Netflix Does it Right
There is likely not a person who is active on Twitter who hasn’t seen a comedic tweet from the Netflix US account (@netflix).
The brand is extremely active on social media, engaging with fans, promoting their shows (series premiers, new seasons, renewals), and staying up to date with current events — and by that, I mean current memes.
Firstly, Netflix has a style that they use when promoting their originals. Their images have high saturation and contrast value. For example:
One of their most popular series, Riverdale:
Dear White People:
Seth Rogan’s charity special, Hilarity for Charity:
A Series of Unfortunate Events:
13 Reasons Why:
Apart from the Netflix logo on the poster, this style makes it easy to pick out a Netflix original from a crowd. Not only does this style appear on twitter, but it is cohesive across all of their social media platforms, which makes their audiences even more familiar with who the poster belongs to when they see the saturated colours.
Netflix also uses video content to promote their upcoming shows and films.
They do standard trailers for their new/renewed series, which usually always end with their logo being shown at the end. Netflix does a great job at branding content as their own, as content affiliated with Netflix usually has a pretty good reputation. Personally, unless I have heard of the show before, I am more likely to watch a Netflix original when browsing Netflix for something to watch, because pretty much every original I have watched, I have liked. They have built a trust with their viewers that the content produced will be good, so seeing that red “Netflix” logo across a poster or a trailer makes viewers likely to assume it will be good.
Along with trailers, they also put out other video content to promote their shows. For example, Seth Rogan’s short 1 minute skit promoting his charity special. The video features him sitting at a table with a Netflix representative while he reads over a contract that essentially signs away all creative rights he has until he dies.
The skit plays on the fact that those who work with Netflix are often criticized because while it is a good way to get your show out there, Netflix gains a majority of rights and you don’t continue to make money off of your show over time, like you would if you went the traditional route. Netflix and Rogen use comedy to make it known that they are a self-aware brand.
One thing Netflix is known for is their up to date comedic commentary on current events and especially, current memes.
Netflix doesn’t miss a meme.
“If you don’t love me at my….. You don’t deserve me at my…..” ? Yup.
Netflix originals tournament? Of course.
Weird star meme that I still don’t get? Check.
And you best believe they have their own Walmart Yodel kid meme #Yodeldale
(Click the link to watch. Its worth it. https://twitter.com/netflix/status/983733673508810752)
Staying current and up to date with what their target audience is seeing on Twitter is another way they continue to build and maintain their relationship with their audience. The @Netflix account feels like just another one of your friends posting and retweeting funny things online, rather than a brand trying to sell you something. However, that is probably one of the most effective ways to market and brand themselves. Audiences are more likely to remember someone who makes a meme out of their new show, rather than another “Watch our show!! Premiering ______!!!” advertisement. Those are just so easy to skip over nowadays.
Not only do they relate memes to their content, but they also make themselves a meme. For example, the joke that Netflix Canada has literally no good shows.
Going back to how the @Netflix twitter account feels like just another one of your friends, is the fact that they aren’t afraid to roast anyone and everyone.
A Christmas Prince:
Neil deGrasse Tyson, who has in the past pointed out scientific holes in Star Wars and many other things including Friday the 13th.
Netflix has had enough of you, Neil.
Fan Interaction
While they can be ruthless at times, they are also very good at engaging positively with their fans.
A classic Neflix move is replying to fans tweets with GIFs
They are constantly retweeting fan’s tweets onto their profile
One recent interaction that really stood out to me was their response to a recent viral tweet.
@ayenalambat on twitter posted: “my brother invited 8 of his classmates for his stranger things bday party & none of their punk selves showed up”
Not only did the tweet go viral and have twitter users promising that they would have shown up if invited, it also had members of the Stranger Things cast promising that they would show up if they received an invite for next year’s birthday.
Netflix saw this and got in on wishing Aaron a happy birthday. They created a video giving a shoutout to his awesome Stranger Things decorations and had the actor who plays Chief Hopper wish him happy birthday. However, it wasn’t just an ordinary happy birthday, the actor said “Happy birthday Aaaroooooooooooooon,” which happens to be a Filipino party game, as the little boy, Aaron, is Filipino.
Netflix really went above and beyond for that one. They saw how much effort was put into the party and they felt that it needed to truly be recognized and appreciated because those who he invited didn’t give it that appreciation.
It isn’t an accident that Netflix is so popular and such a hit with millennials and Generation Z. Their great shows are partly responsible for their success, but I think that much of the hype comes from their social media pages and their followings. They managed to understand and perfect the marketing strategy that brands are now trying to tap into and that is relating to the fans and target demographic. In any marketing or business course I have ever taken in school, the big question is “What is my target demographic going to pay attention to? What is going to catch their eye?” Companies spend mass amounts of money trying to subliminally advertise to their audiences but traditional marketing is becoming something of the past. Millennials and Generation Z are now smarter and savvier than they have ever been and they know when a brand is just trying to make money off of them. That isn’t something that works with them anymore.
While Netflix started off like any other company in terms of marketing, they paid attention to who was interacting with them. They built a relationship with their customers that has stayed genuine. While they do engage with their fans about their own content, it is because the fans want to talk about their shows. Talking informally and cracking jokes with the creators of your favourite series is something that in the past, was unheard of. Companies and brands that take advantage of opportunities like social media are the ones who are most successful. Netflix took advantage of it and became a part of their following. They became one of their following. To their audience, Netflix doesn’t feel like another big company who is untouchable and only pays attention to complaints to avoid lawsuits. If you roast Netflix, they’ll roast you right back.
While some may comment that Netflix is unprofessional for interacting and representing themselves in such a way, it works. They are the top streaming site worldwide for a reason and their success is a large reason why the traditional television industry is competing with digital streaming services. Perhaps the producers of Netflix wouldn’t be pleased with me giving the credit of their success to their social media page, it definitely deserves some recognition because for the surprising amount of time I spend on Netflix, I rarely decide what to watch next because of an ad on the website. It is usually from the things I see on their social media.
