5 Documentaries to Watch to Help Guide Your MSP Marketing Strategy

As a business professional who doesn’t have to sit in a classroom and take tests anymore, it’s a lot easier to actually enjoy learning. There are so many resources available in this day and age which you can take advantage of to expand your knowledge base. Even when it comes to your marketing!

You can of course read some of our JoomConnect blogs! We have blogs in the following categories that you can read to get up-to-speed on the latest MSP marketing information and trends:

• MSP Marketing
• Website Design & Development
• Social Media Marketing
• Search Engine Marketing
• Paid Advertising (PPC)
• Email Marketing
• Video Marketing
• Traditional Marketing
• Business Related

We also have various webinars that you can check out to learn about some specific MSP marketing topics. Check them out here.

However, we understand that sometimes you just want to relax in front of the television or computer screen with your phone in hand, listening and half-watching to what’s on the screen. That’s okay! We’ve all been there, and we just want you to know that you can trust us to suggest to you some great options you can casually watch in your free time that are educational and (hopefully) won’t put you to sleep.

The following are some suggestions of educational content that you can watch to learn more about how to effectively market your MSP. Note that while we have included some places in which you can watch this content, this may not be completely up-to-date depending on when you are reading this blog.

Something Ventured

Year Released: 2011
Length: 1 hour and 25 minutes
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime, Vimeo, Tubi, Vudu

Summary: Without the financial backing of a handful of men, companies like Apple, Intel, Genentech, Atari, Google, and Cisco might not be here today. This documentary covers the triumphs and pitfalls of building some of the biggest and greatest companies of the twentieth century as well as some of the drama that occurred behind the scenes with some of the most famous names in business.

Value to MSP Marketers: This documentary, among other things, teaches us that you have to spend money to make money. While your MSP may not need to put money into developing new products and softwares like the companies covered here, you do need to invest money in other areas if you want to grow. Specifically, into your marketing.

Fyre Fraud

Year Released: 2019
Length: 1 hour and 36 minutes
Where to Watch: Hulu

Summary: This documentary covers the infamous failure of the 2017 music festival, the Fyre Festival, and its failure to live up to the very high expectations set by concert promoters, rapper Ja Rule, and a large number of social media influencers paid to promote this event. Organizers failed to plan for the infrastructure to support the venue, artists, and guests attending the festival.

Value to MSP Marketers: There are many things that can be learned from this documentary. First, the Fyre Festival itself is the perfect example of over-promising and under-delivering. When you promote something, you need to make sure that you do so accurately to ensure that clients and prospects are not dissatisfied with what they get. Second, social media is a very powerful tool that you can take advantage of to further your reach. While you may not be able to harness it as much as these concert promoters did with their use of social media influencers, you still might be able to capture the attention of a local influencer in your area. Third, you need to always plan when it comes to your business, its operations, your marketing, and everything in between. This includes planning for a PR crisis if one were to occur.

The Century of the Self

Year Released: 2002
Length: 4 episodes, ~60 minutes each
Where to Watch: YouTube

Summary: This documentary demonstrates how psychoanalytic discoveries about human nature regarding the unconscious mind and emotional ideas were adopted by corporations and politicians to garner control and sway over the populus. Particularly, this adaption of this by advertisers helped to manipulate consumers and drive them to make more purchases.

Value to MSP Marketers: We understand that this documentary is very anti-business and paints this sort of influence in a rather negative manner by framing it as directly tied to propaganda and consumerism. However, there are still points that you can take from it to improve your own marketing without turning into a propagandist machine. For example, incorporating emotion into your marketing can strengthen your messaging and help drive sales. Check out the blog we wrote on this for more information: ‘Facts’ vs. ‘Feels’: Creating the Right Balance for Your Marketing.

Art & Copy

Year Released: 2009
Length: 1 hour 29 minutes
Where to Watch: YouTube, Amazon Prime

Summary: This documentary covers some of the most influential advertising creatives in US advertising history and the culture surrounding it all, interviewing representatives from companies like Nike, Apple, Volkswagen, and more - while showcasing how various notable advertisements and slogans came to be. Contrary to the previous documentary we mention, Art & Copy treats advertisements more like art forms.

Value to MSP Marketers: This documentary shows that the right advertising strategy involves a creative touch and a lot of work to shape. It can even shape how your audience perceives your products and services that you offer. This may involve thinking outside of the box and maybe experimenting with something new to see what your target audience responds to. Creating detailed buyer personas can help with this. However, while this documentary only focuses on ones that were successful (you can learn about a failed attempt in the next one on our list), you should still keep in mind that trying something new won’t always have this great of success rates. If you want to try something new but are afraid to, feel free to run your idea by us first, or even have us help with the fulfillment of it.

Coca-Cola - The Real Story Behind the Real Thing

Year Released: 2009
Length: 1 hour 46 minutes
Where to Watch: CNBC

Summary: This Documentary covers the history of the Coca-Cola brand since its fruition, including what Coke has done over the years to stay ahead of competitors, how they expanded into various global markets, and notable successes and failures they have had over the years.

Value to MSP Marketers: One thing Coca Cola continues to succeed at over all of these years is their branding, the nostalgia-like feelings that they were able to tie to it being what led to the failure of New Coke, as discussed in the documentary. This should tell you how important it is to have consistent branding, and to develop your brand as more than just your company’s logo.

Do you have any other suggestions of marketing-related documentaries that we should check out? Leave a comment and let us know!