What The Band Phish Can Teach You About Your Business
They have been around for almost 30 years.
Most people have never heard of them.
Few people like them.
They only ever had one music video. And it is most famous for being ridiculed by Beavis and Butthead.
(Watch it here)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anAXAy9M5VM
They never had a #1 hit. They never had a #500 hit.
They never had a #1 selling album.
Yet, they are continually one of the top earning bands year after year.
How can this be possible? And, even better, what the hell does this have to do with Internet Marketing?
Let's find out.
You may or may not remember a little website called Napster.
Napster was a file sharing website where users could share music files.
This became a big story as bands, most notably Metallica, filed lawsuits against not only Napster for allowing users to trade Metallica's copyrighted material, but also their own fans for sharing the bands copyrighted material.
Was Metallica wrong? No. Not technically.
Lars Ulrich, the drummer for Metallica said "In essence, it's about control. Controlling what you own."
What he was really saying is that our music is being distributed, and we are not being paid.
Phish, on the other hand, had a very different view on the distribution of their music, right from the very start.
Phish adopted the Grateful Dead's philosophy that fans can tape their live performances, and freely distribute copies at will.
They viewed this as free marketing.
Their music was being distributed, and recommended, and they didn't have to pay for any of it.
The more people that heard a recording of their live performances, the better the chances they would also buy a ticket to a live performance.
And it is with the live performance that Phish escalated themselves to be one of the top touring acts, year after year.
The live performance is where it's at with Phish.
The fans know this. And, even better, the band knows this.
The band considers the audience as part of the live show...part of the experience.
There is a connection between Phish and their fans that doesn't exist between just about every other band and their fans.
Phish has played chess matches against their fans, inviting a fan onto the stage to take the fan's move.
The list of things the band does to include the fans as part of the experience goes on and on. And is past the scope of this post.
The band developed a unique and trusting relationship with their fans.
They did this by first giving away their product, and then selling them the experience.
But, they didn't stop at the sale.
They continued building the relationship by genuinely caring about the fan's (their customer's) experience.
They put great efforts into creating an experience that fans would have to have.
Night after night.
They don't play the same songs at every concert.
They put effort into making each show a unique experience.
And this makes fans want to go to show after show.
The product is so good, that their customers buy and buy and buy.
Believe me. I know. I've been to over 100 Phish shows.
And, at one point, I went to 17 consecutive shows.
All over the country.
They forged a treasure trove of ravenous fans (customers) by building a relationship, and over-delivering on their promise.
If you look at the top touring acts of the year, you'll see some big names...Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Justin Bieber.
And, somewhere near the top of the list, you'll see Phish.
But here;s the kicker...those big name bands...they charge anywhere from $60 to $250 for a ticket.
Phish? They generally sell every ticket for the same price, $60.
They offer a value. They can make just as much by charging less.
They can sell out 4 consecutive nights at Madison Square Garden in about an hour.
That's buyer loyalty.
If you take these principles: caring about your customer's needs, delivering quality products at a fair price, and giving to your customers before you ask them to give to you, you will build a long term business. Perhaps, one that will make you the top guru, 30 years running.
Most people have never heard of them.
Few people like them.
They only ever had one music video. And it is most famous for being ridiculed by Beavis and Butthead.
(Watch it here)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anAXAy9M5VM
They never had a #1 hit. They never had a #500 hit.
They never had a #1 selling album.
Yet, they are continually one of the top earning bands year after year.
How can this be possible? And, even better, what the hell does this have to do with Internet Marketing?
Let's find out.
You may or may not remember a little website called Napster.
Napster was a file sharing website where users could share music files.
This became a big story as bands, most notably Metallica, filed lawsuits against not only Napster for allowing users to trade Metallica's copyrighted material, but also their own fans for sharing the bands copyrighted material.
Was Metallica wrong? No. Not technically.
Lars Ulrich, the drummer for Metallica said "In essence, it's about control. Controlling what you own."
What he was really saying is that our music is being distributed, and we are not being paid.
Phish, on the other hand, had a very different view on the distribution of their music, right from the very start.
Phish adopted the Grateful Dead's philosophy that fans can tape their live performances, and freely distribute copies at will.
They viewed this as free marketing.
Their music was being distributed, and recommended, and they didn't have to pay for any of it.
The more people that heard a recording of their live performances, the better the chances they would also buy a ticket to a live performance.
And it is with the live performance that Phish escalated themselves to be one of the top touring acts, year after year.
The live performance is where it's at with Phish.
The fans know this. And, even better, the band knows this.
The band considers the audience as part of the live show...part of the experience.
There is a connection between Phish and their fans that doesn't exist between just about every other band and their fans.
Phish has played chess matches against their fans, inviting a fan onto the stage to take the fan's move.
The list of things the band does to include the fans as part of the experience goes on and on. And is past the scope of this post.
The band developed a unique and trusting relationship with their fans.
They did this by first giving away their product, and then selling them the experience.
But, they didn't stop at the sale.
They continued building the relationship by genuinely caring about the fan's (their customer's) experience.
They put great efforts into creating an experience that fans would have to have.
Night after night.
They don't play the same songs at every concert.
They put effort into making each show a unique experience.
And this makes fans want to go to show after show.
The product is so good, that their customers buy and buy and buy.
Believe me. I know. I've been to over 100 Phish shows.
And, at one point, I went to 17 consecutive shows.
All over the country.
They forged a treasure trove of ravenous fans (customers) by building a relationship, and over-delivering on their promise.
If you look at the top touring acts of the year, you'll see some big names...Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Justin Bieber.
And, somewhere near the top of the list, you'll see Phish.
But here;s the kicker...those big name bands...they charge anywhere from $60 to $250 for a ticket.
Phish? They generally sell every ticket for the same price, $60.
They offer a value. They can make just as much by charging less.
They can sell out 4 consecutive nights at Madison Square Garden in about an hour.
That's buyer loyalty.
If you take these principles: caring about your customer's needs, delivering quality products at a fair price, and giving to your customers before you ask them to give to you, you will build a long term business. Perhaps, one that will make you the top guru, 30 years running.
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