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seokjynerso · 4 years

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[fanfic teaser] a dancer dies twice

ACT I: 起

Neon J. isn't a stranger to intricate fan projects.

A 1010 concert itself is an intricate artistic experience, integrating music, group choreography, cinematic storytelling and modern marvels of engineering into a complete form of entertainment. The essence of a 1010 live concert experience is the interaction between the performing artists and their adoring audience; the affectionate gestures and flirty one-liners from 1010 and the feverish screams, enthusiastic fanchants and colourful light sticks from the fans. Neon J.'s unique social approach to cultural technology is rooted in his discovery that the electricity generated by the Grand Qwasa when powered by the combined musical energy of both 1010 and their audience is twice the output measured from an average performance. Vinyl City already has a roster of amazing EDM artists banding together to provide power to the people, but so far, none of them has tapped into the collective power of idols and their fans.

To succeed in the music capital of the world as a foreign vocal group from a war-torn country, just singing and dancing wasn't enough. 1010 have to stand out.

The way to build a powerful bond between idols and their fans is through their hearts. 1010 fans are officially named as the 1010tera, a pun on 'tentera', a word for 'army' Neon J. had picked up from the Vinyl City soldiers stationed in his naval port hometown. Early in the group’s inception, 1010’s youthful, charming appearance symbolised the optimism and escapism needed by a country healing from tragedy. Now, the escapism element still holds true. Their slender figures, angular facial features and caring, romantic nature represent a dreamlike perfection, yet they aren’t meant to be perceived as impossible objects of affection too far beyond reach. 1010 are made to have highly structured fan engagement outside of their music and performances to strengthen the personal connection between 1010 and the 1010tera.

1010 makes themselves an active part of their fans' lives by consistently trying to keep in touch with them. In livestreams, 1010 will show off their ideal boyfriend side by asking fans about how their day is going and complimenting them for looking beautiful today. In fansigns, 1010 will answer questions from fans, hold their hands and try on fun props they've brought. In concerts, 1010 will always assure their fans that they're very thankful for the love and support they've received all these years.

"By the end of this concert," leader Rin once said at the beginning of the ending song of their setlist, "I hope you'll be a little happier!"

From their first awkward performance in their hometown to their first anniversary as an established vocal group under NSR and a myriad of other career milestones, 1010 have experienced almost all of their most important moments with their fans. They might be artificial beings, but the strength of this relationship is genuine, expressed time and time again through a phrase that only 1010 and 1010tera can understand:

"You're our energy, we're your energy! Jjiritjjirithae!"

A phrase the members would shout out in sync before starting a music show performance, a fanmeeting, a concert, you name it.

Taken literally, 'jjiritjjirithae' means 'it stings', better suiting the shooting pain of an electric shock, but it can also be used to describe a sudden, overwhelming feeling. Haym, looking like an electric shock victim himself with his hair standing straight up, seems to have inherited Neon J.’s penchant for portmanteaus. During a debut anniversary concert a few years back, he’d given the everyday phrase a fresh new meaning—a combination of 'jjiritjjirit' (shocking/electrifying) and 'saranghae' (I love you)—a special way for 1010 and 1010tera to express their electrifying love for each other, fan-translated into 'I spark you'.

The hearts that have caught the spark would grow to reciprocate it.

Energy-wise, their passionate cheers help to power up 1010. The generation of electricity from sound is a method Neon J. had created as a free and reliable backup energy source for himself and his troops since his homeland’s electrical supply was often disrupted after the war. Before he started working with Qwasas as a member of NSR, he used mechanical vibrations from travelling sound waves amplified by resonators and converted by electromagnetic induction for power.

Affection-wise, since 1010 give their all in their performances, fans give just as much back through fan projects. 1010 fans are mostly young, so their passion is pure and sincere and Neon J. admires that. He's glad to help bring a smile to their faces; after all, these young people are the key to a brighter future.

Often, the 1010tera would go above and beyond with their concert projects, planned amongst the fandom without the knowledge of their idols on stage. He remembers how the stadium central control system would relay the information to him that all the fans' lightsticks were shining in the signature colour of a 1010 member, forming a special glimmering ocean on their respective 'birthdays': white for Rin, blue for Purl-hew, red for Zimelu, green for Eloni and yellow for Haym.

He remembers the 1010tera conspiring with the staff to dim all lights in the stadium before playing a special video on the main LED screen: a montage of 1010 over the years, from a clip of them singing a jazz number, probably dancing with the tick-tick-tick stiffness of a music box doll for a Vinyl City military camp show to performing on more and more prestigious stages, interspersed with messages of fans talking about how much 1010 means to them and thanking the boys for sparking a light of joy and hope in their lives.

But what stands out the most in his memory is this one particular fan project for Eloni's birthday. The second the song 1010 were singing transitioned into an instrumental bridge, the crowd began flying green paper airplanes towards the stage. One got tangled in Eloni's ring lock of hair, so he unfolded the airplane there and then. Inside it was a handwritten letter—in fact, each one of the airplanes had a heartfelt message written just for him.

Eloni has always been the least popular member of 1010 according to online surveys, merchandise sales and the amount of fanletters he'd received. Not long before that, there was even a digital petition spread by disgruntled anti-fans to kick him out of the group for being 'ugly' and 'annoying'.

As thousands of paper planes flew in the sky, the usually funny and cheerful Eloni dropped down to his knees and gave a deep, formal bow to the audience.

"I want to be the Eloni you can be proud of. I'll work harder for all of you from now on, I promise," he said, his quaking shoulders never leaving the floor even after Zimelu sat down next to him and stroked his back.

Neon J. isn't a stranger to intricate fan projects.

As 1010's manager, any concert surprises have to be submitted to him first by a fanbase representative and have to be personally approved by him as well in order to be executed.

Yet, none of them has prepared him for this moment.

[the credit for 1010's meaningful fandom name goes to @supportanimy]

#no straight roads #nsr #nsr neon j #nsr 1010 #neon j #1010 #see you all next monday ✌️

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spudinacup · 5 years

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Spinels Character Analysis:

Now that the comic has caught up to this point I can go on a bit of a tangent here and rant about my logic behind Spinels progression through the first seven pages of the SU AU Gone Wrong comic.

Let's dive right in then, shall we?

Spinel’s Character Break Down and Emotional Complexity:

This is gonna be one hell of a long rant so putting Readmore here.

[This isn’t proofread so if there are grammar or spelling mistakes we’ll all have to live with them]

Spinel as a character is rather complex and predictably unpredictable in how she reacts to situations. In Pixar, they have a concept they like to refer to as the spine of the character. This is the basis of who they are and will drive all their decisions throughout the story. A prime example of this is Woody; his spine is to protect his kid and ultimately get back to him. This drives every one of Woody’s decisions. By being separated from Andy he feels that he will be hurt by his absence and as such seeks out a solution to this dilemma. As a whole, Spinel’s spine, so to speak, is rooted in her insecurity; more specifically her insecurity around rejection. It’s part of what made her so appealing to the fanbase and also to the viewers of the film. It almost seemingly justifies her murderous intent and ability to cause such havoc and devastation.

When looking at the concept of insecurity and abandonment you’ll find articles referring to child abandonment syndromes. TMI moment; but I was abandoned by my genetic parents and have an unfortunately extensive understanding of the sensations revolving around this kind of trauma. Spinel in many ways was a child for Pink, she was a playmate. This doesn’t imply that she had any maternal connection to Spinel but if you compare her situation to that of a child dealing with this kind of neglect it aligns very similarly. Spinel did not choose to be made, she was born into Pink’s service and felt that was her world. She revolved around Pink and was there to please her whims. She was immature yes, but so is a child.

In an article by Lynne Namka titled, “The Many Causes of Feelings of Insecurity and Abandonment,” she analyzes the impacts and results of this kind of abandonment.

“Some abandonment issues can be related to physical security and fears of survival of the physical body. Rejected children can fear annihilation if their emotional and physical needs are not met. The external rejection and lack of love are internalized by the child along with beliefs of being unworthy, undeserving and unlovable. These children can grow up to become jealous and insecure in their relationships.”

Everyone at some point in their lives has felt tossed aside or dejected by society or others and this drives home further that feeling of connection to this character. It as a rather smart choice for the Crewneverse to go ahead with such a character archetype considering the themes of forgiveness and friendship in Steven Universe.

The problem with a character that is based so heavily around the concept of rejection is their reactions upon being confronted by it. We see this demonstrated in the film through each of Spinel’s actions. This sensation of being left behind is strong enough that even while dealing with amnesia and being rejuvenated to an earlier state the emotional trauma still rears its ugly head in the form of aggression.

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Upon arriving at Earth in the film Spinel proclaims that she is there to kill Steven Universe and even continues to state in the concluding scene that:

“You know I came here to take my anger out on a bunch of strangers, but now that I know you... I want to kill you even more.”

This again coincides with the concept of Abandonment Rage. To quote another article of the same name from Lynne Namka:

“Blind rage often comes out of the anxiety and terror of being left behind. Domestic violence expert Donald Dutton defines abandonment rage by saying, “Rage often comes after fears of feeling abandoned and helplessness. A child is made furiously angry by a parent’s threats to desert him but on the other hand, he does not express that anger in case it makes the parent actually do so….the anger of a parent becomes repressed and directed at someone else later on.” Repressed anger then becomes displaced or put on someone else after frustration builds up to a boiling-over point.”

This is the progression of Spinel’s character arch prior to reaching Steven. She has had this melting pot of anger boiling inside of her festering and mixing into a whirlwind of hate and repressed frustrations. Spinel is experiencing a catathymic crisis, a term coined by the Forensic Psychologist J. Ried Meloy. To put it simply, its where the individual's anger becomes a catharsis for feelings of vulnerability. Its a moment of disconnect from one’s logic and instead allows their actions to be driven by this anger lacking any logical perceptions or thought behind it. Webster's definition is as such: an unexpected explosive outburst of impulsive often destructive behavior understandable only in terms of unconscious motivation

So now that we know where her head was at before confronting Steven, what happened after she killed him?

The Impact of Steven’s Death:

Spinel’s actions with the rejuvenator are rash, fast, and not well thought out. There’s been a few great analysis on Tumblr that follow this line of thought.

As a whole, Spinel is playing with the Crystal Gems but her aim is true with her weapon. When she strikes down Amethyst, Garnet, and Pearl its with a single slash straight through the middle, it's effective. What better place could you aim to cause immediate results? On the slim, and probably impossible but work with me here, chance that it didn’t work immediately or at the very least didn’t poof them, there’s no walking away from that impact. It effectively disrupts their physical form and forces them to retreat into their gems.

The intention of the injuries inflicted on Steven follows this same kind of logic. Spinel was attempting to cause as much damage as possible as quickly as possible.

Steven Universe is Pink Diamond, she knows this, or at least he has what’s left of her. Diamonds are difficult to kill as we learned during Steven’s trial.

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So why was she trying?

In my opinion, it was because she was attempting to remove the obstacles that were in her way to being Pink’s friend. She was envious. Under all the hurt and misdirected anger, she still feels abandonment. While it may enrage her she still longs to be accepted and craves that solace of belonging again. Pink Diamond was her world, she was all she had, that absence has left a void that little can fill. We ultimately see this envy and desire manifest in the climax of the film as she fights Steven and ultimately crumbles under her own emotional state before the injector combusts.

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After removing the obstacles that are the other gems she turns her focus upon Steven. The rejuvenator would revert him back to a prior state. If it brought Pink back, great she’d have the source of her anger. If it reverted his powers and Pink was really gone? Fine, she’d be done with him soon enough. It wasn’t a logical decision, it was an emotionally driven and rash conclusion of her abandonment.

