On Cesar Millan’s The Dog Whisperer tour in Singapore, the world-renowned canine behavioural expert managed to do what nobody could – he coaxed a dog who has been self-bound for seven years out of its kennel and got it to swim even though it had a severe dislike of water.
Later that day, the The Dog Whisperer surprised a family at their home and successfully rehabilitated their aggressive 7-year-old Maltese, Tiny.
Dr. Brady Barr, host of Nat Geo WILD’s Dangerous Encounters, was recently in Singapore as well. The herpetologist paid a visit to a pre-school as well as the Singapore Zoo, where he held live presentations and educated children and parents about the importance of animal protection.
LIVE it up
Getting fans up-close-and-personal with the shows’ talents seems to be an increasing trend among regional pay-TV broadcasters and FIC has certainly led the way here – the Nat Geo brand is approaching its on-ground publicity campaigns more aggressively than ever.
Yvonne Tay, Vice President & Territory Head, FOX International Channels, Singapore, explains the company’s rationale behind their marketing strategies.
“These are part of FIC’s efforts to localise more of its content within Singapore to engage with local stakeholders including consumers and business partners.”
Tay believes that such cross-platform/on-ground promotional efforts also help the brand strike a chord with viewers.
“With on-ground events, we take these exclusive moments that viewers see on our programmes and allow our viewers to see them LIVE. It also puts the spotlight on our talents so that the local communities are able to connect more directly with the personalities that drive their favourite programmes, and in turn make our programmes more relevant to them,” says Tay.
This is in line with FIC’s “Brands With Fans” slogan, which aims to reward the faithful viewer. “Campaigns and onground events establish a stronger brand connection, especially when we have National Geographic personalities present on our on-ground events,” adds Tay.
For Dr. Barr, who conducted a LIVE presentation at the Singapore Zoo, such events allow him to present his most authentic self.
“The live shows are important because they let people see that I’m a real person, that I’m approachable. There’s no on-screen Brady and off-screen Brady. I’m the same person, it’s not an act,” the reptile expert explains. “I could take you out today, and we could go catch a crocodile, and I’d be just as excited about today’s capture as I was 20 years ago, 5,000 captures ago. I’m passionate about what I do. It’s real. I’m not fake. So I think that the live shows are very important to let people connect with me.”
Tay notes that factual entertainment is a challenging sell. According to her, viewers want fresh content and they want to identify with their favourite personalities.
Dr. Barr agrees. “If I were talking about warm, cuddly animals, if I were talking about koala bears or pandas, people would be lining up to throw me conservation money. But you’re talking about the cold and ‘scalys’, and people head for the door. It’s a tough sale.”
For Millan, coming to Asia and connecting with as wide an audience base as possible is most helpful. SueAnn Fincke, producer of The Dog Whisperer, shares that “what Cesar wants is for this to be universal. He wants his methods and approach to be universal, so he would defi nitely want to reach out to anyone he can where dogs have problems and owners have problems.”
Tay feels there is no better alternative to engage fans of the show than to have Millan interact with them in person because of his uncanny understanding of dogs and owners alike, and passion for reforming troubled dogs.
“Cesar’s visit allowed our viewers to see for themselves his deep-seeded passion to help dog owners rehabilitate their dogs. Through this, we put Cesar’s work on TV into local context so that there is direct relevance to Singaporeans, connecting them more closely with NGC and its programmes.”
International appeal
So what is the reason behind both personalities’ international appeal?
“I think the appeal has been his (Millan) amazing ability to get where people are coming from and how he is able to relate to them in a way that makes them see what is going on with not only their dogs, but with themselves in many cases. It’s his ability to work with human beings that is phenomenal,” explains Fincke.
Barr, on the other hand, is quick to downplay any notion of a “Dangerous Encounters” brand. He attributes his success and longevity to National Geographic itself.
“I think that really, the brand is National Geographic. A lot of people say no one is bigger than the brand. The yellow borders have been around for 120 years. I’m just kind of a steward of the brand. I’m a talking head. I’m a credentialed educator and a credentialed scientist. They trust me with imparting accurate information in an entertaining way, and I try not to embarrass myself or the brand.”
Fincke hopes to see The Dog Whisperer format replicated elsewhere, but warns that keeping situations, personalities and storylines fresh will be difficult.
For Barr however, this expansion is already in the works. Barr says that Microsoft and National Geographic are collaborating on a yet-to-be-titled Dr. Brady Barr XBOX Kinect game for kids, taking existing fi lms and cutting them down to 15-minutes, before inserting them as introductory video packages in the actual game.
Barr puts the pieces of the puzzle together succinctly. “At the end of the day, all these pieces go into educating the masses, whether it’s through technology or live appearances. That’s why I call National Geographic my home because they like me to get out there and get the message across. We both believe in the same things. So it’s been a great marriage.”
