Movie Marketing Agency Case Study Krishnavataram Part 1: The Heart (Hridayam)

360Degree Digital Marketing executed a high-velocity YouTube performance marketing campaign for the trailer launch of Krishnavataram Part 1: The Heart (Hridayam). Operating under a tight launch window, the campaign leveraged precision audience targeting, dual-campaign architecture, and real-time optimisation to achieve a landmark outcome — trending the film trailer to #2 on YouTube India within just 5 days of launch.

Campaign Objective

The primary objectives of this campaign were:

• Maximise reach and visibility of the Krishnavataram trailer immediately upon launch
• Drive high view counts to qualify for YouTube’s Trending Film Trailers chart (India)
• Reach targeted devotional, Bollywood-interest, and spiritual audiences across India
• Achieve top trending status within the shortest possible time frame
• Maintain an efficient Cost Per View (CPV) throughout the campaign duration

03. Campaign Strategy

3.1  Dual-Campaign Architecture

The campaign was structured across two parallel Google Ads / YouTube campaigns to segment reach and optimise spend efficiency:

• Camp 1 (Primary): High-volume reach and views campaign — prioritised scale and impression delivery
• Camp 2 (Support): Complementary campaign to supplement targeting gaps and reinforce frequency

3.2  Audience Targeting

A bespoke Custom Interest audience was built using three targeting dimensions:

1.3  Creative & Placement

The campaign ran the official Krishnavataram trailer (https://youtu.be/KIwC1m7etLE) as the primary creative asset across YouTube in-stream and discovery placements. Gujarati language and regional targeting ensured cultural resonance with the devotional segment.

04. Campaign Performance

The table below presents a full breakdown of campaign metrics across both campaigns:

Key observations:

• Camp 1 delivered 91% of total impressions and 89% of total views, confirming its role as the primary reach driver
• Camp 2 achieved a lower CPV of ₹0.16 vs ₹0.24 for Camp 1, indicating stronger view-through efficiency for supplementary targeting
• Combined CPV of ₹0.20 is highly competitive for an entertainment/movie trailer campaign in the Indian market
• Total media investment of ₹3,54,312 (excl. GST) generated over 15.5 lakh views

05. Key Outcome: #2 Trending on YouTube India

Within 5 days of trailer launch and campaign activation, Krishnavataram Part 1: The Heart (Hridayam) trended at #2 on YouTube India’s Trending Film Trailers chart — ranking directly below Bhooth Bangla (a major Balaji Motion Pictures release with 46M+ views) by Saregama Music.

This result reflects the effectiveness of launching ad campaigns in close coordination with trailer release, enabling the content to gain algorithmic traction in the critical first 48–72 hours post-launch.

06. Learnings & Best Practices

• Launch-day activation is critical: Starting ads immediately at trailer drop maximises the velocity of views when YouTube’s algorithm is most receptive to emerging content
• Devotional + Bollywood layering: Combining interest-based targeting (Bollywood/Hindi films) with affinity sites (ISKCON, Vrindavan, temple networks) enabled highly contextual reach for this spiritual-mythology film
• Dual-campaign strategy: Running a high-volume primary campaign alongside a lean support campaign allows spend flexibility and audience diversification without cannibalisation
• Efficient CPV: At ₹0.20 blended CPV, the campaign demonstrates that high trending results do not require outsized budgets — strategic targeting is the multiplier
• Trending drives organic amplification: Reaching #2 on YouTube’s trending chart generates earned media attention, press mentions, and organic discovery beyond paid reach