When she attack’s Steven her first blow takes off Steven’s arm. I wanted this to stand out to the viewer upon their viewing of the comic. It's drastic, impactful and leaves one unsettled by the sensation of having some ripped violently from their person. The arm is in many ways if you look between the lines, an analogy of P!Steven’s situation. He has been lopped off what made him whole and is only half of a person in his current manifestation. There is no way to efficiently reattach that limb with the flesh expiring in his arms.

The second of her attacks follow suit almost immediately following the amputation of Steven’s arm. She attempts to recreate the action she did with the Crystal Gems and cut him in half. Again, this being an efficient and fast way to destabilize him and poof the gem. However, Steven is half-human. So worked up by her own feelings of entitlement to the violence and grief Spinel is blind to the blood that flies from his injuries and only realizes what has happened once she can no longer swing wildly. The second blow ultimately was the fatal one while also what forces his gem out of his body. Amputates his gem, if you will.

Unshown in the comic is Spinel realizing something isn’t right however it was actually the first image I did for this AU shown here:

The rejuvenator becomes stuck within Steven’s torso, it doesn’t go all the way through him. This isn’t normal and gives Spinel’s mind enough time for her actions is starting to sink into her. With this comprehension comes with it the confusion of what she is seeing.

[-credit @thelostmoongazer for this illustration.] Spinel has never met a human. Spinel has never been to Earth. Spinel has no concept of what an organic is asides from the small critters from the garden she presumably spent her entire life within. She has been isolated, abandoned, and now she’s thrust into the world blinded with rage that has left her unable to perceive the vulnerabilities of the individual she is facing.

In this instance Spinel panics and throws her weapon aside alarmed by the strange liquid she now finds her body splattered with. She attempts to distance herself from the collapsing Steven, the atrocity she has just committed, and the expanding substance that gushed from his body's fractures.

Gem’s poof, that is our understanding of their forms being disrupted. The Crystal Gem’s had poofed, Steven, however, Steven hadn’t.

This is when Pink appears:

As a direct result of her attack upon Steven, P!Steven is given space and room to reform himself. This immediately puts Spinel in the position of not only feeling confusion and shock of the situation she’d put herself into as her temper begins to subside and she watches the pink glow overtake the field they stood within. There is a sensation, we’ve all felt it before, its the same one you feel when you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar by your parents. It isn't that she regretted her actions, its that she regretted being caught.

Not only right after it dawns on her that something is wrong but, as she assumes, the very person she’d been driven to this near insanity by.

She reverts a bit here, tries to resolve some of the issues with the newly reformed Pink. She tries to connect with them and apologize for what they were seeing, for what she had done. Underneath her resentment, she doesn't want to be hated by Pink, asides from that she is almost uncertain what she desires. All she knows in this situation is that things have not happened as they should have and now she has been caught.

It’s when P!Steven speaks to her however that a switch gets flicked. As I explained earlier in the post, Spinel fits rather well within the box of abandonment rage. She is a character-based within insecurity that reacts with aggression when she feels threatened as a way of protecting herself.

In these few short panels, P!Steven not only displays disapproval of her, but his change instance implies aggression immediately making her revert to a more defensive state.

This is what causes her change in tone and ultimately the change in her behavior. She is no longer remorseful because she was caught, she’s being rejected again, by the same gem again.

Adding a cherry on top, upon realizing that it wasn’t even who she perceived to be she feels tricked and made a fool of. Somehow, he wasn’t Pink. He hadn’t reverted into his beginning state, no, that pest that kept her from obtaining what she selfishly desired was still present. Her resentment for that craving boils back into her insecurities and feeds the explosive desires beneath it. Rather than apologizing further she takes hold of these emotional shelters and dives into what she feels the most comfortable with, her anger.

Which brings us to today’s page, where we see that beginning to be acted upon. Surely she can fix this, at the very least resolve that judgmental stare that lingers on her. She can make things better for herself.

She won’t let herself be rejected again.

Thanks for coming to my TEDtalk.

Sources:

[Insecurity and Abandonment] [Abandonment Rage] [catathymic definition]

[SU AU Gone Wrong Comic Master Post]

#SU AU Gone Wrong #SU Gone Wrong #Steven Universe #character analysis #Spinel Character Break down #steven universe the movie #Spud speaks #long post #Spinel Abandonment #Trigger warning #TW: Character death #Tw: blood #Tw: stabbing #SU AU Gone Wrong Comic Analysis

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psycho-slytherin · 4 years

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Strangers ch. 43

You go back to work, and come to terms with what’s happened.

Pairing: Idol!Yoongi x Actress!Reader

Word count: 3k

Genre: fluff, angst, idfk

Warnings: Tiiiny bit of cursing, a hint of depression

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<–– Prev Next ––>

“Girl, he broke up with you? What happened?”

“I don’t know,” you moan, clapping your hands to your ears. Her voice persists, echoing inside your head.

“He liked her more. You were never even together, and he still couldn’t wait to get rid of you.”

“Stop it. Shut up.”

“Poor, traumatized Y/n, who’s been nothing but trouble. Y/n, who’s an anxious little nobody. Y/n, trying to drag a star like him down to your level.”

“That’s not true!” “He hates you. Why else would he do that? He knows what she did to you, and he’s with her anyways. He hates you.”

“You don’t know that.”

“But you do, Y/n.”

“Fame, flashlight– gi-give it to me!”

Unlike most of your nightmares, for once you don’t bolt upwards in a panic. Your eyes simply open at the sound of your alarm and blink several times.

After a moment of stillness, you reach for your phone. It’s time for a change. Waking up to his voice every day used to be a delight, but now… you switch the sound back to the default alarm noise. It’s been all of one day since you awoke to his betrayal– twenty-four hours since the second of the two people you trusted most in the world was lost to you.

And I had to go from hearing one in my sleep to getting woken up by the other, you think humorlessly as you shove your blanket off and stretch.

Kang Seoyeon. You’ve spent so long thinking only of her attack, that flash of hair, that shove into the river, that learning her name feels like a punch in the stomach. She’s not just a nightmare. You don’t know whether you’re relieved or horrified.

Doesn’t matter. You have work today. The dark cloud that formed after Lisa’s disappearance, the same one that grew in weight when you saw Seoyeon’s picture on Lisa’s laptop and again when your mom cut you off– it overwhelmed you yesterday after you saw the news about him and Seoyeon. The feeling, the horrible, gnawing darkness got so intense that something inside of you seemed to break, and the pressure simply… lifted.

You survived an attempt on your life. You didn’t need him then, and you don’t need him now, especially since he’s made it clear that he doesn’t need you either.

And so you get dressed in more layers than you need, put on makeup, and walk to the subway station. You’d take an Uber but now, more than ever, you need to save money. Thanks, Mom. Maybe you can find a flat with lower rent further from the city? Or check with student housing? Right, you’re still a student.

As you approach, you notice a commotion around the studio. There’s a crowd outside, a mix of what look like fans and paparazzi. You tug your collar up in the hopes that you’re not spotted, but–

“Y/n! Any comment on Suga’s new girlfriend?”

“Just a quick photo, please!”

“Do you think Suga cheated on you?”

“Y/n! What do you have to say to Kang Seoyeon?”

“Are the rumors that you’ve been missing work true?”

“How did your relationship end?”

“No comment,” you say, the tidal wave of noise crashing down onto you as you fight for breath amidst the crowd. Despite the heat of all the bodies, you begin to shiver. “Please let me through.”

“Y/n!” A familiar voice rings out above the confusion. Avery, your director, stands tall in the doorway. “Let her pass. We will not be commenting or taking questions at this time.”

With Avery’s help, you manage to push through the mob, half collapsing once the large studio doors have closed behind you. Inside the studio, the cast and crew bustle about, almost busier than usual.

“Are you okay?” Avery asks, concerned.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m okay. Avery, look, I’m sorry I haven’t been at filming–”

“It’s in the past,” the director says kindly. “I know you’ve been through a lot. But… well, Y/n, you need a manager. A real manager. I’ve been talking with some of my agency friends, and I think-”

“I have a manager,” you interrupt. Unless… you Googled the statistics of surviving a kidnapping for as long as Lisa’s been gone. The research alone made you feel nauseous. But Lisa’s alive. She has to be. Right?

Avery folds her arms, as though she can tell something’s off. “Really? Then where’s your driver? Who’s organizing your gigs, negotiating your wages? Who’s hiring you a bodyguard? ‘Cause the people outside are showing me that you need one.”

“She just-”

“Where’s the publicist managing your online presence? You shouldn’t have to do this all on your own, Y/n. And for god’s sake, where is the person who’s supposed to keep celebrities like you from going off the deep end?”

“I’m not a celebrity, Avery! I’m not him, okay?”

“I know. But you have to understand, no one has ever been in a position like yours. BTS have a powerful fanbase, and none of them have dated before, least of all dated a virtual nobody. I know your relationship wasn’t real,” she continues, seeing you about to protest. “But it’s what needed to happen to protect both of your reputations. You skipped a lot of steps on the way to fame, Y/n. You need an experienced manager to keep you on track.” Avery shrugs. “I can email you a list of people you should talk to. Now, have you talked to your professors about missing classes? Will you be ready to go?”

“What? Go where?”

Avery raises a brow. “We’re filming on location next week, remember? There’s been an on-set announcement every day this week, and the email was sent out a month ago.”

Oh. What? You’ve barely been onset this week, so overwhelmed were you with the terror that Seoyeon had managed to instill within you. But you’ve been checking your email and your phone messages almost obsessively after you’d learned that the university had messaged you about Lisa’s disappearance first. You won’t let anything like that happen again. And yet… “I haven’t, uh… I haven’t gotten any emails about that.”

“Check your spam folder, I’m certain you received them.” Avery says cooly. “Anyways, you’ve missed a lot of work. Can I assume you’re back for good?”

“Yes.” You reply immediately. “Absolutely, ma’am. I’m very, very sorry for not being present lately. I’ll work hard to make up for it.” Is the existence of Seoyeon, and the unknown connection between her and Lisa, still terrifying? Of course. Does his sudden relationship with Seoyeon, after seeing him only two days ago, make your heart feel like it’s being shredded into pieces? Maybe. But you’ve broken yourself back together; no one can hurt you anymore.

“That’s what I like to hear,” Avery says, satisfied. “Now, go on to wardrobe, it’s gonna be a long day. We’re filming three episodes’ worth of your and Yoongi’s scenes.”

You gulp. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Speaking of Yoongi…” Avery checks her watch. “He’s late. Whatever– go get dressed.”

With nothing more to say, you make for the dressing rooms. And of course, who has to exit in full costume but…

“Y/n.”

You nod, your usual irrepressible anger nowhere to be seen. No one can hurt you anymore. “Jeongyeon.”

“I heard about you and Yoongi.” Jeongyeon seems to attempt to muster her usual obnoxious sneer, but it falls flat. You suppose your expression is just pitiful enough to put off her bullying.

“Ah, yeah.” You don’t know what else to say. It was just a fake relationship, so you should be glad it’s over. After all, Bang PD had said the arrangement could end whenever you wanted it to… and clearly, he wanted it to.

“Well, whatever. How does he go from bad to worse, am I right? Did you see his new girl?”

There she is, you think, watching Jeongyeon slip back into the character you know so well.

“Anyways,” she continues. “I heard we’re sharing a trailer for when we film on location. Don’t even think about stealing my bobby pins.”

You salute your costar ironically before brushing past her into the dressing rooms.

Forty minutes later, you’re finally clothed in all your beautiful layers, your face perfectly made up. You’re an actress, a professional. Whatever is happening in your personal life, you have to put it aside for the sake of your work.

