“We’re dedicated to creating content that not only entertains but also educates. Understanding our audience’s preferences and engagement patterns allows us to tailor our programming to meet their needs.”
- Mark Denby, Head of Video Strategy, Digital, BBC Kids
BBC Kids, a prominent division of the world’s leading public service broadcaster, provides a diverse range of educational and entertaining programs for children. With an expansive digital video catalog that includes 10 popular YouTube programs such as CBeebies and Blue Peter, BBC Kids has seen rapid growth in its video presence.
Despite this success, they faced the challenge of optimizing their YouTube content strategy and finding influencers who actually complement their brand. Mark Denby, Head of Video Strategy, Digital, shares how they leveraged data from Tubular Labs to enhance their strategies.
Challenge
Optimizing YouTube Content Strategy
As their digital video presence grew, BBC Kids needed to optimize their YouTube content to ensure it was both engaging and educational. They required detailed insights on viewer behavior, including the best times to upload, effective thumbnail designs, and content that retains viewership.
Finding the Right Influencers
Choosing the right influencers to work with was crucial. BBC Kids needed a way to validate their choices based on data to ensure influencers aligned with their brand values and could engage their target audience effectively.
Action
Data-Driven Content Strategy
BBC Kids uses data to inform every aspect of their content strategy. From the type of thumbnails to use to the best upload times and viewer retention trends, data drives their creative decisions. This approach led to the launch of a new series, Bedtime Stories, inspired by Tubular’s Made for Kids report, which identified “fairy tales” as a growth opportunity within children’s entertainment on YouTube.
“Tubular identified that “fairy tales” was a white space opportunity, in that fact that you’d identified there was a lot of viewership to stories that were classed as “fairy tales”, but ultimately not an awful lot of uploads. So there was essentially an opportunity to deliver that content, and to deliver that audience’s needs. That’s something we’ve certainly built into our thinking.”
-Mark Denby
Marrying Creative and Insights for Influencer Selection
BBC Kids relies on insights when scouting influencers, using data to validate their creative ideas. For example, when creating a new gaming kids’ show, they used Tubular to find UK-based gaming creators with a predominantly UK-based audience. This data-driven approach ensures influencers are on-brand, have the right tone of voice, and can engage the desired audience effectively.
“First and foremost, it’s always ‘Are they right?’ Do they have the right attributes, from tone of voice to point of view? Are they on brand for kids? Do they have the right interests and specialisms for the particular content we’re going to do with them?”
-Mark Denby
Using YouTube as a Funnel
BBC Kids views YouTube as part of a funnel to drive brand loyalty, awareness, and attention to their iPlayer service. This holistic approach ensures they provide value on YouTube while encouraging viewers to engage with their full series on iPlayer.
“When we’re thinking about our content strategy, we’re always thinking about bringing people back and building attribution. That’s not to say that we think of YouTube as purely a marketing platform. But we look at the content ecosystem… as well as providing value on the platform audiences are on, we are using YouTube as the funnel to peak interest in watching the full series on BBC iPlayer.”
-Mark Denby
Growth
Increased Viewer Engagement
By utilizing data-driven strategies and standardized metrics, BBC Kids has seen a significant increase in viewer engagement. Metrics such as longer watch times and repeat views indicate a loyal and engaged audience.
Stronger Stakeholder Relationships
The adoption of Tubular’s insights has strengthened BBC Kids’ ability to demonstrate content value. This has led to enhanced trust and collaboration with parents, educators, and advertisers, resulting in more effective partnerships and educational initiatives.
BBC Kids’ journey underscores the importance of data-driven strategies and standardized metrics in proving content value. By leveraging in-depth audience insights and reliable measurement tools, they have successfully enhanced viewer engagement and demonstrated the educational impact of their programs. This approach not only reinforces their position as a leading children’s content provider but also builds lasting trust with their audience and stakeholders.
Watch the full webinar on-demand here: BBC Kids Enhances Viewer Engagement with Tubular Labs
