FACE FORWARD was one of the first tutorial shows on Snapchat and our team pioneered the merging of narrative story telling with a tutorial format. The challenges that faced our team were not only figuring out how to create an optimized visual story telling language, but also establishing best practices for a tutorial Snapchat show. It was a challenge to build out a clear and concise graphics package that kept our audience engaged as well as streamline the licensing and photo clearance protocol for all of our celebrity photos. No matter the challenges, FACE FORWARD has been able to increase its viewership and has the most time viewed per episode across all NBCU shows. FACE FORWARD didn't stem from a linear show, we didn't have the luxury of being able to bring audiences with us to Snapchat, we had to build an audience. Our main goal is to grow our loyal audience and time spent with our show. We also hope to expand our brand beyond Snapchat onto platforms such as YouTube, Instagram etc.
"FACE FORWARD" is a new take on the traditional makeover show for a mobile-first audience. Created for Snapchat and available on YouTube, our all-star glam team including beauty guru Patrick Starrr, online hair sensation Tiarra Monet and celebrity stylist Johnny Wujek meets one deserving young woman who is ready for a complete style overhaul culminating in an irreverent, celebrity-inspired photo shoot. This original series gives viewers the opportunity to watch a complete style, hair and makeup tutorial with snap-able, screenshot-able and sharable takeaways. Clear steps and concise tips animate as graphics on-screen throughout each episode, which allows viewers to follow along with or without sound. Viewers are encouraged to come back to the episode many times over to share favorite moments and try out each makeover step for themselves. As a final payoff for our audience, the episodes wrap up with an exciting makeover reveal and a comedic, celebrity-inspired photo shoot. A call-to-action card at the end of each episode encourages viewers to "swipe up to subscribe" to the series, so future episodes are displayed prominently on their Snapchat Discover pages. Other social outreach includes BTS clips and promotional trailers pushed out through our Instagram account as well as across E! Entertainment's O&O social channels.
Face Forward was the recipient of the 2018 Webby People's Voice Award for "Social: Fashion and Beauty." Season 2 averaged 4.9 million unique viewers per episode. The April 14th, 2018 episode featuring Cardi B set a record as NBCUniversal's most watched Snapchat episode with over 12 million unique viewers, and as of January 2019, Face Forward has 2.14 million subscribers and averages the most time viewed per episode of any NBCU show.
