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Indian Social Media

5 social media mistakes that cost Channel V

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Sarmistha Neogy
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Channel V

Social Samosa takes a look Channel V's social media strategy and how the brand could have avoided certain mistakes.

Twitteratis from the 90s have been mourning ever since the news of Channel V shutting started appearing. The channel has been a source of great joy and huge entertainment for many, especially when there was no YouTube or NETFLIX. From Lola Kutty to Purab Kohli and Anusha Dandekar, it was a platform for several VJs and emerging singers in the last few years. It even played a huge role in introducing the indipop culture to the youth.

In 2015, Channel V decided to stop focusing on music and concentrate only on fiction and non-fiction shows  for the youth. However, last year, the channel realized that it was not working for them and hence, decided to once again become a 24 hour music channel for the youth. According to recent reports, because of falling TRPs, Star India has decided to pull the plug on Channel V.

Last year after Channel V decided to enter the music genre space competing with established players like Mastiii, B4U Music, Sony MIX, 9XM and 9X Jalwa. Cracking this category was not an easy job and it required focus and strategizing, which was surely missing looking with their constant re-positioning attempts. As a youth channel, Channel V faced stiff competition from players such as  Zing, MTV, Bindass which lead ratings charts.

Either way, the brand's intention was to stay connected with today's youth, for which one needs to be at the top of the game on social media.

1.) Missing out on the second screen experience

In the multi-screen era, the brand could have created some exclusive or reposted its television content with certain uniformity to build appointment viewership on YouTube and its other social media handles.

Youth based shows on the channel - Dil Dosti Dance, Gumrah End of Innocence, Heroes, Dare 2 Date, V- The Serial, Get Gorgeous, had amassed a huge fan following. Thorough marketing and retargeting of these shows to relevant audiences, would have helped the brand not only build television viewership, but also helped them enter the online content world.

2.) Not evolving with the content ecosystem 

The content ecosystem has now evolved completely. Publishers are now content creators and creators are distributors. Channel V has easy access to quality production facilities, something that the brand could have used to create Channel V originals for their digital audience.

3.) Relevant content

A great way to connect with the audience is by sharing things, which people are keen on consuming, for e.g. relevant birthday messages and important events, parties and gossip. People are always keen to sneak a peek in celebrities' lives. For instance, the picture of Sagarika Ghatge and Zaheer's Khan's wedding was shared by popular music channels on their social media accounts.

When they switched back to being a music channel, the brand could have unearthed the whole celebrity trivia and news universe, which has a surprisingly huge demand in the digital world. Their Twitter did offer certain content, however, there is a sudden gap post June this year.

4) Missing out on engagement

The audience should be offered a variety of content. The posts should be made interactive and fun. Teasers also works well with the audience today, because it excites the audience and keeps them wanting to see more. A well-balanced use of content of this kind, could have worked in favour of Channel V.

5) No Closure

Even if the channel has decided to shut shop, a clarification from Channel V on social media would have put a better closure to it. Channel V's social media account was last updated on June 21 and there have been no posts after that. All of a sudden the channel decides to not update the social media page doesn't go down well with the 382,000 followers on their Twitter page alone.

In spite of a major revamp, which included a logo change and also a shift in the positioning of the content last year, Channel V couldn't get their strategy right. We will surely miss the platform, which has helped in creating several fond memories of our childhood.

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