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As a preview for Word of Mouth Supergenius on July 20 in New York, we’re taking a look back at some of the amazing presentations from our last “How to be Great at Word of Mouth Marketing” conference in Chicago.
Here, Jake McKee of Ant’s Eye View shares how LEGO found and supported their biggest fans. His big ideas:
1> Look beyond your target customers
2> Support existing fans
3> Find what works and replicate
4> See Jake’s live presentation
1> Look beyond your target customers
Your target market isn’t always your biggest group of talkers. For years, LEGO was focused on kids -– that is, until they realized adults had created their own community of enthusiasts. When LEGO started connecting these talkers, not only did they increase their word of mouth, they immediately helped their bottom line. Whereas kids were spending $20 a year on LEGOs, these adults were spending around $1,000.
2> Support existing fans
Without LEGO’s knowledge, adult fans had already created an online LEGO community and marketplace. LEGO approached this group by offering support and resources in the form of an ambassador program. By offering to support what these fans were already doing so well — instead of demanding ownership and control — LEGO was welcomed into the community.
3> Find what works and replicate
The enthusiasm of the adult fans helped teach LEGO how to gain more participation from their other fans -– including kids. Jake says that when you find something that works with one fan group, try applying it to other groups of talkers. Because the fundamentals of great communities are the same, strategies behind one fan community can often generate similar success for another community.
4> See Jake’s live presentation from Word of Mouth Supergenius
Check out Jake’s presentation from Word of Mouth Supergenius — and join us live in New York on July 20 to see a bunch of amazing marketers share case studies like this:
