Cinemax Cinemas: REFORMATTING A NETWORK PREMIERE

Credits & Description:

Advertiser: CINEMAX
Agency: PHD
Category: Publications & Media
Advertising campaign: REFORMATTING A NETWORK PREMIERE
Coordinator: Brianna Lynch (Phd)
Account Supervisor: Dan Rodriguez (Campfire)
Group Account Director: Andrea Cardamone (Phd)
Director/Cinemax Brand Marketing: Jason Mulderig (Hbo)
Coordinator/Cinemax Brand Marketing: Emily Carr (Hbo)
Svp Marketing: Chris Spadaccini (Hbo)
Digital Supervisor: Jamie Borg (Phd)
Digital Strategist: Regina Sommese (Phd)
Associate Strategy Director: Jamil Thompson (Phd)

Execution
We knew that our media execution would need to be something that’s never been done before, something alternative. In a U.S. market where television networks never release full premier footage before a linear, on-channel broadcast, we shook up that model by:•Working with promotional agency partner Campfire, Cinemax and the premier social lift media platform, Buzzfeed to create a 12-page rendition of the entire first episode in Animated GIFs, which launched prior to the on-channel premiere, on the Buzzfeed website. The entire episode was able to be shared in “snackable” clips in this format. •Secondly, we defied the traditional television series launch model by making the premiere episode available for viewing simultaneously with the on-channel broadcast, through YouTube, driving traffic through Google Search and TruView products

Effectiveness
By virtue of a cross-medium, multi-million dollar ad campaign, Banshee was Cinemax’s highest rated original series, delivering 970,000 on-channel viewers of episode 1, on premiere night (this represents a 7% increase over the premier of the previous highest rated original series). That’s a fantastic feat in itself…but consider that our activation of the GIF premiere and full episode on YouTube delivered 92,793 incremental views of episode 1! This 10% of the on-channel viewership number was driven at 1% of the total media campaign cost. In addition, Banshee was touted across over 25+ entertainment/trade media publication websites as “ the first TV series to premiere in animated GIFs”

Strategy
As a premium cable network seeking to re-brand itself and demonstrate that it intends to be a major player in the escalating competition around original programming in the U.S., Cinemax needed a communication solution that would underscore the originality of its new series, Banshee, while also building awareness of the premiere amongst its core audience: savvy, unconventional, adult males. Audience research confirmed that our target of male Cinemax subscribers identify with the radical in media and entertainment; a quality that they’ve come to associate with the Cinemax brand. Our execution would need to be original, alternative, and unorthodox.The campaign strategy was to introduce Cinemax Subscribers to the original narrative of Banshee in an original manner. We did this by premiering the entire first episode through two alternative media platforms coveted by the target audience, thus drawing connection between the novelty of the series and the originality of Cinemax’s promotion.