Soap Viewers and Loyalty

This is a topic, I’ve wanted to write about for months, but wasn’t sure how to broach it. It is one of these hotbeds of discussion and dismay among soap fans that are online.

The major impetus about writing about this now is due to how in some of the articles that have come out since the cancellations of All My Children and One Life to Live. Basically there was a comment made that younger viewers aren’t loyal. And over the years, I’ve also read that part of the reason television shows look for younger audiences is because they are easier to sell to as they do not have set brands like older people. So basically advertisers are trying to take advantage of the lack of loyalty. Though if the quality of the programs were lower than it should be, without loyalty would these people wait out the boring and/or bad times? With soaps, there are lulls, just the nature of the open narrative.

The funny thing is over the years I’ve known viewers under 34 (including myself) who were gutted due to decisions made by the powers that be. Gutted may be too strong of a word in some cases, but in others it may be an understatement. Basically, the interest they had in the particular soap(s) they watched was destroyed. I’ve gone through this and it beyond frustrating. You know they are the demographic the programs supposedly want though nearly everything they are throwing on screen doesn’t spark your interest. And the people who are of the opinion this program is great are old enough to be your mother is beyond ironic.

So it goes back to the angle, who is to blame? Not all the choices made by the shows alienate just the older viewers; they can alienate the young as well. You can be in your 20s and have watched for more than a decade. I think that’s the one angle the people in charge forgot over the years. Also for some of us, the long term characters and/or actors disappearing from the programs is like having to say goodbye to parental figures. I didn’t really look up to the soap characters that are played by performers who are my peers, but to the older ones. The “I want to be like you when I grow up” is a powerful attraction. Also the “I wish I had a family member like you to talk to” is another one.

People of all ages like good stories and compelling characters. The difference IMO is that newer viewers if they don’t get it will look somewhere else to find it. More long time viewers will give more chances, but again they have breaking points too. That is what I feel destroyed the ratings long term for daytime soap operas (beyond the broken ratings system). If you are barely getting anything you want, you move on and find something else to enjoy.

Quality is a key element to loyalty. Most people aren’t going to spend their time watching something they no longer enjoy for very long. If they have a history, they may be able to give a bigger leeway. Of course, the longer one watches a show, the more mistakes they may see.

In recent years, there really hasn’t been anything that rose the ratings long term. When you capture the imagination of viewers causing a bandwagon effect it is like when an underappreciated sports team gets a bump in popularity after they finally start winning. The closest I’ve seen to this phenomenon in soap operas, is when shows focus on gay and/or lesbian storytelling, but for the most part these stories didn’t increase ratings even if new eyes were watching.

Serial storytelling hasn’t disappeared even if less total people are watching soap operas. Loyalty is a key component to the long-term success of any franchise. It is something that is earned and not given lightly. Once loyalty has been broken or lost, the viewer (or in some case former viewer) is hurt and in the long run the show may be as well as they have lost one more person who can promote their program. Word of mouth is seen as the most successful way to cultivate fans.

With the cancellation of so many daytime shows in the last few years people may just give up on the genre entirely solely to keep from getting hurt again. I understand and respect that choice as not every show appeals to each person in the same way. For some their favorite shows are like a slice of home, and while they enjoy other soap operas they will never feel the same intensity for another program.