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Let’s explore the marketing lessons provided by the popular series “Squid Game.” It’s not just a series—it’s a source of interesting ideas and strategies that contributed to its stunning success.
The gripping plot, where participants competed in traditional South Korean children’s games with life-threatening consequences, combined vibrant drama, tension, and a fight for survival, making this series a true sensation for viewers.
“Squid Game” became a global phenomenon, breaking numerous records and influencing pop culture worldwide. Here are some statistics that highlight its success:
Viewing Records:
The first season of “Squid Game” became the first Netflix series to reach number one in all 93 countries where the streaming service is available.
The second season amassed 126.2 million views in just 11 days, setting a record for Netflix.
Impact on Social Media:
The hashtag #squidgame garnered 11.1 billion views on TikTok, indicating the immense popularity of the series among users of this platform.
Cultural Influence:
The series became a source of inspiration for countless internet memes, challenges, and discussions, highlighting its universal appeal and ability to unite different cultures.
These figures demonstrate just how significant “Squid Game” has become in modern culture, impacting millions of people around the world.
Significance for Marketers
“Squid Game” won the hearts of viewers with its tense plot, competitions, and life-or-death risks. This series not only exposed the dark sides of human nature but also provided valuable lessons in strategy, adaptation, and decision-making. In marketing, although the stakes are not as fatal, success still depends on making the right moves in high-pressure situations.
In 2025, marketers face challenges such as constant algorithm changes, fierce competition, and the need for genuine connections with customers. The principles that helped the characters of “Squid Game” survive can teach marketers how to succeed.
“Squid Game” captivates with its unique design elements. They do not just complement the aesthetics but play a crucial role in embedding the series in viewers’ minds.
Iconic Imagery and Color Schemes: The green tracksuits and red guard uniforms have become symbols that instantly associate with the series.
Application in Marketing: Simplicity sells. In a world saturated with information, minimalist designs always stand out. A logo, a bold color, or a unique font can make all the difference.
Creating Visual Identity
Inspiration from the Series: All design elements were harmoniously integrated, creating a recognizable visual theme.
Practical Tips for Marketers:
In the marketing world, knowing your audience is like having a compass in an unfamiliar terrain. “Squid Game,” thanks to the Netflix platform, demonstrated how crucial it is to truly understand your viewers.
The Charm of Netflix Algorithms
Netflix has long been known for its unique approach to data analysis, transforming a simple streaming platform into a high-tech mechanism for predicting viewers’ preferences.
Data-Driven Decisions
Thanks to complex algorithms and in-depth analysis of user behavior, Netflix identified that a story with intense plots, intrigue, and social issues, such as “Squid Game,” would resonate with millions. By studying genre preferences, demographics, and even how much time users spend watching, Netflix accurately predicted what would captivate the audience.
Local Content for a Global Audience
Although the series was made in South Korea, its themes—survival, social inequality, moral choices—are universal. This is another example of how understanding your audience allows local stories to become globally known. Netflix knew that viewers worldwide would be looking for something unique, and this series perfectly met those expectations.
Targeted Promotion
By developing personalized recommendations, the platform ensured that even those who were not previously interested in this genre would watch “Squid Game.” Instead of mass promotion, the company took an individualized approach, which increased engagement.
Result: Captivated Viewers
The series launch wasn’t just another Netflix success; it was a true phenomenon. Viewers from all over the world not only watched “Squid Game” but discussed it on social media, created memes, reenacted the games from the series, and its symbolism became part of pop culture.
The lesson for marketers is clear: understanding your audience allows you to create a product that doesn’t just sell—it becomes a part of people’s lives.
Takeaways for Marketers
Audience Insights as Gold: Like Netflix, marketers must delve into customer behavior, preferences, and desires.
Tools and Strategies:
Adapting Content for the Audience
The Key Role of Personalization: “Squid Game” was crafted with its audience’s expectations in mind, significantly boosting its popularity.
For Marketers: Personalizing content increases relevance and engagement.
“Squid Game” became a global sensation thanks to the power of word-of-mouth—both online and offline.
Buzz on Social Media
Virality: With memes, discussions, and debates, the series sparked a real information explosion.
Result: The more people talked about the series, the more viewers tuned in.
What Marketers Can Learn
Encouraging Discussions: Create content that evokes emotions and encourages sharing.
Working with Influencers:
Content That Resonates: Just like the series, your content should be engaging and worth discussing.
Strategies:
The Courage to Be Unique
In today’s digital content world, where competition for consumer attention has reached unprecedented heights, Squid Game stands as a bright example of how important it is to be distinctive and create unique products. The series not only broke the mold but also showed how originality can lead to long-term success.
