The digital strategy for The Farm's 7th edition (A Fazenda), aired by Rede Record, was a great one due to its complexity and interactivity. First of all, the show had an 24/7 online extension, with a live streaming show warming up the TV exhibition - with a chat room, where the web users could use social login and interact with the show hostess. The show's hotsite had a feed with the best tweets using #AFazenda, about the show, and a ranking of which contestants were the most commented. Best tweets were also shown at the TV screen, during the airing. But the Twitter strategy went way further: a "Twitter see-saw" was used to impact the course of the reality in a very efficient way. Twitter users would decide if one of the show's contestant would have (or not) a privilege or a prize, the poll being measured with two antagonizing hashtags. The audience, at home, could, as well, vote to eliminate the contestants via app. The show's official Twitter account, @fazendarecord, followed the airing time with memes, jokes and a very funny behaviour, interacting with the users. And, to crown it all, the show's last week had a traditional party with all the eliminated contestants joining the finalists - where we placed a tablet set to use a Twitter mirror strategy. The contestants took their own pictures and the photos were automatically uploaded to @fazendarecord, using the hashtag #AFazenda, first time ever in Brazilian open television.
Not many TV shows are really social in Brazil - and The Farm, for its 7th edition, came way more social than everything on the country's television. The approach covered many areas and interactivity styles, going through audience participation commenting to eliminating contestants and deciding the direction the show would take.
It was the first time in Brazil that a reality show contestant won (or didn't) a prize or anything that could change the game's course, based only on Twitter users' opinion and will. Instant voting on the app could grant immunization or even choose where a contestant should sleep, for example.
Also, it was the first time a brazilian open TV show used the Twitter Mirror function, allowing contestants to post their own selfies inside the confinement directly on Twitter. And the Twitter users could see themselves and their tweets on the TV screen and the official hotsite. Besides, they could see their own photos at the Instagram mosaic, containing the best pictures using the hashtag. The public participation was crucial at the streaming warm-up show, where they could debate the reality with an exclusive internet hostess.
All that complex strategy was really rewarding: it was by far the most commented TV show in Brazil during the airing period, impacting millions and reaching 300.000, sometimes 400.000 mentions (and something around 40 or 50 trending topics) a week. The final alone made 240K mentions during airtime, Twitter own data says.
It was a show that really relied on social - and had its success boosted by it. In 2014, nothing in Brazilian open TV was like this, as far-reaching and rewarding at the same time. Twitter was the flagship, but it's Facebook account reached more than 2 million followers, Instagram was a part of it and even GIFs and Tumblr made their own participation.
Brazil is one of the biggest markets for social, and A Fazenda was its own prodigy, using social in many instances and porpoises at the same time. Something hard to see even on the most advanced and well-versed TV stations, like the American ones.
