Sponsorship Woes
May 1st, 2008 by Robert GustafsonPosted in Advertising, Business, Content, Metrics, Our Work, Strategy |
Before launching Flipper Nation as an online series, Alec and I pitched it to A&E television. We thought it would be a perfect fit for a network that was the host of some of the more successful real estate shows like: Flip This House, Find & Design, and Sell This House.
The meeting went very well, and the executive we pitched enjoyed the project, but passed in the room with two very good reasons:
1. The message and tone of a show about two guys who flip houses poorly was completely opposite to the message they were trying to give their viewers. (and subsequently pokes fun of who the people who follow their advice - and fail in doing so).
But most importantly…
2. The message and tone of Flipper Nation went against the message of their advertisers.
In any project you create for the Internet (or TV for that matter), it’s vital to realize that any large ad-based distribution platform such as MySpace or Sony’s Crackle are answerable to their advertisers. After all, companies in this space are here to make money through advertising, since subscription models have not worked thusfar.
In A&E’s case, Lowe’s was among one of the many housing-themed sponsors at the time and the last thing they want is to see a show on A&E that might tell potential costumers that they should give up because it’s impossible to win.
Even though that wasn’t exactly our message, satire is a difficult line to tread and giving customers the wrong impression wasn’t a risk they wanted to take.
On the flip side (pun intended), Axe deodorant spray took a risk to host the “World’s Dirtiest Film Festival” contest on collegehumor.com - and it paid off! Axe, as a brand, was loose enough for new media because online comedy fits their “anything goes” attitude. Sure, people were up in arms about it, but it worked.
So, as we look into re-launching Flipper Nation, the questions we’ll be asking ourselves are:
- Who would be willing to advertise on our show?
- Should we even bother approaching brands who cannot take a risk (or a joke)?
