Selling dramas in mini programs and making 100 million in 8 days?

Recently, there have been many "get-rich-quick myths" in mini-program dramas, and they have even been labeled as "the most profitable track in 2023". New species, low threshold, and easy to make money, these three points make many people excited? Why are mini-program dramas so popular? How long will they last?

Nowadays, mini-program dramas have suddenly become popular and are embraced by all kinds of people.

"Looking for a mini-program drama", many people kept posting in the industry group to look for scripts. This excitement also spread outside the circle. On major social platforms, many people said, "I am an individual investor and want to invest in a mini-program drama. I want someone with experience to guide me."

What is a mini-program drama?

It can be simply understood as a short drama broadcast on mini-programs (mostly on WeChat, but also on platforms such as Douyin and Kuaishou), but it is shorter than the micro-short dramas that are well known to the public, with a single episode of about 20 minutes. Each episode lasts 1-2 minutes, and a drama has about 100 episodes.

This also means that the production cost of mini-program dramas is lower than that of micro-short dramas. Some people even say that a mini-program drama can be made for tens of thousands of yuan by finding acquaintances or students to act, filming with a mobile phone, and editing it yourself.

Recently, there have been many "get-rich-quick myths" in mini-program dramas, and some have even been labeled as "the most profitable track in 2023."

Is this really the case?

Judging from the data, the mini program dramas are indeed crazy. The eight-day launch of "Wushuang" consumed over 100 million yuan, "Aiya! The Queen Comes to Work" had over 12 million yuan in 24-hour recharges, and "After a Flash Marriage, Mr. Fu Can't Hide His Vest" had over 20 million yuan in 24-hour recharges... Although over 100 million yuan refers to over 100 million yuan in investment, now all platforms invest according to ROI. An industry insider said that it can also be simply understood as users recharging over 100 million yuan.

"Only make money, no losses", "Invest a few hundred thousand and make 100 million without doing anything", "Profits exceed one million", etc. are also spreading. As a producer, Niannian said that they can shoot about four mini-program dramas every month, with an investment of 200,000 to 250,000 yuan per drama. "At present, each drama has made a small profit, and we can share the profits if we encounter a hit drama."

New species, low threshold, and good money-making, these three points are enough to attract many people. Many industry insiders said that mini-program dramas are very popular, and their user profiles are very different from those of short dramas and long dramas. They are mainly aimed at male groups over 30 years old in third- and fourth-tier cities, which is contrary to the characteristic of "women are king" in the drama market.

However, after communicating with many practitioners, Dingjiao found that those who have already entered the field have been divided into two camps. Some people think that this market has a bright future and there is a chance to make money by joining, but some practitioners told Dingjiao that "Mini-program dramas have already developed to the middle and late stages, and the risks are greater than long dramas, and it is difficult not to lose money."

"It's like a scratch-off lottery ticket. You try to spend a dozen dollars to scratch out hundreds of dollars. If you're lucky, you can make your money back, but if you're unlucky, all your money will be wasted. You can't expect to get rich from it." Zhang Ermao, who has filmed a mini-program drama, said.

1. With the help of middle-aged and elderly people, mini-program dramas suddenly became popular

"How did the male protagonist suddenly change from a gigolo to a wealthy palace master?" Recently, Beibei came across a clip of a short drama while watching short videos. She was attracted by the earthy and addictive plot, so she followed the prompt and switched from the short video platform to the mini program to watch.

"Don't underestimate this crappy little drama, as each episode is only one or two minutes long. There is a little twist at the end of each episode." Just like that, Bei Bei couldn't help but paid for a small TV series.

As a post-90s generation and a migrant worker in a first-tier city, Beibei only spent money on this small TV series. She felt that she was quite restrained, but many older uncles and aunts were already obsessed with it.

