ABC Family is putting its marketing campaign for the next season of "Pretty Little Liars" in the hands of its biggest fans: The network is asking viewers to do everything from creating key art to choosing the magazines and websites in which the ads are placed for the 10-week marketing campaign.
It will make the ask during Tuesday night's season-five finale, when fans will be invited to submit their art to PrettyLittleCampaign.com for a chance to be featured in ABC Family's own summer marketing, which includes an ad in Seventeen Magazine. Nigel Cox-Hagan, ABC Family's senior VP-marketing, creative and branding, explained some of the thinking in a statement:
We want our promos and ads to be where the fans are, so the best way to make that happen is to ask them.
Other marketers use media agencies for that sort of information. Here's hoping there's a way to keep media sellers from gaming the results.
While still attracting a meaningful audience for ABC Family, "Pretty Little Liars" hit a ratings low this season. The sixth season of the series is set to bow in June, however, and a seventh season has already been picked up.