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Launched in 2001, Cartoon Network’s late-night counterpart, Adult Swim, has targeted younger viewers looking for something different (sometimes bizarre) in late-night TV.
And that’s precisely what the channel has delivered for the past decade and change, but the spinoff network has become much more to television and pop culture at large since the days of Space Ghost.
Last year, its viral hit Too Many Cooks took over YouTube and Facebook feeds across the Web, taking Adult Swim’s oddball brand to potential new fans. The network targets viewers who want something different than the broadcast late-night options, and viral videos and its strange characters are giving them exactly that. Shows such as Rick and Morty, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Robot Chicken and Seth MacFarlane’s slate of animated series.
According to Vulture, Adult Swim averaged more late-night viewers under 35 than any broadcast or cable competitor in its prime hours of 12:30-1:30 a.m. That includes CBS’ Late Late Show and NBC’s Late Night.
And in recent years, that target audience of 18-35 has expanded for Adult Swim, with shows such as Robot Chicken drawing in an average of 1.2 million adults 18-49, with only Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show beating out the network in the 11:35 p.m. – 12:35 a.m. in the time slot.
Even fellow cablers can’t beat Adult Swim’s numbers. Comedy Central’s Daily Show and Conan on TBS can’t compete in total viewers – this June, in fact, Jon Stewart averaged .5 million less than Adult Swim in the time slot.
Marketing-wise, Adult Swim has promoted itself by becoming a destination channel for younger viewers as opposed to building itself off of one or two big hits. Though some shows, like Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Robot Chicken or the more recent Rick and Morty, stand out with viewers, Adult Swim has found that people come to the network for the night, not for one specific show.
Word of mouth, beyond anything else, is what gets Adult Swim more attention than anything else. It’s important to note that Too Many Cooks, which had no marketing whatsoever, has been viewers more than 8.2 million times.
Utilizing Adult Swim’s famous idents and bumpers instead of full-scale marketing campaigns, the network has created a brand for itself, perhaps without even trying to do so.
These stats are notable because not only is Adult Swim gaining a following and attention outside of the 18-35 demographic, but the network is doing it within only a few short hours of programming per day. Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim programming block only runs from about 8 p.m. until 6 a.m.
Read more at Vulture.
Brief Take: Adult Swim’s short series cater to today’s digitally formed attention spans and its straightforward branding speaks with its audience, rather than to it.
[Image courtesy of Adult Swim]
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