Twitter Inc (NASDAQ:TWTR) firmly believes that the cast members of the shows are the most powerful marketing tool on the social media. It is also conveying this thought to networks that they focus more on the cast members than on the feeds devoted to the individual series of their shows.
Twitter concludes cast members as best marketing tools
Twitter wanted to study the impact of regular live tweeting in making a TV show a success. A number of successful shows and dramas from the 2013-2014 seasons were picked for the study, and the following facts were revealed.
Tweets from official show accounts were welcomed by 66% of the Twitter users. The tweets coming from actors or cast of the show were preferred by 61% of users. Official show accounts are liked by 35% while the least preferred are the tweets from the judges or hosts of the show with only 24% followers.
“In fact, we found that shows live-Tweeting from cast members during the premiere had 64% more Tweets that day compared to programs that did nothing,” Anjali Midha, head of global media and agency research at Twitter said in a blog post. Midha added that shows that “live-Tweeted from the official handle also saw a 7% increase over those that did nothing.”
Live tweeting does more than adding audience
Twitter also found that live tweets by the cast of a comedy show offered the biggest percentage increase. Live tweeting not only helps in audience engagement and adds to their delight, but it also helps drive conversation and make loyal fans for the show. Once the program goes on the air, in the absence of live tweeting it has been observed that the follow rate of any show’s official account goes up 6.5 times, but with live tweeting it goes up to 7.5 times, which is a 15% rise. For the cast, the follow rate increases 228%.
Live tweeting during episodes by the creators of the show and its actors, including Kerry Washington, helped generate a huge fan following for their hit Scandal (produced by Shonda Rhimes).
Given these clear results, Twitter strongly recommends that network and media firm execs make sure the stars of their shows engage with the public on Twitter, especially during the airing of the show.
