posters. “We used the same kind of font for the credits. It’s the same font that’s used in all kinds of motion picture posters. We used all of the tricks.”

People were “blown away” by the show’s publicity campaign, which even included the stars modeling clothes in a J. Crew catalog. “I remember having this incredible meeting with Kevin,” says Goldstein.

“I remember him getting very emotional because he never expected such a barrage of things. It deserved something big. That was the way to send the message to the community.”

http://ew.com/tv/2018/03/31/the-wb-d...ter-promotion/