How to market to the moon landing

Ted MarzilliCEO YouGov Direct
July 11, 2019, 10:41 PM GMT+0

Can America ever recapture that feeling it had 50 years ago when our country first landed on the moon?

Marketers will surely be trying to evoke nostalgia and space interest with campaigns timed for the 50 year anniversary of the Moon Landing. Lego and Oreo both have Moon-themed products in the market already.

We’ve got some tips on where to target advertising to catch the attention of Space enthusiasts.

YouGov’s Plan and Track tool contains data on a set of 1,574 people that agreed with statements about it being important for the government to return to space or about wanting to hitch a ride themselves aboard a private vessel. We compared that group against average Americans on a range of issues and looked for differences and trends.

One trend is clear for Space enthusiasts: the Space enthusiast group was more likely to say they watched Prime Time television than the average American. In fact, they tune in with more frequency all evening -- between 6 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.

They also seem primed for messaging. Our Space enthusiasts were more likely than the average American to tend to agree with some important statements about advertising.

This group is also much more likely that the average American to say that they are susceptible to advertising that is tailor-made for them, which means space themed content is likely to connect. The Space enthusiast group is true to form in their love for space content, too --- they were more likely than the average American to like George Takei’s Facebook page (20% vs. 10% for average Americans) and to have a positive opinion of William Shatner.

Space fans are also much more likely to say they like trying new brands, which means the space anniversary could be the perfect opportunity for a brand or a marketer to find a willing product sampler.

Besides television advertising, there may be another way to reach this group of Space enthusiasts. YouGov research shows that this group is more likely than the average American to be a member of a loyalty program with a retailer, pharmacy, shoe store or hotel.

Not only that, when asked what reasons prompted them to join a loyalty program, getting news about discounts and promotions was among the options that Space fans chose more often than average Americans.

So it might be an opportunity for marketers to make use of their loyalty program lists to offer something space themed, because it’s a group that’s willing to listen.

Image: Getty