Nielsen has changed how they measure social ratings for Supernatural
By Callum Gunn
Nielson Social will no longer just be using Twitter to measure Supernatural’s Social rating
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For years Supernatural fans have made it a point of taking to Twitter to tweet before, during and after a new episode of Supernatural. An almost religious affair that has more than likely been a major factor in the long-running success of the show.
For those unaware of the importance of this, it is all to do with Nielsen Social being able to provide CW bosses with the Social Content Ratings. These ratings are used by network bosses to determine how popular a show is. Nielsen Social are the ones who gather this information and provided it to the correct people, so any changes they may make to how they gather this information is extremely important, as they could be the difference between a good and a bad score which, worst case scenario, could lead to the cancellation of a show.
And that is exactly what has happened here. Nielsen Social has made a significant change in how they gather their information to determine the social rating of the show.
Nielsen Social will no longer just be using Twitter
Nielson will now use Facebook and Instagram in order to measure the Social Content Rating of a show. That means that you can now use either Twitter, Facebook or Instagram during Supernatural, or you can jump between all three.
Facebook was actually integrated towards the end of the last year but with the addition of Instagram just coming through it is a significant game changer. With more and more people coming to use Instagram, it really was a case of not if, but when, Nielsen would integrate the platform.
The timing and other rules remain the same. To be included, #Supernatural needs to be one of the first two tweets used. The tweets from three hours before a new episode until three hours after a new episode will be included for the social rankings. How Facebook will be measured is unknown exactly, but it’s likely taking the public statuses from individuals, pages and groups. You may also need to indicate that you are watching Supernatural.
How will this impact Supernatural?
In all honesty, this should work out really well for Supernatural. The show has always had a great representation on Twitter and Nielsen have not removed that source so the Social Ratings should probably improve.
All in all, this is a positive for everyone. The only thing you need to worry about now is which social platform to use while watching Supernatural, Twitter Facebook or Instagram.
Next: Osric Chau ready to hunt some real ghosts
What do you think about the change? Are you worried in any way? Leave a comment below with your thoughts.
Supernatural Season 13 continues tonight at 8/7c on The CW.