Why hasn't this IMS taken off?

[Terryfic]

I am curious to hear people's theories on why this show hasn't become a huge success?

It is a different format than the other two really popular fictional IMS that we follow, NoHoGirls and Lonelygirl15, is that a big detracting factor? Do people only want fictional IMS that look like normal blogs?

Is it just a marketing issue? Is it too hard to get your name out there in the massive amounts of videos on YouTube? Does someone have to spam people (random PMs, leaving lots of comments to pimp your video) to get views? Is the only way to get an initial audience to make response videos to popular users like LG and Katers did? Or is gaming the only real answer these days?

What are your thoughts on how to get attention to a new IMS?

[BaileysMom]

Wow - great question Terry.

You can find this series on the group's own website, YouTube and apparently also at ITunes. So, obviously distribution/access is not an issue.

I can't remember exactly how I stumbled onto LG15 - I do remember I was searching for the "Evolution of Dance" video after seeing that guy (and a blurb about YouTube) on the Today Show. Is my experience - stumbling upon a series - fairly typical?

At this point, I find YouTube so hard to get around that I am mostly dependent on word-of-mouth (here at the Cove or from friends and family that pass them along) for viewing possibilities. And now with YouTube pimping all of the TV clips, I think it will be even harder to find a series on your own.

I also think relying on a response video can be very limiting - perhaps I am not the typical LG15 fan, but I generally do not watch the response videos as I find them, um, erm, uncomfortable to watch for the most part. I did watch the Lonesome October and Terryfic (that's you!) videos but again, word-of-mouth here in the Cove is how I found them.

Lastly, the gaming side of things is interesting but it will not be the main draw for me. At least not yet.

[milowent]

i wonder how many people view this series through itunes/ipods? they call it a "podcast" on their mainsite, which suggests it was at least originally directed toward ipod owners (at least those with the fancy newest ipods that play video, which i don't have). as for youtube/revver views, i think some kind of marketing is key. even this IMS includes a nod to lonelygirl15 in one video -- and i remember someone posting about that here when it happened.

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And Bailey'sMom - when considering whether to watch response videos (which is something i only do ocassionally), i usually click on the link to see the list of all response videos and look for ones that have a fair number of views, on the theory they may be the better ones (and that strategy led me to renetto's LG15 responses, which were funny). i also tend to skip long response videos. if the response video is longer than what it responds to, it's likely to be too slow and boring for me to watch.

[jayhenry]

baileysmom said:

You can find this series on the group's own website, YouTube and apparently also at ITunes. So, obviously distribution/access is not an issue.

Mmm... I think distribution/access is the issue. Here's a good show that people can't find because it's floating in a sea of refuse. YouTube, as a company and a community, have failed to sort through the garbage to find quality content.

Podcasts are the same way -- there's approximately seven million podcasts.

It's sorta how sometimes you walk down the street and see really attractive people like myself and think "Why isn't Jay Henry a professional model." Just because I have access to the street doesn't mean I have access to an audience.

[Jennifer]

The reason I like NoHO girls is that it is more related to real life. LG15 and the Sam thing are just too far fetched for me.

If fantasy entertainment is your thing then go for it, but the most popular programming for the masses is stuff based on real life drama. I could quote Coronation Street and Eastenders in the UK as soaps which get the biggest viewing figures. No doubt the US has equivalents; friends etc.

LG15 seemed to get all her publicity from being a girl messing around in her bedroom, proving science wrong, and fantasising with her soft toys. People can relate to that kind of thing more easily. Now she is chasing round the country sleeping in motels escaping from a cult, doubts begin to creep in.

I guess successful stories need both kinds of action to keep up interest, but everyone can empathise with the bedroom and living room stuff much better because that is where they relate to themselves.

[kleenex]

I agree with JayHenry - I think its all about marketing - LG15 comes out on a regular basis, and has a simple story line that anyone can get into at any time, and has one hot chick as the spokesperson for all the videos - she's the star - SHSF has a much more complicated plot and you need to start from the beginning - there's a lot of characters, and I think there's an inherent laziness factor in most people that hurts the series - a lot of people don't want to go back and watch 80 vids - they want it quick and fast and now and don't want to look back - just forward as the story unfolds - I guess that's human nature I guess...

[Terryfic]

kleenex said:

a lot of people don't want to go back and watch 80 vids - they want it quick and fast and now and don't want to look back - just forward as the story unfolds - I guess that's human nature I guess...

Hmmm, that is an interesting idea. Perhaps the idea of having a single long story arc (like a season long arc) shows should have a constant supply of short story arcs. It has become all the rave these days to make tv shows that have season long arcs, but since an internet series does have a season and no logical place to end then it should be more like old sitcoms where everything wraps up in that episode.

Yeah, I really think you are on to something. LG use to work more like that, with a series of very short stories that concluded in a video or two, but still had an underlining story. NoHos has always been about short stories. I think because of this both these shows were more inviting to new viewers.

[Jennifer]

I think Noho girls et al is more a mixture of stories. There are some short ones like Blue's dog, over in two or three eps while longer threads like the sex tape or Brady's feud with Blue rumble on over the whole series as we know it so far. In this respect, it mirrors life, which is my interpretation of the natural affinity people have with a show like that.

[paul]

Do you also feel that the date of her death being published sort of became a turn off because it put a physical end date to the show? I did wonder upfront if I should invest the time because it would end on a certain date.

I don't see anything wrong with the storyline being far fetched. I know that one of our next IMS projects is going to deal with the supernatural. That's what is so great about the net is that there is something for everyone's taste.

[Terryfic]

I actually liked the fact that it had an end date, that let you know that they had the story fully thought out and that it was going to end. A story should have a beginning and ending, being up front about the end date was never a problem for me. When I watch TV I know an episode will end at the hour, and usually know the date of the season finale. Likewise with a book I know how many pages away from the end I am. I think knowing the end date is a nice way to be able to try and predict how much action is coming up.

I would rather the series have a set end date, then have the writers keep making stuff up and trying to extend the length of the story just to keep it going.