How Jimmy Fallon Laid a New Blueprint for a TV Debut

In the current climate, TV networks are doing all they can to save cash. The frugal mindset has kept the networks in a timid mindset, afraid of taking any risk with new programming. However, cost-savvy networks already have a perfect model to consider when introducing a new show to audiences on the cheap: Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

As the new host of Late Night on NBC, Fallon and his crew have reinvented the way a new show debuts. In the past, networks would run advertising promos during high rated programs and hope for the best.

Fallon and NBC took a different approach by testing segments and guests on the Web for weeks before even setting foot onto Studio 6B in Rockefeller Center. The online trial run was cheaper than an advertising blitz, and much more effective in gauging audience interest and warming viewers up to their newest Late Night host.

Fallon took heavily to social media appearing on popular podcasts such as Diggnation and Engadget while maintaining a strong presence on Twitter (as does his drummer ?uestlove). Fallon also encouraged his audience to identify with him and his show through many mini “webisodes” on the show’s blog. In the webisodes, Fallon gave tours of his set as it was being constructed and did his best to offer behind-the-scenes access to his fans. He even returned to the town he grew up in, to interview his adversary in his first fist fight.

Separately, these acts may seem trivial. However, in the aggregate, they have helped Fallon develop a younger, more connected audience, something any TV exec can salivate over.

The strategy thus far has worked. Fallon is handily beating Craig Ferguson and just squeaking by the half-hour he competes with Jimmy Kimmel. And the best part? The cost of all of these Internet initiatives is minimal. The rookie talk show host used every conceivable media tool to connect directly with his audience, many that were cheap or free.

To be sure, Fallon’s tactic is not one-size-fits all. Fallon had the luxury of being famous before his new gig, and anyone with even a passing interest in entertainment knew about NBC’s talk show shuffle. Fallon also has the luxury of being the undisputed star of the show, making a marketing focus much easier.

But the tactic of audience interactivity and online testing can be valuable to many genres. Long-arc storylines in dramas such as Lost or Heroes are ripe for more interactivity. Or maybe a new sitcom could release several “mini-pilots” to test the reaction online?

It may not be a cure-all for belt-tightening networks, but Fallon has certainly laid a blueprint for appealing to younger, tech-savvy audiences for a fraction of the cost of conventional methods.