Fans Love Fans: So Should Brands
According to the YouTube Trends Survey, 66% of Gen Z Americans spend more time watching content that discusses or unpacks something, than the original thing itself.
For example, Rockstar Games’ next release Grand Theft Auto VI has been so hotly anticipated that when the trailer was finally released online it was viewed 93 million times in just 24 hours.
However, fan made videos of the trailer (including reactions, breakdowns & deep-dives) accumulated 192 million views, in that same 24 hour period!
Cultivating and supporting the organic growth of fan lead communities around your brand and content can greatly expand your social reach without the extra outlay of budget, or primary content.
Consumers < Contributors
Increasingly, people don’t want to passively consume advertising or brands, they want to be part of the process themselves. Fans want to amplify and participate.
According to Amplify 2023, when asked which sounds they were most likely to interact with online, 61% of Gen Z answered ‘Viral Audio’ compared to just 10% for ‘well known Pop songs’
Recently, Burger King’s went viral as its ‘Whopper Song’ became part of an online trend.
It was taken and remixed, turned into games and used for trending content that massively increased the social reach of the original song beyond what a traditional marketing spend could achieve.
Burger King increased their social reach by putting their assets in the hands of people, rather than in front of them.
Drop, Stop & Collaborate
According to the report, 74% of Gen Z like seeing brands engage with thing’s they’re a fan of.
McDonalds have been embracing the concept of ‘drop’ culture for decades, characterised by the release of limited-edition products to create hype and urgency including Happy Meal toy’s and short-stay menu items.
While they occasionally had leaned into cross-cultural collaboration with mega-brands like Batman and Star Wars, McDonalds is now showing the concept works with niche fandoms as well.
For example, the Travis Scott x McDonalds Collaboration of 2020 was the first time since 1992 that a celebrity’s name was featured on the McDonald’s menu. It was so successful it led to a shortage of ingredients at many restaurants.
In 2024 alone, McDonalds have produced:
- a new set of sauces inspired by the popular anime series Jujutsu Kaisen.
- Happy Meal toys that playfully combine the characters of Hello Kitty and Yu-Gi-Oh
- A series of four animated shorts with Studio Pierrot alongside anime-inspired packaging.
Micro Communities, Macro Results.
Todays niche can be tomorrow mainstream” YouTube Trend Report 2024
Accessibility and visibility online have increased dramatically, allowing far smaller niche communities to not only exist, but to thrive.
While only 8% of Gen Z describe themselves as professional fans who earn money from their content, 65% consider themselves to be creators. This is increasing the content creation mass and providing the resources and engagement that allows far smaller communities to sustain themselves.
At the same time, content discovery/distribution is shifting users away from friendship networks and towards algorithmically controlled, interest based recommendations, leading to more fragmented sub-communities. These micro communities tend to be smaller, intimate spaces online where people seek more meaningful connections and discussions.
Finding a way to connect and collaborate with smaller communities is not only more feasible than ever, it may be more effective pound for pound.
Micro-influencers tend to have higher engagement rates and more targeted audiences than traditional celebrities or macro-influencers.
