Windowing Wonders: 800 Pound Gorilla’s Success with Early Access Comedy

800 Pound Gorilla Media Group (800PGM) is a heavyweight in the comedy world, always looking for new ways to make audiences laugh.

To give comedy fans early access to a series of exclusive comedy specials, they turned to Single's rental solution for Shopify to deliver Iliza Shlesinger's three-part special, "Iliza's Locals," before it hit other platforms.

The Challenge:

Despite having a strong presence on various streaming services, other platforms lacked the tools to give die hard fans early access to content from their favorite comedians – a huge revenue opportunity for content owners. 

  

The Solution:

800PGM launched Iliza Shlesinger's specials on their fully-owned store, powered by Single's rental solution for Shopify. With Single, they were able to give Iliza’s biggest fans first-access while also maintaining complete control over revenue, data, and content. 

Single's rental solution for Shopify empowers creators and companies to directly deliver digital products to their audience right from their storefronts. With customization options for pricing, access, and viewing duration, it's a versatile solution for content distribution. 

As an added bonus, they sold  a product bundle with all three of Iliza's Locals specials, digital audio albums, and the ability to download or stream the specials anytime from any device. 

Iliza enthusiastically supported the project, showcasing the city's top emerging comedians and expressing her love for LA's comedic talent. In Iliza's words:

“I love the LA comedy scene and have been out almost every night of my life for 17 years. I've watched the scene grow, I've watched comics grow and I want to give the LA comics coming up a chance to share their talent. Los Angeles has the best comics in the country and I want to share the new generation with people.”

  

The Results:

By embracing a direct-to-consumer approach, 800PGM gave fans an experience they couldn't get anywhere else. The response was overwhelmingly positive, with fans taking to social media to express gratitude for the early access and exclusive content.  

I’m so excited to share Iliza’s Locals with you. You can watch it for free on April 28th on YouTube, but you can get it RIGHT NOW on https://t.co/jMG6vJbl5B: https://t.co/GJRA01wKlA#IlizasLocals @800pgm #standup pic.twitter.com/TMaN2qIzNM

— Iliza Shlesinger (@iliza) April 5, 2023

The strategy enabled 800PGM to fully own their brand, platform, and data, all while giving fans exactly what they craved: more laughter.

   

The Future:

800PGM's foray into direct-to-consumer distribution has opened the door for a new era of comedy content delivery. By owning their platform, brand, and data, they can now experiment with new ways to engage with fans and offer them more customized experiences. 

As streaming services continue to dominate the entertainment industry, direct-to-consumer strategies like this one are becoming increasingly popular among creators and producers. 800PGM is leading the charge, and we can't wait to see what they come up with next.

      

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