Streaming continues to revolutionize how people consume content, with platforms like Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ dominating global viewing habits. Social media has contributed to this technology's evolution, with around a third of consumers, including 59% of Gen Zers, watching TV shows or movies after hearing about them from creators online. Plus, more than half of Gen Zers and millennials say they get better recommendations for content on social media than on streaming services.
With the SVOD subscription rate reaching a plateau in many regions, social media is a critical channel for marketing departments in the media & entertainment and streaming industries. Teams now want to focus on pushing existing content that remains popular with audiences, especially when global film and TV production continues to decline.
This blog will explore the impact of social media on streaming services, social media as an information channel, and how it has become an effective tool to pull audiences to various platfroms.
Impact of social media on streaming
X, TikTok, Facebook, and other social media networks often increase online visibility for streaming content, making it an effective way to drive engagement and word-of-mouth marketing. Take "Squid Game," for example. After its release on Netflix, fans took to TikTok to discuss plotlines, hidden details, and other elements, contributing to the show's enormous cultural influence. This, in turn, pulled newer viewers to the platform after they came across these fan originated discussions.
Other streaming shows have also gained traction on social media, with users hosting watching parties and sharing clips of their favorite scenes. These interactions are transforming how people consume content. Audiences now want ways to engage with the shows they love, with successful streaming franchises becoming a shared, almost community-like experience on social platforms.
Social media as an information channel
Social media allows streaming services to announce upcoming releases, post trailers, and share exclusive content. Netflix, for instance, posts bloopers from some of its most popular shows—including "Grace and Frankie"— on YouTube, which can build viewer loyalty and audience engagement.
Trending topics on social media, such as reactions to popular shows, can influence what content streamers display on their pages, potentially increasing viewership. Marketers can also stitch together clips from media libraries to create engaging promos, stories, and ads.
Challenges in creating content
Creating content for various social platforms can be difficult and time-consuming. The streaming market is hypercompetitive and oversaturated, with multiple platforms fighting for viewers' attention. That can make it difficult for marketers to promote their shows on social media organically, especially if they have limited resources. Paid-for ads might be one way to cut through the noise. However, 74% of people are tired of this type of advertising.
Another challenge is finding content for social media from vast media libraries. If something goes viral online, savvy marketers can find a relevant clip from a movie or TV show to capitalize on that virality. However, manually searching hours of content might not be possible for busy marketing teams.
Overcoming these challenges, however, can be lucrative. Around 30% of users watch trailers on social media before deciding to stream content according to a report by statista. Another PwC report claims that 78% of consumers indicated that social media plays a major role in influencing their decision to watch a new show or subscribe to a streaming service.
How to make social media marketing more efficient
Marketing teams can capitalize on social media trends and promote streaming shows in various ways. The latest technologies,powered by AI, make the following possible:
- Letting marketers search their media libraries using metadata tags like cast and crew names, specific actions (goals, street fights, races etc.), objects on screen, quotes spoken by cast members, and other criteria.
- Automating clip discovery and creation of content highlights to reduce searching and editing time, allowing marketers to respond to social trends quickly.
- Translating viral clips for localized audiences while ensuring cultural nuances and regional sensitivities are accounted for.
- Adding subtitles to viral clips for audiences watching content on mute (preferably with next-gen subtitling).
How to leverage social media marketing for streaming
Here are some ways marketers can take advantage of social media platforms when promoting streaming content:
- Uploading short clips and memes to platforms that promote content and encourage conversation.
- Sharing exclusive clips and other content with online fandoms on YouTube and other over-the-top (OTT) platforms.
- Creating a compilation of controversial bits from interviews with producers, cast, directors and others from a show or movie.
- Hosting live chats with actors, directors, and producers on social media—for example, Reddit's AMA (Ask Me Anything).
Streamers often react to trending topics, news stories, and cultural movements on social media. Throughout the Olympics, for example, Netflix posted clips from sports-related documentaries on X, including "Simone Biles Rising" and "Sprint." This was possible because their team could easily access clips relevant to trending topics from their media libraries.
Thinking outside the box
Marketers need to stand out from the crowd when promoting streaming shows on social media. Creating content and then optimizing it with AI Metadata that identifies people, objects, keywords, and more is one way to do this. Translating clips for different regional audiences using the latest technologies is another great idea. By thinking outside the box, marketers can target both casual viewers and established fans to generate excitement about the latest shows.