Final Thoughts

With the ever changing landscape of streaming, attracting viewers to a show becomes more and more difficult. No longer can stations rely solely on the use of television ads to attract viewers attention. They need to instead focus on building marketing campaigns aimed around the series. The campaign should include video promotion, social media, and anything else that could get the word out. Building a social presence on the web is vital in building awareness and engagement. Television shows need to focus on getting their name out there and encourage engagement from their fan base. Building up a community of loyal followers helps to spread the word and increase fan retention.

Some of the best campaigns I've seen came from Stranger Things and Game of Thrones. Game of Thrones did an amazing job at generating tons of buzz on the internet through their creation of GoT themed emojis on Twitter and snap filters on Snapchat. They didn't solely focus on creating their own content on their various platforms but instead relied on fans helping to generate content on their own personal feeds. The more people who tweeted at GoT or posted to their stories of themselves looking like a "white walker" the larger audience GoT was able to reach. Word of mouth can be an extremely useful tool in promotion; word of posting can be just as possible. If a series can blow up the internet, people who do not watch the show are much more likely to tune in to see for themselves what all the commotion is about.

Stranger Things also had a very well done social media campaign but made their main success came from their out of the box thinking. This came from their various partnerships with different companies to get the word out about the season 2 premiere. One of the most creative aspects was their partnership with Lyft in which they turned people's rides into the "upside down." They also put up billboards advertising Hawkins Power and Lights. Driving past those would make people feel like their actually in Hawkins. Finding ways
to incorporate a show into people's everyday lives makes the show feel more realistic and creates a stronger connection between fans and the series. The Dark Knight did something similar and creating Gotham for fans through their "Why So Serious" campaign.

A special shout out goes to This is Us for their usage of more than the traditional social media platforms. They went beyond promoting on just Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter; they also utilized Pinterst and Spotify. The usage of Spotify is a very interesting tool for series promotion. It combines two forms of media - television and music. I believe many more shows could benefit from the usage of Spotify. It offers a source to put music from the series and it can also create playlists themed to the different characters like Stranger Things did.

Overall, it is becoming more and more important to finds creative and innovative ways to get one's name out there. Good writing can only get a show so far. It's up to marketers to ensure that people know about the show to be able to gain enjoyment from the drama, comedy, or romance produced.

Spotlight of the Week: Stranger Things

Welcome to Hawkins, Indiana, home of the weird and paranormal. Netflix just recently released the second season of Stranger Things. This season follows a new group of ghost-busters quest to close the upside down. With Stranger Things being one of Netflix's most watched shows, it comes a no surprise the amount of marketing that went into the promotion of season 2.

Twitter:

Before the season 2 premiere, Stranger Things implemented a Twitter campaign entitled Spoiler Things, in which it has the cast of the show call out prominent fans of the shows and offers them spoilers on season 2. This offers current followers of the show tidbits into the next season with spoiler like Steve starts "hanging out with someone younger" and Lucas "get his own Eleven." It also reaches out to new audiences by tagging prominent fans of the series like Megan Ganz, Max Carver, and Chris Hardwick. If people see that some of their favorite writers or actors follow the show, they might choose to tune in themselves. 

Easter Eggs:

For the premiere of season 2, Stranger Things incorporated some non-traditional ways of generating buzz and excitement about the show. Around NYC and LA, they had billboards put up advertising Hawkins Power and Light. People who do not watch the show would not have any clue that this billboard pertains to the show, but any viewers who see it would understand the significance. This type of outside of the box advertising gets people's attention but also gains media attention, which helps in getting the word out about the premiere. An added bonus to this billboard was that the number on it actually calls Hawkins Power and Light. 

Business Partnerships:

Stranger Things partnered with many different entities like Reebok, Topshop, Spotify, and Lyft. Topshop themed their store in Oxford around the show. Spotify created an immersive platform that matches your music tastes with one of the playlist themed around the characters like Eleven's Breakfast Jams. Personally, I think Lyft had the most interesting team up with Stranger Things in that they pranked riders with turning their car ride "upside down." All of these partnerships help Stranger Things reach new audiences bases that are fans of these brands. 

Stranger Things has had one of the best marketing campaigns that I have seen thus far for a T.V. show. They went way beyond the traditional use of social media. It comes as no surprise to me about how many viewers it attracts. Its marketing campaigns ensure that everyone hears about the show even if they might not be watching it.