One netizen said that she looked through her father's bills and found that there were often expenses of 39.9 yuan and 29.9 yuan. After a closer look, it turned out that it was paid for the mini-program drama. She calculated that her father could spend hundreds of yuan every month. A father admitted that he liked this kind of drama very much and had spent four or five thousand yuan.

Mini-program dramas are not a new species that appeared this year. Initially, they were a form of online literature promotion (making some wonderful clips from novels into videos to attract users to watch). Later, more and more people found that this type of video has an audience and can make money on its own, so mini-program dramas came into being. Zhang Ermao said, "In 2019-2020, mini-program dramas made a lot of money."

This year, the war god male drama "Wushuang" produced by Xi'an Fengxing has gained good traffic, and more people have become aware of this "small wins big" content type.

How popular are mini-program dramas nowadays?

The industry has released data showing that as of July 2023, the market size of mini-program dramas has grown by 179%, exceeding 4 billion.

Nowadays, this market also has "leading players", such as Jiuzhou, Nianliang, Dianzhong and other platforms. Their mini-programs can launch more than 60 works per month. There are also a number of mini-program drama content producers, such as Xi'an Fengxing and Hangzhou Yuanshang Twilight, which are also well-known in the short drama world.

Based on the opinions of many industry insiders, the popularity of mini-program dramas is mainly due to the support from two parties.

On the one hand, it is the users. Compared with common dramas, this type of content is "more enjoyable", which also makes its audience very different, mostly low-end, male, and older.

According to analysis by an organization, among the paying users of mini-program dramas, 90% are over 30 years old, and are concentrated in the age group of 30-40 years old, with the ratio of male to female users being 7:3.

This can also be seen from the current popular mini-program drama themes, such as the current popular themes: son-in-law, war god, and CEO. Among them, counterattack, time travel, and revenge are very popular elements.

Zhang Ermao even joked, "Mini-program dramas serve the three types of security personnel: security guards, cleaners, and nannies."

On the other hand, the supply side is hot. People from inside and outside the circle are flocking in, and now all major studios are crowded with people shooting mini-program dramas.

In March this year, Zhang Ermao got a good mini-program drama project. When filming in Hengdian, he met many "peers". "There were more than ten mini-program drama crews starting filming in the area that day." He estimated that at least 40 to 50 mini-program dramas were started every week. Several producers also said that they currently have more than one project in hand.

Among them are teams from traditional film and television dramas, as well as people who have changed careers later. In order to find more opportunities for the company, they chose this type of content.

What attracts them is that compared with regular short dramas, mini-program dramas have a shorter production cycle and faster returns. Niannian told Dingjiao that the shooting and editing of a mini-program drama can be compressed into one week, and their team of more than 20 people can produce four dramas a month.

2. The "Myth of Getting Rich Quickly" in Mini Program Dramas: Some People Earn Money Without Going Away, While Others Run Along

Mini program dramas have repeatedly spread the "get-rich-quick myth", making many people attracted by its simple and profitable business model.

On the user side, viewers are attracted by the refreshing videos on the short video platform, and then jump to the mini program to watch. Although the first few episodes are free, a large number of subsequent episodes require money to unlock. At this time, the platform will provide two payment methods, one for consumers to purchase virtual currency recharges at different prices, such as 39 yuan, 59 yuan, 199 yuan, etc., and the other is to directly spend 356 yuan to buy the platform annual card to unlock all content at one time.

Attracting users to recharge is the ultimate goal of the mini-program drama, and it currently mainly relies on this method to make profits.

Niannian said, "User payment is the main business model of mini-program dramas, but a small part of it comes from advertising revenue. For example, when advertisers are optimistic about a certain drama, they will place an advertisement, and some even directly invest in the filming."

It is not difficult to see that as long as users want to watch the finale, no matter what format, they can't do it without paying hundreds of yuan. Roughly speaking, the price of a single episode of a mini program drama ranges from a few cents to one yuan.

