Some things in entertainment aren’t worth a lot. Selling a book, or an album or a single download of a video game are some of these things. It is possible to make money by selling lots of albums, but when it comes to acquiring a single customer (which is how all customers are acquired) it’s too expensive.
Okay bye.
Just kidding.
Acquire a fan, not a customer
A fan has a lifetime value that’s way above the profits of one album. They’ll buy all kinds of stuff from us down the road because we serve them directly. Now, we’re connected to a whole world of people and there are ways to link up with them and give them exactly what they want.
Instead of convincing someone to buy a thing, we find the people who will already love what we’re doing.
There are people who will buy a $.99 product that won’t LOVE us. Unless it’s super easy to get these people, I say ignore them… or even reject them. This $.99 thing needs to be the first taste of crack.
Step 1: don’t go off brand
All our projects need to be for some audience we’re willing to go long-term with. We want to love and nurture that fanbase because we either feel a connection with them, or we feel that they have a need we find fulfillment in serving.
Step 2: communicate our brand
If our thing we’re selling has value to our dream fan, all we have to do is locate the dream fan and communicate it. We gotta communicate the brand, not just the product we’re selling. That’s what draws them in and helps them make a good, confident purchasing decision.
Step 3: figure out how to keep serving this fan
If our dream fan is into our folksiness, send them a hand written thank you note. If their into the security of our professionalism, send them a very organized receipt and follow up with customer service.
Step 4: keep track of them
My favorite is an email list that sends every email as a beautiful gift to its members. Somehow, we want to keep track of who our people are and give them new chances to learn about what’s next, so they don’t miss out on greatness made for them. If we don’t keep track and keep them abreast, we’ve just lowered their lifetime value as a customer and have done them a disservice.