Viewing Habits

I was recently involved in a discussion with two friends about the viewing habits we have as we move into a more technological way of consuming media. All three of us are involved in the Christian Media scene in different areas and all of us believe passionately in what we are involved in – however as we dissected our viewing habits it became very clear the challenge that we have as we move into the next phase (whatever that is) of media consumption. Let me explain how the 3 of us consume media (all of us have digital TV of various types).

1. My first friend does not watch much TV at all – instead he is an avid purchaser of cheap DVD’s of movies and would far prefer to see a movie on DVD during an evening than he would a TV programme. When he does watch TV he rarely watches anything live – instead he records it onto a hard disk recording device (sort of like a tivo) and watches it at a time that works for him.
2. My second fried is the “flicker” he rarely “watches” anything – instead he constantly channel surfs settling only if something really grabs him – for the record he does not yet have a hard disk recorder – he also rarely tunes into any kind of Christian content.
3. For myself, I used to be a “flicker” (my wife would probably say I still am) BUT we know have SKY+ (like a tivo) and this has revolutionised our viewing habits. It is now very rare that we watch anything when it is scheduled (unless it is a LIVE broadcast) instead we record what we like and watch it when we want – its worth adding there are only 8 – 10 programmes we record on a regular basis to watch as we don’t have time to keep up with more – however this does include the occasional Christian programme, but it makes you realise how hard it is to “stumble” across anything new.

So with viewing habits like that – what hope is there for Christian Broadcasting and how should those of us involved look to tackle the future? And this isn’t even starting to look at Internet TV on demand – where if I want to watch a programme I can go straight to the producer to get it completely bypassing the Broadcaster – suddenly there are NO gatekeepers!!!

Well, I’m not going to answer all that is involved in that here – what I’d like to do though is maybe suggest a few things we can consider that I believe will be important to look at as we move forward.

1. The mantra “Content is King” has always been true – but NEVER more so than today and in the future. Delivering unique, original, creative content will be the critical thing as we move forward. Where Broadcasters have built massive distribution infrastructures costing mega bucks these will fast become obsolete and those that want to survive will have to start investing in content and creativity like never before. It will be about offering the viewer an experience they can’t get elsewhere.
2. Marketing and branding – most people think that with new technologies the cost of getting content to market is much cheaper – and that is true – however what people miss is that getting people to watch it will become harder and harder – when there is so much to choose from why will they watch yours? – the answer has to lie in us finding and developing new and creative ways of marketing – I believe that the successful broadcasters in the future will be the ones who marry content generation with great marketing strategies.
3. Platform neutral operations – that’s techno speak for something that I believe will be crucial and that is that as producers and broadcasters we don’t put all our eggs in one basket. Increasingly you are seeing the big broadcasters putting their content wherever there are viewers – CNN or the BBC on YouTube for instance. Programmes available on multiple websites etc. I believe if you are insular – i.e. keeping all your content in one place – you won’t be around long – get it out there as wide as possible to attract the maximum audience – and you now have the chance to get it in front of a mainstream audience – it better be something they want to watch!!
4. Finally a question – and this I don’t feel I yet have an insight on – maybe you do – how do we financially sustain Christian Broadcasting in the future? – where ministries have raised partners how do they continue to do so as their audiences fragment and shrink more and more, where broadcasters have charged for airtime to finance their platforms – will any ministry pay in the future when they can get their content direct to those who want to watch without needing the broadcasters? Where there have been telethons etc. if most media changes from linear to on-demand – who will want to watch these and thus support? I must say it is by no means only the Christian marketplace asking these questions – ALL broadcasters are looking at this and scratching their heads right now. Maybe as we move forward the crucial thing will be building communities around our unique, creative and original content these will be essential and it is these communities which will in turn provide the funding (though donations, advertising sales etc.) that will enable us to continue in a much slimed down version.

One thing I would say is if you are in an organisation involved in Christian media and they are not having conversations like the above – across the organisation from the creatives, to the accountants, the marketers to the fundraisers – it may well be too late already as these changes are and will continue at a massive pace.

So as we end 2007 and enter 2008 – what hope do we in Christian Media have?

Well, we have to embrace the fact that change is on us and if we don’t adapt and change what we do we may not be around much longer – we have to come up with answers that work for us and our organisations and particularly our viewers and partners – we have to give them the very best, creative material possible and find ways to help them appreciate what we give them and tell them why our “mission” is critical and totally dependent on them. The future may not be comfortable – but we have to find ways of embracing it.

However let me finish off by encouraging us all. My wife, son and I have just been up to Scotland for a few days with my wife’s family. We decided on Sunday to go to the local Church of Scotland (traditional church) with her parents. Believe me when I say on the surface you couldn’t get much further away from what we in Christian Media offer content wise (generally speaking). After the service my wife and I bumped into a guy my wife has known for many years and had a brief chat with him. He knew we were involved in Christian Media and particularly that we did work for GOD TV. He then told us of a lady who used to go to the church but now through age and ill health was housebound – he then said that he doesn’t know what her life would be like if she didn’t have access to GOD TV – he said it truly is her life and offers her such great hope and encouragement and he wanted to encourage us in what we did.

I therefore want to end encouraging you – we don’t know and may never know the lives we impact through the work that we do – BUT make no mistake we are impacting people’s lives with the Good News of Jesus on an ongoing basis – and that is why we have to find a way of ensuring we continue to do so for many years to come lets have this debate and find some answers this year so we can embrace the future.

Have a great 2008.