Shudder's Curated Content Experience Offers B2B Marketers A Valuable Lesson

There’s a place online where scream queens and creature-feature lovers feel at home. It’s called Shudder. If you’re a fan of horror, you have likely heard of this over-the-top streaming service that specializes in horror movies & TV shows. Think of Shudder as a scream-streaming service catering to a niche audience who basks in being scared.

The company’s business activity as of late has focused on a rapid expansion of content. Over the past few years, Shudder has rolled out exclusive and original films and television shows. This includes an array of horror films produced across the globe in various languages.

In addition, Shudder works with actors like Kumail Nanjiani (the guy who got ripped for Eternals not too long ago), Barbara Crampton (from Re-Animator, 1985) and horror screenwriters like Nick Antosca. They act as guest curators developing their favourite movie lists for audiences.

I’m a horror lover through and through. It’s why I decided to subscribe to Shudder several years ago. But the reason I ended up keeping my subscription is because Shudder does a wonderful job of curating horror content like no other horror streaming service out there.

In addition to having guest curators offer their horror film favs, Shudder further organizes content based on the sub-genres of horror: supernatural, creature feature, killer, and many more.

A few years back, the streaming service created a Halloween hotline for subscribers where people could call in on Oct. 31st and get personalized recommendations for horror films to stream from the platform.

Shudder is catering to the individual tastes of horror viewers and its strategy is working; the streaming service surpassed one million subscribers in September 2020.

This offers all content marketers a valuable lesson: personalizing content experiences is a powerful tool to help you grow your audience. This is true in any industry, not just horror.

People want content that speaks to their sensibilities and their needs. Even if you’re in the B2B space, think about ways you can personalize content for your various personas and organize it so that it’s directly aimed at them through your marketing campaigns, especially those personas who are being underserved.

Horror fans have long been underserved with limited streaming options to satiate their lust for fear. Shudder offers horror fans a place to stream a wide range of quality horror content, all for a small cost. Prior to Shudder, horror fans had limited options to stream horror content.

​Netflix, Amazon Prime and others have their share of horror films and TV shows. Too often, however, horror is relegated to the dark corners of these mega streaming services. Shudder brings horror to the forefront.
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Shudder knows what its niche audience wants and it is delivering content accordingly. Therein lies a valuable lesson for any B2B niche business looking to serve its audience.