The Art of Sustain for CoComelon Means Diversification
“Does CoComelon even need streaming?” would have been a reasonable question to ask in 2018. Over the previous year the creators of the IP had brought about a stratospheric evolution in their YouTube business. Animation output had changed from 2D to 3D and the story world adjusted to focus in on JJ, the cherubic blond boy we all now equate with the brand. This had driven an epic gear change in the channel’s YouTube numbers, ramping up to 2 billion views a month. In 2019 they would have the second largest subscriber gainacross the whole of YouTube, so yeah, it would have been a fair question in 2018. What did streaming have to offer?
Legitimacy would have been a key answer. YouTube as a platform, and by extension YouTube IP, had a checkered record with doing right by kids. Kids were (still are) on the platform in droves, that’s clear to anyone paying attention, but there was (still is) a certain perception that YouTube-derived brands were of inferior quality. In addition to this, many legacy stakeholders, including those from retail and licensing, didn’t quite understand and/or trust YouTube metrics as a benchmark for decision making. As a result, windows on any mainstream media platform was a fundamental lever for YouTube creators when trying to build a kids brand to live beyond the whims of Google’s video ecosystem.
CoComelon started its journey off YouTube via opportunistic deals with the likes of Roku and Amazon, but it was June 2020 when the IP launched on Netflix that the bar of possibility was redefined in terms of how popular a preschool media brand can be. The timing helpfully coincided with the first publicly available indicators of “success” on streaming platforms; CoComelon would be the OG anointed king of kids content.
First it was pronounced through “Trending” rankings, daily top 10s that are compiled by wonderful sites like FlixPatrol. Not the most scientific, but better than nothing, and useful when looking at success on a country-by-country basis. By this metric, CoComelon would break its own record over and over again.
Next would come US Nielsen Streaming Content Ratings, where CoComelon reigned supreme, featuring in weekly rankings for a full three years. Leading the way in 2021 and 2022, jostling shoulders with Stranger Things, Grey’s Anatomy, Criminal Minds and Squid Game. Things were riding very high. CoComelon had been acquired by Moonbug Entertainment in 2020. Helmed by former Disney execs, the franchise machine was fully ramped up for JJ and his friends, and coming into 2023 the heady phase of launch was concluding. The less glamorous phase of sustain beckoned.
In 2023 CoComelon’s crown would be nicked by Bluey, which has seen a Phenomenal (intentional capital P, put your red pen down, you know who you are) rise in the last 18 months. But let’s be clear, CoComelon’s consistency remains an Outstanding achievement (intentional capital O). If you’re a few steps down from the top of K2, you’re still higher than the vast majority of people in the world.
What’s a YouTube nursery rhyme show to do? Uncharted waters for this type of brand. Whilst blue dogs can look over their shoulders at pink pigs for inspiration, digital-first IPs are writing the rulebook whilst they build in real time. You can see this all over YouTube. The Sidemen are leagues ahead of The Brit Crew. MrBeast is leagues ahead of PewDiePie. And CoComelon itself is leagues ahead of its own predecessor, Little Baby Bum. Each wave of creators that comes down the line goes further. The ultimate goal of multi-decade success, solidification of a true household name, an indelible global cultural signature originating from YouTube, is still in the making...
CoComelon already knew an evolution of tactics was needed. Recompilating “Peas, peas, got to eat your peas” will only take you so far. From 2022, as the original YouTube format was lining up global linear broadcasters, a diversification was in progress on its home platform. CoComelon was getting very much into the business of spin-offs.
First off, naturally, were YouTube channels: Cody Time, featuring JJ’s African American best friend, and JJ’s Animal Time, because preschoolers x animals is always a winning combination. Nina’s Familia, focusing on a multi-lingual, Mexican American family, would come in 2023. Looking today, Nina’s Familia and Cody Time are trucking along nicely on YouTube with 40M+ and 60M+ monthly views per Social Blade. Unsurprisingly, JJ’s Animal Time has been the breakout, currently sitting at 200M+ monthly views, with spin-off channels of its own, JJ’s Animal Songs and JJ’s Animal Adventures.
The biggest diversification swing would be CoComelon Lane, a true narrative-led series based on the IP, that would launch as a Netflix Original at the end of 2023. You don’t get more legitimate than that. Rightly or wrongly, the ultimate goal of digital creators commonly remains validation through traditional TV formats. For Moonbug in particular, being able to prove that they could expand the story world of the IP enough to fill a more traditional 20+ minute TV format was crucial.
And this they did. As covered in a previous newsletter, it is my opinion that CoComelon Lane 100% delivers on successful creative expansion of the IP. It’s true to the original but builds beyond and bigger. Have a look at an episode and let me know your thoughts.
The question I have is whether CoComelon Lane delivered on strategic objectives, as well as creative ones. Let me explain.
The original CoComelon had spent three years in the Top 10 US Nielsen Streaming Content Ratings for Netflix, but the advent of CoComelon Lane disrupted that run, fracturing viewing across two separate series.
Ultimately this coincided with a visible decline in CoComelon’s overall engagement on Netflix. Was it the cause? There are so many other factors that it’s hard to say that definitively. Multiple titles on a service like Netflix can be helpful. They bring the opportunity to take multiple slots of on-platform visual real estate, such as Trending Top 10s. Think of when a Minions movie lands, bringing halo uptick to sequels and derivatives.
CoComelon has been at its peak for three years; let’s not get carried away with any such narrative that the IP is dead and buried. Far from it. The show still claims hefty ground when looking at Netflix six-monthly Global Engagement Reports. The out and out #1 kids series, although it’s on a clear downward trend there too and the competition is heating up.
It’s not insignificant that Peppa Pig landed on Netflix US for the first time over this period and immediately built considerable ground. Moonbug also turned attention back to their other nursery rhyme show on Netflix, Little Angel, which launched new seasons for the first time in more than six months and nearly doubled in engagement. I’m unpacking deeper insights on this as part of my Netflix kids data project; give me a shout if your company is interested in accessing this.
CoComelon isn’t out of ideas yet. On YouTube the IP recently launched a live-action iteration, CoComelon Classroom, where an in-person Ms Appleberry (played by US National Teacher of the Year, Juliana Urtubey) focuses young viewers on early English-language learning. Comparisons to another YouTube breakout preschool influencer, Ms Rachel, have not gone unnoticed. The sustain phase of a franchise is scrappy. It takes strategic creativity, and imitation can be the firmest form of flattery.
As I’ve covered for Bluey, nurturing a franchise that’s peaked into something evergreen is as difficult as growing something from scratch in the first place, and far less glorious. It’s messy, with ups and downs. Ground will be gained and lost, and for CoComelon there is no template or trodden path to follow.