“So pretty~” the stylist coos as she expertly fixes your hair. You hear the door open, but you can’t move to see who entered as the stylist continues: “Doesn’t she look lovely?”

“Ah, yeah.”

Your eyes widen at his voice. The stylist still has a hold of your hair, and you can’t turn to look at him.

After an eternal silence, he clears his throat. “Anyways, Avery sent me here for hair and makeup?”

“Yes, Mr. Min, just one more second while I finish up with Y/n here…” after what seems like a lungful of hairspray, you’re set free. At last, you turn and look at Min Yoongi.

The shadows under his eyes are darker than you’ve ever seen them, and his normally good posture has disappeared for slumped shoulders. Must be the stress of a new relationship.

“Y/n,” Yoongi starts. “Look, I–”

“It’s okay,” you interrupt, pasting a smile onto your face. “It’s whatever, Yoongi, alright?”

“Uh, right.” Yoongi fidgets with one of his rings, seemingly at a loss.

“I just…” you can feel your facade begin to slip, and shake your head. “Never mind. I’ll see you onset.”

~~~

Yoongi watches you go, clenching his fist. He wasn’t expecting to see you at work today, and he definitely wasn’t expecting… well, whatever that was.

He doesn’t know why he feels a little disappointed to realize how okay you are with this situation. Certainly far more okay than he is. Maybe you really were eager to get out of your relationship.

Shit. He wishes he could fix this, wishes he could tell you everything. A shiver runs down his spine, though, when he remembers exactly why he can’t talk to you.

“You go to the police,” Seoyeon said, holding out her phone so Yoongi can see, “you talk to the paparazzi, or your precious little girlfriend, and this one will be gone before anyone can find her.”

Yoongi gulped. “How do I know that’s not doctored?”

He received a shrug. “That’s a chance you’ll have to take. Now, we’re going to do this my way. Want to keep Y/n safe? And the other one too?” She nods at the photo on her phone. “Follow my rules, and they won’t get hurt. But I’ll be keeping this one… for insurance.”

“You’re insane.”

Seoyeon winked. “Nope, just a fan!”

Faking a relationship with your attacker, seeing the insurance she’s kept, and knowing that he can’t tell you any of it, is almost too much for Yoongi. But he’s got D working to track Lisa’s phone, and Avery to suggest you hire bodyguards. Sure, he may be stretched thin enough to snap, but he’ll keep everyone safe. He has to.

~~~

You’re hanging around on the indoor set of what’s supposed to be a busy town market filled with extras. You’re always amazed at the movie magic that allows the simple set such versatility.

You can hear him before you see him: the cast and crew can never help but murmur at the biggest star in the show. And yet, you don’t turn to look. It’s not like you’re avoiding him, but… well, he has to have realized that he hurt you, right? And of course, now you have to play the brokenhearted ex, since all your coworkers think the relationship was real. Which means more lies.

But it’s okay. You’re strong. Stronger than him, stronger than his new girlfriend.

“Okay!” Avery barks, and the present company jumps to attention. “I know there’s a lot of excitement on set today, so I hope everyone remembers to keep things professional. Now, let’s get started. Episode 13, scene 6. The scene: Kim Ji-Woo has just returned from her trip to the countryside as she recovers from Mr. Moon’s sudden engagement to Mi-Gyeong, the wealthy Mr. Gang’s younger sister. They bump into each other at the market and Mr. Moon invites Ji-Woo to the ball held in honor of the engagement. Ready, and… action!”

You move quickly into the view of the camera, waving at the imaginary coachman behind you. “No, really, it’s alright! I can walk home, Father should have the carriage in any case– yes, goodbye now, good- oh!”

Not looking where you were going, you walk right into Yoongi. Your basket clatters onto the dirt road and for a second you feel the urge to stay there in his arms as you have so many times before. “I’m terribly sorry, Mr- Mr. Moon?” you allow your voice to tremble for a second. Here he is, the man who had promised himself to you, and then turned around and chose to love another. Here he is, and every feeling you tried to bury comes rushing back. But… no. There’s still your dignity to think about.

“My apologies,” you murmur, reaching down to grab your basket as you curtsy. Basket secured, you’re quick to turn away from the newly-engaged man who, only weeks before, had secretly asked you to marry him.

“Oh, wait, wait! Miss Kim!” Mr. Moon extends his arm, his hand barely brushing yours. Your skin prickles with equal parts excitement and pain.

You can’t ignore so blatant a summons. You look back at him slowly. “Is there something I may help you with, sir?” Sir. How long has it been since you were able to call him by his given name?

“Please, I…” Mr. Kim pauses, his jaw tense. “My father is hosting a ball tonight. In honor of my engagement.”

“Congratulations,” you reply, as drily as your good manners will allow. For what reason is he reminding you of his betrayal?

“Would you attend, as my guest? Your sisters are most certainly welcome as well,” Mr. Moon says, his voice just shy of pleading.

Is he out of his mind? No, he’s just pulling rank and expecting you to say yes. No sane country girl such as yourself could ever turn down an invitation from a man of such good breeding.

And yet, he led you to believe he loved you, and you him, before turning tail and running towards a much better match. All the good you saw in him then… where is it now?

“I’m sorry,” you whisper, staring at him. “But my family will be unable to attend. I wish you the best in your life, and in a very… happy marriage. Good day, Mr. Moon.”

“Good– ah.” You can’t see Mr. Moon rub his eyes tiredly, for you’ve already walked away, full of determination. I don’t need him.

“Cut! Holy shit, guys!” Avery claps loudly, a wide grin on her face. “I think that was the best I’ve ever seen you two together. Keep it up! Let’s use that take. Okay, next, episode 14, scenes 30-33.”

The workday is long and brutal, but you’d never complain– at least you still have a job, after the absentee stunt you pulled.

Speaking of absentee… Lisa. It’s been a month now since she’s disappeared, and maybe you could have chalked it up to some quarter-life crisis at first. After all, she bought that plane ticket to America.

But a month? And the police are still looking for her. They must have a reason to believe it’s more than university angst, right?

You need to face the facts, Y/n. And the facts are that Lisa must have been kidnapped. And to stay alive a month after being kidnapped…

You can’t think about it. But you can’t not think about it. And if you’re moving past Yoongi, you have to move past your best friend, too.

“Avery?” You approach the director , who’s giving instructions to an assistant, after the cast has been dismissed for the day. At your voice, she glances up.

“Y/n, what can I do for you?”

“I’m…” You take a deep breath, knowing your nightmares will take revenge on you. “I’m ready to look for a manager. Can you email me your contacts?” Hopefully you receive them– the fact that you haven’t noticed any emails about filming on location is really concerning.

Avery smiles. “Of course, Y/n. I really do wish you the best.”

“Thank you.”

Out of the corner of your eye, you see Yoongi wander your way. Avery seems to notice him as well, and manages to disappear before you can blink. The set has cleared out for the most part, with only some cosmetologists and stylists packing up.

“Hey, stranger,” you greet him. Yoongi’s eyes dart back and forth nervously.

“I’m sorry.” He finally blurts out.

“What?” Your voice remains neutral. Is he apologizing for knowing Seoyeon without telling you? For dating her?

Yoongi reaches for your hand before freezing. “I don’t know how this is going to end, Y/n, but in case something goes wrong, I need to tell you that I’m so, so sorry.”

Yoongi… “You can’t do that,” you say eventually. He can’t hurt you anymore, but that doesn’t mean you won’t tell him the truth. “You can’t play with me like this, Yoongs. You can’t tell me that I’m safe and then turn around and hold her hand. You can’t come back and apologize for your actions after what she did to me. What she might have done to Lisa! Do you even hear yourself?” You’re half-shouting before you realize it, but you can’t stop. “Christ, I knew celebrities were selfish, but this is god-tier bullshit. She could have killed me, Yoongi! Would you still have loved her then?”

“I don’t–” Yoongi stops short before shaking his head. “You don’t understand.”

“So teach me.”

“I… can’t.”

You breathe in sharply, gripping your bag. “Okay, then. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you. And, Y/n?”

“Yeah?”

“Be careful.”

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julies-butterflies · 4 years

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I've been wondering this since the whole tiktok thing this morning. I'm not trying to offend here- I'm genuinely curious. Why is Charlie interacting with those fans a bad thing? How is it different from any other artist talking with people who have viewed/read their work? Idk if that convo was real, but I don’t think Charlie would ask a fan what smut was and then, once he found out, continue to talk about it (not that we know whether that happened, because we do not). (1/4)

But, Isn't it normal for somebody to reach out with people who've enjoyed their work, to connect with them about it? Is it only because they were minors? I’ve also seen something about how Charlie supposedly “confirmed” lalex but from what I’ve seen he said “lalex is a yes” which could also just mean that he’d be cool with it if it /was/ confirmed, not that he was confirming it himself. But regardless, Charlie had some involvement in the creation of the character of Luke. (2/4)

It was written for him to portray how he saw fit, and the creators of the show liked his interpretation enough to cast him. So, if Charlie wants to make Lalex an aspect of his character (obviously past Lalex, because Alex is involved with Willie now, and Luke with Julie) why is that so bad? (3/4)

If he takes that into account when he’s acting, that’s his choice as an actor, you know? If I’m incorrect about any of this please let me know. I’m just trying to understand why this is all such a big issue. Thank you so much for explaining this because I honestly just want to understand !! :) (4/4)

Okay, first of all, thank you so much for formulating your thoughts like this and sharing, because it’s totally a discussion that needs to be had!! You definitely make great points. An actor’s portrayal is up the the actor --- so if Charlie and Owen want to play their characters as exes, that’s up to them, and totally cool. People can also ships whatever fictional couples they want, and rock it --- that’s the beauty of fandom!

Part of the fun of fandom also comes with interacting with the cast and crew. I get that, believe me. But all actors need to set boundaries with their fans; fans cannot be friends, and it’s important to remember that.

To put it in context... okay, I come from a lot of Broadway fandoms, and Broadway fans are very familiar with interacting with actors. On Broadway, there’s something called a stage door --- after shows, fans can line up, and the actors will come out to sign autographs, take pictures, and chat with fans for a few minutes. Hugs are given out, gifts are exchanged... it’s an amazing, interactive experience for the fans, and hopefully fun for the actors too.

But some actors don’t like to stage door. Some actors aren’t comfortable giving out hugs to strangers, or receiving gifts from people they don’t know. Sometimes, actors just have really rough days, and don’t feel like stagedooring. These are their boundaries. Most of the time, Broadway fans are really good at respecting them.

But you don’t give fanfiction to the actors at stage door. You don’t ask them inappropriate questions about ships and headcanons. You definitely don’t ask them about their relationships with their fellow actors. Interactions between fans and actors should be kept mutually respectful, always always always; they can be friendly, it’s fine to chat with them, but there are some things you just don’t do. It can make the actors uncomfortable, and puts everyone in an awkward situation. Also, it’s cringe. Super cringe.

The issue with Charlie in these groupchats isn’t that he’s saying he’s cool with Lalex to fans, and definitely not whether he ships it himself; it’s that they’re asking him about it, and putting him in a situation where he’s obligated to talk about it. It’s that minors are asking him about smut, and automatically putting him in a situation where he could be called predatory. It’s that he’s put himself in this situation anyways, by being in these group chats and engaging with them in the first place.

Fans are not friends. Actors have a responsibility in how they engage with fandom and interact with their fanbases. It’s not just “don’t be creepy”, it’s “don’t act like you’re a normal person” --- because to fans, you’re not. You’re a public figure, and that power dynamic will never be equal.

