An Epic Story Deserves an Epic Campaign
How our marketing for epic historical fiction gave a global bestseller its moment
When you’re launching a major novel from one of the world’s most beloved authors, a simple social media post is an insult. As specialists in marketing for epic historical fiction, our job is to create a campaign that matches the emotional weight and epic scale of the story itself. This case study details the animated social media campaign for Jojo Moyes’ #1 bestseller, “The Giver of Stars.”
The Challenge: A Campaign as Big as the Author
The enemy wasn't competition; it was the risk of being underwhelming
Jojo Moyes is literary royalty. A new book from her is a global event. The real problem here wasn’t getting noticed; it was failing to live up to the colossal expectation. The campaign couldn’t just show the cover; it had to feel like the book. It needed to be sweeping, adventurous, and emotional to build massive anticipation and drive a #1 debut. Anything less would be a failure.
The Fix: A Strategy of Atmosphere & Emotion
We had a two-pronged plan of attack
Defeat the 'Static Graphic'
We needed to build a beautiful, instantly recognisable visual world around the book. The plan was to create a short, trailer-like experience that felt as expansive and emotional as the novel itself.
Vanquish the 'Inconsistent Mess'
A launch this big requires a unified front. We needed to engineer a cohesive set of creative assets, ensuring a consistent and high-impact brand presence across all of the author’s digital channels.
The Results: A Masterclass in a Bestseller Campaign
This is what happens when the creative is as good as the source material
A Powerful & Cinematic Animated Video
A high-impact animated video was produced, bringing the book’s epic, mountainous setting to life with beautiful, atmospheric motion graphics.
A Cohesive, Multi-Platform Social Media Campaign
A full set of creative assets was designed for Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, all sharing the same sophisticated visual identity.
A Professional & Premium Design
The final artwork maintained a consistent, high-quality feel that aligns with the standards of a global #1 bestselling author and her publisher, Penguin Random House.
Deep Dive 1: The Core Animation & Composition
Waging war on the problem of 'just showing the product'
The lazy approach is a simple, static graphic of the cover. That’s surrender. Our strategic approach was to build an atmospheric world around the book’s core themes. The animation uses a stunning illustration of the night sky and mountains, with animated stars and elegant text reveals. This is the key to effective marketing for epic historical fiction. Video generates 1200% more shares than text and images combined. By creating a mini-trailer, the campaign doesn’t just show the product; it makes the audience feel the genre, creating a powerful sense of wonder.
Visual Tone
The General Approach
A simple, static graphic of the book cover.
The Strategic Approach
A design that builds a beautiful, atmospheric world around the book’s core themes. The animation uses a stunning illustration of the night sky and mountains, with animated stars and elegant text reveals.
The Strategic Advantage
This is the key to effective marketing for epic historical fiction. Video content is king on social media, generating 1200% more shares than text and images combined. By creating a mini-trailer with a powerful sense of atmosphere, the campaign doesn’t just show the product; it makes the audience feel the genre, creating a powerful sense of wonder and emotion.
Animation Style
The General Approach
A simple, 2D text-based animation.
The Strategic Approach
A subtle 2.5D animation style. The camera gently pans across the illustrated landscape, and the text animates with a soft, elegant glow, giving the scene a sense of depth and cinematic quality.
The Strategic Advantage
The choice of animation style is critical for setting the tone. The subtle, almost painterly quality of the motion adds to the feeling of an epic, sweeping story. It makes the piece feel like a high-quality, thoughtful production, rather than a simple social media graphic.
Deep Dive 2: The Flawless Commercial Integration
Defeating the problem of a 'one-off' asset that goes nowhere
The project went beyond a single animation to create a powerful and commercially-savvy campaign arsenal. A professional book launch requires a consistent brand identity across all channels. By creating a full suite of assets, the campaign ensures that whether a fan sees a post or a story, they are met with the same professional branding. Crucially, the animation culminates in a clear reveal of the author’s name and the beautifully rendered book cover. In the UK book market, where author brand recognition is a huge driver of sales, this is a commercially astute decision that helps turn social media buzz into tangible sales. See our book design portfolio here.
Multi-Platform Creative
The Old Approach
Designing a single, one-size-fits-all graphic.
The New Approach
The creation of a complete suite of assets, including a range of static social media graphics for platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram that use the same sophisticated visual identity as the animation.
The Strategic Advantage
A professional book launch requires a consistent brand identity across all channels. By creating a full suite of assets, the campaign ensures that whether a fan visits the author’s Twitter profile, Facebook page, or sees an ad, they are met with the same professional and cohesive branding, reinforcing the campaign’s identity at every touchpoint.
Commercial Focus
The Old Approach
The New Approach
An animation that culminates in a clear, powerful reveal of the author’s name and the beautifully rendered book cover.
The Strategic Advantage
The ultimate goal of the campaign is to build name recognition for the book and author. The animation is designed to create an emotional response and then clearly present the product as the source of that story. This is a commercially astute decision that ensures the key marketing message is delivered with maximum impact to her millions of fans.
