Pitching Your Reality TV Show | How to Pitch a Television Show Idea about your Business or Family
Pitching Your Reality:
There's a reason why most of the hit Reality TV series are focused on unique families and businesses, and you might only have to look at your own world to discover a family or business with the right dynamics and characters to become a reality show. Selling a TV Show Idea maybe easier than you think. iPitch.tv allows anyone from any part of the world to pitch their life (business, family, etc.) to our industry's top TV production companies, producers and executives and ultimately sell a TV show idea.
What Producers Are Looking For:
Television Producers want new people and subjects to develop as shows: Unique lifestyles, families, businesses and individuals with interesting realities and strong characters are all ideal for pitching to a network as a show. For businesses, the process and product need to be interesting. The type of clientele you deal with also becomes a secondary storyline of characters. Examples are endless and include businesses such as: classic car restoration, matchmaking, real-estate in a unique market, alligator wrangling, interior designer, rodeo promoter, entrepreneur, inventor, angel investor, stunt pilot, business consultant, advertising executive, or any profession that can deliver interesting story content.
When your tv pitch is focused on your family, or a family you know, there needs to be some peculiar dynamic, living situation or lifestyle involved. Most importantly, it’s about the characters and their relationships. If your family is unique, and unlike any other, it may hold the ingredients for an entertaining reality TV show. And if you have a business that’s family run, then you have another layer to make your television show idea even more appealing to Producers.
Beyond families, social clubs are also ripe for reality TV pitches. Maybe you're a group of amateur female race car drivers that thrive on adrenaline when you're not changing diapers and catering to a family. Maybe you're a group of middle-aged married men reliving the glory days with your over-the-hill-hockey club. Maybe you reenact battles from the civil war. Maybe you're in a motorcycle gang that operates as good samaritans doing amazing things for strangers in need. These are just a few of the countless examples of people’s lives that operate as a group or "family" that can be covered as the focus of a reality tv pitch.
Capturing the Characters:
At iPitch.tv you can share any "sizzle reel" you may have produced or you can simply record yourself giving your own "verbal video pitch", describing your world and the show you're proposing, along with any quick video of the people in your world. Producers are then able to see the personalities involved, and other details about the "world" or "subject" the show would be set in. For more detailed information on creating your own video pitch, visit our "Reel 101" section.
How Reality TV Promotes Individuals & Businesses:
Reality TV is the most influential medium for "branding" individuals, products, and businesses. Documentary Reality Series have become the most compelling programs to watch and produce, largely because they take viewers into worlds they'd otherwise never experience. Be it a family that builds custom motorcycles, a couple of guys who travel the backroads to hunt for Americana collectables, or a group of women living jet-set social lives - any area of life, work or other interesting activity can be the basis for a reality television series.
"Real Housewives" star, Bethanny Frankel capitalized on her television success by licensing her own brand of "Skinny Girl" diet cocktails. That single move to capitalize on her reality TV notoriety has brought her hundreds of millions of dollars with the launch of her own branded products. With every example of extreme success, there are also countless examples of small businesses, services and ordinary people who experience exponential business growth after being featured on television. "West Coast Customs" was a small start-up created on a loan from the proprietor's grandfather. Through their own talent, and ultimately the exposure gained from having a television series based on their business, the West Coast Customs brand now has franchises worldwide.
You don't have to become a household name for your business or practice to benefit. There are many examples of professionals who become subjects in reality TV programs, and as a result of being on television, their business explodes gaining notoriety as a "Celebrity Dentist" or "Cosmetic Surgeon to the stars". Dr. Robert Rey ("Dr. 90210"), Dr. Kevin Sands (Celebrity Dentist), and many other professionals who've been on television have become icons in their industry and seen their businesses explode. Any profession or trade can benefit from the exposure that television brings. Lisa Adams - A high-end closet designer was the focus of "Million Dollar Closets" on HGTV, featuring her design services and service to her clients. She and others in the home remodeling and sales trade have found explosive success through television.
The stars of the hit Bravo series "Flipping Out" were operating a successful business buying, remodeling, and selling homes in the Los Angeles area. When Producers saw the employees led by Jeff Lewis and his obsessive-compulsive personality, they saw a dysfunctional family that was hilarious to watch. And when viewers witnessed his talent his business skyrocketed. After creatively surviving the housing market crash by doing remodels for others, his business and celebrity exploded, with clients flying him and his team all over the country to consult and design.
Storefronts and service businesses benefit greatly from being the focus of a reality television series. "L.A. Ink" immortalized a Sunset Strip Tattoo Parlor, bringing its owner, Kat Von D, both stardom and huge financial success. "American Choppers" put the Teutul family on the map and now they turn out custom choppers for various celebrities and businesses at a premium price.
Storage Auctions, Motorcycle Clubs, Social Clubs, Sports, Performance Training, Pageants, and other groups are also ripe for reality TV. Following is an abbreviated list of shows built around people, professions, lifestyles, hobbies, and businesses:
"Storage Wars", "Gold Rush", "American Chopper", "Miami Ink / L.A. Ink", "Real Housewives", "Deadliest Catch", "Dog The Bounty Hunter", "Flipping Out", "Ice Road Truckers", "Mythbusters", "King of Cars", "Jersey Shore", "BBQ Pitmasters", "Deals From The Darkside", "Saw Dogs", "Dr. 90210", "Nanny 911", "Super Nanny", "Sons of Guns", "King of Cars", "Cold Case Files", "The First 48", "Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations", "Sand Wars", "Storage Hunters", "Ice Pilots", "Ghost Adventures", "Surf Patrol", "Pitch Men", "Storm Chasers", "Swamp Loggers", "Billy The Exterminator", "Operation Repo", "UFO Hunters", "Pawn Stars", "Auction Kings", "Auction Hunters", "American Pickers", "Air Alaska", "Bering Sea Gold", "Million Dollar Listing", "Flying Wild Alaska", "The Devil's Ride", "Fast and Loaded", "Million Dollar Closets", "Barter Kings".
PITCH YOUR REALITY. Producers are waiting...