Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Fall 10-30-2023

Abstract

Encapsulated in pink, Barbie epitomizes a dreamland that stimulates feelings of nostalgia, joy, and imagination, fulfilling individuals’ desire to escape. Mattel, the parent company of Barbie, and Warner Bros. through 100 or more brand collaborations (del Barco, 2023), has relentlessly swept the world with a blitz of Barbie-themed merchandises, such as Barbie dreamhouse rentals, Barbie gaming consoles, Barbie pasta, Barbie pink suitcases, Barbie apparels, bright fuchsia Xbox, Barbie boat cruise, pink burger, etc. Staggering surge for online sales of Barbie-themed products affirms the impressive upswing of online consumers’ interest in Barbie.

With the significance of Halloween, the popularity of Barbie, and the ubiquity of popular culture in the online space, this research investigates the extent to which Barbie costumes are generating online activity, searches, and general interest in comparison to other potential costume choices. This study of more than 46,000 social media posts finds that Barbie costumes are resoundingly more popularl than costumes for Ken, Star Wars and Marvel characters.


Comments

The Joetta Di Bella and Fred C. Sautter III Center for Strategic Communication is a state-of-the-art communications hub at Montclair State’s School of Communication and Media. It is home to social listening platforms, content creation apps and consumer insights tools, and is used for instructional, research and co-curricular activity. Through research, reports, community events and special projects, the Center enhances the School’s profile as an authority on social media analytics while preparing our students for our data driven world. The tools also allow faculty and students to work on research projects that focus on economics, health, politics, social justice, sports and other key societal issues, which will create earned media opportunities for the School and assist faculty with publishing and other efforts.

Download

Share

COinS