Exclusive: How Tubi Built The Z-Suite’s Meta Ad Campaign

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a very meta TV comedy requires very meta marketing. And that’s why Tubi is taking so much pride in the ad campaign for its ad world satire, The Z-Suite.

Premiering Feb. 6, the show stars Lauren Graham as the head of a fictional advertising agency that gets into an all-too-real battle of the generations with her Gen-Z employees, led by social media expert Kriska (Madison Shamoun). Even as the show pokes fun at the characters and their various conflicts, its campaign, which was produced in collaboration with VaynerMedia and DDA, blurs the line between real and reel.

“We never break character,” enthuses Tubi CMO Nicole Parlapiano. “It’s been fun to embrace building a world around the show and not just doing the standard stuff.”

Arguably, the peak of Tubi’s Z-Suite world-building is a “hacky” Super Bowl spot that provides a pure blast of Gen-Z. But all of the elements from the three-phase campaign—from social media influencer posts to a LinkedIn capabilities deck—seek to replicate the show’s version of reality.

“There’s a lot of fertile ground when you blur the lines,” Gary Vaynerchuk, VaynerMedia’s CEO and an executive producer on The Z-Suite, says of that approach. “Whether we’re doing outdoor stuff or pop-up events, it’s important to break patterns.”

Here’s how Tubi designed the three phases of The Z-Suite’s pattern-breaking campaign.

Phase 1: The Pre-Game

Just like the Chiefs and the Eagles, Tubi spent the weeks ahead of the Big Game getting warmed up. “The first phase was just about getting people excited for the show,” Parlapiano says about the campaign’s early moves, which focused on “taking on the persona” of the Atelier Ad Agency, the fictional company Graham runs on The Z-Suite.

Part of the pre-release excitement came from a 30-second hype reel that showed prospective clients (aka viewers) what Atelier had to offer.

Atelier continued to make its presence felt via handles on all the major social media sites, from LinkedIn to TikTok. The social strategy also included a series of teasers that formed the Atelier Starter Pack.

“We rolled those out across organic social, and the handles will be engaging with all different kinds of CEOs, thought leaders, and advertising pundits,” explains Parlapiano.

Tubi also enlisted social media influencers as part of the teaser phase of the campaign, including Victoria Hiegel and Corporate Natalie, who covered The Z-Suite’s Jan. 28 premiere at the Metrograph movie theater in Manhattan.

Meanwhile, DDA pitched in for a series of paid social teasers (including the starter pack), while Vayner contributed three teasers pitching fictional products—including Boppin’ Burgers, which is featured in the show.

“The campaign is a magically comedic example of what happens when you combine receptive clients and out-of-the-box ideas,” says Dana Archer on behalf of the DDA Board. “Our content ranged from corporate satire to Gen-Z tropes, blending humor and relatability in an authentic manner that resonates with diverse audiences.”

Phase 2: Game Day

All that training leads up to The Z-Suite’s big Super Bowl play—a 15-second promo that both Parlapiano and Vaynerchuk expect to be loved and hated in equal measure.

“Personally, I think a lot of the reaction will be, ‘What the f*** was that?’” the VaynerMedia head says with a laugh. “Which is kind of the point!”

Once the Super Bowl promo is out in the world, intrigued—or confused—viewers can head over to Tubi and stream the show’s first two episodes. They can also travel deeper down the Atelier rabbit hole with the launch of an extensive LinkedIn capabilities deck that offers a breakdown of the agency’s services and staff.

ADWEEK can also exclusively reveal the mock ad magazine covers featured in the show from our friendly rivals at… uh, Ad National.

Meanwhile, social media stars will continue to weigh in on Atelier’s attempts to capture the youth market. And to help them with their posts, Tubi has designed a pair of Premiere Kits—one for B2B folks and the other for influencers.

“All of this feels very endemic to the show,” Parlapiano notes. “We really want to communicate the ensemble cast and the fun of it.”

Phase 3: The Post-Game

Once audiences have sampled The Z-Suite’s first two episodes, the rest of the campaign is about ensuring they make a meal out of the whole first season. And the show’s characters will take point on bringing them back to the table.

To that end, the next wave of paid social spots will feature Kriska’s colleague Elliot (Spencer Stevenson), who is an expert in both fashion and reverse psychology. Instead of convincing real Gen-Zers why they should be watching The Z-Suite, Elliot’s angle is to tell them why they maybe shouldn’t watch it.

“Gen-Z is very ironic, and telling them that something isn’t for them is actually a good hack into getting them to watch things,” Parlapiano explains.

Other Phase 3 elements include targeted outdoor advertising campaigns in major cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago; B2B paid social that incorporates business tools like Google Calendar; and a 30-second version of the Super Bowl spot.

“We’re leaning into how these characters would actually build campaigns for clients,” Parlapiano says. “It was interesting to play with those generational tensions and really go for it in this campaign.”

Since The Z-Suite’s ad campaign is all about blurred lines, it would only seem natural for the show to bring actual Tubi and VaynerMedia employees into Atelier. Asked whether he’d like to play himself on the series, Vaynerchuk has a guest star pitch cued up.

“I think it’d be cool if Atelier beat out Vayner for a pitch, and I was pissed,” he says with a big smile. “If I do it, I can’t be a cool guy—I’ve got to make fun of myself. So if they allow me to do that, I would be on the show. I really want a Guest Actor Emmy!”

Maybe The Z-Suite team will settle for a Clio.