Anchorman Marketing: Too Much or Just Enough?

At this point, you’d have to be living under a rock not to know that Anchorman 2 was due to hit movie theaters this month. In fact, the highly anticipated sequel to 2004’s cult hit Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy came out yesterday.

While we’re pretty excited about the movie, what’s really remarkable this time around is the marketing surrounding its release. Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy has been practically everywhere, thanks to marketing stunts and viral social media exposure.

We’ve seen Ron in Dodge car commercials, we’ve seen him playing the jazz flute on Conan, he’s reported the news on various networks. He’s even interviewed Peyton Manning on ESPN, or “Espen” as he called it. Ron Burgundy has his own Scotch (“Great Odin’s Raven”) and his own Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor (Scotchy, Scotch, Scotch). Everywhere you look, it seems, you see WIll Ferrel’s mustachioed  face and burgundy-colored three piece suit.

Ordinarily, this kind of marketing blitz could be overkill. You wouldn’t want the recipients of your marketing message to get tired of your product before its even released. However, there are several factors that make Ron Burgundy impervious to such fatigue.

First, he’s a cult classic. Fans of Anchorman have seen it over and over, and quotes from the film have become pop culture references. It’s not uncommon to hear someone exclaim, “Great Odin’s Raven!” or lament, “Milk was a bad choice.”

Second, it’s Will Ferrell. You’d be hard pressed to find a Will Ferrell appearance that’s not refreshingly funny or whacky. We can’t wait to see what Ron Burgundy will do next.

And we’re looking forward to seeing Anchorman 2. So we’d say the marketing so far is just right. Stay classy.