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Thread: 1000 true fans

  1. #1
    just me duncan drennan's Avatar
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    1000 true fans

    Kevin Kelly has written a riff about being able to make a good living off of 1000 true fans.

    Other than aim for a blockbuster hit, what can an artist do to escape the long tail?

    One solution is to find 1,000 True Fans. While some artists have discovered this path without calling it that, I think it is worth trying to formalize. The gist of 1,000 True Fans can be stated simply:

    A creator, such as an artist, musician, photographer, craftsperson, performer, animator, designer, videomaker, or author - in other words, anyone producing works of art - needs to acquire only 1,000 True Fans to make a living.

    A True Fan is defined as someone who will purchase anything and everything you produce. They will drive 200 miles to see you sing. They will buy the super deluxe re-issued hi-res box set of your stuff even though they have the low-res version. They have a Google Alert set for your name. They bookmark the eBay page where your out-of-print editions show up. They come to your openings. They have you sign their copies. They buy the t-shirt, and the mug, and the hat. They can't wait till you issue your next work. They are true fans.
    Now the post is very focussed on people who earn their money by writing, singing, etc. but I think that the concept can be applied to any company.

    Think about it, if you had 1000 people who always came to you, who always bought all your stuff, who raved about you to other people, wouldn't that at least pay the bills (and probably a lot more)?
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    Site Caretaker Dave A's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by dsd View Post
    Think about it, if you had 1000 people who always came to you, who always bought all your stuff, who raved about you to other people, wouldn't that at least pay the bills (and probably a lot more)?
    Probably a lot more than just pay the bills in most instances.

    As an OMB I did fairly well out of about 100 or so of what was known at the time as "evangelists." I guess that term has become unpolular.

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    Moderator IanF's Avatar
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    OMB

    Quote Originally Posted by Dave A View Post
    As an OMB
    Dave
    You have my interest what is an OMB?
    Only stress when you can change the outcome!

  4. #4
    just me duncan drennan's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave A View Post
    As an OMB I did fairly well out of about 100 or so of what was known at the time as "evangelists." I guess that term has become unpolular.
    The term evangelist is certainly still around, but it seems to be more of a job title these days.

    Quote Originally Posted by IanF View Post
    You have my interest what is an OMB?
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    Moderator IanF's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by dsd View Post
    One Man Business
    Duncan
    Thanks for sharing
    Only stress when you can change the outcome!

  6. #6
    Site Caretaker Dave A's Avatar
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    Sorry, Ian. I've been a bit scarce around here lately. Not out of choice, I'll tell you.

    Fortunately we have the very able Duncan.

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