Keys to Media Promotion

1. Employ a Buzz Worthy Stunt

Word of mouth can serve as a powerful tool in marketing. In order to gain word of mouth, you must do something worth talking about. For example, Game of Thrones placed a 40-foot long dragon skull on Dorset Beach in the UK as promotion for the start of the season.

2. Pre-Roll Video Advertising

These ads can be catered to appear to audiences who would be interested in your show or movie based on previous interests. Yes, people can skip the video after the first five seconds, but if a company can make it interesting, people will choose to watch the entire trailer prompting interest in the show.

3. Utilize the Press

Sites like Buzzfeed or Refinery 29 can be a valuable source of promotion in that it offers advertising for an “unbiased” source. Journalists can post interviews with cast members allowing for extra features for viewers. For example, Buzzfeed always attends San Diego Comic Con and interviews different cast members at the event. This allows for more people to gain knowledge about your show. These press junkets may have different subscribers with similar interests to television series’ audiences allowing for these companies to expand their audiences.

4. Involve Audience

This can come from having the audience tweet while watching, playing games, creating apps, etc. The CW created an app on their website that allowed for viewers to play Bingo while watching one of their shows. Hunger Games also employed an interactive experience by creating “Virtual Hunger Games” that allows users to compete in districts like in the film. The Dark Knight also illustrates this with its “Why so Serious?” campaign that brought Gotham to life. The more involved viewers feel the more likely they are to tune in. 

5. Make Facebook Page Interactive

Facebook needs to be more than just posts reminding when the show or movie premieres. It should include videos, photos, games, contests, and apps. The more elements present, the more compelling the page is.

6. Utilize Character Personas

Audience members become attached to characters so why not use that character as a promotion tool. For example, Ted created a Twitter page for Ted. The Muppets also used character personas for the promotion of their movie by creating a Google Hangout in which fans could communicate with their favorite characters like Kermit or Miss Piggy. 

Works Cited: 
https://www.ventureharbour.com/ultimate-guide-marketing-films-tv-shows-online/

Social Media's Effect on Television

Television marketing's plan no longer solely depends on commercials. Like many other industries, they have followed the trend of adopting social media platforms as a tool to increase viewership. With the rise of many different social platforms, networks are gaining more and more ways to engage with their audiences.

YouTube:

YouTube grants companies the ability to make their videos go viral to share with more people around the world. They no longer have to rely on people watching their channel to get the latest trailers for new episodes. They now have the ability to create their own channels, in which they can upload all of their new material that can be viewed at any time anywhere. Along with uploading trailers, network YouTube channels can post behind the scenes videos, sneak peaks, and cast interviews. All of these keep audience engaged with series and provide extra content to viewers to captivate their interest even more. 

Twitter:

With Twitter comes the Twitterverse and the power of hashtags. Many of shows have started to create a hashtag for a particular series and encourage people to tweet their thoughts while watching the show. This produces a community for that series. The need for community is a basic sociological need and Twitter provides another way for people to meet this need. In addition, Nielson did a study that illustrated a correlation between conversations on Twitter and neurological engagement. This means that when people are tweeting about their favorite shows they are also having higher engagement with a show. Increasing engagement can lead to developing a more loyal fan base because they feel more connected to the characters and the plot line. Twitter campaigns also gain the attention of other audiences that might not watch the series. A poll found that 29% of people choose to watch a show because of the social buzz surrounding it. If a television network can create buzz, it can also increase its viewership. 

Facebook:

Facebook isn't only a tool to see what's going on in a friend's life, but it can also inform people about their favorite television series. TV shows can create their own Facebook pages that people can follow giving them access to new content, reminders, and contests. Series posts showing up on audiences feeds keeps the audience engaged with the series and reminds them when the show will be airing. It also creates another form of word of mouth advertising because friends can see what pages people like, which could persuade them into liking the same page. 

Social media is becoming an every more important tool in television marketing. With less and less people watching live television, networks need a way to stay connected with their audience in a way other than broadcasting commercials.

