Dismissed as a small hippie band…
With only ONE Top 40 hit…
They still managed to build one of the most enduring legacies of all time…
With over 350 million dollars in sales generated in their lead’s lifetime…
But how did they do it?
The Grateful Dead’s story is one of the most interesting marketing successes of recent memory. While other bands strove to be top of the charts, they wanted to inspire people to take action.
And in the process became marketing pioneers, implementing strategies that were way ahead of their time.
“Who are you? Where are you? How are you?”
From the very beginning, the Dead knew that the key to their success didn’t lie at the top of the charts…
It instead lay in creating a group of die-hard fans that would do anything to see them play.
Long before the direct email marketing of today, the Dead had the following on their 1971 live album, Skull and Roses…
“DEAD FREAKS UNITE: Who are you? Where are you? How are you? Send us your name and address and we’ll keep you informed. Deadheads, P.O. Box 1065, San Rafael, California 94901.”
They knew that to get fans that would love them, they’d need to interact with them.
They weren’t just going to be a band – they were going to create a community.
The response to their call was almost overwhelming, with over 10,000 responses in just six months.
By fostering personal connections and open dialogues while being some of the first to ever do so, they were starting to attract people that lived for their music.
The Deadheads had begun to gather.
It Wasn’t About Album Sales
One of the foundations of marketing today is “freemium content”.
The idea that the customer gets a little something free that encourages them to spread the word about your brand, and at some point, happily invest money to get what you have to offer.
The Grateful Dead were some of the first to start doing this. Instead of restricting live recording and the creation of band merchandise, they openly encouraged it.
As the recordings and merch were distributed, so too was the Dead’s music and brand, something almost unheard of in the “pre-internet” era that the band inhabited. The band were going viral long before that was even a thing.
They knew that passionate, loyal fans were the key to making the big bucks.
Their goal was to market to a few that would support them for a long time. Because Jerry Garcia, the band’s frontman, knew that the real money wasn’t in album sales, but in live performances that Deadheads would pay any price to attend.
And it didn’t hurt that fans were eager to shell out for the Dead’s merchandise either.
Essentially, they were selling an experience, not just the music.
It Still Pays Off
One of the best ways to get people to take action is to ask them to be part of something bigger than themselves. To convince them that they are part of a special group of dedicated individuals.
People don’t want to feel like part of the average majority, they want to feel different, and be part of a distinct minority.
That is exactly what The Grateful Dead managed to do.
To them, it wasn’t all about the money. They created a cultural shift that included the fans. They knew that connecting to their fans on a deeper, personal level was the way to create real Deadheads.
And it continues to pay off.
In 2015, to celebrate their 50th Anniversary, the band had a reunion tour that made over $52 million dollars, and turned out to be one of the most watched music events in Pay Per View history.
Not bad for a band that some consider to be “trash”.
Create Your Own “Deadheads”
In the end, all you need to do for your business is inspire the people who matter. It’s not about attracting everyone.
It’s all about aiming for the select few that will become loyal followers.
It’s time to create your own version of Deadheads.
Addendum
While researching this article, I came across this book Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead: What Every Business Can Learn from the Most Iconic Band in History by David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan.
If you’d like to learn more about the Dead’s marketing tactics, it’s a good read.
References
http://fortune.com/2016/03/23/grateful-dead-business-lessons/
https://www.pr2020.com/blog/marketing-lessons-from-the-grateful-dead
