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Are You In The Club? How Some Rock n Roll Fan Clubs Reward Fan Loyalty
Last week’s new releases left me feeling completely uninspired, so instead I decided to take a look at the lengths some bands will go to make their fans feel special.
The notion of a fan club is nothing new. Elvis’ manager, Col. Tom Parker, may have invented the pop star fan club back in the 50’s and The Beatles, with the help of business guru Brian Epstein, certainly monetized their fans’ insatiable appetite for all things Beatles. The Liverpudlians merchandised everything from t-shirts and badges to plastic instruments, lunchboxes and mop-top wigs.
As today’s music business struggles to figure out how to make more money, bands have turned to selling loyalty rather than selling music. The tunes themselves are often secondary marketing tools as artists and their management put together fan club membership packages, concert tour experiences and even one-of-a-kind/once-in-a-lifetime merchandise and meet ‘n’ greet opportunities.
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