After upping its local and international content game and adding a new paparazzi section to the website, Channel24 reached a whopping 1.1 million unique browsers in South Africa, and 1.6 million unique browsers worldwide. The site is now positioned as number nine on South Africa's list of top 10 websites and holds the number one spot among entertainment websites.
Says Gustav Goosen, CEO of The SpaceStation, who exclusively manages the digital media sales for Channel24: "Channel24 speaks to a very engaged and active online audience who are looking for the latest entertainment news, all day, every day, making Channel24 an ideal platform for advertisers who are looking for a young, vibrant switched-on user."
Says Channel24 Editor, Herman Eloff, "Our team has grown significantly of late and we have increased the range of content for Channel24. We believe that this, together with the addition of the paparazzi page, has brought about the bump in online traffic. Following the May statistics, I believe that the increase in traffic will be a lasting occurrence."
In May, Channel24 launched South Africa's first online paparazzi presence. The section on Channel24 is solely dedicated to local and international paparazzi pictures. The addition of the paparazzi page gave celebrity gossip a massive boost locally by providing readers with a front row seat to the lives of the hottest and most talked about international and local celebrities.
Some of the top stories recently include the Kardashian wedding and general Kardashian news, of which the latest 'behind the scenes' visuals can be found on the paparazzi page. The good mix of local and international celebrity and entertainment news also ensures that locals can identify with the content. Another highlight in May was the locally produced South African Tourism brand video, depicting the astonishing beauty of the country, which went viral and captured the hearts of South Africans everywhere.
On the social media side, Channel24 keeps it young and vibrant with daily updates, live event tweets, hourly Facebook posts and loads of repinning on Pinterest. All this great content and social interaction makes for an enthused and engaged local entertainment audience. This is clearly seen through a survey conducted by The SpaceStation, which showed that 68% of Channel24's audience were willing to engage with ads that were relevant to them. It also showed that 80% of them use their phone to connect and browse while 60% of them specifically choose Channel24 to watch online video.
"An audience of this size with this much engagement potential is hugely valuable," adds Goosen. "We can't wait to see the positive affect this growth will have on our clients' campaign results."
