Brand influencers or stalkers?

For a brand to be so loved that consumers market it themselves, is a dream come true. It’s difficult for all brands to achieve such a cult status. In fact, cult is probably a nice way to express it. I’m not sure these consumers influence others as much as they find comfort in sharing their faith with like-minded individuals.

You might run a mile from someone walking down the street with a Ferrari tattoo, jacket, gloves, key ring, and jumpsuit with the famous stallion shaved into the back of his head (Oh, and in this case he probably doesn’t even own a Ferrari).

The heavy, core followers of a brand are often referred to as influencers.  In fact many brands search out their most loyal users in an attempt to use them as ambassadors. These guys are so passionate they might have spent hundreds of dollars on merchandising, visiting factories or even getting a tattoo. It’s at this point I wonder…are they influencers or stalkers? And in the wink of an eye, they can just as passionately hate your brand.

It’s important to understand the role of these people who are so interested in your brand. I prefer to group them in the following way.

• Lead users – The people who spend the most time with your brand, spend a lot of money on your brand and like to share that experience with like minded others. These are the guys who you can learn from. How they use your product, their frustrations with it, what they’d like it to do in the future.

• Stalkers – Most like lead users, but even you cringe when they go over the top with merchandise.

• Influencers – These are the people who are most likely to be driven by a product or category as much as they are by your brand. They take a healthy interest in keeping up to date with what’s new and being seen as an expert. They’re invaluable for driving word of mouth, but will ditch you in a second if you fall behind the times.

But all these people are living proof of a brand’s success.

Successful brands are loved AND hated. The emotional connection between brands and consumers can lead to subconscious decision-making, habitual purchases and even irrational action. When consumers express an opinion about your brand in a public forum they’re making a bold statement. Their choice of alignment says a lot about the brand and themselves.

The key for brand owners is to play the role of facilitators rather than drivers. Give your lead users the tools and opportunities to meet and come together and learn from them. This is the biggest opportunity, not necessarily using them as a marketing tool. If you attempt to drive them into action then you run the risk of being disappointed with the results. Success can be achieved by aligning your brand better with their beliefs and values. Remember – they chose you, you didn’t choose them.

Dedicated sites exist for like-minded communities to generate their own followings and content in support of their favourite brands. Facebook is a natural facilitator for these communities, but specific sites like Bzzscapes (from BzzAgent – a word of mouth marketing agency) and MyBrandz help a brands core followers to express their love and favouritism. They helped to unearth personalities like Krystal Gaubert. Brands can choose if they want to get involved (which is obviously the business model) and engage these loyal followers.

You need to work out who are the lead users, who are the influencers, and who are the stalkers. You’ll learn a lot from the lead users about your product and where it can go in the future, but don’t expect their cultish enthusiasm to kick start a mass marketing frenzy.