Nat Geo Wild will celebrate its recent ratings surge with a new branding campaign that it hopes will help distinguish the channel from sibling National Geographic Channel.
The new design — with a sleeker on-air look and new fonts, colors and textures that better incorporate the look of the natural world — began rolling out on the network late last month, per Courteney Monroe, chief marketing officer for Nat Geo Wild.
The network has also made the word “wild” more prominent in the branding. “Nat Geo Wild is all about wild personalities, characters and animals, and we wanted a fun, lighthearted and contemporary brand design that is consistent and cohesive, but also allows the individual shows and personalities to shine through,” Monroe said. “Our creative team developed a dynamic and distinct look that really embodies the Wild brand.”
The network will roll out additional elements of the rebranding effort during the November premiere of series Jobs that Bite! and the signature programming stunt “Big Cats Week,” as well as the 2014 return of The Incredible Dr. Pol.
The rebranding effort comes as the network continues to sustain ratings momentum. This past summer, Nat Geo Wild posted a 13% viewership increase to an average of 189,000 total viewers in primetime as it continues to draw viewers with original nonfiction series including The Incredible Dr. Pol, Fish Tank Kings and Monster Fish.
The Sept. 14 episode of The Incredible Dr. Pol drew a network-record 776,000 total viewers and 270,000 adults 25-54, officials said. The episode also more than doubled Nat Geo Wild’s Saturday-night average delivery.
Meanwhile, at National Geographic Channel, a Nov. 10 launch date was set for the original documentary Killing Kennedy. The docu-movie, following the lead of successful series Killing Lincoln, stars Rob Lowe as President Kennedy, Will Rothhaar as Lee Harvey Oswald, Michelle Trachtenberg as Marina Oswald and Ginnifer Goodwin as Jackie Kennedy, network officials said.
TAKEAWAY
Nat Geo Wild is rebranding with a new look that incorporates elements of the natural world.
