Taylor Swift: masterclass in marketing | Virtual Assistant for Photographers

May 8

May 8 Taylor Swift: masterclass in marketing | Virtual Assistant for Photographers

So, I’m about to expose my most nerdy self here 😅 But I really wanna talk about how Miss Taylor Swift is a masterclass in marketing. I originally got hooked on her not for her music, but for her business savvy. I read an article back in like 2010, (IT WAS IN A PAPER MAGAZINE lol), which pointed out while her music was great… her business sense was even better. As someone about to enter my 20s, who wanted nothing more than to run my own business…this peaked my interest. A singer/songwriter, who is worth watching because she’s a business woman?! Okay…yeah…that’s interesting. So I started paying attention.

I remember buying the Speak Now CD at Target (gosh this is aging me), and pouring over the booklet to see how the heck she was creating such a strong pull to her work through the secret codes and messages. I followed each album release, looking at what she was doing from a marketing angle. And let’s be fair, by the time she released Red in 2012, I was a true fan of the music too.

Taylor Swift has carefully built one of the most successful music careers ever. And she’s still gaining momentum, recently making history by having 10 of her songs fill all 10 Top Billboard song s at once.

So can we talk about it? Will you dive down this nerdy rabbit hole with me??

So first things first: Taylor Swift has a tremendous amount of privilege (and always has), but there is still a heavy dose of strategy that has been the foundation of her career. Here are a few core things we can learn from watching her work:

She creates hype.

One of the best things you can do for your brand is create a hype around your offer. While she is doing this on a large scale, we can still apply the idea to our own businesses. How can we create desire and anticipation for our offers? Taylor Swift knows all too well how to create hype through her Easter eggs. Constantly leaving clues and riddles for her fans to decode. And the more of a Swiftie you are, the more nuanced references you understand. Each launch is dripping with meaning & clues. It creates an anticipation that is unmatched, and she has trained her fans to watch her every move.

She creates culture in her fans.

When I arrived at the Eras Tour in March, I was immediately struck with how kind & accepting her fan base is. Everyone hyped each other up, everyone dressed up in costume, friendship bracelets were exchanged…it was the friendliest and most fun crowd I’ve ever experienced. It was collective joy at it’s finest. This is the community she fosters through her music, but also because she is always showing appreciation for her fans & centering the credit for her career on them.

She warms the audience.

This is different than creating hype. Warming the audience is specifically leading them through a marketing launch that positions them to buy your offer quickly. Taylor Swift’s methods are cryptic & nuanced, but you don’t have to have that style. You can warm your audience however you want…but it’s important to TALK about your offers BEFORE you launch them. The perfect example of this is Swift’s TikTok series: “Midnights Mayhem with Me” before the launch of her latest album. The frenzy around that album?! Crazy. Wouldn’t have happened without this strategy. And, it was SO fun to watch.

She leads with relatability.

While she notoriously protects her private life, we can take this masterclass in marketing from Taylor Swift in the way that she leads with relatability. Her songs are deeply personal and she allows her fans into her mind through pivotal life moments we all experience. That creates a really fucking strong connection that (obviously) sells out stadiums.

I don’t know about you, but as a small business owner I think it’s fun to watch the marketing strategies of Swift & her team. Creating hype around an offer, developing culture, warming your audience, being relatable….all those things are marketing 1-0-1…but it’s so much more fun through the Swiftie lens.

What do you think?is Taylor Swift a masterclass in marketing?

If you weren’t a Swiftie but you are becoming one now, you’re in for a fun ride. Get ready for some clowning, good music, even better marketing, and the most fun group of fans out there. Are you ready for it??