When you get the brand right, you get the business right.
Sometimes you have to focus to grow.
Situation
Disney owned cable channel ABC Family. The company generated $1B in revenue with healthy margins. But, it lacked a narrative about its purpose, and was thus without a path for either growth or a strategic role at Disney. To make matters worse, its core audience was Millennials and Gen Z - who had largely abandoned cable. Essentially, no one knew quite what to do with it.
Story
Key to the psychology of being between childhood and adulthood is a need to fit into the broader world. Especially for Gen Z and Millennials, it was vital to feel accepted for who they were, with a bit of a rebellious attitude. And thus, a tagline became a statement of philosophy. Cheeky, and effective, the story of the brand became the story of the audience. Equally importantly, the brand needed to be where the audience was so we shifted to premiering original shows on Hulu and on the cable channel simultaneously - living up to the brand promise and giving viewers the choice of how and where they want to watch.
Strategy
Change the story and reposition the company as a young adult powerhouse in streaming and cable. Signal the shift with a new brand name — Freeform — and a new programming line-up, a new distribution strategy focused on Hulu and accompanying marketing to embody the narrative shift.
Results
Record totals in revenue and operating income, with OI surpassing $500M.
30% lift in ad revenue, with totals passing $500 million - a first for the company.
75% growth in international revenue from new, higher production value original content.
Clear role for Freeform within Disney.
When you undertake a rebrand, your first, most important constituents are your employees. If they don't believe in it or understand it, you're DOA. This is a video we created to get the internal teams aligned and excited.
A good rebrand lets you take existing IP and put it through your brand filter to make it your own.
Freeform had a very unusual, but long standing deal with the 700 Club wherein 2x/day 700 Club would take over the airwaves. It was absolutely unaffiliated with Freeform in any way. Fans didn't understand this, so we created disclaimers in the Freeform brand voice to signal this separation to our fans.
