What do an English non-league football club and Radiohead have in common?
In the Fall of 2007, popular British rock band, Radiohead, took record sales into their own hands and engaged in what was considered an "anti-marketing campaign." After Radiohead's contract ended with record label, EMI/Capitol, they decided to launch their seventh album, In Rainbows, with minimal marketing promotion. Since the majority of my work at Capstrat is through marketing clients, I am a firm believer in the importance of a sound marketing campaign. Big budget or not, I have to admit, what Radiohead accomplished was interesting - and sounds quite a bit like a "social media" campaign of today.
They decided to upload their new album online for two months prior to the CD release and let fans pay whatever they wanted. The business model that Radiohead went with gives fans an opportunity to think about what the album costs. It also makes them think about the artists and what goes into the production of an album. Do you still want it for free? This strategy connects the fans with Radiohead and lets them know that the band cares. It also shows a commitment to the art of music and not just business.
Most album launches coincide with a strong marketing push of media interviews, autograph sessions and talk show performances, this "anti-marketing campaign" was firmly based on their online sales idea and nothing else. It drove massive amounts of buzz, which is exactly what nearly all marketing campaigns intend to do.
While a lot of fans ended up purchasing the album for free, it still generated more money prior to the official release date than their previous album made in total.
How does this all relate to an English non-league football club? Last month, I read an article on CNN about a club football team in Mansfield Town that repurposed the same idea as Radiohead. With dwindling ticket sales largely due to the collapse of TV funding, Mansfield Town, found a way to bring the hype back to their club. They let fans decide how much they wanted to pay for tickets to a match against Gateshead. Fans paid between 5 cents and $80 for a ticket that normally costs $25. The match had 7,000 supporters in attendance, which is exceptional when compared to the previous match which had 2,800 fans.
While the "pay what you want" business model could be perilous for some organizations, it proves again that the reward can outweigh the risk.
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