National syndication companies provide TV stations with popular shows no longer on their original networks. Shows like Seinfeld, Big Bang Theory and Modern Family are non-primetime programming staples. Plus, there are new entries as well. So at the PromaxBDA Station Summit last week in Las Vegas, the syndication companies looked to meet with station creative […]
National syndication companies provide TV stations with popular shows no longer on their original networks. Shows like Seinfeld, Big Bang Theory and Modern Family are non-primetime programming staples. Plus, there are new entries as well.
So at the PromaxBDA Station Summit last week in Las Vegas, the syndication companies looked to meet with station creative services directors to roll out any new show marketing and to go over what’s available for existing programs.
Some syndication companies conduct their business in large conference rooms filled with station creatives. Large TV monitors on display show sizzle reels of clips and promo spots from their programming. It’s big, bold, flashy and very Hollywood.
Others, like 20th Television, get personal. Mood lighting, soft music, small meeting areas for one-on-ones that feel more living room than business. There’s makeover stations and massage tables, organic juices and cold water with slices of cucumbers for their guests. Very Zen and upscale California feeling.
I stopped in to relax and found Richard DuMont, 20th Television’s SVP of marketing, staring at the 8-foot gold statue of the Family Guy’s Peter Griffin sitting in the center of the room.
In addition to Family Guy, 20th Television has a dozen or so other syndicated programs including The Simpsons, Bones, How I Met Your Mother and Bob’s Burgers.
20th Television is one of the largest distributor of off-net comedies and dramas in the country.
“All of our shows are still very important to us,” says DuMont. “We provide episodic TV and radio spots for just about every show every day.”
And although some shows may be in their second or third year of syndication, DuMont says they treat each show special.
“Modern Family is going into its third year, but we’re treating that as if it’s like a launch again. We’re producing a big series of promos for it and a contest this summer that’s leading into the launch.”
DuMont says what the stations want is marketing support, “what we can help them with that’s new and different.”
Recently, 20th Television launched a social media tool for some of its shows that allows it to post program marketing messages automatically on the stations’ Facebook wall, complete with the stations’ logo.
When I mention how most TV station creative services directors concentrate on their local news, DuMont mentions Dish Nation, a daily send up of celebrity news and other satire, an entertainment magazine with a comedic bent.
“The show is meant to be a news companion. They create a lot of material that is useful to news directors. We create extra material that we feed to the stations, like Hollywood Minute, Weekend Update, and movie reviews.”
DuMont sums up 20th Television’s approach to its stations as turnkey: “So they don’t have to do anything.”
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