"Focus" observes the film libraries of several mini program platforms. Both the number and volume of online works are far less than those of long video platforms, but the annual membership fees of the two are very close, which shows the high returns of mini program platforms.

Let’s break down the cost of mini-program dramas.

Since most mini program dramas are led by the platform, and a small number are undertaken by the film and television companies themselves, the general link is: the mini program platform/film and television company (such as Jiuzhou, Zhangyue, etc.) produces the script - finds a contractor (film and television company, MCN) to shoot and produce - the mini program platform invests traffic (generally, it will place information flow ads on multiple channels such as Douyin, Kuaishou, Baidu, Tencent, etc.) - users go to the mini program to pay to watch.

The cost of investing in a mini-program drama on the platform is mainly divided into three parts: script, shooting and production, and streaming. The first two costs are controllable and relatively inexpensive.

An insider revealed that the script of a mini-program drama costs about 10,000 to 20,000 yuan. "The routine is there. Rather than saying that people are looking for scripts and screenwriters, it's better to say that they are looking for writers. The scripts are washed and washed, and the price will be cheaper."

As for shooting and production, the platform usually seeks external teams, with costs ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yuan.

Due to the different shooting themes and production requirements, the cost of actors, scenes, equipment, etc. of mini-program dramas will be different. Niannian said that the actor's salary is their biggest expense, accounting for 35% of the total cost. And since Zhang Ermao's project is about the Republic of China, they spent most of their money on the scene.

However, the total amount of these differences will not be too large. The investment in traffic is the most critical factor in determining the investment cost of mini-program dramas. Industry insiders have also revealed that the money spent on the first investment in traffic can exceed the production cost.

Unlike other content gameplays, mini-program dramas attach great importance to traffic investment, which is mostly operated by the platform and will be adjusted in real time.

An industry insider gave an example, saying that a general platform would first have a rough model, spend a small amount of 50,000 or 100,000 yuan on advertising, and if it happens to attract users, it will continue to add more, and it is possible to invest hundreds of thousands to millions. "The cost of investment is the ROI of watching the drama, and the higher the return, the more investment." Daxing also said.

The real money that users recharge on the mini program, except for some handling fees paid to platforms like WeChat, basically all belongs to the mini program platform itself.

It is understood that designing a mini program is not complicated, so most producers on the market have their own mini programs, or even more than one.

To sum up, the mini program platform invests, broadcasts, and collects money by itself. There are no middlemen to make a profit from the difference, and it has the highest voice in the entire chain.

The top players in this market are basically platforms with traffic ports and mature traffic investment teams. The head of the Jiuzhou platform recently publicly stated that the company currently has more than 2,000 mini-program dramas, more than 60 new dramas per month, hundreds of millions of platform users, more than 20 million daily active users, and more than 40 million WeChat public account and enterprise WeChat users.

In comparison, producers in the same chain do not make such huge profits.

Niannian said that the current cooperation modes between producers and platforms can be roughly divided into three types: pure profit-sharing (the platform only provides the script, the contractor pays for the filming and then shares the profits with the platform), mutual investment (the platform and the contractor each pay half of the production cost), and guaranteed minimum (the platform provides the script and gives the contractor the bulk of the production fee).

Daxing, an industry insider close to the platform, told "Dingjiao" that the minimum guaranteed amount given by the platform mainly depends on the quality of the drama itself, and they also look at the team. If it is the first cooperation, the team will generally be required to pay all the production costs, but if the team has had a hit drama, the platform can pay part of the production costs.

3. How long will the wildly growing mini-program dramas remain popular?

Today, mini-program dramas are growing wildly, and there are still many people who want to get in on the game, but some people have also discovered that its risks are beginning to emerge, and many people have even said that "mini-program dramas are a pitfall."

On the one hand, in addition to consumers who actively pay, some users said, "I feel like I was cheated by the mini program platform."