And it puts Charlie in a dangerous situation that could potentially damage his career and public image. All it takes is one groupchat with one minor, where someone brings up smut fanfic, and suddenly people are like “who’s this 22-year old actor talking about smut with 16 year old girls??” A Very Bad Look, and dangerous for his career as a whole.

That’s why this is a big deal. The fans need to learn to respect boundaries, and Charlie needs to learn to set them. If he wants a successful career as an actor, he needs to. For fans’ safety, and his own.

#i hope i helped explain it?? and why this situation is a big deal??#its not about lalex and i'm totally neutral on the lalex question myself #like!! shipping is part of fandom and that's what makes it fun!!#interacting with actors is part of fandom too #but you can't treat actors like they're just regular friends you can talk about fandom stuff with because they're NOT #and there's an expectation for actors to understand and uphold this #i'm v sympathetic to charlie in this situation but also #my guy's gotta set boundaries for himself #Anonymous

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sarahkhoojijean · 3 years

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Blogpost 9: A disconnected, unrequited (cosmopolitan) intimacy between YouTubers and their audience. (Sarah Khoo)

In this week's reading, Lambert (2019) conceptualizes intimacy to be a "thing" that can be shaped and transformed, along with the time and its contextual developments. Intimacy is shaped by the ideologies that the individuals hold on to, and is often dictated by those in positions of power. Lambert argues that intimacy is not restricted to a physical presence or closeness, but rather a sharing of space, where "space" transcends into virtual, augmented, locative and even mental. The psychological conception of "being with" another individual also stimulates the intimacy in an interpersonal relationship. (During the lecture, Lambert had also conceptualized intimacy as a "being in" — being in a relationship, a family, sharing a certain boundary that allows for those within that boundary/"sphere" to be freely vulnerable. Again, this concept deals with the idea of space, while further suggesting that the Other is very clearly outside and cut off from those within the boundary.)

Through the term "cosmopolitan intimacy" Lambert suggests that the concept of intimacy is very much connected to the social, cultural, political and material elements. Intimacy encompasses all, and does not discriminate between differences. Aside from the three key enablers established (firstly, that for intimacy to be established, there has to be an uncomfortable beginning. The second enabler is the repeated, intentional interaction. Finally, cosmopolitan consciousness is required to compel such an activity.), Lambert expresses that the digital platform has greatly afforded individuals a multitude of abilities for relationships to foster, untethered by the barriers of differences. The online platforms foster a relatively safe space as the interactions that are facilitated on those platforms are sufficiently protected. (Users are well able to turn away from the interaction when the intensity of the intimacy gets overwhelming, and there are no dire threats or consequences — the online space puts a great distance between the two parties while still being able to foster a strong perceived intimacy.) Lambert further examines the cosmopolitan intimacy while regarding the media infrastructures, self-tracking community, and other aspects. However, I am interested to consider how the digital space has managed to bridge the wide, unseen gap between users and allow for such a tangible, lasting intimacy to be forged. To probe further, I wonder how this intimacy has been modified, shaped to become a product to be sold to those who desire that intimacy but cannot find it anywhere else, and address how this intimacy is often a disconnected, unrequited one, leading to a problematic relationship being formed.

In this blogpost, I look to the online media platform that is YouTube, and the phenomenon that is YouTubers. I would describe a "YouTuber" to be a social influencer who creates content in the form of videos for their audience. These videos mostly comprise of vlogs (video blogs) that showcase their daily lives, and video entries of errant thoughts that these individuals want to share with the public. I believe that for YouTubers, success is reaching that target number of subscribers, gaining traction in terms of views, watch time et cetera. Thus, they are highly motivated to keep an attentive fan base, and their viewers would only choose to stay if they are invested in the content, or care for these YouTubers. As a result, YouTubers foster an illusion of intimacy with their viewers, to create an agency for viewers to keep coming back to catch up with their favourite YouTubers. They speak into the camera, looking directly at their audience and addresses them as "you". They welcome viewers into their personal space, whether is it their own home, or around their school/workplace, bringing their fans along with them for quick grocery trips. Fan interactions are also usually encouraged ("Comment down below your favourite __ and I will try my best to reply you!") YouTubers often show their vulnerable sides, sharing with their viewers when they go through personal, painful experiences. They build strong "relationships" with their audience, in hopes of creating a fanbase that will faithfully stay to watch and support their content. This intimacy proves to be cosmopolitan as well, as it crosses over the differences between them — the YouTubers address all their fans the same way despite any differences in cultures, beliefs or differences of any kind.

And it works. This strategy has proven itself for years, since the early 2010s during the era of Zoella, PewDiePie and Lilly Singh, to present day with even greater variety of content (family vloggers, streamers, podcasters etc.). The "realness" that these YouTubers emulate facilitates a strong, "genuine" connection between Them and their audience, such that their audience would feel like they can empathise and connect with their idols in such a strong, intimate way. The sense of intimacy and interpersonal connection is very much real, as the viewers perceive it to be. In this phenomenon that is being a YouTuber, the manifestation and dynamic of intimacy has yet shifted again. It introduces a disconnected sense of intimacy. A commodified intimacy. A profitable intimacy. Selling one's attention in a packaged, 10 minute video for viewers to enjoy, collecting their attention and reaping the benefits from it.

As these feelings of intimacy escalate, it has frequently led to some fans overstepping their boundaries. Some fans have even extreme measures, going directly to the YouTuber's home to get a chance to meet their idol. It is evidently a great invasion of privacy, especially when the fans are strangers to these YouTubers. The disconnected relationship between YouTubers and their fans are made clear through these situations. Intimacy has translated itself so clearly and strongly from the YouTubers to their fans, while the YouTubers themselves feel little attachment to them. Thus, the medium that is YouTube evidently allows for such intimacy to be transmitted, overcoming the need for physical closeness or even any acknowledgement of one's existence, for one to still perceive themselves to have an intimate relationship with another. Therefore, I find that Lambert's analysis of the intimacy cosmopolitanism to be very much evident, and even problematic in this context.

Here are some examples of YouTubers addressing the issue of having fans show up at their house, and warning other fans not to do so.

Jenna Marbles: don't come to our house https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HcoFZv6_AE

PewDiePie: Don't come to my house.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ei-i1P6pxxk

James Charles: JAMES CHARLES FANS ARE SHOWING UP AT HIS HOUSE!! (This is not ok!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WewtXrX3xCE

This is another video I was particularly inspired from while writing this blogpost up. It features Toast, a gaming streamer who made it clear to his fans that he is "not your friend", directly telling his audience not to idolise the people they watch and to just enjoy the content as casual viewers.

Disguised Toast: Toast is not your friend https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4yxglfssQk

Lambert, A. (2019). Intimacy, cosmopolitanism, and digital media: A research manifesto. Qualitative Inquiry, 25(3), 300-311. doi:10.1177/1077800418806600

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thecrushsblog · 4 years

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How Are Musicians Using Facebook Groups?

All too often, artists underestimate the power and versatility that Facebook Groups provide for those who want to connect with their fans directly. Not only are these groups a great way to stay connected, but they also engage your followers in a more personal way, promote meaningful interactions between everyone in the group and these connections will help grow your following.

So, we asked 4 artists about their experiences with Facebook Groups, and they only had good things to say.

Here are their experiences with it:

“Being genuine is key.”

Producer/DJ, JEANIE, is no stranger to using Facebook Groups to connect with her fanbase. JEANIE MOB is a happy family of over 800 fans who joined the group solely to keep up with some of the many things JEANIE does online and off.

The platform lets her connect to her fans in a way that she wasn’t quite able to before, at least not on such a direct level. She tries to reply to everyone in the group as often as she can, and you can tell her audience thrives because of it. Being active shows your group members that you care enough about them take time out of your day to respond.

One quick response from you can make the entire day of one of your fans.

Jesse Brede wanted to provide a place for the music production community to interact, exchange knowledge and share music with like-minded individuals in a collaborative, shared space.

And thus, in 2017, Gravitas Create Community was born.

From inquiries about music production to music marketing techniques, members can have their questions answered as soon as they ask them(as long as someone has an answer, of course). The group also hosts monthly music production challenges to push its members to get their ass in the studio and pump out some work.

As they create and complete their music, Jesse takes pride in knowing he helped foster that fulfilling sense of accomplishment in the members of the community.

“If you want your brand to be “cool” and that includes not responding to fans or supporting other artists, then you’re in for an uphill battle when it comes to keeping engagement.”

The Faction is actually a fan group for the notoriously dark and spooky DJ, SWARM.

It all started when Porter Robinson played one of his songs at a show and the video made its rounds through the depths of the internet.

Then, a fan reached out and asked if it was okay for her to start a fan page for him. He excitedly said yes, and the group has been growing ever since.

“The Faction is a bridge between meeting someone in real life and the void of the social media algorithm.”

He loves having the ability to be more casual with his fans and make real connections with the 636 members he has so far. From his own experience, he gets more engagement from the posts where he’s being silly and organically himself. Since his branding is dark and moody, his fans appreciate getting to know the real person behind the music.

Need more ideas? Check out some other creative ways to engage your fanbase.

Kannibalen Records has gained an impressive 54,932 active followers since 2017.

If the name doesn’t ring any bells, Kannibalen Records is Black Tiger Sex Machine’s label, which supports big artists like Kai Wachi and Apashe.

The group started with the goal of having a place where all the die-hard fans could come and interact with each other, the artists and the staff all in one place. The group’s popularity directly stems from how active it is for sure.

“It’s nice to have a special little place for the core fans where we can talk with them directly on top of offering first looks at music and tour dates, things like that.”

“We wouldn’t be here without them, so to have that extension to be able to interact with them on a more personal level and get feedback or hit them with ideas we might be having, it’s nice. It’s a fun little playground for everybody.”

For those looking for space where you can talk with your fans directly and foster a more personal relationship with them, this could be just what you need. Show your fans there’s a real human being behind the music they love.

Want to join the Symphonic Fam’s Facebook Group? Collaborate with other creators here.

How Are Musicians Using Facebook Groups? Music Marketing Blogs

How Are Musicians Using Facebook Groups?

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wineanddinosaur · 4 years

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How Conor McGregor Built a $200M Irish Whiskey Brand in Just Two Years

Conor McGregor chose an opportune moment to announce his plans to launch an Irish whiskey brand. It was the night of June 14, 2017; the Irish mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter had just co-starred in the second-largest- selling pay-per-view event in American sporting history. Having secured a reported $100 million for one night’s work, McGregor strutted into the post-fight press conference wearing sunglasses and an eccentric suit, with a bottle of whiskey in hand. “I’ll put my whiskey down,” he said, briefly raising the bottle to salute the millions watching around the globe, before adding, “Notorious Irish Whiskey: Coming soon.”

It took another year before McGregor’s whiskey hit the market, debuting in Ireland and the U.S. in September 2018. Rather than carrying his “Notorious” nickname as McGregor suggested, the brand instead launched as Proper No. Twelve. Less than two years on, only the cocksure Irishman could have predicted its success. In July 2020, reports emerged that Jose Cuervo had exercised stock options to increase its share in the brand from 20 to 49 percent. Based on the amount paid for shares, the sale valued the Irish whiskey brand at 200 million euros, roughly $235 million at the time of publishing.

As start-ups go — even those backed by a celebrity — it’s an incredible, perhaps unlikely, rise. McGregor is not a household name in the way that George Clooney or Michael Jordan are, and even for those who are aware of him, McGregor cuts a divisive, sometimes controversial figure. It should also be taken into account that his is an Irish whiskey brand. This is a category that has long been synonymous with a single brand: Jameson.

