I‘ve had two interviews over the past month that involved digital and TV and it‘s gotten me thinking about what we could be doing better in SA. And after spending time immersed in the UK and European media, it‘s evident that SA is still a bit underdeveloped in some respects.
Maybe South Africa has changed in the time I have been away, but when I left, effectively integrating digital and TV was more of a gimmick than anything else. I‘m not talking about our lower LSM channels like SABC and ETV, I‘m focusing more on the DSTV‘s and the MNET‘s. It just didn‘t appear to be well thought out. It was mostly a hashtag that we stuck in the corner of the screen, in the hopes that someone would notice and just magically know what to do with it.
Social TV:
- There is a heavy emphasis on social TV in the UK. It‘s huge over here. Both the channel and the show invest a lot of time educating the viewers before, during and after the show about how they can be part of the community.
- The shows not only advertise their social presence on TV, but in their print ads and even in the odd case, radio.
- They advertise the actual hashtag weeks in advance and actively encourage viewers to get involved in the conversation for the long-term.
- It‘s not just Idols and a Sunday night news show that are doing it, it‘s almost every single show on television. From Soap Operas, to Comedies, to the more larger events.
- The shows follow-up on their promise of a conversation and a community. They direct you to a place and they make sure there is conversation happening there. They don‘t direct you to an empty room.
- The really best of the best don‘t only monitor their online community for the first broadcast, they make sure that every time that show repeats on air, there is someone taking care of that community.
- For example this community is being left completely alone and unmonitored, even though the repeat shows are still flighting regularly on SA TV screens. They‘ve probably run out of budget, but it‘s a shame because there is valuable conversation happening and no one is following up on it.
Adverts:
- Supermarkets are pushing people to their websites, NOT their stores. They offer shortcodes specific to the advert, that people can redeem online to take advantage of certain offers. What really stood out to me is that they promote their online sales and discounts, versus their in-store discounts.
- E-commerce companies are advertising on TV and quite aggressively during primetime. I‘d say that of the 10 ads I watched per ad break, at least 3-6 would be for online retailers.
- Web hosting companies and website builders are advertising their services through TV. I‘ll admit, the day I see Afrihost advertising on MNET, is the day I will fall off my chair.
- Companies like LOVEFiLM have bought up tons and tons of slots during primetime.
DVDs:
- New releases now offer a digital version inside the box. Basically, you buy the DVD, log on to the website, enter your code and get to download the film to your computer. Not only do you get the disc, but you now get a digital copy as well.
These are just a few things that I‘ve picked up on and I know I‘m sort of comparing apples and oranges here. SA is the third world, with first world infrastructure and these countries are first world through and through.
But it‘s a little food for thought on how we could be better, because we can always be better.
About the author: Check out Robyn’s blog at www.robynhobson.com or follow her on Twitter @robynhobson
