Communication policy of cinema industry enterprises in the context of COVID-19 (on the example of cinema chains)

Abstract

The global pandemic caused a crisis in the Ukrainian cinema industry. Some entities were closed, but the biggest market players were able to concentrate their efforts on interacting with visitors through social networks, public attention, frequent press mentions and discussions of influencers as synergies of communication policy tools. The purpose of the paper is to make proposals for improving the communication policy of cinema chains under new challenges. Based on a system analysis and indices of activity in social media of ten key Ukrainian cinema chains during the COVID-19 period, the main trends of their behavior and vision of development were determined. Changes were detected in the product strategy. To increase the effectiveness of communication policy, a focus should be on enhanced communications with consumers, especially through the implementation of a content-plan for publications on Facebook and Instagram, including facts from the lives of actors or filmmaking process, uniting followers around the filming theme, interacting, etc. Based on the above, the proposals are made to strengthen communication policy: activating posting frequency, generating more interesting content, and focusing on engaging with the followers. It turned out that such changes affect the key quality efficiency of social media marketing in two cinema chains. Such events rebuild the online community of moviegoers, which fosters loyalty and increases in visitors in the post-pandemic period. In this context, the implementation of online cinema in cooperation with distributors will contribute to formatting an online platform aimed at attracting a larger number of consumers, regardless of external circumstances.