In terms of sales, Proper No. Twelve still lags some way behind Jameson. The former calculates annual volumes in terms of hundreds of thousands of cases; the latter shifted close to a million cases in December 2019 alone. But this should not distract from the rapid rise of Proper No. Twelve. To reach its current sales volumes and valuation in such a short space of time begs the question: How has McGregor achieved such success so fast?

Launching Proper No. Twelve

Part of the answer almost certainly lies in the lesser-known individuals involved in the brand. Proper No. Twelve is owned by Eire Born Spirits, a company co-founded by McGregor, his manager Audie Attar, and Ken Austin. Having previously worked for E&J Gallo and Seagrams, Austin is no stranger to the alcohol industry — nor is this his first celebrity spirit collaboration. In 2013, he founded Tequila Avíon with rap star Jeezy. Pernod Ricard bought a majority stake in the brand for a reported $100 million in 2014, then acquired the remainder for an undisclosed sum in 2018. More recently, Austin teamed up with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson for Teremana tequila, which launched in the U.S. in March 2020.

From the beginning, Austin knew a few things would be crucial to the success of Proper No. Twelve. The branding, packaging, and whiskey itself all had to be “unimpeachable,” he says, as many would be hoping for McGregor to fail because of his divisive reputation. “I call him the Howard Stern of fighting,” Austin says.

But it was the draw of McGregor that made Austin want to collaborate on Proper No. Twelve in the first place. (Despite his impressive resume, it was Austin who approached McGregor and Attar, rather than vice versa.) As much as anyone, Austin knows that for a celebrity spirits brand to succeed, it needs to come across as an authentic product. Which celebrity could be a more compelling match to Irish whiskey than a man who celebrates fight victories draped in the country’s flag; who drops Gaelic phrases in media interviews as often as he does f-bombs; and whose ring-walk song is a Sinéad O’Connor cover of a famous Irish rebel song?

“If you were going to look up Irish whiskey in the dictionary, there would be a picture of Connor McGregor there because he epitomizes what being Irish is,” Austin says.

Leveraging the Conor Connection

While Austin highlights McGregor’s “authenticity” as a key draw for consumers, he remains tight-lipped on the specific factors that have fueled Proper No. Twelve’s growth. That’s not unexpected, especially for the co-founder of a company that saw triple-digit volume growth last year, according to market analyst IWSR, and is on course to reach “a few hundred thousand cases” in volume sales in only its third year, according to Austin. But that doesn’t stop us from analyzing the factors that may have fueled its success.

One obvious advantage is the Conor connection. McGregor speaks to a 50-million-strong audience across his social media channels. Close to 37 million of those are on Instagram alone. Bottles of Proper No. Twelve feature heavily in McGregor’s feed, interspersing photos of luxury watches, cars, and yachts. McGregor’s popularity has no doubt translated into Proper No. Twelve’s impressive social media audience. The brand’s 700,000-strong Instagram following is more than four times larger than Jameson’s.

The “notorious one” reaches millions more during his day job as an MMA fighter. Capitalizing on pre- and post-fight press conferences is a tactic McGregor has used time and again since he first announced his impending Irish whiskey. And it’s an incredible opportunity for free brand marketing. To date, McGregor fights have accounted for five out of the top six highest-grossing UFC events, in terms of pay-per-view buys.

The best example came in October 2018, during the build-up to UFC 229. McGregor spent as much time touting his new brand in press conferences as he did discussing his upcoming opponent. That distraction may have played a part in McGregor ultimately losing the fight, but he emerged from the weekend victorious. With 2.4 million pay-per-view buys, UFC 229 remains the most watched event in the sport’s history. No one who followed the event and its build-up walked away unaware that McGregor was now in the whiskey business.

The Overlap of UFC Fans and Irish Whiskey Drinkers

When he’s not promoting his whiskey on his social media accounts or in the UFC’s octagon, McGregor touts his brand to a more mainstream audience on chat shows like “Conan” on TBS and Jimmy Fallon’s “The Tonight Show.” But there’s strong evidence to suggest that it’s MMA fans who have been pivotal in the brand’s early success.

According to IWSR data, the Irish whiskey category ended 2019 with a value of $1.5 billion. Between 2014 and 2019, volume sales experienced a compound annual growth rate of 14 percent. “From a demographic standpoint, the category leans heavily towards male over female, with those aged between 25 to 34 accounting for the majority of consumption,” says Adam Rogers, IWSR research director, North America.

This demographic is remarkably similar to UFC’s audience, which skews 75 percent male, with 88 percent between ages 18 and 44, according to IMG ARENA insights. UFC fans are also big social media users: 48 percent spend more than two hours a day on apps like Facebook and Instagram. These data points suggest McGregor had spent years unwittingly cultivating the perfect audience for his brand prior to launching it. Not only are UFC fans highly likely to encounter his Proper No. Twelve posts while browsing social media platforms, they fit the bill for the type of consumer typically drinking Irish whiskey.

A closer look at the data highlights specific, often overlooked, demographics that could be fueling Proper No. Twelve’s growth. According to data from consumer insights firm MRI-Simmons, the number of adults who are of Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino heritage and drink Irish whiskey has increased 28 percent since 2013. The number of Black or African-American consumers who drink Irish whiskey also increased 17.3 percent during this period.

These are important considerations as this once again overlaps with UFC’s core audience. In a May 2020 Statista survey, at least 22 percent of Hispanic and African-American respondents said they were “casual fans” of UFC. Thirteen percent of respondents from both ethnicities identified as “avid fans.” This data places the Hispanic and African-American communities as the most engaged UFC fans.

One final factor that should not be discounted in Proper No. Twelve’s success is the previously mentioned surging popularity of Irish whiskey. It’s hard to tell whether the brand has been a benefactor or beneficiary within this trend. Perhaps both.

If McGregor’s brand is to grow further and one day become the world’s leading whiskey brand, as is his goal, it needs to continue to broaden its appeal beyond McGregor’s fanbase but also past those who already drink Irish whiskey.

“It’s the whiskey category that you’ve got to go after, not the Irish whiskey category,” Austin says. “We’re at the tip of the iceberg still.”

The article How Conor McGregor Built a $200M Irish Whiskey Brand in Just Two Years appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/conor-mcgregor-irish-whiskey/

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johnboothus · 4 years

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How Conor McGregor Built a $200M Irish Whiskey Brand in Just Two Years

Launching Proper No. Twelve

“If you were going to look up Irish whiskey in the dictionary, there would be a picture of Connor McGregor there because he epitomizes what being Irish is,” Austin says.

Leveraging the Conor Connection

The Overlap of UFC Fans and Irish Whiskey Drinkers

This demographic is remarkably similar to UFC’s audience, which skews 75 percent male, with 88 percent between ages 18 an 44, according to IMG ARENA insights. UFC fans are also big social media users: 48 percent spend more than two hours a day on apps like Facebook and Instagram. These data points suggest McGregor had spent years unwittingly cultivating the perfect audience for his brand prior to launching it. Not only are UFC fans highly likely to encounter his Proper No. Twelve posts while browsing social media platforms, they fit the bill for the type of consumer typically drinking Irish whiskey.

“It’s the whiskey category that you’ve got to go after, not the Irish whiskey category,” Austin says. “We’re at the tip of the iceberg still.”

The article How Conor McGregor Built a $200M Irish Whiskey Brand in Just Two Years appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/conor-mcgregor-irish-whiskey/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/how-conor-mcgregor-built-a-200m-irish-whiskey-brand-in-just-two-years

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isaiahrippinus · 4 years

Text

How Conor McGregor Built a $200M Irish Whiskey Brand in Just Two Years

Launching Proper No. Twelve

“If you were going to look up Irish whiskey in the dictionary, there would be a picture of Connor McGregor there because he epitomizes what being Irish is,” Austin says.

Leveraging the Conor Connection

The Overlap of UFC Fans and Irish Whiskey Drinkers

“It’s the whiskey category that you’ve got to go after, not the Irish whiskey category,” Austin says. “We’re at the tip of the iceberg still.”

The article How Conor McGregor Built a $200M Irish Whiskey Brand in Just Two Years appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/conor-mcgregor-irish-whiskey/ source https://vinology1.tumblr.com/post/626795146621665280

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woohooligancomics · 7 years

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Six Tips to Kickstarter Success!

How do you build a career as a creative person? I mean a real career, one that pays your bills, not a side-gig that's obviously important to you but that you have to supplement by sacking people's fidget spinners at your local Walmart. Learning how to do that is a difficult thing and I certainly don't have it all figured out, but I've learned a lot over the years and I'd like to share some of what I've learned with you, to help you reach your creative career goals.

A couple weeks ago I found this Kickstarter campaign for a comic series called the Millennials. It was a few days before the end of the campaign and with only one backer it was obvious this campaign wouldn't fund. But I also saw something else; I saw myself in the creator, Jay Wallace. I saw many of the mistakes I personally made when I was much younger. That's why I'm writing this. I know some of these lessons are hard to hear, and often hard to learn, heck I forgot a couple of the most basic rules of marketing when I overhauled my Patreon page recently. So I think a post-mortem analysis of a failed campaign like this can be very helpful to us as we move forward wether it's with this project or a new one.

First, if you're like a lot of us and you've internalized this idea that marketing is bad, like the sleazy car salesman who just wants to sell you a lemon and take his bonus home, you need to get that picture out of your head. Sales and marketing aren't bad, in fact you're already marketing and selling, you just don't know it. Do you have a job? Then you've sold something: yourself. When you write a resume or take a job interview, you're selling to the interviewer an idea of you as a good person for that job. You have to convince them not only that you can perform the task, but that you won't create any extra headaches for them either. The interviewer can only hire so many people, so they're going to choose the candidates who will make their job the easiest. Except in those cases when they hire their drunk cousin or friend from grade-school, despite all the vomit in the backseat of their car, because history and nepotism. Besides, they want to stay on uncle Don's good side if they don't want their tires slashed. ;P

The point I'm making here is that you have to sell things all the time, and there are lots of better ways. That sleazy car dearler is a sales person, but he's just one guy, and he's a very bad sales person. I'll bet you didn't use any of those sleazy car-sales tactics to get the job you have now. You didn't lie and tell the interviewer at Walmart that you managed distribution for the midwest division of Oscar Mayer and drove their weinermobile. No, you told them the truth, that you're willing to work any hours, on any day including holidays, for minimum wage, that you have your own transortation, and that you like their "I hate mondays" neck-tie. Okay, that last one was a lie, but how else are you going to make an impression on the interviewer and stand out in that crowd of Walmart applicants?

Seriously though, the best car salesman and the one who's better off in the long-run is the one who helps you find the car you want even if it's at someone else's dealership where he won't get the bonus for selling it. That guy who helps you find what you're looking for at a competitor's dealership builds a reputation for himself as an honest, helpful guy, and that's worth a lot more than the bonus on a single sale.

So now that we have that out of the way, how would the helpful salesperson approach this Kickstarter that failed? What would he recommend to Jay to help the Millennials Kickstarter fund?

Before I do that, I want to recommend this podcast I found recently called ComixLaunch. If you're planning even one KickStarter project, you should probably check out this podcast first, there's a lot of really useful info in here. Several of the mistakes Jay made, (mistakes I used to make when I was younger), could have been avoided with information from just the first couple episodes of ComixLaunch.

EDIT (Dec 22, 2017): I also just came across this great article with very specific Kickstarter advice from Russell Nohelty.