Works Cited:
https://socialmediaexplorer.com/content-sections/cases-and-causes/has-social-media-changed-television/
http://www.marketingcharts.com/digital-44598
http://www.nielsen.com/content/dam/corporate/us/en/reports-downloads/2016-reports/case-study-understanding-the-effect-of-social-media-on-tv-program-engagement.pdf

Future Trends of Television Marketing

With the promotion of more and more online streaming services, many believe that an end to cable television is upon us. If this was a true statement, why would cable providers like ABC, Fox, NBC, and CBS still be investing in the production of television series? These television programs do not seem to be disappearing but changing the way they market themselves. Below are a list of trends emerging in the media industry:

1. Watching It Live is No Longer a Priority
We're moving into a ever more fast paced world and with that comes little time to make sure you're home at 8 o'clock to watch your favorite show. Television providers responded to this by placing their content across many different platforms. They no longer care where you watch - more important that you watch. People are constantly on their phones, computers, or tablets so why not bring their favorite series to them. Television providers have created On Demand features so that their audiences always have access to their favorite dramas or sitcoms. Along with creating On Demand apps, many providers are allowing their shows to be on streaming sources like Hulu and Netflix. Viewership may no longer be on their network, but their still keeping their audience engaged with on different platforms. Hulu even has next day services for shows on right now and Hulu's merger with Spotify allowing for $4.99 membership for college students will bring in even more viewership.

2. Rise of Producer Branding
The name behind the show is becoming more and more important to makers of television. Having different outlets for watching TV means you're not always aware of who makes the show you're watching. Companies had usually just released shows as individual series without really linking them to their company brand. Think back to shows like The West Wing, General Hospital, or Lost. Do you remember which network made those? In comparison to that think about Game of Thrones or House of Cards. People know that those are from HBO and Netflix. These television producers get recognition because people are more familiar with their brand. If someone sees Netflix Original on a show, they have a tendency to watch it because Netflix has built up a brand for itself of producing binge-worthy content. Network stations are starting to adopting this same stance of branding all their shows together. For example, the CW has their "Dare to Defy" campaign in which they group all of their content under one advertising motto across different platforms.

Works Cited:
http://www.marketingprofs.com/opinions/2016/30769/five-future-trends-in-the-marketing-of-television

Spotlight of the Week: Teen Wolf

For the final season of Teen Wolf, one would think there would be more promotion of the last 10 episodes to generate hype, but MTV stuck with a very traditional form of marketing, video promos. Teen Wolf's video campaign to promote the last season premiere data revolved around three major release promos: the teaser trailer, the official trailer, and the Comic Con trailer.

The teaser trailer was released at the beginning of July revealing that premiere data for the end of July. This trailer offered no insights into the season but served instead as a quick hype video to get people excited about the final season.

Not long after the teaser trailer was released, MTV released the official trailer for the season. As per usual for Teen Wolf, their season trailers are always extremely well-made and useful in creating buzz for the new season. One of the ways Teen Wolf utilizes their trailers to gain audiences' attention is through connecting to their emotions, fear and nostalgia to be exact. The beginning of the trailer has a very eerie feel to it leading viewers to feel worrisome about the fates of their favorite characters. Promoting a sense of uncertainty about the coming up plot lines encourages people to watch the show to have their questions answers and to make sure characters make it to the finale since Jeff Davis has no issues with killing off main characters. The end of the trailer focuses more on creating nostalgia. Since this is the last season, it can only be expected to have the return of characters who have left the show. The final few seconds of this trailer confirm that belief in showing snapshots of all the characters returning back to Beacon Hills. This is mainly a gift to all the loyal fan base for continuing to watch the show over the past 6 years.

The final phase of marketing came 10 days before the premiere data with the cast heading to San Diego for Comic Con. Here, the cast and producers held a panel to answer fan questions and premiered the final trailer for the season for those in attendance.

MTV's marketing of the final season of Teen Wolf really wasn't aimed at attracting new people to the show but satisfying the fan base that has accumulated over the years. Viewership has been steadily decreasing over the past few seasons, which prompted this to be the last season. Extra media platforms weren't necessarily needed for this show since those who already watch it will go online themselves to find information about the final season. Jeff Davis has said that this season acts as a way to say goodbye to those who have tuned in every week to watch their favorite characters navigate the woes and worries of high school while living in a supernatural world.