Netflix on Android Tablet
While social networks continue to attract a fair share of our waking hours, with updates to blogs (like this), scouring for likes on FB and accepting links on LinkedIn, there seems to be a growing percentage of the population that has taken its eyes off the keyboard, raised its legs on the recliner and settled in to whiling away the hours on Netflix.
Back in October, the Associated Press reported that Netflix users were not being added as quickly as the company had projected. That being said, 1.2 million new subscribers joined in the 3rd quarter of 2012. With the growth in streaming users (29 million) and a decline in DVD users (down 0.6 million to 8.6 million), it may not seem to be as significant a population as one might think, but it may be part of a trend worth considering, especially for those concerned about reaching their audience or prospects. And who isn't concerned with that?
Netflix isn't the only provider of streaming content, recycled shows and movies, as well as original series, but the move to streaming content is one not to be ignored. A growing percentage of viewers have gone mobile, opting out of the traditional platforms, like television and even desktop pcs, in favor of mobile devices, including tablets. And we don't need to look far to see evidence of this trend toward mobile engagement.
I see it in my grandsons. One uses his tablet with Beats earbuds to watch and re-watch his favorite action adventures, with an occasional text message to a friend. The other is a super-multi-tasker searching the Internet while working on his homework, while talking to a friend on Skype, while playing a game all on a laptop. He is not a movie lover, but will troll for new games and ideas whenever he gets bored. This is the off-network generation that will be hard for marketing executives to target. The attention span is directly tied to the "wow" factor and it is not easy to wow them.
So, how do we appeal to this Stealth Generation? Well, it won't be by traditional means. They won't be paying much attention to email, postcards, flyers stuffed in their mailboxes, or even commercials on television or Youtube. They stream right past them and go for the content they seek. When they do watch, they go for the specialty shows, challenging games or sports competitions, and the unusual or extreme. They are not impressed with 3-D unless it makes sense, and they get all their knowledge of products from their peers, not from commercials.
So, it is critical to generate a buzz among those peers, and what usually gets the buzz going is a look, a statement, an image and a high price tag. Cheap doesn't cut it. The recipe for success for this generation may just be a dash of flash, a heavy helping of quality, a solid coating of style and packaging that has class. What I'm earning is to pay attention to what my grandsons like and want. If I can appeal to them, I'll be ahead of the pack.