From Events To Experiences: 6 Essential Lessons From Tudum 2025 For Brands
Netflix TUDUM 2025 was more than a celebration of storytelling, it was a masterclass on how brands can curate immersive experiences for their audiences. TUDUM Live is a global Netflix fan event, named after the iconic sound that plays at the beginning of every movie, live or series. Held on May 31 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles and streamed live worldwide, the event featured an epic lineup of talent, exclusive reveals, and show-stopping performances by artists like Lady Gaga and Hanumankind. The event captivated millions of global viewers and positioned itself as a significant pop culture moment.
For brands planning pop-up activations, product launches, or exclusive showcases, TUDUM 2025 offered a compelling blueprint for transforming events into unforgettable experiences. Here are six key lessons brands can adapt from Netflix’s playbook:
1. Immersing the Audience in Your Branding
Brand visibility is no longer enough, audiences expect to experience your brand in meaningful ways. Netflix accomplished this by designing an N-shaped red carpet, hosting real-time stage greetings, setting up fan pits and dedicated stages for title-specific photo ops. These elements allowed the platform’s fans to be immersed in the Netflix universe on a personal level.
Key insight: Create interactive, on-site installations that encourage your attendees to engage with your brand, products, or services.
2. Choose Venues That Reflect the Scale and Purpose
The venue sets the tone for your entire event, so it should support the magnitude and purpose of your event. Netflix chose KIA Forum, a world-class premier entertainment venue that corresponds with the style and brand prestige of TUDUM 2025. It accommodated the event’s scale and brand status.
Key insight: Choose venues that not only accommodate your audience but also elevates your brand and your event’s purpose.
3. Hybrid Engagement Experiences
Effective events should engage both digital and in-person audiences. Not just by broadcasting the event on livestreams but encouraging them to interact through polls, hashtags and voting. For instance, Netflix encouraged its fans to engage through real-time voting, merchandise commerce and social campaigns. Through this, they turned their viewers into active participants and were able to blend their in-person and online audiences.
Key insight: Blend both physical and digital touchpoints to encourage active participation. Make sure both in-person and online attendees feel involved and included.
4. Leverage First Look Reveals & Exclusivity
Events are powerful platforms for revealing exclusive content. By saving reveals for the stage, brands are able to generate excitement and urgency, prompting attendees to share content, create buzz and media coverage for the event. Netflix used TUDUM 2025 to leverage exclusive reveals for new seasons of shows, generating word of mouth and creating organic marketing for them.
Key insight: Use your event as a launch pad for exclusive content. This can drive word of mouth, media attention and drive long-term impact.
5. Speak Directly To Your Audience
Curating general event touchpoints rarely resonates deeply. It wastes resources and efforts that could have been focused on more effective measures. Instead, investing in personalized experiences specifically for your target audience fosters deeper connections and builds brand loyalty. Netflix exemplified this by creating experiences inspired by fan-favourite shows such as Wednesday, Squid Games and One Piece. These were built not only as the backdrop for the event but for the fans to be able to interact with.
Key insight: Show your audience that you understand them, tailor experiences they connect with and build long-lasting loyalty.
6. Build A Comprehensive Pre- And Post-Event Strategy
Successful events are not confined to a single day, they are a multiphase campaign. Building anticipation towards the event, engaging the audience during the event and stretching momentum afterwards are all critical. Netflix’s extensive pre- and post-launch efforts for TUDUM 2025 enabled them to generate over 1.4 billion impressions across Netflix and talent social handles, this is compared to their 2023 campaign. They made people aware of the event long before it happened and continued to build momentum even after it occurred.
Key insight: Treat your event as a campaign and not just a day. Use countdowns and teasers to create buzz and recaps to build momentum afterwards.
From immersive installations and multiphase strategies to strategic talent bookings and exclusive reveals, TUDUM showcases that brands need to think bigger than just “an event”.
Whether you are a start-up planning your product launch or an established business rolling out new event campaigns, these lessons can help you transform your events into memorable experiences.
Need help creating bold and immersive experiences?
At Coral Communications, we specialize in turning events into unforgettable experiences.