Nielsen: 57% of live broadcast viewership comes from Twitter users

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TV viewers often use social media while watching live shows, and according to recent Nielsen research, live tweets not only make up the majority of weekly series tweets, but are also more influential. These tweets are also valuable for driving on-demand programming, DVR and streaming video viewership.

So what parts of TV show tweets are live tweets?

Nielsen measured Twitter TV activity by examining ratings and related tweets for 96 weeks of series to measure the number of tweets and Twitter views during live and reruns of shows.

The survey found that 57% of viewership came from those who viewed related tweets. However, there were some differences in the use of Twitter by viewers of different types of programs. For TV dramas and reality shows, Twitter viewers accounted for 58% and 67% respectively. Meanwhile, the number of viewership of comedy shows from Twitter users dropped to 49%, indicating that Twitter has a greater impact on such programs when the programs are not live.

The survey also found that those who watched the live show tweeted twice as much as those who watched the replay. With the increased social media exposure when the show is live, promoting the show through social media can have a big impact.

Because TV viewers consume multiple show-related tweets on Twitter, their posting behavior can change. Nielsen analyzed TV activity on Twitter during the 2014-2015 broadcast season and found two changes when series aired live.

First, the nature of the conversation has changed. When the show is not live, only one-third of the comments (33%) are about the show. During live shows, two-thirds (65%) of the comments are about the show. The fact that Twitter activity is more closely related to the show during live shows also shows the engagement of ordinary viewers.

In addition to these live content-related tweets, other show-related tweets are often about brands included in the show or concerns about future content. When there is no live show, these tweets account for 2/3 of the show-related tweets.

Second, the number of tweets per user is increasing. Nielsen found that users who watched the live show tweeted twice as much as those who watched the replay. Some live show tweeters also tweeted when the show was not live. These highly active social users accounted for 8% of the show's tweeters, but each tweeted five times as much as those who tweeted about the replay.

Perhaps most importantly, the survey illustrates the potential for different types of author engagement, depending on when and how a show is tweeted.

In summary, live and rerun Twitter activity presents four important opportunities for networks and advertisers to maximize the impact of advertising and promotions:

1. Twitter activity during live TV shows can increase the ratings of the series.

2. During live broadcasts, viewers tune in to Twitter more frequently, which is also a good time to promote through social media;

3. Live Twitter activity can lead to higher content response and general audience participation. Conversely, replays show the popularity of the program on social media and can be used to measure the effectiveness of the promotion;

4. Drive engagement and ratings for your show through a network of promotional campaigns on Twitter, and reach specific show viewers based on when and how you tweet.

199IT.com Originally compiled from: Nielsen. Please do not reprint without authorization