Some netizens noticed that parents often pay without realizing it. "My parents didn't set a password for WeChat payment, so they clicked in and were directly deducted by the platform, or when they clicked on an advertisement, the money was deducted."

The producers who were deeply involved in the matter also felt something was wrong. They found that some people were cheating under the guise of mini-program dramas.

"We invested 200,000 yuan in a drama and made 4-5 million yuan. We are preparing for the next one and are now open to the public for investment, 20,000 yuan per share." There are many such fundraising posts on major social platforms. They will also show the contracts signed with several parties and the busy photos of the crew every day. Zhang Ermao will complain when he sees such posts. He thinks this is a clear "leek-cutting".

"If a drama with a budget of 200,000 yuan can make 4-5 million yuan, why do we still need to hire merchants with a salary of 20,000 yuan?" Zhang Ermao often sees similar posts after the recent popularity of mini-program dramas. "The routines are all similar, and many people around me have been deceived."

"Fraud" is just a superficial phenomenon. More than one industry insider said that the mini-program drama is growing wildly, and chaos is a prominent aspect of the industry. While creating the myth of getting rich quickly, it is struggling in the dilemma of "low threshold and non-standardization".

First of all, the lack of transparency in the data has cast doubt on the impressive performance of mini-program dramas, and the producers have also expressed doubts about the distribution amounts.

"Shared-revenue dramas rely on platform traffic support, while mini-programs rely entirely on information flow and user recharges. Even the platform previously kept the investment information secret from the producers." Zhang Ermao said, "There are also rumors in the industry that the data is not real."

Many producers also said, "The revenue share of mini-program dramas is determined by the platform, and the amount of money given to the producers is how much, without any data or third-party endorsement."

Many people are also skeptical about the information that many mini-program dramas can make people rich overnight. Especially those practitioners who have tried it, "This industry is really not that easy to make money."

Zhang Ermao received a customized project from the platform, and the film was approved by the other party, but the platform said that it could not guarantee that the film would make money, and at most it could only guarantee that the film company could recover 40% of the cost. This means that 60% of the money from this drama is likely to be wasted.

He estimated that 70% of the mini-program dramas on the market are losing money, 20% can break even, and only 10% can make money. Many industry insiders also said that although mini-program dramas are currently popular, only a very small number can make money.

"It is not the case that every drama will definitely make money," more than one practitioner said, so they tend to rely on quantity to bet on hits. If a drama is a hit, the company may recover all costs and even make money. "But the cost is not low. Now more and more people are entering the market, and 400,000 to 500,000 is only considered a medium cost." Zhang Ermao even thinks that mini-program dramas have come to an end.

In addition, the non-standard nature of mini-program dramas also puts it at high regulatory risk.

At present, mini-program dramas are basically in a copyright-free state. Once a type becomes popular, many similar scripts will follow, and homogeneity is very serious, said a screenwriter who has created a long drama.

Previously, relevant departments had carried out special rectification of "mini-program"-type online short dramas with pornographic, vulgar, bloody, violent, and aesthetically vulgar content, and required that all online short dramas including "mini-programs" be brought under management in accordance with laws and regulations.

It is understood that as a mini program platform, it is necessary to register, and the dramas are generally reviewed by the platform itself, which is why many producers are willing to put such works on mini programs instead of video accounts. An industry insider told "Dingjiao" that in addition to the fact that video accounts cannot charge fees, which is a key point, the review of video accounts is more formal than that of mini programs.

At the moment, although mini-program dramas are very popular, no one is sure how long they will be popular. More than one entrant said that they are not very optimistic about this industry, but just think it can make quick money now. If the supervision becomes stricter in the future, mini-program dramas will soon calm down and stop their wild growth.

*At the request of the interviewees, Zhang Ermao, Daxing and Niannian are pseudonyms in this article.

Author: Xingxing, Editor: Fang Zhanbo

Source: Dingjiaoone (ID: dingjiaoone), deeply influencing innovation.