The Internal Organs of the Walking Dead Experience

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By: Michael Lindquist

After 16 incredible episodes of AMC's The Walking Dead, television audiences are more engaged than ever. Along with the drama of a post-apocalyptic, zombie-infested world, The Walking Dead has done an incredible job with their social media campaigns. From sneak peeks and spoilers to late-night talk shows and Q&A through Twitter and Facebook, The Walking Dead has proven to be one of the most socially engaging cable television shows of 2012.

So what's all the fuss about? Why do people constantly feel the need to know more about the series, the actors, and the drama to come? The show creates enough suspense to leave audience members with questions to be answered at each commercial break. The zombie-killing drama also uses Story Sync, an interactive social experience that keeps the audience hooked by asking timely poll questions and posting trivia and behind-the-scenes exclusives. @WalkingDead_AMC encourages their followers to tweet their questions about the show so they can be answered on the late-night talk show, Talking Dead, hosted by Chris Hardwick.

The talk show involves members of The Walking Dead’s cast and crew along with zombie-loving celebrities who have questions and comments of their own. The television series serves as the heart of the Walking Dead experience, with the official website acting as the brain, which makes Facebook and Twitter the blood and guts of AMC's brilliant social media campaign. Talking Dead is the stomach where all the bodily organs are digested.

The show is so popular that it has been competing for audience members throughout the awards season. For the past few weeks, AMC has been pinned up against major television events including The Academy Awards, The Grammy Awards, other Sunday-night programming. The Grammys proved to be extremely socially engaging, but the folks at AMC were not intimidated. Despite sharing a television audience with The 2012 Grammy Awards, The Walking Dead captured a record-breaking audience of roughly 8.1 million viewers.

AMC has produced some wonderful dramas including Mad Men and Breaking Bad, but they have created something special with The Walking Dead. AMC has paved the road for social TV campaigns by demonstrating the power of interactive content in television. Few people would have anticipated that a graphic novel inspired television series would attract the audience that it has, but AMC has created an innovative way to affect the way we watch television.

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About the Author

Michael Lindquist has a strong passion for art, entertainment, and advertising. As a child, he learned it was okay to color outside the lines, because the lines only restrict your creativity and imagination. Find him online here.

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