SOCIAL SLEUTHS ON THE SCENE
Research revealed that Google searches for “true crime” had tripled in the five years prior, indicating intense competition from both new and established players. Undeterred, we focused on this digitally-native true crime audience, developing a purely organic social strategy that leveraged deep social listening, active content curation, and targeted real-time moderation. We transformed social channels into shared evidence rooms, open 24/7 for internet sleuths everywhere.
PHASE 1: REOPEN THE CASE
We kicked off the campaign by advising CMP on an optimized social strategy for their existing Unsolved Mysteries accounts (Facebook and Twitter). Additionally, we launched @officialunsolvedmysteries on Instagram. After verifying all accounts with blue checks, we established an effective posting schedule, updated bios, and implemented best practices for sharing vintage show clips (e.g., videos under one minute performed better, and clear CTAs drove engagement). Our goal was straightforward: get original Unsolved Mysteries fans talking again.
PHASE 2: THE SEARCH IS ON
As we approached the series debut, we shut down the Unsolved Mysteries social accounts for 48 hours with a literal ‘Closed Crime Scene’ message — signaling to fans, now filled with nostalgia, that new mysteries were coming, with a hidden message revealing the release date. Two days later, and just one week before the series debut, we released the trailer, revealing a first look at Netflix’s six haunting new mysteries. In just 24 hours, the video garnered nearly 500K views and a 313% increase in brand mentions from the previous day.
PHASE 3: KEEPING THE MOMENTUM
The objective for Phase 3 was to sustain momentum well beyond the July 1st series launch. With the series now streaming, true crime fans flocked to our social pages to discuss theories. Success lay in tailoring all content to the evolving interests of the fans. Reactivity and relevance were as crucial as strategic, proactive content creation.
We launched six customized Facebook Groups, one for each episode in Volume 1, prompting fans to share their theories and open-source their findings. These comments informed video compilations featuring the most talked-about moments of each episode, evidence roundups, and clip selections.
Total active group members: 6,427
Instagram and Twitter served as our pulse check on sentiment. Among fan comments, suspect fixation and a shared sense of humor emerged, so we created reaction memes and thematic supercuts with show footage, carefully balancing levity with serious subject matter.
To further assist fan investigations, we created the Unsolved Mysteries Case Files and shared them on Reddit. This custom Google Drive folder housed exclusive investigative reports and cutting room floor footage, providing fodder for continued series discussion across all platforms.
CAMPAIGN RESULTS
Unsolved Mysteries was Netflix’s most-watched title in July. According to research firm 7Park Data, it was the second-most streamed title in July across Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and Disney+. Offline, the FBI exhumed Alonzo Brooks’ body after his episode brought his case to prominence. We were honored to help spread awareness of his case and reward across social platforms. Fans submitted over 4,000 new stories for consideration and 4,000 tips related to active investigations, 150 of which were credible tips forwarded to law enforcement. Sightings of alleged killer Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès were reported in Chicago.
THE NUMBERS
8M IMPRESSIONS
1.9M VIDEO VIEWS
11.28M MENTIONS