Now let's see what Jay did well. He did several of the basic things that we all know you need to do with a KickStarter. He's got a video and it's brief at only a minute and seventeen seconds. He introduced himself, he seems like a nice kid, and he explains the emotional connection he has to this project, why it's important to him (having a lot to do with high-school, bullying, biraciality, the immigrant experience and racial profiling). So if you identify with those feelings and experiences, there's a good chance you'll want to help him. When you get down below the video, you see he included the first six pages of the comic's first(?) issue, and the art is high quality, so that's a plus.

So how do we evaluate these positives? What do we compare them to? Where's our yardstick? In the marketing world, when you're telling people about something they might want to buy, there are six points to hit. There are actually a lot more than six, but there are six main points that professional marketers focus on. Those six points are:

Authority: people are more likely to support those who show authority on a given subject. You get a rash checked by a doctor, not by boxcar willie who's playing banjo on the street for tips. This works in any industry, though, it's not just for doctors and lawyers. Even your weed dealer is going to sell more weed if he has a reputation for knowing good product and selling the better stuff.

Commitment & Consistency: This works both ways. The more someone has committed to supporting you in the past (your comics, your music albums, whatever), the more likely they are to continue to support you. You also need to be consistent. You can evolve gradually, however, your personality and your products need to be fairly consistent in their tone. The world is full of examples of bands, movie and video game franchises, that lost a huge chunk of their fanbase by introducing dramatic changes between two releases. The Highlander, Tracy Chapman, etc, etc.

I know, some of you are thinking, "no, you don't have to be consistent, look at Lady Gaga or Monty Python!" In reality though, their work is consistent for what their fans expect. Would you buy The Best of Show-Tunes from Lady Gaga? Would you buy a gut-wrenching docudrama about the Syrian civil war from Monty Python? Even if you show the giant foot stomping on Bashar al-Assad, that's probably not winning over a lot of Monty Python fans.

The point is that by being consistent, you're building trust with your fans.

Likability: How likeable are you as an individual? We would all like to think of ourselves as being likeable, and I think that's fairly true for most of us. There's probably nobody who can't do something to make themselves a little more likeable. As an autistic person, studying this is kind of my life -- I could rant and rave about how it shouldn't matter (I've seen lots of autistic people do this), but that wouldn't make me very likeable would it? ;) It doesn't actually take a lot to be more likeable. Remember to smile more (but don't tell women to, seriously, that's pretty douchey), tell a joke once in a while (my personal favorite), have a sense of humor about yourself and let people know that you know you're not perfect.

Reciprocity: Even with strangers, if you've done something nice for someone, they tend to want to return that gesture. You see this any time you go out -- even as a guy, when I hold the door for another guy (and obviously we're both perfectly capable of opening a door), the other guy will usually open the next door for me on the other side of the mandatory airlock that all stores have now. It's a good thing though, if it weren't for that airlock, we'd all be blown back out of the store and we'd never be able to buy our milk. (We don't have any local milk people anymore!) ;P

Social Proof: This is one of the tougher points to hit when you're a fresh new face like Jay. People want to do things together. People want to know that their friends, neighbors and/or family are involved in a particular thing. You'll get the occasional extreme hipster, "oh, you've never heard of the band Cross-Stich Circumcision... oh you have? Well they suck then." But that notwithstanding, people don't want to do things alone, they want to know they're part of a team or a tribe or a book-club. They want to know that they're part of something their peers are interested in, like Game of Thrones.

Even in microcosm you can see this all the time. Look at any auction and you'll notice that there's a notable pause at the beginning of each item, before anyone's bid on it. Everyone at the auction is waiting to see if anyone else will bid and if so, where that person will set the bar for bidding. They want someone else to prove to them that this item is worth bidding on, and to give them an idea how much it's worth. So if you're genuinely interested in an item at auction, definitely bid first, and bid at or near the minimum. If you bid high, you might overestimate the interest and miss out on getting the item for less. Also, once that first bid is out there, generally, the bidding flows much more rapidly. It's possible you could bid high enough to shock everyone in the room away from bidding and be the only bidder, but unless you're more interested in the shock than the item, you're better off setting people's expectations with the initial bid.

To be fair though, bidding on a dead ostritch might be shocking enough. What does one do with a dead ostritch? They spend most of their life half-buried to begin with. They met you half-way, the least you could do is give them a proper burial.

Scarcity: To be honest, I'm a little conflicted about this point. I understand that scarcity can really help drive sales, but there's still a small part of my soul that dies every time I use it. I just can't seem to dissociate it in my mind from that sleazy car-salesman I talked about before.

In my first Kickstarter campaign, I only set the goal at $300 because I was producing ebooks and I just wanted to purchase a batch of ISBNs (which I later learned I shouldn't have even used on eBooks, d'oh!) That being the case I actually set a limit on every pledge level, even the $1 level, because at that level I was offering a credit in the back of one of the books. I was pretty sure there wouldn't be hundreds or thousands of backers I would have to credit (making the books unfeasibly large), but I decided to limit even the $1 pledges just to be on the safe side. I just can't help but think of that car salesman saying "hey, and you know what, they don't make 'em like this anymore!" (And you don't want to buy a car like that anyway, because there's usually a reason they don't make 'em like that anymore, and it's murder to get parts or repairs!)

I realize also that my discomfort with scarcity isn't always warranted. When your Kickstarter project is approaching its deadline, even if you don't have any limited pledge levels, there's still a sense of scarcity for the people who pledge in the last few days. Many of those people have been holding out to pledge on your campaign, to see if they need your support. They want to support you, if you need it, but they have a lot of their own expenses, so they're hoping your project will fund without them and they can use that money on bills, or groceries, or a dead ostrich. It's in those last couple days, if it looks like your project is close and it might not fund, they'll make that sacrifice to help you out, because they're afraid of the scarcity, the idea that your project may not exist at all if it doesn't fund. And in that sense, I understand scarcity can also be a positive, because it shows how we band together. :D Although even then, it's not strictly necessary to use scarcity, since crowdfunding on IndieGogo with no deadline eliminates that, but that's also part of the reason why fewer IndieGogo projects meet their goals.

The more of these points you hit, the more people will support your project. So how many of these did Jay hit?

Authority? Certainly some people must know Jay, but this is the first I've heard of him. He's only created this one Kickstarter campaign, so I can't look at previous campaigns for information. And I don't see any social media presence or other internet presence -- he didn't enter Twitter or Facebook on his Kickstarter profile, and a google search for "Jay Wallace Millennials" produces only this Kickstarter, a subsequent IndieGogo campaign, and a Twitter account for a Fox News executive with the same name. Also, "the Millennials" as a title is generic enough to produce a lot of false-positives on a Google search. That's not a make-or-break issue, but it will make it harder for people to find your project. There's no website for the Millennials that I can tell, there's no evidence on the internet that he or this project exist at all outside of this crowdfunding campaign.

It's hard to create a sense of "authority" when nobody knows who you are. A degree of some kind might help, like graduating from SCAD or the Kubert School. Ironically, just wearing a white lab-coat and carrying a clipboard does wonders to generate a sense of authority, but that's back into car salesman territory, so we won't go there. One thing you can do to generate more authority even as an unknown noob, is to show your homework. I use the word "homework" here deliberately -- none of us enjoy doing homework, but it has to get done if we want to graduate. The same is true for crowdfunding campaigns, there are a lot of logistical details that are boring, but necessary. The Kickstarter campaign should show exactly where all the money is going -- tell us how many books you're printing, which printer you chose and how much they quoted for your job, what you need for shipping, for the Kickstarter fees, and for any other rewards offered. (Personally, I would even tell us how much you need to pay your artist.) This is all basic information that you need to know to complete your project, and I don't see any of it mentioned in the Millennials Kickstarter. This is like coming in to class and saying, "I had this really great report written, and then my dog ate it. But I pinky-swear, it was A+ work!"

Commitment and Consistency? Like I said about authority, it's hard to create a sense of consistency if nobody knows who you are. Without a website, without any social media presence, strangers online don't have any way to evaluate just how consistent you are in your attitudes, your communication or your work.

Jay does mention in the video and the text of the Kickstarter that he's worked on this project for three years and that he's written over 600 issues (which is about ten "trade paperbacks" or "graphic novels" as we used to call them). That does indicate commitment, however, with no online presence, we're all stuck taking him at his word about the time he's put into this project. And if I'm going to take someone at their word, it would be a lot easier for me actually if the project were a lot smaller. You have to remember that trust is built incrementally, and that's what commitment and consistency are all about, building trust. To put this in perspective, imagine if a stranger came to you on the bus, and they're dressed in a nice suit and they seem nice and they say, "hey, I have this plan to cure cancer, I just need a few thousand people to donate $20 each". Most people are going to respond to that with "fuck cancer," before they suck down an entire pack of cigarettes... laced with asbestos. If that same person had just said, "I'm kind of hard up and wondered if I could get some change or a dollar to buy some weed," they'd probably have better luck, wouldn't they?

So for Jay, I don't think he should give up on his passion-project, however, I think he'd be better off not even mentioning the 600 issues and simply focusing on the first issue. Telling people you're trying to get six-hundred of them made (and it's not clear in his text if this Kickstarter is meant for one issue or for all six-hundred), is pretty off-putting. But there are lots of people who are quite successful on Kickstarter just promoting a first issue. Some of them may have a huge number of issues written and waiting, but you don't want to hit a stranger with that the first time they meet you. Start small, let people see what you can do with one, and that will build your credibility.

For the record, when I was young, I used to make this mistake all the time.

Likeability? Okay, I know this one is always hard to hear. We all want to think we're super-likeable, and I'm not saying Jay's not likeable, all I'm saying is I think we all underrate our ability to improve ourselves in this area. Jay is clean and presentable on the video and he ends it with a polite "thank you" and that's kind of the bare minimum on making yourself likeable. I don't notice him smile at any point in the video, and he reads off the script in a bit of a monotone, and those things are kind of a shot in the foot. When you make your video, you should open and close with a smile and you should talk about your project with a little energy. I know that's going to require a bit of practice, it may take several takes to get it the way you want it, but if you've already put three years into this project, the day or week or however long you take to get the video just right should be nothing. You don't get all your gear ready to climb Mount Everest and then cancel the trip because your airline flight is delayed.

This may not sound like "likeability", but the cinematography of this video is a bit off as well. The camera angle is from below Jay, so what you see behind him is the ceiling and in particular, his head is directly in front of a light. The camera's light adjustement and the viewers brain compensate a little for that light source, but with all the compensation in the world, it still casts his face in a shadow and that's never good. Maybe he was trying for a "dramtic" look, like the scene in an action movie where the hero bursts into the darkened warehouse through a shaft of bright light. That works great when it's followed by a climactic battle, not so much when it's followed by a project pitch.

Reciprocity? Nope. I've had a Kickstarter account for at least four years now and over that time I've pledged to 29 other Kickstarter campaigns. I'm not sure how many I had pledged to before my first Kickstarter, but I know there were a bunch of them. People on Kickstarter don't want you to be there just to get your cash and run -- they want to know that you're a part of the community and that you'll give back to other creators as well. Jay's not pledged to any other Kickstarter campaigns, so that's a strike against him. Given that you've paid $70 per page to have the first six pages illustrated and colored, that's $420 you've already sunk into this project. Sink a few more dollars into helping some other creators build their social proof so they can get their projects funded. Not only will you generate some goodwill for your projects, if you talk to those creators (I haven't done a good job of this), there's a good chance you'll even make a few friends. :)

Social Proof? Nope. I take that back, there's a little -- the first pledge. And yes, that's important, if you're going to run a Kickstarter campaign, you should at least make sure you know where your first pledge is coming from, so you can get it on the first day. Usually it's your mom. Thanks mom! :D Beyond that, again, it's hard to build social proof when nobody knows you. The idea that people like your work really has to come from other people, not from you. If someone else says they enjoy your work, their friends will believe it. But you can't say it yourself, because then you just sound like Trump, "I make the best comics, everybody says so." Thankfully, Jay didn't go there, but he did something else that shot himself in the foot for social proof.