Embracing Uniqueness
Today, the formula “stand out or be forgotten” is more relevant than ever. The success of Squid Game was driven by the fact that the series didn’t just follow existing trends—it created them. Its storyline, themes, visual style, and even the games were so unconventional that they immediately grabbed the viewers’ attention.
A Bold Approach to Content
In a world where clichés and proven formulas dominate, Squid Game took the risk of offering a new format: a combination of children’s games with brutal survival battles. This contrast shocked, intrigued, and captivated viewers, leaving a lasting impression.
The Marketer’s Mantra
For the modern marketer, uniqueness is not just an opportunity to stand out but a true strategy for capturing attention. Products with a “special touch” can create an emotional connection with consumers, spark discussions, and build loyalty.
Breaking Stereotypes
Squid Game proved that the risk of being different is not a disadvantage, but an advantage. The series broke stereotypes at every level: from its unconventional storyline to the deep social commentary that made viewers reflect on the realities of modern society.
Innovation as the Key to Success
The innovative approach to content creation brought Squid Game global recognition. This serves as a lesson for marketers who aim to develop campaigns that not only capture attention but also radically shift perceptions of a brand or product.
Call to Action
Dare to break boundaries: Don’t be afraid to take risks by offering unconventional ideas. It is often these ideas that can prove to be decisive.
Offer new perspectives: Consumers value innovative approaches that broaden their view of familiar things.
Squid Game reminds us that true success begins where the comfort zone ends. Only those who dare to be unique can create products or campaigns that will be remembered forever. In marketing, as in the game, it’s crucial to take a bold step at the right moment, which could mark the beginning of something great.
One of the key reasons for the success of Squid Game was its viral elements — scenes, phrases, and images that viewers widely used in their online communication.
Viral Moments
Unique and unforgettable scenes, such as the game “Red Light, Green Light,” the phrase “I’ve already played this game,” and the famous player number (456), turned into memes, videos, and even fan-created games. This effect greatly amplified the popularity of the series.
Lesson for Marketers
For those working in marketing, this serves as a reminder: create content that not only grabs attention but also sparks the desire to share. This approach can help your brand become part of a larger cultural context.
Tip: Include elements that evoke emotions, provoke curiosity, or add humor. This will encourage organic sharing of your content.
Diversity in Content Formats
The series also demonstrates how the interaction of different content formats can significantly enhance the overall impact.
Universality of Approach
Squid Game went beyond the traditional series format. It inspired the creation of numerous supplementary products, from YouTube videos and TikTok parodies to themed merchandise and even cooking videos featuring traditional Korean sweets, dalgona.
Impact on Marketing
Using various formats allows you to engage your audience across different channels and platforms. This creates a layered effect where one type of content enhances another, forming a cohesive picture.
Tip: Diversify your content formats by adding videos, articles, infographics, memes, and interactive elements.
Combine Information, Entertainment, and Emotions: Content that entertains while delivering valuable information and evoking emotions is more likely to resonate with audiences and increase engagement.
A Captivating Story
Storytelling is the key to customers’ hearts. Just as Squid Game captivated viewers with its plots, brands can win trust and loyalty by creating emotionally rich, authentic, and personalized stories. Your customers need to feel like they are part of this story — and that’s how they’ll stay with you for a long time.
Resonant Narrative
At the heart of the series are the players, each with their own motives, fears, and dreams. Viewers could relate to these characters, which made the story emotionally close and universal.
Lesson for Brands: To capture attention, it’s important to create stories that resonate with basic human emotions: joy, fear, hope, or compassion.
Tip: Use elements that touch the hearts of your audience. For example, share stories about your customers’ successes or the journey your company takes to achieve its mission.
Squid Game’s storytelling was layered: viewers saw not only the main plot but also small details that enhanced the atmosphere. This is a reminder of how important it is in marketing to show not only the final product but also the story behind its creation.
For Brands: Tell the story of how your product is made, the values your company embodies in its activities. Transparency helps build trust in your brand.
Customer-Centered Focus
Focus on the Audience
The secret to the series’ success is that it was about people: their aspirations, fears, and dreams. Viewers saw themselves in the characters, empathized with them, and couldn’t look away from the screen.
Lesson for Brands: The center of any successful marketing campaign should be the customer. Instead of only talking about your product, show how it solves people’s problems and helps them achieve their goals.
Personalization of Stories
The series showed the unique stories of each character, making it rich and engaging. This approach works in marketing as well: personalized stories help establish a connection with customers.
For Brands: Collect stories from your customers and share how your product or service has changed their lives. For example, a case study of how your service helped a business grow or how your product made daily life easier.
Conclusion
Squid Game left a mark not only on the entertainment industry but also in the world of marketing. From the power of design to the art of storytelling, this series has become an inspiration for many. Use these lessons to create campaigns that not only attract attention but also remain memorable for a long time.
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