Twitter Amplify team locks up first ever TV upfront deal with The CW and Ford
Beginning last night with The Flash and extending through Q3 2017, Twitter, The CW, and Ford are rolling out the first ever Twitter Amplify deal for a TV upfront. As part of the deal, which also includes the shows Supergirl, Arrow, and DC's Legends of Tomorrow, The CW will create content from weekly recaps to sneak peaks and Ford will be able to promote video tweets from CW handles along with running pre-roll ads before the content.
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Networks have sold in Twitter packages to advertisers in the past, but the length of the deal and the number of shows it includes is impressive.
“Social buying is not new, but we’re excited to see something of this scale and time happening with Amplify this year,” Mike Park, Director of Content Partnerships & Amplify, Twitter, told Found Remote. “Savvy marketers know that connected audiences are talking about TV shows on Twitter. This is an incremental revenue opportunity for our partners, so it absolutely makes sense that these discussions are happening and will continue to happen."
The DC series on The CW are among the network’s most popular, especially on Twitter, allowing Ford to reach a highly engaged social audience within a core demo. Ford is also tapping into an audience that is influential, open to interacting with brands, and consuming plenty of video. According to Twitter’s annual Online Video Playbook 64 percent of Twitter visitors influence the purchases of friends and family, 82 percent actively engage with brands on the platform, and 93 percent of video views on Twitter are on mobile devices.
"The CW's Convergence sales strategy connects advertisers with our audience everywhere they consume our content – on broadcast, on digital platforms, and on social media,” said Rob Tuck, EVP of National Sales, The CW. “Twitter provides us with a perfect opportunity to extend our Convergence efforts in the social space. Our shows and our stars have a huge amount of highly-engaged followers that Tweet and post about our shows daily, and our clients have been asking how they can take advantage of that passionate fan base. Twitter's platform allows us to easily make that connection for advertisers."
As video becomes more of a focus for Twitter, the company has a tremendous opportunity to not only be a part of the social strategy for networks and advertisers but also to get a seat at the table during upfront negotiations.
Flashpoint begins on #TheFlash season premiere, TONIGHT at 8/7c on The CW! pic.twitter.com/X7PHCcwVZj
— The Flash (@CW_TheFlash) October 4, 2016