If you read the text of Jay's Kickstarter, at the top he says:

I'm raising money to pay my penciller and colorist to finish the following issue pages. I recently submitted The Millennials to Image Comcis. But I also will use the money to get a table at the Cincinnati Comic Expo in September that will host over 20,000 people. The money will fund the trip and merchandise.

The fourth sentence in that passage is redundant, but the second sentence is the real problem. The fact that he recently pitched this series to Image isn't relevant to the Kickstarter. Including that sentence here is at best confusing without any explanation of why he's bringing it up. Then further down, below the six pages he's already produced, he makes it a little worse when he brings it up again in the "Risks and Challenges" section.

The risk to my project is Image not wanting to pick up my story. I would over come this by self-publishing and handling distribution personally.

Blam! Your toe's gone. Either you're saying that Image has already rejected your project, or you're saying that you're still waiting for a response from Image. If you haven't heard back from Image yet, then you have no business being on Kickstarter. You can pitch your project to publishing companies, or you can pitch it to us for crowdfunding, but you can't do both of those things at the same time. If you're saying Image already rejected you, then telling us you've been rejected already runs against your social proof. We all know rejection, we've all experienced it, but don't tell us that if you're looking for project funding. If you're looking for sympathy it's a different story. Here it's like, "Hey, Becky, would you like to go to the prom? Amy turned me down... I'm asking all the girls alphabetically." (True story, I once made that mistake when asking a girl out in my teens. Awkward!)

Scarcity? This is the one point that bothers me for personal reasons, but my own hangups aside, how did Jay do? Mostly scarcity in a Kickstarter project is created with higher pledge levels where backers can get limited edition items that they might not be able to get if they don't pledge. Jay defined five pledge levels, ranging from $20 to $300. First, there should have been some lower pledge levels -- give people credit in the back of the book or something, it's not hard to do, and it makes the higher pledge levels more valuable. Or give them a copy of the first volume as an ebook or send them a postcard.

At the lowest pledge level of $20 he offered some fankly peculiar rewards. The first book is normal, but a pair of branded sunglasses? With a standard 22-page comic issue? And there's no homework showing where he's getting these sunglasses made or how much they cost, and at $3,500 I wonder if he's done the math to cover that expense. For another $5 I can get a backpack? Are people really wanting sunglasses and backpacks? Even branded with the project name, I just don't think people are looking to get these things with a comic. They're common items, most people have them already, etc.

The t-shirt or the hoodie at $40 is maybe okay, if you know how to get those made and you've done the math and know you can afford them, but do the homework and let us know you can cover the cost. All these things sound really expensive on the budget you're describing. And show us the image you're planning to put on the shirt -- is it just the logo or will there be character art? Honestly, the t-shirt market is pretty darn saturated, which makes them already hard to sell. So a t-shirt with this project logo, even with character art, would probably require a great deal of social proof before it becomes a reason for someone to pledge. (I say this as someone who has satirical t-shirts I printed still sitting in my closet.)

The highest pledge level, the $300, I think I would have offered people their likeness in the comics in some way, as a bystander or someone who dies. I did that in my first Kickstarter and people seemed to enjoy the comics they were injected into. In Jay's project it's just all the lower pledge levels. So if at the $40 level, I already got a shirt or a hoodie, and I'm just getting an extra two shirts and/or hoodies, the math doesn't add up. That first hoodie was a jump of $15 (and I'm surprised it's three times as much as the backpack). The jump from one t-shirt or hoodie to three of them is an increase of $260. That means those two extra shirts, instead of being $15 each are now $130 each. That's an expensive shirt! I think I'm only paying $130 for a shirt if it comes with Amy Schumer still wearing it! Or better yet, Samantha Bee! I'd pay $130 for that shirt, she gives good satire.

Okay, so how many of those six points did Jay's Kickstarter hit?

Authority: 0 points

Commitment & Consistency: 1/2 point for sticking with this project for three years, but it's hampered by appearing to bite off way more than you should on your first appearance, without building any reputation.

Likability: 1/2 point for the bare minimum of coming across as a nice kid - Jay doesn't seem like a car salesman or an egomaniac, but that's like advertising your car on craigslist as "it still runs". (And before you think I'm being real hard on Jay here, remember that this is something I personally work at and struggle with every day because of my autism.)

Reciprocity: 0 points

Social Proof: 0 points - it would have been a half-point for having the first pledge, but it's taken away by the mention of an either prior or simultaneous pitch to Image.

Scarcity: 1/2 point - I can see that an attempt was made, but the offerings don't really add up

So, I've given him 1.5 out of a possible 6. If we think of that like a class assignment, he'd need 70% to get a C. This places Jay's Kickstarter at 25%, so it wouldn't be a passing grade. To have even a passing grade on this scale, you need at least 4.5 points. Ideally obviously you want to hit all six of them. The good news is this doesn't have to be the end for the Millennials or for Jay.

The reason why we do post-mortems like this after a project fails is to learn from our mistakes. As long as we can keep learning, we can get a little further down that path toward our goals. It may be a little harder for Jay to get his next Kickstarter funded now that this one failed, but he shouldn't let that discourage him, he just needs to study more. A Kickstarter needs a lot of people to believe in it, and you can't make that work by cramming at the final, no matter how much Monster Energy you drink. I hope this article helps a lot of you fresh young comic artists, looking forward to your first few Kickstarters or other crowdfunding campaigns. If you can learn from a few of these mistakes before your first campaign, you'll be in much better shape. And I really hope that Jay also sticks with it and eventually gets the whole Millennials story published. :D

Stay awesome, Hooligans!

Sam

P.s. If you found this article helpful, you can help me create more of this and other comedy in several ways, by sharing this article, sharing my comics at www.woohooligan.com or by pledging as little as a dollar on our Patreon!

#crowdfunding #kickstarter #learning

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erichesse · 8 years

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Permission Marketing Revisited: West Side Story or The Music Man?

West Side Story is a groundbreaking musical which debuted on Broadway in 1957 and became a celebrated film in 1961. It depicts fierce gang rivalry between young Puerto Ricans and Polish-Americans on the streets of New York City, and centers on a doomed romance based on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

After more than 50 years, West Side Story maintains its relevance. The issues of race and ethnicity are so prevalent in the national news; the number of hate crimes and the police profiling of minorities are issues which are part of our daily lives and something that we are reminded of constantly when watching this musical.

Meanwhile The Music Man, a musical about a con man who convinces the townsfolk that the new pool table in the billiard hall will bring nothing but trouble and instead cons them into buying horns is about as well known as any other song by The Knack other than “My Sharona”. In other words, it has a core fanbase who keep the musical alive (after all, it infamously beat "West Side" for the 1957 Tony Award for best musical), but it’s virtually irrelevant by comparison today - better known among millennials as the subject of parodies on the Simpsons and Family Guy.

So after a few weeks I’ve finally managed to read Seth Godin’s 1999 marketing classic Permission Marketing. Why would I choose this older book over countless numbers of groundbreaking new marketing books – including modern books by Godin? It’s simple, I really wanted to see if Godin is the visionary he’s made out to be. This is the book that broke him to the mainstream and is the reason why he’s been considered a must-read amongst modern marketers. I wanted to read it and see if this book was timeless and relevant today like West Side Story or find out if perhaps his ideas had aged like Meredith Willson’s musical – appealing to marketers in 1999, but decidedly corny and out of touch in 2017.

Permission Marketing in a Nutshell

The basic premise of Godin’s book suggests that communications requested by customers have a greater impact and higher response rates than the many unsolicited communications which bombard us each day through print, mail and TV, and that these permission-based communications are “anticipated, personal and relevant”. Godin believes that the effectiveness of marketing directly corresponds to the level of permission the customer has given to receive the communication. The level of permission we have - combined with knowledge of customer and relevance of messaging - allows us to deliver 'anticipated, personal and relevant' messages to people who 'actually want to receive them.'

How Does Permission Marketing Work?

In short, rather than create an mass media TV, print or internet ad whose sole purpose is to get people to buy when it’s likely they have never even heard of you before, and pushing it out to them when they’re not looking for it (“Interruption Marketing”), you ask them for permission to send them more information (a free report, a free sample, a list of “common exercise mistakes” – to reference my industry). We don't start by asking for sales at first connection. We earn the right, over time, by developing our knowledge of the customer and increasing the relevance of our communication.

So in that first bit of information you send them, you ask for permission to send them more (as a newsletter, a subscription to your YouTube channel or for a follow on social media) , and then after you build up a relationship in this way over time, then you can start selling.

It must be said that in this context, “Permission” is not necessarily “legal permission”. Sure you might opt into a newsletter, or send a complaint which puts you on a mailing list, but according to Seth “real permission” is “if you stop showing up, people complain, they ask where you went.” Permission marketing isn’t just about ensuring that you obey the law – it’s a set of common sense ideals which help to make you a better marketer.

Seth Godin’s Five Levels of Permission Marketing

This is called the “Permission Ladder”, and the goal of marketers is to move them from strangers to friends to customers. Basically, you start at “Situation” and with each piece of communication, you work your way up to “Intravenous”. The theory being that as trust grows, responsibility grows and profits grow.

1. Intravenous Permission

This is the ultimate level of permission. The brand who has this level of permission can make buying decisions on behalf of the customer. This includes signing them up to “auto ship” or automatic replenishment programs where they’re automatically billed and shipped products on a reoccurring basis. A magazine subscription is another example.

2. Points/Loyalty Permission

Air-miles and Petro points are examples of this level of permission. People opt-in to these programs because of the benefits to them and in return they offer their personal data to allow companies to track their purchase history and to send them related offers and information.

3. Personal Permission

When we have a personal relationship, we have an ongoing dialogue. We have permission to ask more personal questions, recommend other products, even offer products or services on ‘approval’

4. Brand trust

This is the level of trust that old-school or traditional marketing aspires to. Companies use brand trust to create line extensions, or cross and up sell other products.

5. Situation

This is the most basic form of permission. A customer has initiated an interaction by purchasing a product or even just by making an inquiry. Reaching out on Facebook or commenting on your YouTube video with a question is an example of this. Asking someone if they’d like fries with their burger is probably the most used situational permission scenario in history.

Anything other brand communication outside of the 5 levels above is considered Spam (TV ads, radio ads, junk mail, unsolicited email, sponsored ads on Facebook from pages you don’t follow).

Does this work in 2017? Click here to see Part Two to find out my thoughts! In the meantime, enjoy Family Guy’s The Music Man parody.

youtube

#Permission Marketing #sethgodin #marketing #georgebrowncollege

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mariasolemarionqi · 7 years

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10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

Founded in September 2011, Snapchat continues to evolve and innovate in a way that keeps the industry on its toes. From impressive uses of augmented reality to clever lenses and filters, the company logged over one trillion snaps in 2017. That’s more than all the pictures taken by smartphones in the world.

Snapchat does not consider itself to be a social network, but in fact, a camera company. Its audience is passionate about communicating through photos and videos in a lighthearted way. Companies that thrive on the platform need to think visually and take their brand a little less seriously. Here are ten companies and campaigns creatively using the platform to reach and delight customers.

To thrive on Snapchat: 1) Think visually 2) Take your brand a little less seriously Click To Tweet 1. Casper’s Late Night Snap Hacks Gives Homebodies the Social Life of Their Dreams

Want your friends to think your social life is lit, even if you would rather cozy up at home? Casper’s late night snap hacks have you covered. To help eliminate the pressure of going out on the weekend, Casper created a microsite called LateNightSnapHacks.com filled with snappable videos.

