Thanks to Netflix, “Arrested Development” fans have been able to catch up on the family and everything that has happened in their seven-year hiatus. With our favorite characters returning to our computer and TV screens, all of the lessons we’ve learned from the Bluths over the years came flooding back: Always leave a note! There’s always money in the banana stand! But that made us wonder, what lessons can we take away from these new episodes? As it turns out, there are a few and they work perfectly for us digital marketers.
Do your research before using a phrase or hashtag that could be misconstrued.
Screencap from Netflix/Episode “A New Start”
Although he means well, Tobias’s new vanity license plate causes more than a few confused glances.
Countless articles have been written about brands misguidedly embracing a phrase, or piggybacking on a hashtag that caused confusion or backlash. From McDonald’s failed #McDStories, to Cher fans misreading the #nowthatchersdead hashtag, to Celeb Boutique naively piggybacking on #Aurora, hashtags and trending topics can go wrong in any number of ways. Whether you’re creating your own phrase or hashtag or using one that has been coined by someone else, look at it with fresh eyes and make sure that it can’t be misconstrued in any way that could reflect poorly on you.
Switch up your content format.
Seven years have elapsed since viewers last saw the antics of the Bluth bunch. To help get reacquainted and catch up, each new episode is focused around one family member, instead of the episode structure viewers were used to.
Does your content tend to follow a certain structure? Shake it up by throwing in a different format. If your blog consists mostly of lists, try doing an interview. If it consists mostly of company updates, identify a problem and create a post of tips detailing how readers can solve that problem. By switching up your format, you’ll breathe new life into your blog and inspire new engagement from your readers. You could also open up your content to a new set of readers who weren’t aware of your brand before. It’ll also help keep you from getting burned out on a specific format.
Revisit your favorites, but do it with a new twist.
Screencap from Netflix/Episode “The B Team”
Carl Weathers, Warden Gentles and Andy Richter weren’t main characters in the “Arrested Development” storyline, but they were all fan favorites, and they’re all back with new stories to tell.
Anyone who has blogged or created content on a regular basis knows that it can be difficult to keep up with it on a regular basis. It’s true — some days, you just can’t find any inspiration. But you still need to produce. When this happens, take a look back at your old content and see if there’s a new way that you can present it or reuse it. Just by providing a new framework, and offering tips from several different posts in one place, you’re giving old, reliable content a fresh new look that will appeal to new and old readers alike.
Long before the new episodes hit Netflix, the minds behind “Arrested Development” were hard at work promoting it. We identified four factors that made their posters share-worthy.
