Force Four needed an interactive digital media strategy for the second season of their successful comedy series SEED. The primary challenge was to build the show’s audience and give them a quick and entertaining primer on the show’s premise, characters and brand of humor. The strategy and content also had to had to adapt to two distinct phases pre-broadcast and broadcast.
Challenge
Solution
The SEED website is the series’ online hub providing supplemental content including online video, interactive contests, trivia games, and a special watch and win contest driving audience to the website from social media and the television broadcast. Each interactive feature on the site is integrated with social media platforms including Facebook and Twitter to facilitate word-of-mouth marketing. Tactica collaborated with Force Four Entertainment and City to devise a interactive digital media strategy that split into two critical phases:
1. Pre-broadcast phase
The pre-broadcast phase focussed on building a larger audience and priming them for the new season. The compelling interactive content was promoted through social media and hosted on the City website and Facebook page. The phase included:
SEED Baby Book Web Series & Contest
The Baby Book web series’ episodes were released weekly leading up to the television broadcast. After each video was watched the audience could enter the sweepstakes contest by answering a trivia question related to the video’s content and sharing on Facebook. The web series reminded the audience of the character’s backstory and show premise.
What’s Your Sperm Count? Video & Contest
In the four weeks leading up to the television broadcast, the audience was given access to an online video teaser highlighting each time characters referenced “sperm” in the upcoming season. To enter the contest the audience simply identified the total number of times the characters said “sperm”. The teaser video exposed the new audience to the series’ edgy brand of humor.
Match the Character to the Quote
This simple and entertaining contest lets the audience match funny quotes from the show to the correct character. When they select the correct character for the quote they see a clip of the character delivering the quote that is easily shareable on Facebook. In addition to helping build a wider audience through social media integration, the game helps introduce people to the show’s characters and humor.
2. Broadcast Phase
The broadcast phase focuses on engaging the audience around the scheduled broadcast and gives them incentives to interact with online content and share it with their friends and coworkers.
Watch and Win
The Watch and Win contest is designed to drive people to the scheduled broadcast and then to the SEED website where they can answer a trivia question related to the content of the episode. The contest is promoted through social media and on television during the broadcast. This feature rewards the audience for watching individual episodes within a week of the scheduled broadcast.
Mystery Word
The mystery word contest gives users a fun collect and win puzzle game that they can play all season long. A secret letter is be hidden in each episode. The audience can collect the letters, unscramble them, and submit their mystery word guess on the website. This features rewards the audience for watching all the episodes throughout the season.
Episodic “Deleted” Scenes
The Episodic “Deleted” Scene videos will be released weekly during the broadcast. After a video is watched the audience can enter the sweepstakes contest by answering a trivia question related to the videos content.
Additional Website Content
The website will also include the following content:
- creator commentary podcast (delivered for each episode by Joseph Raso and select cast members);
- photo gallery including the cast groups and individual “gallery” photos and unit stills;
- outtakes videos;
- character matching game;
- deleted scenes; and
- more information about the series including character & cast bios, series & episode synopses, electronic press kits, and links to social media pages.
Result
Seed-Season Two premieres March 6. Check back soon to see the results.
Client Profile
City TV
City television stations in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Saskatchewan, and Montreal offer viewers intensely-local, urban-oriented, culturally-diverse television programming. City is a part of Rogers Broadcasting Limited, a division of Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX: RCI and NYSE: RCI) which is a diversified Canadian communications and media company.
Force Four Entertainment
Force Four Entertainment has produced more than five hundred hours of television including The Audience Canada (W Network), Border Security (National Geographic), SEED (City TV), and Million Dollar Neighbourhood (OWN). They’ve earned the prestigious Peabody Award for “Significant and Meritorious Achievement in Broadcasting,” ten Gemini Awards and more than twenty-five Gemini nominations. Force Four Entertainment, owned by Rob Bromley, John Ritchie and Gillian Lowrey, produces attention-getting programs that make them a leading choice for broadcasters, co-producers, writers and directors.