Doctor Odyssey Sets Sail With Deluxe Marketing Campaign

Talk about luxury upgrades. Former Dawson’s Creek heartthrob Joshua Jackson trades #CreekLife for #CruiseLife as he returns to the life aquatic on primetime television in Doctor Odyssey. Almost 14 million viewers joined the maiden voyage of ABC’s shipboard medical procedural across linear and digital platforms within three days of its Sept. 26 launch—a sizeable passenger manifest for a modern-day network drama. Credit the starry cast, which also includes Don Johnson and Phillipa Soo, hitmaking producer Ryan Murphy, and a bespoke marketing campaign powered by that essential fuel for any deluxe cruise ship… Big Deck Energy. According to Erin Weir, executive vice president of marketing at ABC and Disney Entertainment Television, BDE was one of the three “guiding forces” behind the Doctor Odyssey campaign, along with the glitz and glamor of the “upper deck lifestyle” and the “high stakes” of open water medical emergencies. Those three forces are reflected in the network’s various marketing initiatives, from luxury store and resort pool takeovers to surprise shopping and travel upgrades. “It really feels like there’s nothing else like this show on television right now,” Weir says of Doctor Odyssey. “It’s an escapist ride, but also a medical procedural in a [unique] environment. That really populated everything we did throughout the campaign.” From Saks to shining sea You don’t have to sail to the middle of the ocean to see the centerpiece of the Doctor Odyssey campaign—just set a course for Midtown Manhattan. ABC partnered with Saks Fifth Avenue for a takeover of its flagship New York City storefront that included transforming five of its windows into portholes that provide passers-by with a look at show-specific props and costumes. The Doctor Odyssey window displays at Saks Fifth Avenue. “We brought costume designers and set decorators from the show to work with Saks directly,” Weir reveals of the displays, which were viewable from Sept. 19 to Oct. 2. The show’s looks remain shoppable on the store’s website, and there’s still time to enter a Saks/ABC sweepstakes that wraps up on Oct. 15 and includes a $10,000 shopping spree amidst its perks. Weir describes that sweepstakes package as the “ultimate wish fulfillment” for landlocked luxury lovers. “We wanted to provide people with this taste of fantasy that’s synonymous with the show.” Outside of New York, meanwhile, ABC dived into resort pool takeovers in such cities as Los Angeles, Chicago, and Nashville. Visitors to those locations swam away with Doctor Odyssey-branded essentials like snacks, sunscreen, and, of course, towels. Upgrade U In the world of Doctor Odyssey, Jackson’s charity-minded medical professional, Max Bankman, makes a surprise career pivot into being a cruise ship sawbones. Accordingly, ABC built surprises into its campaign, awarding travel and shopping upgrades to unsuspecting consumers. For example, shoppers at The Grove in Los Angeles scored gift cards and champagne service on Doctor Odyssey’s dime. And travelers booking flights on Tripadvisor or Expedia or rides on Uber had their bookings upgraded for free. Weir’s favorite surprise upgrade? Re-booking a group of Las Vegas-bound revelers from a commercial flight to a private jet. Snacks and sunscreen were given away at Doctor Odyssey's pool takeover. “It was fun to be able to go out there and delight our viewers in these unexpected places,” she said. Even if you missed the pre-premiere phase of the marketing campaign, there are plenty of additional opportunities to jump aboard. “We have an extensive media plan that’s continuing for the next several episodes,” Weir notes. “If you’re going to binge a couple of episodes on Hulu, we want you to feel as welcome as people who are watching week-to-week on ABC.” Sail on, sailor While the next few weeks will provide a clearer forecast of how long Doctor Odyssey’s voyage might last, Weir credits the show’s strong launch to ABC’s marketing efforts, which cast a wide net in terms of audience and platforms. "We always want to make sure we're meeting our viewers where they are with our marketing messages," she says. "With each of our individual shows, we're building off the strategy of finding people at their points of decision-making." Soo, Stephanie Suganami, and Jackson in an episode of Doctor Odyssey. Weir believes the show also benefitted from the general interest in the "cruise lifestyle," an interest that's only grown as the industry has found its sea legs again since the height of the Covid pandemic. That's reflected in the #CruiseTok boom on TikTok and other social media platforms, and ABC enlisted several of those influencers—as well as medical stars in the #DocTok space—as another way to reach cruise-curious viewers. "Big Deck Energy was the thing we kept coming back to," Weir emphasizes, adding that you can expect "bigger deck energy" should the show return for a sophomore season. "We were going for a very broad target on this, and that very much delivered for us."

Programming & Performance

Doctor Odyssey Sets Sail With Deluxe Marketing Campaign

Store takeovers and surprise travel upgrades were part of the pre-premiere plans for ABC's medical drama

Ethan Alter

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Ethan Alter