Tonight is Halloween, and in honor of the spookiest night of the year, we have an inside look at FX’s new hit drama, American Horror Story from SVP Marketing at FX, Sally Daws. The show was only picked-up in July and stars Friday Night Lights favorite Connie Britton (and was co-created by Glee creator Ryan Murphy), and it has leveraged the social web in the short period of time the network had between the show’s announcement and air-date.
Daws explains how they strategically put a team together of vendors who were “well versed in the horror space.” If you’re at home tonight and want to be spooked, tune-in to FX who will be running a marathon of the already-aired episodes starting at 10pm Eastern. GetGlue is also offering Halloween stickers for the Gen-Y-favorite “Are You Afraid of the Dark,” on Teen Nick and SyFy’s Ghost Hunters, live event tonight.
LostRemote: What was considered when developing a social plan for American Horror Story?
Sally Daws: We knew early on that we had a show that would work well in the social space. It felt like the perfect way to introduce AHS. The show was not picked up until July, which was a bit of a timing challenge, but we knew we could leverage the existing rich community of horror fans online. We also wanted to capitalize on what we thought would be a really buzzy show based on the horror theme, the actors, and creators of AHS.
LR: How did you build up buzz before the show?
SD: We were very strategic about how each piece of content was released. We wanted to tease and excite viewers with provocative content that made them want to discover and know more. We partnered with portals to release exclusive video teases with #AHSFX. This started the conversation on Twitter. We continued to release content online and on-air that all promoted the hashtag and drove conversation.
We also developed three distinct digital campaigns. Each campaign had dynamic social hooks.
The first one that went live was “American Horror House calls”. We asked them to “let us in” and sign up at ahshousecall.com to come face to face with a character from AHS. By signing up they provided us with the name of a friend or family member to help us design their specific house call. The house calls were filmed with hidden cameras and released online for fans to watch, share and discuss.
We followed up quickly with “You’re going to die in there.com” (above). By visiting, YoureGoingtoDieinThere.com, participants were able to explore a historical timeline with clues to crimes of past decades in the house symbolizing thematic storylines of the show itself and stimulating users to share their experience via social outlets including facebook, getglue and twitter.
The “American Horror Story: Family Portrait” experience enabled users to discover clues and details about each of the characters through text or cryptic videos.
We were also pushing fans to the AHS FB page to see exclusive content and share it with friends.
LR: Was the cast and crew involved at all with social promotions?
SD: We shot exclusive interview and behind-the-scenes footage with the cast and creators. We used this as part of our content distribution strategy and to populate our FB community. It was important to feed the fans with new information and experiences in the months leading up to premiere.
LR: What was the biggest social success after the show premiered?
SD: During premiere week, we were the #2 checked-in show on Get Glue. The AHS Facebook group has been one of the fastest growing communities for our original series.
LR: What vendors/partners did you work with?
SD: Blitz Interactive developed the official microsite for AHS at FXnetworks.com. We worked with GMR on American Horror House Calls, Campfire on You’re going to die in there.com and Stink Digital on the AHS Family Portrait. The agencies we collaborated with on the digital experiences were well-versed in the horror space and enabled us to leverage their relationships with horror communities and sites. Our immersive experiences were enhanced by integrating the Get Glue social check-in platform. We also partnered with numerous online sites and fan communities.
LR: What are you looking for from a social tv startup?
SD: We would look at what was unique about their offering versus other competitors in the space. What would be the possible integration points for FXnetworks.com, on-air and via our social platforms.
LR: Why the FX branded hashtags? As supposed to an organic one?
SD: We embrace all hashtags! But when we are starting from zero recognition on a show, we want to attribute the show to FX in as many places as possible, and make sure people know where to find it. We look at all tactics, even ones in the social space, as opportunities to drive tune-in and awareness.
Just take a look at the opening credits (above) for the show and you’ll be freaked out. Now all the writers need to keep viewers interested and scared as the season progresses.