Showmax’s plan to keep South Africans watching

Years ago, Netflix popularised full-season drops, which encouraged binge-viewing. However, many streaming services have since entered the market, making it much more competitive and difficult to retain users.

In the last year, multiple streaming services based in the United States, like Prime Video and Disney+, have started experimenting with different streaming models to increase viewership.

This is according to a report by data company Fabric, which examined the rise of alternative release strategies on streaming platforms.

Although all-in-one drops are still popular, some streamers have started experimenting with launching 2 or 3 episodes initially and then continuing with weekly drops or dividing seasons into batches.

More services have also started splitting season launches into two separate drops. The type of drop depends on the show in question, but the goal is the same: to keep viewers watching for longer.

Locally, Showmax has also been using different release strategies. Showmax’s executive head of content, Tracy-Ann van Rooyen, told Daily Investor that they use different release strategies based on what the content is and what their audiences want from it.

“We look at things like how long the series is and how it’s designed to be watched to decide on the best way to reveal that content to our users,” Van Rooyen said.

“One of the advantages of streaming is how much data we have on customers’ viewing habits, so we are always listening to our audience and learning and adapting.”

For Showmax original dramas, like Adulting, they usually do weekly drops since the big cliffhangers keep people coming back and get people talking.

“These become appointment viewing, where everyone watches at the same time, which helps shows trend week on week as people online mull over what happened in that episode,” Van Rooyen explained.

“So, weekly releases work well when we know a show has enough momentum and talkability to keep the audience coming back week on week.”

Van Rooyen explained that Showmax also uses this strategy for big hype titles scheduled express from the United States, like The Last of Us.

“Titles like these have huge talkability and need to go ‘same time’ with their international premiere to limit spoilers and keep up with what is trending,” she said.

“It would be hard to gain traction with these types of shows if we asked our audiences to wait for them.”

Mixed-release strategy

Van Rooyen explained that Showmax still uses full-season drops, usually for limited series. These shows have a low episode count, so subscribers can binge on the weekend or watch on their own time.

“This works particularly well on serialised stories, where the ending of the series is the most important thing, rather than the ending of an episode,” she said.

Van Rooyen said they often do this with niche series, like Teacup or Happy Face, and air the episodes simultaneously alongside the United States series finale to minimise spoilers.

“We also did this with the latest season of Hacks because we didn’t want to ask our audience to wait a week between 30-minute episodes,” she said.

“With the half-hour comedies, we can see our audiences prefer to watch them all in one go, and often to go back to the beginning of the show and watch it all over and over and over again as each new season comes out.”

This strategy is also being used for Showmax Original documentaries, like The ABC Killer about Moses Sithole, which has three episodes that users can binge in one sitting.

On the other hand, a multi-episode premiere or batch release works better for shows like Succession or Yellowstone, which take a few episodes to hook viewers, Van Rooyen said.

“We’ve also seen success with the Showmax Original Soft Life, with HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones as a half-hour comedy, and with some of our international reality TV,” she said.

“So we might give subscribers three or four episodes to start with to get them hooked, and then go week-on-week or batch-by-batch.”

When using this strategy, they will also end alongside the international finale to be in that conversation and stay on trend with what’s happening with the season and its talkability.

“We also consider batch releases with our telenovelas because no one should try to watch 260 episodes in a weekend,” Van Rooyen added.

Boosting viewership

According to Van Rooyen, this mixed-release strategy has been very successful for Showmax, with paying subscribers growing 44% in the last financial year and positive customer feedback.

“We do still get complaints about weekly releases, going, ‘Oh, Showmax? Why must I wait? It was too good.’ And that gives us an opportunity to say, ‘We know. But in the meantime, try this hidden gem we think you’ll like’,” she said.

Apart from playing with different release strategies, Shomax has also been using other methods to boost viewership and discourage users from cancelling their subscriptions after finishing a particular show.

“The main thing is to create anticipation for what’s coming and to always make sure that there’s something new for you to watch within your range. So, our Coming Soon row plays a key role in that on the platform,” she said.

Showmax has also been pushing personalisation much more. This allows the algorithm to learn more about the particular user and serve them content they like, allowing them to create their watchlist and build their Continue Watching row.

“We’re also focusing on streamlining how we put content in front of a customer and how easy we make it to discover similar content,” Van Rooyen said.

“So we’re pushing collections on the platform and also making sure we align with what our marketing and PR teams are pushing so that if you’ve heard about it, we’ll make sure you see it.”

Showmax is also doing a lot more work in terms of audience studies and deep dives to understand what customers want from us and ensure they serve it.

“We’ve been really encouraged by the feedback: our users are saying they’re finding more and more of their content on the platform, not just via social media and media and billboards,” she explained.

“The app is our storefront where subscribers increasingly make their decisions on what to buy, and our recommendations are working.”

Van Rooyen added that Showmax is also leaning into live event streaming, not just with Showmax Premier League but also with Tyla’s Homecoming concert earlier this year.

“We don’t work in a vacuum. We are part of the broader MultiChoice group, so sometimes, we also have to factor in other channels’ strategies on shared titles or windowed-down titles,” she explained.

“Similarly, we also need to factor in the studios’ release strategies on international titles. Like any business, budget is also a factor. Titles cost more at launch than they do later on.”

This shapes all of Showmax’s decisions. Ultimately, the company is focused on ensuring the right content is served to viewers at the right time in a way that they want to consume.

This also involves acquiring a mix of genres, a mix of local and international content, and a mix of the big titles everyone is talking about now, as well as evergreen content that users want to watch repeatedly.

Issued on Daily Investor by Kirsten Minnaar | https://dailyinvestor.com/technology/93195/showmaxs-plan-to-keep-south-africans-watching/