If you’re one of the millions of Breaking Bad fans out there like me, you’re probably waiting with bated breath for the lasts episode to air—simultaneously terrified to find out what happens to the characters and heartbroken to consider that all too soon, it’s going to be over.

While I’ll be sad to see the show go off the air, part of me will be even sadder to see their brilliant content marketing efforts come to an end.  The creators of AMC’s Breaking Bad have done an unparalleled job of using great content to engage their audience and turning them into devoted advocates for the show.

How were the show creators able to turn their viewing audience into an army of rabid fans—and what can we learn from them in order to make our own content marketing efforts more effective?

 Here are some of my ideas.

  1. Create highly addictive content. It’s ironic that a show about a chemistry teacher who starts cooking meth in order to provide for his family is itself so addicting. Each episode ends on a scene that leaves viewers desperate to know what happens next.

    Luckily, YOU don’t have to delve into the criminal underworld to create marketing content that’s just as addictive to your target audience. Take the time to understand what it is your potential customers are looking for and then deliver it in a way that genuinely surprises and entertains them. And then make sure you end on a point that leaves them wanting more.

  2. Infuse your content with personality. AMC has done a remarkable job of creating content marketing that reflects the personality of the characters in the show.

    Check out Walter White’s personal blog, for example. Or this business website for Walt’s sleazy lawyer, Saul Goodman. Or this donations website created by Walt Jr. to raise funds for his father, who’s dying of lung cancer. They all do such a fabulous job of making the characters seem even more three-dimensional and real.

    What better way to keep the show alive in the minds of viewers during the off-season when it isn’t airing?

  3. The Draw Shop User Created ContentEmbrace and encourage user-created content.  The Internet has shown us that when people really love something, they want to put their personal stamp on it and make it their own. Within weeks of the show airing, newborn fans were already taking images from the show and turning them into entertaining graphics or gifs. Instead of stamping down on this kind of content appropriation, AMC actively encouraged it, going so far as to set up a Tumblr site that allows creative fans to post their art. All art posted goes through a vetting process so someone at AMC is investing a significant chunk of time to maintaining the site.

    How can you emulate this? Give your visitors or customers to create some content related to product or industry. Run a contest with a great prize and make the condition of entry an original image, gif, or video. Then post all of the entries prominently on your site and encourage people to check it out. It’s a great way to encourage repeat traffic to your site and get people more invested in your story…

  4. Never underestimate the power of a good tagline, bitch. No one on the show is more quotable than beloved addict-turned-weapon-for-vengeance Jesse Pinkman, whose constant use of the word “bitch” has made him the darling of the Internet. There are entire Internet memes dedicated to his love of the word. You can even find dozens of online stores selling t-shirts of him saying it.
    Obviously, the more quotable you are, the more people will quote you and remember you. So what can you say about your business or products that you want people saying to their friends?

So those are the content marketing lessons Breaking Bad has taught me over the years. How about you? Will you be sad to see the end of Breaking Bad? And has its brilliant marketing ever inspired you to try some of the same strategies with your own marketing? Tell us in the comments!