The way kids watch has changed a lot. They’re catching shows in short bursts, rewatching the moments they love, and following wherever the feed takes them, which means traditional metrics are missing much of what’s happening.

So what should we be paying attention to instead? Host Nicole Bergen sits down with Erin Leigh, kids and media research expert at SmithGeiger Group, to find out. They start with why a show can be a hit even when kids can’t tell you its name, then dig into how feeds, games, and algorithms are changing what “watching” means. From there, Erin shares what studios and creators should measure now, and why kids are a preview of how all of us will watch next.

Key insights

• Kids connect with repeatable emotional moments more than long story arcs
• A show can be a hit even when kids can’t tell you its name
• Rewatching says more about engagement than finishing an episode
• Testing content in a realistic feed shows how it performs where kids find it
• How kids watch now is a preview of how everyone will watch next

Truth in Numbers is a podcast from SmithGeiger Group.

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