David Meerman Scott is no stranger to the B2B Marketing Exchange family. Most recently, David delivered a keynote address at the 2019 event to provide a sneak peek into the contents of his newest book Fanocracy, which he co-wrote with his daughter Reiko Scott. The goal of the book is pretty clear: to help businesses cultivate fandom within digital chaos.
A little more than a year later, Demand Gen Report’s senior content strategist Alicia Esposito caught up with David to dig deeper into the idea of fandom, how it has evolved and how the COVID-19 crisis could influence how business leaders strive to acquire it.
“This idea of fandom is about a true human connection and it’s something that we’re actually hardwired to have as humans,” David said. “We humans are hardwired to want to be a part of a tribe of likeminded people.”
Though we all may be a part of different fandoms — David is a proud fan of The Grateful Dead, Reiko enjoys the Harry Potter series, Alicia loves the movie Clueless and I never miss an episode of Comedy Bang! Bang! — we all relate to the phenomenon. That’s why it’s imperative that when marketers attempt to build their own fandoms, they do so as authentically as possible. Otherwise, they won’t attract the loyal fans they’re looking for.
Check out the full conversation above to hear:
- What inspired David and Reiko to write Fanocracy;
- The importance of reimagining — not recreating — events for the virtual world; and
- The role passion plays in fandom.
