Even before the protests of 2020, Hulu had begun a multi-year journey to situate itself not as a voice rooted in the past or the future, but in present conversations around Black identity and experience in America. Looking inward, Hulu researched how Black audiences perceived Hulu and how they felt Hulu’s content represented them as a group. Using Black History Month as a catalyst, Hulu debuted Your Attention Please in February of 2020, expanding their Black Stories hub with a new documentary series that highlights rising Black artists.

Fast forwarding to the protests later that year that shook America to its core, Hulu found its journey quickened with a renewed urgency and sharper focus. With both civil unrest and content consumption reaching new heights in 2020, it was time for entertainment companies to do better and maximize the potential for entertainment to be more inclusive and more empowering.

This Black History Month (February 2021), Hulu showcased Black voices, stories, and creators — both on and off the platform — through content launches, a first-of-its-kind virtual concert, and monetary donations to nonprofits supporting Black communities. To help create a meaningful framework for the Black experience through storytelling, Hulu also committed to amplifying Black voices not just during February, but throughout the year through sustained programs that do not expire.

Creatively, each of these programs would share the same themes and visual cues inspired by the graphics and titles from Your Attention Please (YAP). This evolved brand of Afrofuturism became the style guide and the connective tissue for each new campaign component as the movement grew.

In June 2020, we saw month-over-month viewership of YAP grow by almost 230% and in 6 months it outperformed its predecessor, Around the Way, proving we’d uncovered a need. In August we finalized the results of a study involving different underserved audience segments' feelings about Hulu’s offerings vs. the media as a whole. All audiences were asked if they’d be interested in joining a streaming service featuring content representing their identity. Black audiences were the most interested (78%), and 71% of the wider audience was interested in watching series featuring a diverse group of characters. Most agreed that while minority representation is on the rise, more work needs to be done to improve the quality of these portrayals. Our initial thinking in creating YAP was confirmed, and so was our belief that four episodes of one show was merely a good start.

Like in all relationships, trust is built over time. These stories resonated in a time of need, revealing a cultural appetite for positive energy and hope, and it has created a greater urgency for us to expand our efforts. Through a sustained, multi-year campaign, Hulu is breaking ground to reach new audiences, with content and messaging rolling out on every touchpoint: YAP (the original series), YAP: The Concert, YAP: The Podcast, Black Stories Hub + Promo, Hulu Originals, Social, Friends with Benefits (gifts that inspire action and learning), Partnerships, and YAP: Initiative 29 (original socially-conscious shorts premiering beyond February). “Your Attention Please” may have started out as a show that ran during BHM, but has since become something bigger. And it’s how Hulu is making a difference — by giving its audience exactly what they want and telling stories long overdue to be told.

The continuing campaign significantly outperformed Hulu brand averages across KPIs, and broke through as inspiring, compelling, and informative to both subs and non-subs.

Positive Impact on Brand Opinion (people feel better about Hulu) non-subs 37 ? 54%

• 146% of brand average (46% increase)

Call to Action (Upper and Lower Funnel) non-subs 46 ? 85%

• 185% of brand average (85% increase)

Interest in watching featured content 8% ? 45% non-subs 9% ? 42%

• 562% of brand average for non-subs

SOCIAL STATS:

1. In terms of conversation, BHM 2021 was our most talked about iteration of the campaign to date, generating at least 240% more social mentions than in 2020/2019

2. BHM 2021 exceeded Hulu’s cultural benchmarks for conversation + sentiment

3. Conversation around YAP specifically increased 234% YoY and total viewership increased +1,072% YoY (both these metrics include all YAP efforts, i.e., the episodic series, concert, etc.)