Fall TV Marketing Strategy: NBC

09.22.2014

​NBC is trying to lure viewers to its new fall lineup with everything from faux magazine covers, to urban murals, to virtual reality experiences in the hopes of being everywhere their viewers are in this age of rapidly changing television habits.

Much of NBC's marketing manpower and resources have gone into promoting the returns of their two hit properties: The Blacklist and The Voice.

For The Blacklist, which was one of the breakout debuts of last season, NBC has gone big with a campaign designed to turn the criminal mastermind at the center of the story, Raymond Reddington, into a pop culture icon.

"He is Brad Pitt. He is Bono. He is Lady Gaga. He has a little Al Capone," said Sharon Allen, svp of marketing strategy at NBC. "As we're looking to launch this season, that's the sweet spot. We need to turn him into an icon."

A "Red is Back in Black" preview spot features the AC/DC anthem "Back in Black" and a series of great Reddington one-liners and moments from the first season.

NBC also commissioned a series of street murals in six major cities: New York, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Chicago, Dallas, and Los Angeles that harnessed the creativity of local artists to spread the series' brand and identity. Each of the "American is Seeing Red" murals, which can be seen at theblacklistmurals.com, features Reddington, the series title, and NBC initials.

And then, of course, there was the extensive campaign of faux magazine covers about which Brief has previously written.

For The Voice, NBC wanted to capitlize on the singing competition's iconic element-its rotating judge's chair-in a a new and exciting way. Previous campaigns have seen the chair go on tour across America, with viewers allowed to take a seat and snap a selfie. But NBC upped the ante this year with an Oculus Rift virtual reality experience that took viewers straight to the set.

In the live-action experience, judge Blake Shelton gives up his chair to the viewer, who can look from side to side and see the rest of the judging panel, returning coach Adam Levine and newcomers Pharrell and Gwen Stefani. New York, Chicago, and L.A. were treated to the Occulus Rift experience.

"It's such an immersive experience, and a great way to break through the clutter and be different," Allen said.

Aside from the returning hits, NBC is framing it's new Wednesday lineup of The Mysteries of Laura, Law & Order: SVU, and Chicago P.D. around the women at the center of each show.

Taking a cue from the popular #WomenCrushWednesdays meme on Instagram and other social networks, NBC cut a spot featuring actresses Debra Messing, Mariska Hargitay, and Sophia Bush.

"We had a great night of crime procedurals, and these three fabulous leading ladies who are strong independent women," Allen said. "All three of these ladies are women crushes. We took this organic thing and put it together,and it's a great way to introduce the new show, but also help push Chicago PD in its second season.

For Constantine, the new Friday night genre fare based on the popular comic series, NBC went big at this year's San Diego Comic-Con with a push to get fans excited and buzzing early on. More than 9.7 million people have viewed the official trailer online since it was released just after Upfronts in May. "Constantine is definitely a series that fans have latched on to," Allen said. "This is a character that has been around for more than 20 years, and people have an affection for him. We're very pleased that the show is very true to the original."