Social media is the new TV with shows catering to every niche under the sun. The brands that will thrive are the ones that become the shows we binge, offering irresistible episodic content that stays true to their brand.
Brands can succeed because they have an advantage that no TV writer could dream of: a preloaded plotline. Unlike screenwriters and creators sweating over blank pages, brands with a clear purpose have a storyline and a premise that is already familiar. Imagine a Survivor-style reality show for the visually impaired called 'Should I Stay or Should I Go to Specsavers', or 'Stars in Their Stomachs', a Snickers series featuring delusional celebrity impersonations. The brands that thrive in this new age will spin their DNA into irresistible formats and snag their place in the VIP lounge of Bingetopia.
To thrive in Bingetopia, brands need more than just a familiar plotline, they need a format audiences can come back to, time and again. Blendtec’s Will It Blend? cracked this code years ago. This “product demo as entertainment” was so repeatable that viewers knew both the setup and the punchline, and tuned in for over 15 years. Keeping the format consistent, allowed it to flex, mixing in cultural nods (Chuck Norris figurine: doesn’t blend) and trends (iPad: blends) to stay fresh and relevant. Millions watched, proving that repetition doesn’t have to mean stale. More recently, La La Kind Cafe's “Drive By Kindness” sees compliments handed out to strangers, a repeatable episodic series that aligns the brand’s mission of normalizing kindness with a repeatable formula that attracts eyeballs in the hundreds of millions.
Bingetopia's best bit? You don’t need a full cast, multiple cameras or a six-figure budget to kick things off. Dip your toe in and scale if something bites. BK Coffee Shop’s TikTok show takes a scrappy, authentic approach, starting as a low-key, in-house series before scaling with cameo appearances from local creators and niche internet personalities. The show balances humour and community storytelling, blending casual café banter with cultural commentary, coffee-centric bits, and the occasional absurdist skit. Its tone is effortlessly cool yet unpolished, leaning into Brooklyn’s indie charm while subtly reinforcing the shop’s brand as a creative hub, an approach that has paid off, racking up millions of views and turning a neighbourhood café into a viral social media phenomenon.
Brands can also look to editorial for tips on how to scale. The likes of GQ, Harper's Bazaar and Vogue adopt simple, repeatable formats and scale through celebrity. 'Go To Bed With Me' (Harper's Bazaar) sees everyone from Kesha to Jackson Wang share their night-time skincare routine. 'Objects of Affection' (Vogue) celebrates celebrities' most prized possessions and GQ's ‘Actually Me’ sees celebs go undercover on social media to answer weird questions about themselves. These shows have a combined audience totalling billions mainly because they bring big names closer to their fans in a refreshingly raw way. Brands can tap into this scalability by leveraging existing relationships and sponsorships, showcasing their ambassadors in a more genuine light. Instead of the usual glossy ads, we get to see the real, vulnerable sides of celebs - exactly what their audience craves. Imagine "Maybe She's Born With It?" with the proud parents of Shay Mitchell, Peggy Gou and the rest of the Maybelline crew flipping through family photo albums, proving it’s definitely Maybelline. Or 'Because I'm Worth It', featuring the L'Oréal all-stars - Cheryl, Viola, Eva et al - justify their most outrageous purchases.
When you think about it, this episodic approach is no different to what we traditionally call campaigns. Familiar, repeatable stories based on a brand's core story. 'Heineken Refreshes The Parts’ and ‘The Most Interesting Man in The World’ featured episodes that spanned years and reflected culture. The best billboard campaigns are episodic - from classic Economist ads to the British Airways series that we see today. The difference here is that people wait to be served these episodes whereas with today's binge friendly media landscape, get it right and people will be searching out episodes and devouring them.
Destination Binge: make it familiar, make it repeatable, make it scalable. Brands that embrace this episodic, binge-worthy approach will be tomorrow’s pop culture icons, instead of just sitting on shelves they'll be starring in our entertainment feeds. Forget chasing eyeballs, the future belongs to the brands we can’t help but binge.