A Few New Year’s Resolutions to Promote Better Television

What is social media marketing the arrival of the new year, it’s time to suggest some resolutions for the television industry. Yes, there are programs and creative impulses worth celebrating, but let’s face it, there are also some trends that are less than encouraging, to say the least. This story first appeared in the January 05, 2016 issue of Variety. Subscribe today. Casting blandness. Too many shows, especially on broadcast, are casting for looks, not for presence, skill or charisma. The result is an interchangeable array of bland faces, especially among guys. (There appears to be special fondness for a certain kind of white everydude with dirty-blond hair and stubble.) Of course, forgettable characters are rarely the fault of the performer, but when blah writing meets tame casting, the results are snore-inducing. TV providers need to take chances on actors who have something special to offer — and don’t look like they were churned out by a factory specializing in human knockoffs. Bogged-down dramas. Why are so many cable and streaming dramas running so long? Of course, a show can go past 42 minutes if it really needs to. But in the realm of ambitious TV, too many episodes head toward the 50- or 60-minute mark not because they have to, but because they can. Of course writers shouldn’t feel locked into rigidly enforced running times that hinder great storytelling. But they don’t seem to realize that those extra minutes need to be justified. Long episodes not underpinned by discipline, focus and taut structure often make for draggy seasons — and even promising dramas can devolve into interminable slogs. Missing medics. Why can’t TV make a really good new medical drama? Every year, by-the-numbers doctor dramas stumble down the pike, but despite the explosion of TV production, refreshingly smart, innovative takes on this sturdy genre have been all but impossible to find. True, we’ve also got a couple veteran medical dramas that get the job done, but “House” and “ER” have been off the air for years. How long do we have to wait for a replacement? Serial stumbles. Just a few years ago, serialization was a dirty word in television, in part because it didn’t sell well in syndication. Thanks to the rapid rise of streaming, serialization has become all the rage, but it’s clear that some writers don’t know how to use it well. It can make a good story richer, more exciting and more thematically dense — but too many dramas are aping “Scandal” and “Breaking Bad” without social media marketing jobs the acting, pacing, characterization and overall skill that Shonda Rhimes and Vince Gilligan bring. Without characters to care about, shows begin to feel like bowls of story spaghetti, with strands and subplots leading everywhere and nowhere.

IDEAS FOR YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION

As 2014 comes to an end, 2015 planning is on its way. Usually everybody is getting their New Year’s resolutions ready; how about having one for your social media and marketing? After all, it’s always helpful to set new goals and priorities. When it comes to resolutions, they’re always meant to bring about improvements, even more acts of kindness. Some ideas for your social media strategy components will hopefully get you thinking about what your resolution(s) for 2015 could be. Content is growing in importance; it is one way brands can cut through the noise and stand out from the competition. Get creative with your content. This could mean integrating new forms of content such as SlideShare presentations, funny videos, podcasts with a specific yearly theme, and customer storymonials as a different way to tell your brand’s story. Make sure your content always offers value and is visually appealing. Community Engagement. Find new ways to engage with your community. Learn from what worked and didn’t in the past year, and test new ideas. What didn’t work you can cross off your list. For what did work, make sure you keep doing it and then ask yourself questions on why you think it worked. Through an analysis of what worked you can better understand what makes your community tick and formulate new ways of engagement. Some people are more engaged when you ask them to answer fun fact questions; others when there is a contest with a prize; and still others enjoy taking surveys to find out a specific personality trait they have (for example, finding out what type of leader they are) or taking surveys to share how they feel towards a product or company. Create Opportunities. With a new year ahead of you, you have full calendar of events and holidays you can create opportunities around to engage your audience and increase visibility (as well as sales). Plan ahead and make a list of specific holidays and events that you can use to organize your content and shares social media marketing agency around. Once you pinpoint the holidays and events, you can start creating social campaigns around them and have those ready for when the time comes. Also, don’t forget trending topics. These you can’t plan ahead, but you can always keep an eye out (for what’s trending in your industry) and adapt your social media shares accordingly.

Cigna Social-Media Campaign Says Forget New Year's Resolutions

Old habits die hard, and so at a time of year when most weight-loss companies social media marketing company and gyms are urging people to clean up their diet and shed holiday pounds, one company is going against the grain. In a social-media campaign by Interpublic Group of Cos.' Hill Holliday that launches this week, health insurer Cigna introduces the New Year's "nonresolution," urging its members to do away with making commitments that mean sacrificing things they love and, rather, make commitments to preserve something that is uniquely them. In other words: Don't change a thing. Says the company on its Facebook page: "Who said New Year's has to be about giving something up? Think about something you never want to change about yourself -- what's already working for you, what makes you happiest." Members are invited to submit their nonresolution; at the end of 2012, Cigna will send it back to see if they've stayed true to themselves.The counterintuitive-ad strategy could become a trend as marketers struggle to find ways to stand out. The approach echoes Patagonia's mailer pegged to the post-Thanksgiving shopping rush that declared in large bold letters "Don't Buy This Jacket." While other companies were advertising their Cyber Monday deals, the outdoor-apparel retailer asked people to "buy less and to reflect before you spend a dime on this jacket or anything else."Although giving back isn’t a must in your social media strategy, it is something that speaks to your values (your values as a person and a business). If there’s one resolution that everyone should make every year, it would be this one. Whether you participate in a fundraiser, decide to give a percentage of your sales to a non-profit or charity organization, or decide to give away products or services to a certain number of people in need; think about social media marketing plan template it as 2015 comes in and do it. You have an entire year of data to learn from that will help you tweak your strategy and improve your social media activity. Don’t let it go to waste! And make the most of 2015 by also giving back to your community. May it be a wonderful 2015 for your social media, business and personal life!