Scenes include everything from a disco ball to people dancing at a club to driving through the streets of New York City. Just film the scene on Snapchat to create the illusion of a rockin’ night out. The result perfectly aligns with Casper’s quirky brand personality while adding value to its customer base.

2. Netflix’s Immersive Experience for Stranger Things Redefines What’s Possible on the Platform

Arguably one of the most innovative Snapchat campaigns this year came from Netflix’s Stranger Things. With the first-ever 3D World Lens, Netflix created a virtual portal transporting fans into Joyce Byers’ eerie living room. Once inside the living room, fans could tap on different parts of the room, from the couch to wallpaper and colored lights. While the ad was only live for one day, it inspired fans of the show and marketers alike with the types of immersive experiences possible on Snapchat.

Snapchat continues to lead in terms of what’s possible with augmented reality. As we look to 2018 and beyond, expect to see more companies leverage the platform to create these types of immersive experiences.

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3. WOW Airlines Contest Offers Snapchat Enthusiasts a Chance to Travel the World

Taking a page from the “Best job in the world” campaign from Tourism Australia, WOW Airlines offered its Snapchat-savvy fans a chance to win the ultimate summer trip to some of the airline’s 28 destinations. Dubbed the world’s first-ever SnapTraveler program, the campaign asked applicants to create a Snapchat story in English under two minutes, save the video file, and upload it to the company’s contest microsite for a chance to win. WOW selected four winners from around the world, who spent the summer creating content for the company’s social media channels, including Snapchat.

The results? In addition to generating 10 million views across the brand’s social media channels, the contest also became WOW Air’s most shared news story with a total of 1.4 million social media shares. In addition to being a dream competition to win for fans, the contest is a great example of how a campaign can originate on Snapchat but also be re-purposed across multiple social media channels.

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4. Dunkin’ Donuts Turns Fans Into Sprinkle-Inhaling Donuts for National Donut Day

Snapchat lenses provide incredibly creative opportunities for brands to showcase their personality and give fans a fun visual experience worth sharing. While countless other companies have tried their hand at clever lenses, Dunkin’ Donuts’ National Donut Day lens made this writer (and former employee) smile.

National Donut Day is an important annual holiday for the company and a humorous lens that turns your head into a gigantic pink donut inhaling sprinkles just makes you smile. When coupled with Dunkin’s other activations, which included an influencer takeover of the brand’s story, plus custom geofilters which could only be accessed in-stores or via the “Snap to Unlock” feature, the company gained ten times more Snapchat followers on National Donut Day than their average monthly followers. It remains the highest Snapchat story for the brand viewed to date.

You donut want to miss our #NationalDonutDay lens on Snapchat today 6/2! : dunkindonuts http://pic.twitter.com/wEEJjRJ4xJ

— Dunkin’ Donuts (@DunkinDonuts) June 2, 2017

5. #WeAreCisco Snapchat Takeover Showcases Company Culture in a Fresh Way

While there are many great Snapchat marketing case studies, the #WeAreCisco campaign provides one of the best examples of using the platform to highlight your company culture. Through social listening and sourcing stories for the company’s Life at Cisco blog, the company identified a core team of employee brand evangelists to launch the brand’s Snapchat channel in 2016. While the account is run by the company’s Talent Brand Social Team, employees volunteer to manage the channel on specific days and share unique Snapchat stories from their perspective.

Since its launch, the company has had millions of minutes of Snapchat stories viewed with an average Snapchat story completion rate of between 60 to 70 percent. The company’s efforts have also inspired collabs with NASDAQ and the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women conference.

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6. The UK’s Department of Transport Taps Snapchat Geofilters to Fight Unsafe Drug Use

Snapchat geofilters are also an excellent tool for raising awareness of important causes. The UK government’s Department for Transport is using geofilters to warn a younger audience against the dangers of driving under the influence. The initiative is part of a larger campaign from the UK’s Department of Transport called “Think! Drug Driving Campaign.” The Snapchat geofilters feature imagery of prison bars, with the copy, “Drive High? The roadside swab will catch you. Think!”

The campaign generated some controversy in the UK news media surrounding the government agency’s decision to spend money to advertise on Snapchat. Nevertheless, the geofilter generated more than 700,000 uses and 13.2 million views in one day, helping the UK Department of Transport reach their target male audience between 18 and 34.

7. Call Me Maybe? Why Birchbox Encourages Fans to Call Them on Snapchat

What if, for one hour, you could call the social media team of a company you admired—all via Snapchat? To test out Snapchat’s video chat and voice call features, Birchbox offered fans a chance to call them at a set date and time via a Snapchat story. After one hour, the Birchbox’s team had fielded around 30 calls and received requests to host them again, prompting the company to start hosting video and voice calls through Snapchat on a weekly basis.

While this seems like a simple idea, it’s incredibly valuable for a few reasons. First, it puts a human face on the brand to facilitate new levels of connection with the company. Second, it’s valuable to customers looking for more personalized questions or recommendations. One-on-one advice from experts in the company is a great way to help convert more customers into subscription boxes or recommend à la carte skincare and beauty items to purchase.

8. McDonald’s Snaplications Could Transform the Face of Recruitment

Want to hire a millennial or perhaps someone from Gen Z? Take a page from McDonalds’ playbook and recruit them on a platform where they spend most of their time: Snapchat. The campaign originated in Australia, where McDonald’s launched the initiative. The Snapchat lens mimicked the employee uniform and asked interested applications to snap a 10-second video detailing their enthusiasm for the job opportunity.

Not only was the initiative successful, but it generated global interest and attention, prompting McDonald’s to launch Snaplications in the United States. During the summer hiring period in the United States, McDonald’s saw a 35 percent increase in application flow and a 30 percent traffic increase to the careers page due to the combined efforts of Snaplications and the larger marketing campaign. Only three percent of U.S. recruiters use Snapchat, but could this be the beginning of a larger trend?

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9. Grubhub Snapchat Taps Games to Reward Fans Hungry for Discounts

Grubhub, an early adopter of Snapchat, actively uses the platform to target its college student demographic with content, ads, contests, and even scavenger hunts. In its most recent campaign, the company has launched a retro-styled game called “Food’s Here,” where fans can play for a chance to win discounts. Users can access the game through an ad in Snapchat stories. If a player wins all three levels, they will score $10 off their first order of $15 or more when they download the Grubhub app. The ad will run for 30 days. Grubhub is measuring success across the length of gameplay, the swipe-up rate, offer redemptions, plus other actions taken after the game.

10. Sprite Offers Fans and Influencers Premium Snapcode Real Estate

In Brazil, Sprite offered Snapchat influencers and fans an incredibly unique opportunity: a chance to have their Snapcode featured on cans sold across the country. Called “RFRSH Na Lata,” or “refresh on the can,” fans could enter by registering their Snapcode on a microsite. To raise awareness for the campaign, Sprite partnered with 15 influential Brazilian Snapchat stars to print their Snapcodes on cans, an effort which tripled many of the influencer’s fanbases over a two-week period.

Featuring celebrities or fans on packaging or advertisements isn’t anything new (Wheaties box, anyone?). However, Sprite’s campaign shows that Snapcodes have made it cool—and actionable—again. The campaign generated over two million views in days and gave the company’s millennial audience another reason to enjoy a can of Sprite.

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#10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

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byronheeutgm · 7 years

Text

10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

To thrive on Snapchat: 1) Think visually 2) Take your brand a little less seriously Click To Tweet 1. Casper’s Late Night Snap Hacks Gives Homebodies the Social Life of Their Dreams

2. Netflix’s Immersive Experience for Stranger Things Redefines What’s Possible on the Platform

youtube

3. WOW Airlines Contest Offers Snapchat Enthusiasts a Chance to Travel the World

youtube

4. Dunkin’ Donuts Turns Fans Into Sprinkle-Inhaling Donuts for National Donut Day

You donut want to miss our #NationalDonutDay lens on Snapchat today 6/2! : dunkindonuts http://pic.twitter.com/wEEJjRJ4xJ

— Dunkin’ Donuts (@DunkinDonuts) June 2, 2017

5. #WeAreCisco Snapchat Takeover Showcases Company Culture in a Fresh Way

youtube

6. The UK’s Department of Transport Taps Snapchat Geofilters to Fight Unsafe Drug Use

7. Call Me Maybe? Why Birchbox Encourages Fans to Call Them on Snapchat

8. McDonald’s Snaplications Could Transform the Face of Recruitment

youtube

9. Grubhub Snapchat Taps Games to Reward Fans Hungry for Discounts

10. Sprite Offers Fans and Influencers Premium Snapcode Real Estate

http://ift.tt/1gaZoxe

#10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

0 notes

fairchildlingpo1 · 7 years

Text

10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

To thrive on Snapchat: 1) Think visually 2) Take your brand a little less seriously Click To Tweet 1. Casper’s Late Night Snap Hacks Gives Homebodies the Social Life of Their Dreams

2. Netflix’s Immersive Experience for Stranger Things Redefines What’s Possible on the Platform

youtube

3. WOW Airlines Contest Offers Snapchat Enthusiasts a Chance to Travel the World

youtube

4. Dunkin’ Donuts Turns Fans Into Sprinkle-Inhaling Donuts for National Donut Day

You donut want to miss our #NationalDonutDay lens on Snapchat today 6/2! : dunkindonuts http://pic.twitter.com/wEEJjRJ4xJ

— Dunkin’ Donuts (@DunkinDonuts) June 2, 2017

5. #WeAreCisco Snapchat Takeover Showcases Company Culture in a Fresh Way

youtube

6. The UK’s Department of Transport Taps Snapchat Geofilters to Fight Unsafe Drug Use

7. Call Me Maybe? Why Birchbox Encourages Fans to Call Them on Snapchat

8. McDonald’s Snaplications Could Transform the Face of Recruitment

youtube

9. Grubhub Snapchat Taps Games to Reward Fans Hungry for Discounts

10. Sprite Offers Fans and Influencers Premium Snapcode Real Estate

http://ift.tt/1gaZoxe

#10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

0 notes

dainiaolivahm · 7 years

Text

10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

To thrive on Snapchat: 1) Think visually 2) Take your brand a little less seriously Click To Tweet 1. Casper’s Late Night Snap Hacks Gives Homebodies the Social Life of Their Dreams

2. Netflix’s Immersive Experience for Stranger Things Redefines What’s Possible on the Platform

youtube

3. WOW Airlines Contest Offers Snapchat Enthusiasts a Chance to Travel the World

youtube

4. Dunkin’ Donuts Turns Fans Into Sprinkle-Inhaling Donuts for National Donut Day

You donut want to miss our #NationalDonutDay lens on Snapchat today 6/2! : dunkindonuts http://pic.twitter.com/wEEJjRJ4xJ

— Dunkin’ Donuts (@DunkinDonuts) June 2, 2017

5. #WeAreCisco Snapchat Takeover Showcases Company Culture in a Fresh Way

youtube

6. The UK’s Department of Transport Taps Snapchat Geofilters to Fight Unsafe Drug Use

7. Call Me Maybe? Why Birchbox Encourages Fans to Call Them on Snapchat

8. McDonald’s Snaplications Could Transform the Face of Recruitment

youtube

9. Grubhub Snapchat Taps Games to Reward Fans Hungry for Discounts

10. Sprite Offers Fans and Influencers Premium Snapcode Real Estate

http://ift.tt/1gaZoxe

#10 Creative Ways Companies Are Using Snapchat

0 notes