A few months ago Chinabased, I was approached by a company interested in creating an advertising network for their products. This is when I first heard about Viacom, who are also known as The parent company of Nickelodeon and Spike TV. Awards showings of cult classics like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Green Hornet and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were all part of the deal. So much so that my friends and I reserved hotel rooms so we could attend these events side-by-side with Nickelodeon kids and parents alike. Viacom’s unique relationship with pop culture has helped launch this network into the stars.
Nickelodeon Kids Network
This soon became the most popular kids’ network in the world. With more than 100 million subscribers, it’s a favourite with parents and kids of all ages. The network also highlighted recent video game releases like Call of Duty and Tekken, as well as recent film releases like Divergent and War For The Planet Of The Oceans. Kids Network was also known for showcasing original programming with original characters and stories, as well as original series and movies. Kids’ TV became very popular during the Kids Network era, and it’s easy to see why.
Viacom’s Marketing Strategy
In the early 2000s, Viacom (the parent company of VH1 and MTV) started a marketing strategy focused on appealing to kids. This strategy included putting up pop-up ads on newsstands, creating webinars, and even hiring talent to promote their products. Kids Lines, a Viacom-branded radio program, was one of the first programs to take advantage of this strategy. The show included pop-up ads, and it was also a way to get kids’ attention and ears on the radio. The success of Kids Line prompted Viacom to beef up its own pop-up ad campaigns, and it also led to the creation of Viacom’s Kids Network.
The rise of the Kids Network
In partnership with the non-profit organization Kids Run USA, Viacom hired a team of former students of its top- Acupuncture program, who now call themselves the Kids Run team. Kids Run was one of the first successful ventures of the Kids Network, and it helped to launch the careers of key team members like Joe Camporeale, who went on to work for Facebook and Google, and John DePriest, who later co-anchored Hardball in New York City.
Why I became a parent and suddenly got into advertising
A while back, I was in the midst of my own parenting journey. We had a one-year-old and a one-year-old daugher. As a single parent, I was dealing with a variety of issues, and during this period, my husband and I became even more like-minded in our goals for the business. We discussed how we could collaborate more in the workplace to make our parenting journey easier, and we began working on a business plan.
The benefits of creating a kids network
In addition to a boost in visibility for their product, kids’ networks also helped address a larger issue for parents. That issue was that of “what to watch.” Parents were often expected to choose what their child watches, and at a certain point, they became less like themselves and more like an advertising billboard for their child’s culture. By making it easier for parents to choose what their child watches and how, the networks also created a platform where kids can create their own show, movie, or series without having to go through the parent subscription process. This allowed them to create content and air their content as much as they wanted, and they could also market themselves as their own network. As a parent, you’re also taking part in cultural and political discourse. The networks create a platform for your kids to communicate with others like you, and they also allow them to generate their own show, movie, or show on Netflix or Amazon. Kids’ networks also allowed parents to create digital brands for their kids, as well as launch their own campaigns that they could market to their peers.
Conclusion
Kids have always been a part of advertising, whether that be ads on the wall, on the playground, or in the school newspaper. The only difference now is that today’s kids are getting their own channels. Kids networks are often centered on recent video game releases, but they can also be used for series and movies about any culture, religion, or interest. The biggest benefit of creating a kids network is that it helps parents and kids understand one another better. We spend more time together now than ever before, and that includes our families. One child’s conversation with another child can change the entire landscape of how we interact, and that makes a real difference in the lives of both parents and kids. This can also be applied to the business side, where collaborative activities like brainstorming and business planning help families connect and grow together.
