There’s a party in the USA and everyone’s invited. Millions will tune into one of the most highly anticipated events in pop culture as the annual MTV Video Music Awards airs on Sunday, August 30.
The anticipation began about a month ago as Miley Cyrus announced that she would be hosting the show. Then came the video marketing of various promotional videos featuring Cyrus and her signature tongue sticking out in front of a green screen, which is part of the campaign that allows fans to create their own unique promo videos and share them on social media.
MTV is taking a calculated risk by having Cyrus host the show after all of the heat they received for her performance in 2013, yet her music credibility, social media presence of over 27 million Instagram followers, and provocative and unpredictable behavior make her the perfect candidate. This award show has over 30 years of controversial and memorable history, including the Britney Spears and Madonna make out session in 2003, Kanye West’s interruption during Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech in 2009, and who could forget Miley twerking all over Robin Thicke just two years ago.
By taking such a risk the producers have to be ready for anything. Producer Van Toffler told Billboard “we have a delay so we’re prepared for Miley.” They also have wide camera shots and a lot of audience reactions planned. All of this for the hopes that millions will be watching to see what she wears, says, and does.
Those who aren’t watching can just check their Twitter feed for live updates, opinions, and comments of the show. As social media platforms have drastically grown in importance for marketing, this real-time marketing has become one of the most popular and effective forms of marketing, especially for the millennial audience.
The success with this marketing will leave people talking about the show for not just days, but weeks. Even for those who could care less about the show, I’m sure they’ll hear or see something about the OMG moments of the VMA’s.
