MLGD Chapter 8

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PART Two

The Fans


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C h a p t e r 8

Encourage Eccentricity

If youd been to a Grateful Dead concert before, you wouldunderstand the unusual experience. The casual approach,beginning the show without fanfare. The lack of a Billboardhit song. The warm community vibe. The thick smoke froma thousand joints. A live Grateful Dead show was unlike any-thing else in the music world. The eccentricity of the wholething seemed oddly comfortable and satisfying.

But to a newbie, the scene, and the concert itself, prompted

many questions and comments: Why dont they tune upbefore they come onto the stage? The guitarist is wearingshorts. Two drummers? Really? They take a half-hourbreak in the middle of the show? That song lasted 17minutes! And then, of course, there was the sheer wonderat what went down at the park across from the arena allafternoon: Look, tie-dyed socks! Why dont the cops arrest

all these people smoking dope? Everyone is smiling (eventhe cops); this is such a happy crowd!

Through their own eccentricity, the

Grateful Dead encouraged eccentricity

in their fans, giving people a creative

outlet to express themselves.


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62 Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead

The Grateful Dead tribe was made up of eccentrics who

used the live shows as an outlet to express themselves in asupportive atmosphere. To be sure, some diehard fans worehippie clothes year-round, drove a VW bus, and lived on acommune. But the majority of fans would drift into the sceneonly when the band was in town, leaving the tie-dye clotheshanging in the closet while they went to classes at a prestigiousuniversity, worked on a Wall Street bond-trading floor, or

wrote stories for a major newspaper. Deadheads are yourneighbors, coworkers, and friends. The concerts allowed fansan outlet, a place to relax and rejoice, to dance, mingle, havefun, and, most important, feel comfortable in a supportiveatmosphere of like-minded people.

Marketing Lesson from the Grateful Dead

Encourage EccentricityAs a marketing strategy, the idea of challenging the acceptedstandards or creating a product that may seem a little weirdcan make companies highly successful. There will always bevarious groups who see themselves as different, special even, intheir fierce independence. These independent thinkers look for

companies and organizations to do business with and searchout products to buy that reflect their sense of self. In a world ofme-too products, the businesses that cultivate a strategy ofappealing to the tastes of outliers are generating success.

Your potential customers value uniqueness. And get thistheyll frequently pay more to be different! An Apple computer

is much more expensive than its rivals and Apple fans will


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happily pay the price difference. The Apple marketing team

understands deeply the personalities of the people who buytheir products. Much like the Grateful Dead, Apple cultivatesan enthusiastic fan base. And just as a Grateful Dead concertis different from other rock concerts, an Apple retail store isdifferent too. No cash registers. No clutter. What few shelvesexist are tucked away in the back. Theres even a GeniusBar where helpful employees will guide you in the ways of

eccentricity . . . er, Apple.Still, most companies continue to create products as direct com-petitors to established players in the market. Instead of cateringto those who wish to be different, they offer products that areexactly the same as the competition. Or they toss out somethingthats the same but a little cheaper than the other guys.

The Grateful Dead teaches us that we are

all eccentric in some ways. Smart companies

understand eccentricities and create a

market from them.

Eccentrics take on many forms. When everyone else is carryingnylon computer bags and sporty backpacks to the offi ce, theeccentric insists on an old-fashioned leather briefcase. Theeccentric spends six hours on a beautiful Saturday afternoonin a dingy rec room playing Dungeons and Dragons. Theeccentric collects chewing gum wrappers and has over 2,000,

with examples from over 50 countries. The eccentric reads


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instead of watching television. The eccentric rides a bike

instead of driving. The eccentric is us. And the eccentric is you(after all, youre reading this really weird book on GratefulDead marketing! What would they think if they knew?!).

In other words, eccentrics are a huge market.

NEW BELGIUM BREWING COMPANY: FAT AND HAPPY

In the world of beer, the offerings of the huge breweries arefine for the masses. Most people are perfectly happy sipping acold one from the likes of AnheuserBusch InBev or Miller-Coors. But the eccentric is looking for something different.Much different. Something like Fat Tire Amber Ale from NewBelgium Brewing Company in Fort Collins, Colorado. Fat Tirewas named in honor of New Belgium founder Jeff Lebeschs

bike trip through Belgium, visiting breweries. He learnedabout the way Belgian beers use a broader palette of ingredients(fruits, spices, esoteric yeast strains) than German or Englishstyles. Fat Tire won fans who appreciate the interesting taste(as well as those who are drawn to the quirky name).

To encourage the eccentric fans who enjoy Fat Tire Amber

Ale, New Belgium sponsors an annual Tour de Fat bicycleparade and festival. Here is the information about the 2010Tour de Fat:

Yes folks, the Tour de Fat will once again bemeandering and pandering through 13 western citiesspreading the good word about the positive societalofferings of the bicycle. Along with our exceptionalability to roust a citys inner-cyclist, in 2010 we hope


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to drive our message even deeper by bringing you the

biggest, most enjoyable traveling bike festival thatwe know of. May the revival roll forth in the nameof the bicycle, and may you ride true to The TenCommandments of the Tour de Fat:

1. Put no means of transport before thy bike

2. Honor all other bikes

3. May every generation come forth

4. Thou shall come as a participant, not a spectator

5. Thou shalt not bring booze

6. New Belgium shalt not profit

7. Remember the purpose, and bring not your pooches

8. Keep the day true with thy good juju

9. Thou shall rise early

10. Thou shalt not steal thy neighbors bike

Like the Grateful Dead, New Belgium Brewing Company has

built a vibrant community for lovers of Fat Tire Amber Aleand the brewerys other brands. The community of eccentricscomes together for physical events (like the Tour de Fat) andtours of the Liquid Center (the brewery). And the companyalso encourages its eccentrics to Follow our folly on socialnetworking sites. By creating products (and a community)for eccentrics, New Belgium Brewing Company has grownquickly from its beginnings in 1991.


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Rock OnCultivate eccentrics

Have you noticed that people who are passionate about something are eager to

talk it up, just like fans of the Grateful Dead want to talk up their favorite band?

Your job is to create an experience thats unique, one that eccentrics will gravitate

to, and one that they want to talk up.

ACTION: Build personality into your web site. Remove any content that looks

similar to your competitors. Delete whats boring. Make sure your web site, blogposts, newsletters, and e-mails are unlike all others in the marketplace. Being

unique will make you stand out. Build up the information (videos, blog posts,

e-books, and photos) that appeals to eccentrics in your marketplace.


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MLGD Chapter 8