5 Ways to Turn Customers into Fans

It’s hard to imagine hearing Harry Potter, Microsoft, Iron Maiden, and underwear in one sentence, but that’s exactly what happened in my conversation with Wall Street Journal bestselling author, David Meerman Scott, for an episode of the Future Squared podcast.

We explored the nature of fandom across myriad communities and organisations, which is incredibly important in a world where it’s becoming incredibly difficult to become the signal in the noise.

Scott is the author of ten books, including The New Rules of Marketing & PR, Marketing Lessons from The Grateful Dead, and The New Rules of Sales & Service.

His latest book, Fanocracy: Turning Fans into Customers and Customers into Fans, deep dives into how brands build not just customers, but fans that can be compared with Comic Con and heavy metal devotees.

Scott, himself a fan of the legendary rock band, The Grateful Dead (he has seen them live more than sixty times and keeps a spreadsheet of every concert he has been to — now numbering over 700!), delved into the neuroscience of fandom and the notion of tribes.

Below you’ll find a link to the entire conversation, as well as my key take-aways from the conversation.