The CBS sitcom The Neighborhood is doing well. It has hit its latest season high. Apparently, all of the new sitcoms are doing well on the network. The Neighborhood just attracted its biggest audience yet on Monday night, Nov. 18. The latest episode had 6.6 million total viewers and a 1.0 rating, which up 12% from Feb. 25.
Also, in the lead was Bob Hearts Abishola, which also attracted its biggest audience yet with 6.1 million total viewers, according to TVLine. Meanwhile, All Rise and Bull stayed steady with their viewership. But it turns out that the planned interactive bowling night on The Neighborhood worked out in its favor. The publicity team at CBS came up with something clever to attract viewership. During the live telecast of the new episode of the sophomore sitcom, which was set in a bowling alley.
The cast filmed the show at Pinz, one of the most popular bowling alleys in Los Angeles. Prior to the episode, the cast made an appearance at the bowling alley and invited the press along for the fun. They also encouraged people to bowl and share social media messages about the event. Using the official hashtag #TheNeighborhood and the handle @TheNeighborhood, the cast was able to engage with fans and encourage them to watch the new episode.
In addition, the cast tweeted again when the show aired on the west coast. But there was one fair warning in the tweeting guidelines and that was not to “engage with haters.” The cast wanted to keep things “light and positive” during the televised event. It’s not clear how much impact this social media event had on the Los Angeles bowling alley and the television show, but it seemed to have paid off. The Monday night episode of The Neighborhood has now become the highest rated episode of the season.
It was a strategic move that was smart on CBS’ part. What also helped is that the entire cast was happy to be there bowling and talking to the press. This media strategy connected the cast not only with the press but also with their fans in real time. And it proved to have worked since it attracted enough attention to a broadcast series that’s often overlooked in favor of new shows or dramas. There’s also the added competition of streaming services. But CBS doesn’t seem too concerned as it continues to attract millions of viewers each night.