AFTER SEEING THE one spot CTV has for Hiccups & Dan For Mayor about a million times now during Olympics coverage (even though they're still being stingy with it) one is still struck by how hamfisted TV promotion is in this country, and how much we're held back by that.
Here you have record audiences set to promote your two new properties. You're building off a franchise that people loved, "Corner Gas."
So alright...I can understand doing a generic with them both that says, "Hey, you liked these guys when they were on CG and now they're in two new shows." But that's an awful lot to pack into a :30. So you'd think they'd also give each show its own :30 and mix it up a bit... oh, I don't know, maybe even tease out a few longer clips so that you get a sense of what the shows might be about? But nope.
So now -- best case scenario -- you'll have a slightly confused populace who isn't really sure whether there are two shows or one. And then when they turn in Hiccups, they're liable to be confused that Butt is only in a supporting role -- because they haven't been set up that Nancy Robertson is the star of the show.
Is that deliberate on CTV's part? I don't know. Even if it is, setting up expectations like that gives the show freight off the top that's just unfair.
When you tune in the pre-promos for any of the U.S. network shows in the summer, or even over Christmas for the mid-season shows, they are things of beauty.
Even sometimes when they take a run at trying to raise your awareness about an underperforming show, they're great. Over Christmas, NBC pushed "Mercy" so hard, and with such engaging and kind of sexy promos, they actually made me want to check it out again, after dismissing it as not my thing back in late October.
The thing that kills me is that since CTV swallowed the assets of CHUM, I know that they happen to have some of the most passionate, talented, and committed promo producers in the country. I know because I worked with these guys. And I know that for the past few years, they've been Ferraris asked to keep to school-zone speeds.
The talent's there. It's the will that's weak.
So it's left to the shows to try and promote themselves. Brent Butt's taken to Twitter, and Dan For Mayor has little videos up on YouTube, like this one:
Oh well. Maybe things will get better when CTV unloads that used podium. They really should have rented that thing. I think the whole podium market's in a big bubble now. I really do.
Anyway. Gotta go. Game's on.
2 comments:
Yep, I agree.
Whenever a Canadian tv production starts it's promo ramp-up, I tend to say to myself 'Self, just wait to hear if people are talking aboot this here show, now. Cause I'll be damned if I know what it's on aboot. That one looks like it's aboot horsies n' harlots.' (it was Heartland). 'Oh, hey, this one's aboot homeless demons' (Death Comes to Town) 'and that there mayor likes to get punched in the nose by his funny talkin constituents. Whut kinda republic izzat onnyways?' (Republic of Doyle) 'and these guys are loyal to some town and they got guns' (The Bridge).
And you know what? I'm not even joking. Most tv promos made in Canada don't hint at much more than that. I still can't tell what 'The Bridge' is about from the ads alone. Heck, even a show about a serial killer has great ads setting up such a convoluted idea. clickeroo
and I know there are experienced promo crews dying to reach as far for local shows. Let 'em!
Woops, that was a fan promo there. Try this one instead. Sets up the whole thing!
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