Developing Original Branded Series for Platforms: NAB 2022

The largest showcase of its kind with over 55,000 attendees, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) brings together media, technology and industry to discuss and show off the latest developments and innovations. Following a two-year hiatus of in-person events due to COVID restrictions, this year’s show was back and better than ever – with live streaming at the forefront of discussions.

The event featured speakers across the industry, with unparalleled insight into the future of broadcast and technology. Butcher Bird director and producer, Lillian Diaz-Przybyl, had the opportunity to participate in one of this year’s most engaging panels, “Developing Original Branded Series for Platforms.” This conversation dug into how to develop effective episodic stories, align with creator personalities, activate interactive audiences, and organically celebrate the brand along the way.

Alongside Catherine Halaby, (Entertainment Content Partnerships, TikTok) and moderated by John Canning, (Director of Developer Relations, AMD for Creators) the panel endeavored to answer the question: how do you combine leading influencers, massive fan communities, the world’s largest interactive platforms, and the biggest brands to create content that both entertains and engages audiences?

Among the key trends for NAB this year, we saw discussions of streaming innovations around user experience fueling the show with the West Hall entirely dedicated to companies transforming content within the video streaming spaces. We’ve brought together some key takeaways on how to develop branded series for platforms from Lillian’s panel.

Key Takeaways

• Your aim is to build a rapport with your audience. Brands are now faced with the opportunity to shape their own narrative via online, social-driven platforms. You need to not only tap into audience motivations, but actively engage with them: you need to be  part of the community!
• Brands should be able to experiment. Each show iteration should be a learning process. In digital spaces, you have the advantage of seeing real-time feedback and engagement with your content. Experimentation is vital. Try different styles of content and see how your audiences respond!
• You have to be willing to change your content when releasing it sequentially. The beauty of creating branded series is the opportunity to alter your content. When you involve audiences in decision-making, they become participants in creating the content. They become actively engaged not only with the content itself, but also are aligned with your brand messaging and values.

Interested in developing an original series for your brand? Chat with us for some more insights and suggestions on branded content.

Lillian Diaz-Przybyl is a Producer and Head of Creative Development at Butcher Bird Studios. A true platform-agnostic, Lillian specializes in bringing stories to life in innovative formats and for unconventional audiences including commercial work with Microsoft and Airbnb and directing live stream and broadcast content for Twitch and Netflix. She served as co-creator and showrunner of Butcher Bird’s first narrative series, “Orbital Redux.”