Last week I had the opportunity to sit down with Kat Lourenco. Kat is the Community Manager at the Toronto startup, Volu.me. Volu.me is a “Fan Engagement” company that creates digital experiences for fans at concerts. She’s been involved in the live music industry for the last 15 years, so it was cool to hear her describe how technology has really changed the entire music experience.
She explains how this relationship used to be very linear. The band would come on stage to perform and the fans would consume the show. Now she says because technologies like social media and the Internet, it’s become a two-way conversation. While the fans are still consuming the music, a much more intimate conversation is also developing through other channels like YouTube, mobile apps and Twitter. Volu.me is using mobile apps as their platform to connect bands’ and their fans. She explained with the vast changes that have taken place in the music industry over the last decade and a half, the live show is one of the things that have stayed relatively consistent. But as we’ve seen, it doesn’t mean that these bands should rest and be content. Volu.me helps bands reach the next frontier of the physical and digital music experience, they call it the “Connected Music Experience”, which is becoming more blurred each day.
We can see how this linear relationship has changed in other areas of commerce as well. Brands in all categories are now leveraging these continuous conversation channels as a way to stay stop of mind for consumers. With so much attention for eyeballs it is important that brands work to create a personal connection with their customers. One of the tools that is really interesting to me is Snapchat. Big companies like The New Yorker magazine have been able to develop this more intimate connection with their fans through their Snapchat account by posting unique content that really fits the brand’s identity. For example every Friday they post a little video series with their in house cartoonist who explains some of the cartoons from that week’s issue. Even though I don’t read the New Yorker, I’m still consuming their content through this secondary channel. I’m becoming more familiar with their brand, which may potentially lead me to subscribe to the magazine.
Interconnected Interwebs 