Lee Boykoff, Director, Digital Media Analytics and Distribution for A&E Television Networks shared an exciting presentation on their experience identifying promoters, engaging them in the content development process, and incorporating NPS into powerful segmentation that targets specific influencers with one to one marketing efforts to amplify marketing spend and jumpstart Word of Mouth.
Cable networks achieve success by developing programming to niche segments vs. a mass market. A rating of 3% for any particular show can be deemed a success. In this model, generating buzz and energizing loyal fans is highly important. At A&E, Lee and his team began by creating the A&E Insider community, providing relevant information and exclusive content to members, while asking them a series of questions designed to profile them as promoters, super influencers, and understand their programming needs and preferences.
To entice the “right” members, A&E avoided mass market sweepstakes as incentives, but rather opted for niche promotions tied to existing programming, such as Gene Simmons or Criss Angel related prizes.
A&E leverages the membership base in various ways. First, they measure NPS vs. the brand and individual show to find out how strong the relationship between the two might be. Directionally, higher rated shows tend to have high NPS scores, and vice versa for most of the lower rated programs.
Next, they engage the thousands of community members to provide input into potential pilots. In a case study shared by Lee, one show, Paranormal State, received unexpectedly high NPS scores, particular among “influencers.” The show was aired and it was a complete success – the highest rated show in 3 years. Other comments and ideas are collected during this review process and members are kept abreast of launch dates and the show’s development process.
Third, Lee’s team uses customer data collected via the community to subsegment promoters by their propensity to actually promote. The intent is to find the customers who really will share advice on the brand and individual programs, and prioritize marketing spend against them. In another case study, Lee shared the details of a recent Holiday Mailing campaign, where gifts cards were given to reward avid members. Rather than send small dollar-value cards to all members, A&E leveraged the segmentation to target a “WOW” gift to super influencers. Using this approach, A&E estimates it reached an incremental 1.4 million customers by targeting super advocates with a higher estimated propensity to promote.
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