A24: Company Social Media Case Study
By Jordana Hatab
How the company, A24 uses social media to its advantage.
A24 is a privately-owned American film and entertainment company. This company works under many areas of the film industry, including production, distribution and marketing. A completely independent endeavor, A24 has no ties to any of the major film studios or corporations, making them more free in their agency. A24 was established by founders David Fenkel, Daniel Katz and John Hodges in New York City on August 20th, 2012.
For being a relatively new company, their reach throughout the film industry has already proved immensely successful. Since its conception, the company has worked with the likes of Sofia Coppola (The Bling Ring, 2013), Brie Larson (Room, 2015), Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, 2017), Jonah Hill (mid90s, 2018), and many more big-named celebrities. The company has received a total of twenty-five Academy Award nominations, a “Best Picture” win at the Oscars for the feature film, Moonlight (2017) and an annual revenue of about twenty-million dollars.
This exponential success can largely be attributed to the mass appeal of the company from millennial-aged cinephiles and film fans alike. What sets A24 apart from other more mainstream studios is its laissez faire attitude. Rather than going into business solely with the purpose to make a profit, A24 truly cares about the films it’s making. They specialize in creating risk-taking, message-sending projects which will make an impact on the lives of its viewers. And this approach has garnered them an ardent fan base of film-lovers with extreme brand loyalty.
This cool, innovative persona is what has attracted a new generation of devoted fans and elicited a targeted social media marketing approach. To keep up with the online savviness of its fans, A24 has multiple social media accounts. Some include Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, YouTube and its own website. The nature of the company’s social media posts are usually casual and quirky—often relating to a current trend or “meme” to further advertise the company’s hip and down-to-earth image.
“At a time when young people are increasingly going to the movies only for blockbuster spectacle, A24 has established itself as the film industry’s most forward-thinking company by releasing the kind of midsized, stylish, quality films that seemed on the verge of going extinct, transforming them into a collective theatrical experience and aiming them squarely at a demographic that would rather watch movies on their phones.”
– David Ehrlich, esteemed film critic
A24 has found its perfect niche within the film community, and now caters towards that clientele. From researching the analytics of their films’ viewership, it becomes apparent that teenagers and young adults are their main demographic. By mimicking the attributes of its central fanbase (specifically, the way that they communicate online and participate in social media usage) the company appears to be one of their own. A casual friend to connect with on Facebook, a hilarious and viral meme on Twitter, or a vibrant and artistic post on Tumblr.
When breaking down the social media trends of today’s younger generations you get two distinct personalities… outlandish humor and aesthetically pleasing visual design. These two subsets of online presence reflect in A24’s differing approaches towards various social media accounts. For example, the company’s social media efforts on Twitter are vastly dissimilar than those on Tumblr.
A24’s Facebook and Instagram accounts are strikingly similar in terms of content. They are minimalistic in style and tone, almost purely serving as platforms to share advertisements for upcoming projects. Facebook however, allows for the fans of A24 to come together in “Groups” and discuss their admiration for the company. Facebook’s facilitation of online communities for those with shared interests works in the company’s favor to broaden its fanbase by allowing the fans to network within their community.
A24’s marketing style and voice is more heard in the company’s Twitter and Tumblr accounts.
To break down A24’s approach to running their Twitter account, the most important theme is relatability.
“For most of the content, I think of what will be relevant to people who like A24 movies… I think the film industry in particular can be so opaque, it is nice to know there are actual human personalities behind these companies. That’s why, sometimes, I will tweet about exotic pets or the NBA. The idea is just to keep it authentic”
– Zoe Beyer, head of Digital and Social Strategy at A24
The official A24 Twitter account has 6,384 tweets and about 1.5 million followers. Amidst many tweets plainly advertising for their upcoming films or projects, there are tweets featuring ironic jokes about the company or retweets of other users sharing comedic takes on A24 films. Multiple times, these humorous tweets have “gone viral.” Some examples of this are shown below.
Along with tweeting out jokes relating to their films, A24 also expertly gets their fans to directly engage with their social media content by uploading interactive posts.
By furthering the interaction between users and the A24 Twitter account, they become a highly popular account on the site. A24 is the subject of many adoring tweets created by loyal fans of the company.
A24 relies largely on their Twitter presence to generate mainstream social media buzz on films that usually would go unseen by the audiences at large.
Furthermore, the company uses a different approach to their social media efforts on Tumblr.
Cutting out the advertisements, jokes and text completely… A24 sticks to just artistic visuals and creative design on Tumblr. The layout of a Tumblr blog is made primarily with pictures in mind. This minimalistic setup allows for the account to share pictures that speak to the creative and hip soul of the company.
Tumblr also provides a platform for A24’s fans to share collections of their favorite shots or pictures found throughout the company’s films.
To conclude, A24 has a vivacious social media presence that acts as the company’s main form of internal advertising. Facebook is a useful tool that allows straightforward advertisements of upcoming films and networking to grow the fanbase within groups. Moreover, the company’s efforts on Twitter reflect the cool and trendy image that they project, while their Tumblr strategy focuses on luring viewers to their page with aesthetic design elements and a fashionable layout. By tailoring their social media aptitudes to fit their known audience demographics, they boost the company’s likeability and remembrance.
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