Why Netflix Doesn't Spend That Much Money Advertising Its Shows
Ever wonder how shows such as Daredevil and House of Cards can become such enormous hits, despite the fact that we almost never see commercials for them? Netflix knows this, and it’s all part of the company's business model. In a recent interview with Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos explained why the online streaming giant does not bother spending exorbitant amounts of money to market its content. Apparently, the service does a lot of the heavy lifting by itself.
Ted Sarandos' quotes to TV Insider reveal that the homepage on Netflix offers a multitude of easily digestible categories, with all of Netflix’s content displayed plainly enough for subscribers to see. All Netflix really needs to do is sell potential customers on their service, and the homepage will sell the content for almost no marketing cost. The company plans to release 475 hours worth of original programming within the next year alone, so financially it seems unfeasible to give each program a full, effective marketing campaign – get people to subscribe, and the shows themselves will do the rest.
Obviously some marketing is inherently required. Netflix’s biggest shows get exposure in major cultural centers such as New York and LA; however, as Sarandos points out, these are more to “plant a seed” for the service, rather than advertise those specific programs. Netflix Originals have developed a strong word-of-mouth reputation for their high quality, so all the company needs to do is remind people where to obtain the programming and theoretically the company is good to go.
By not competing for time slots, and releasing a show's content all at once, Netflix can effectively show a great deal of extra patience for shows than traditional networks. Subscribing in the first place is more important than overall ratings; once you become a member, you can get to The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt whenever you feel like it.
What Netflix has done is most certainly impressive. By developing an organic interface to promote their programming, the streaming service has allowed itself to focus on content above all else.
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Originally from Connecticut, Conner grew up in San Diego and graduated from Chapman University in 2014. He now lives in Los Angeles working in and around the entertainment industry and can mostly be found binging horror movies and chugging coffee.