1 Loyal Fan is more important than selling 20 LPs, 40 shirts, and 10 wristbands at a Live Performance.
1 Loyal Fan is as important as the quality of your Music and of your Live Performance.
1 Loyal Fan is the single most important individual to understand when you think about your Success as a Musician.
Do you remember your last Live Performance, whether it be at a Bar, Club, Auditorium, or Theater - Do you remember your Audience? In that Audience I bet there was at least 1 willful soul devouring your Music tastefully, enjoying every second of sound that you made - they truly loved your Music, even though this was their first time ever hearing it.
When the sound finally faded away, you - your band - your team, whether Rapper, Rocker, Pianist - had a million opportunities to communicate with that 1 Fan and help him/her discover your Music in a way that turned their souls over to the Loyal Fan side. It is an occurrence that transpires ever too often - where a Musician feels that their focus should be on the selling of their Merchandise rather than the genuine open communication with their potential Loyal Fan. Here are 3 Reasons Why Your Last Audience Never became Loyal Fanatics.
Reason #1) You let Sales become more important than Generosity.
I understand the struggle that a Musician can face, problems as high as a Mountain and Monetary support as thin as paper, but that cannot be an excuse anymore. For a moment try to understand the many reasons why an audience purchases your Merchandise - I can gurantee it isn’t because every single one of them truly enjoyed and appreciated your Music - it was more out of pity, “I will support this struggling Musician.” You don’t want that kind of Temporary Fan - you want the Loyal Fan, the Nine Inch Nail Loyal Fan or the Jay Z Loyal Fan. Forget about selling your LPs and think about how you can become more Generous - give that 1 Potential Loyal Fan something - Whether it be a Free LP, a T-Shirt, or a thoughtful conversation with you (which is free, mind you - and by far the most effective).
Reason #2) You did not create and nurture lines of Communication.
You don’t want to do all the work yourself, you’re too busy, or you simply just don’t care - but think about your most beloved Musician and the feeling you experienced when you were able to openly communicate with them. For me, I became a fan for life. Rather than dropping a truckload load of merchandise on me, which is fine and great when combined with something of greater value, how about nurturing your relationship with that 1 Potential Loyal Fan. They purchased your LP, now what? Oh Yes, send them home and have a great day. You’ve lost that Fan, they will be temporary, and when you need them most - your army will desert you. What can you do to nurture that 1 Potential Loyal Fan or at least a line of a Communication? Easy, very - very - easy and practically free. After they pop your LP, take a picture with them holding your product - Tell them that you have a Facebook Fan Page (definitely need to have a Facebook Fan Page) and that you will Tag their Profile with this picture. Memories, my friends, cultivate a beautiful relationship between Musicians and their Loyal Fans. You’re communicating Memories at this point. Don’t just announce that you have a damn Facebook Profile, get up - and seriously build the bridge that will keep you connected through Communication.
Reason #3) You Pitched to the audience, you haggled the audience, you pressured the audience - you’re no fun at all.
“Here, buy this - check this - cop this” - all your standard pitches. “You can get 3 of this if you buy 4 of that. We really need the support - appreciate anything you buy.”
Why do I see this at every single damn performance I go to? I stood watching your performance, it lacked, and now you’re finished - you’re going to sit at your Merch Table and scream, “Buy my stuff!” No, I’m sorry it doesn’t work. I did not feel any connection to you, or your Music and now you want to pitch me your overpriced ****, that isn’t fair. I spent money on stuff here already, maybe already on the band before you.
Your performance needs to be interactive. Before you get your next song started, try to hype us up - say for example, break the crowd into two and fuel a fun competition between both sides. The Fans will remember the song, remember the fun, whether they won or lost - and they will remember you, a friend in a sense.
A Loyal Fan will guarantee more sales of Merchandise, more promotion of Music, and more General Support than 100 Temporary Fans can provide. That 1 Loyal Fan can build you a website, iphone application, talk about you in forums, share your Music with their 100 friends (they are extremely passionate about you and your Music), and will always trump every dollar you spend out of your own budget. Don’t ever forget that. Cultivate an honest relationship with that Loyal Fan and watch yourself succeed.
