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Threats of cancelations, budget cuts, and ratings dips have been the real villains of daytime dramas in recent years. Despite such trials and tribulations, NBC’s sole remaining soap opera, Days of Our Lives—which premiered November 8, 1965—is in the midst of a yearlong 50th anniversary celebration.
A major reinvestment in the show earlier this year gave Days new sets, lighting, and equipment, but because they shoot episodes about six months ahead, fans only started seeing the results of that investment around Labor Day. In February, the soap—produced by Corday Productions Inc. in association with Sony Pictures Television— brought in Josh Griffiths and Dena Higley as co-headwriters to get storylines back on track and bring iconic characters back to Salem in time for the big anniversary.
Sheraton Kalouria, executive VP and chief marketing officer, Sony Pictures Television, says the show’s annual fan event in Los Angeles last year served as an unofficial kick-off to the year-long celebration.
“From a strategic standpoint, we wanted to make this whole thing fan-powered and social-centric.”
They identified three key “pulse points” to focus on: Bo (Peter Reckell) returning in September for a major storyline; Sami (Alison Sweeney) coming home in October and Salem’s Bicentennial celebration in November. Sony targeted Days Facebook fans—totaling about 2.8 million—with promoted posts about these events.
“The fans are really pushing it,” says longtime cast member Kristian Alfonso, who plays Hope Williams Brady. “They come up with all different hashtags. There’s #Days50, #DaysOfOurLives, #NBCDays, #Days — they make them up as they go along. I am so happy the fans are happy and talking about the show with excitement.”
Alfonso and her cast mates use the hashtags when posting behind-the-scenes photos on social media. Some actors have participated in all-day Yahoo TV Instagram Takeovers.
Because the show shoots so far ahead they have to pique fan interest without revealing spoilers.
“Before we tweet out anything we have to make sure there aren’t any schedules or monitors behind us, and we have to get it approved by a publicist,” Alfonso says.
Virtually everything cast members post gets shared, favorited, liked, and retweeted among fans, making social media especially effective.
Sony and NBC used traditional means of promotion, too, from a Times Square billboard to special 50th Anniversary merchandise sold at the official “Days of Our Lives” online store.
Once a 50th anniversary logo featuring the show’s trademark hourglass was created, NBC ran on-air, lower-third promos just as they’ve done with Olympic rings several months leading up to Olympics coverage.
Greg Meng, senior VP of Corday Productions and co-EP in charge of production at Days went the extra mile, compiling a photo-packed coffee table book, titled Days of Our Lives: 50 Years, chronicling the show’s history.
Not only is Kalouria impressed with the quality of the book, he loves its appeal as a marketing tool. Numerous cast members are taking part in a 9-city book-signing tour planned for the last week of October.
“The book commemorates an event, rewards the fans, and keeps the show in conversation,” Kalouria says. “We’ve really collaborated and focused on the book as a platform—we’re doing that internationally as well, so additional appearances will be happening in Canada with our Canadian broadcaster.”
Although big and splashy, the Sony Rewards ‘Days of Our Lives’ Experience Showstoppers fan experience isn’t a watch-and-win contest.
“With a show that’s been going on 50 years, the fans have already paid their dues. This is a reward,” Kalouria says. “[We want to] give fans a once-in-a-lifetime experience to come to LA, visit the set, and have a VIP experience where they get to meet the cast and get a behind-the-scenes tour that people wouldn’t otherwise get. And the coup-de-gras is that they’ll get to attend the official anniversary party on November 7 in Hollywood.”
Official festivities wrap up with NBC’s annual “Day of ‘Days’” fan event on November 14. With so much hoopla, winning a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Drama earlier this year was merely icing on a very big anniversary cake.
“The 50th anniversary is a moment in time to celebrate the future of the show and of the success and relevance ‘Days of Our Lives’ has to viewers today,” Kalouria says. “We’re on the air, we’re thriving, and we’re looking forward to telling stories with these characters for a long time to come.”
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