Frightfully Effective ‘Marketing Insights’ from the World of Horror

ROAR | 31 October, 2025 | 5 minute read | Blog

As Halloween has come again and the spooky season is upon us, the office playlist has taken a darker turn and half the team are either rewatching Horror classics or catching up on the latest releases. Some with full indulgence and the others with the lights firmly on. 

So, during one of our office discussions, we had an idea. Instead of another think piece about Google updates or content strategies and how they relate to Halloween or Horror films, we’re doing something a little different. We asked the team to share one of their favourite horror films and (because we can’t quite switch off from the day job) what marketing insights these films ‘teach us’. 

Do these films actually teach us anything about marketing? Absolutely not. But they do say a lot about us, and give us a perfectly good excuse to talk about zombies, haunted houses, and cursed videotapes on the company blog.

So here it is, our completely serious, in no way stretched, and definitely highly strategic list of marketing insights inspired by the team’s favourite horror films.

Michael – ‘Child’s Play’

It’s hard to forget the first time you saw a plastic doll sprinting across the floor wielding a kitchen knife like it had a grudge. Child’s Play is one of those films that manages to make something harmless and absolutely terrifying.

For me, it’s the perfect blend of absurd and unsettling. You start by laughing at the idea, then suddenly realise you’re watching a red-haired doll shout threats and somehow it’s working. It’s chaotic and just the right amount of ridiculous.

The ‘marketing insight’? Maybe that’s what happens when your brand identity runs away from you. You spend ages building something friendly and approachable, only for it to turn homicidal the second it hits the market. Or maybe it’s just a reminder that, like Chucky, some campaigns should probably stay buried.

Either way, Child’s Play proves that even the smallest ideas can have a life of their own, for better or worse.

Ella – ‘Weapons’

I recently watched ‘Weapons’, recommended by Kyle, and it’s really stuck with me, not because it was packed with jump scares and I was hiding behind a pillow the whole time, but because of the way it builds tension through small, unsettling moments. It’s a slow burner that keeps you guessing and piecing things together, bit by bit, until it all clicks into place, and leaves you quite traumatised…

From a marketing perspective, it’s a reminder that you don’t always need to go for the big, flashy moments to make a big impact. Sometimes the most effective campaigns are those that build gradually through consistent strategies, often driving a strong, long-lasting impact rather than a ‘big bang’ moment, just like SEO does. 

Kyle – ‘Halloween’

Halloween is a spooky season staple that still haunts my dreams. No matter how hard anyone tries, Michael Myers always comes back. 

Remarketing is the same: powerful, but it needs restraint. Keep it helpful, not creepy, cap frequency, rotate fresh creatives, and exclude recent converters so your ICP stays engaged, not stalked. If you’re seeing high impressions from existing converters within the first seven days, then your suppression logic needs tightening.

Joshua –  ‘Jaws’

It’s hard to beat a film that traumatised an entire generation and made them afraid of going for a paddle in the sea. To me, Jaws is a masterpiece, it’s suspenseful, and an orchestrally menacing film full of people making terrible decisions on boats, so high score for me. Bruce might barely show up, but when he does, oh boy does he leave a lasting impression, unforgettable even. 

The ’marketing insight’ from Jaws? It’s a good reminder to zoom out once in a while, I guess? Whether chasing a deadline or reviewing campaign performance, it’s easy to fixate on what’s right in front of you and miss the bigger picture before getting into the water and the real insights swimming just out of view. 

Sometimes less is more, unless you’re going to talk to me about sharks. Then more is definitely more. Please talk to me about sharks.

So, what have we learned from this frightfully insightful experiment? Not much, except that our team’s taste in horror is impeccable, our capacity to overanalyse films knows no bounds, and apparently, we can find a marketing angle in just about anything.

Whether it’s the creeping dread of remarketing gone too far, the slow-burn strategy of a well-paced campaign, or the unexpected bite of an idea that refuses to die, these films prove that creativity and fear both thrive in the dark.

From all of us here — have a spooky, strategic, and slightly self-aware Halloween.

🕸️ Happy Halloween from the team! 🎃