FANDOM AND AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT: AEROSMITH MICHAEL CACCAMO

COMM 2F00 MODULE 6

BACKGROUND- American hard-rock band, sometimes referred to as

“The Bad Boys of Boston”.

- Formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1970.

- Have sold more than 150 million albums worldwide.

- Most well-known songs:

- Dream On

- Walk This Way

- I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing

- Sweet Emotion

BAND MEMBERS

STEVEN TYLERLead singer, guitarist, harmonica player, and songwriter

JOE PERRYLead guitarist, backing and occasional lead vocalist, and contributing songwriter

TOM HAMILTONBassist

BAND MEMBERS

JOEY KRAMERDrummer, percussion

BRAD WHITFORDGuitarist

TWITTER• Aerosmith’s Official Twitter account is active with over 709, 000 followers,

posting up-to-date notices for concerts, pictures, and retweets from fellow band members twitter accounts thanking fans for supporting the band (over 2600 Tweets).

• The only band member not to have a twitter account is Brad Whitford.

• Also has the link to the official Aerosmith fan club – Aero Force One.

• Aerosmith’s Official Twitter Account: @Aerosmith

• Steven Tyler’s Official Twitter Account: @IamStevenT (1.02 million followers)

• Joe Perry’s Official Twitter Account: @JoePerry (267, 000 followers)

• Link to Joe Perry’s Hot Sauce Company “Joe Perry’s Rock Your World”.

• Tom Hamilton’s Official Twitter Account: @THaerosmith (49, 600 followers)

• Joey Kramer’s Official Twitter Account: @joeykramer (82, 500 followers)

AEROSMITH’S FACEBOOK’S PAGE

• Steven Tyler (1.4 million fans) and Joe Perry (220, 000 fans though not verified) have their own Facebook pages which are linked to Aerosmith’s official Facebook page which has over 13 million fans.

• The Facebook page operates similar to their Twitter page but also links fans to their music and concert videos on YouTube, interviews, event pictures, and breaking news where fans can interact with each other either by commenting, “liking”, and/or sharing posts.

• Joe Perry’s Hot Sauce company, “Joe Perry’s Rock Your World” has its own Facebook page with over 1900 “likes”.

AEROSMITH.COM

• Aerosmith.com is the band’s official website which looks and functions similar to the band’s official fan site – aeroforceone.com. However, aerosmith.com has links to their Facebook and Twitter pages as well as Aero Force One’s website but does not have forums or message boards for fans to interact with each other.

AERO FORCE ONE- Started in the mid-1970s, when the band first broke

through with their album Toys in the Attic which brought in many fans and became the band’s official fan club.

- Started out as printing simple t-shirts with the classic Aerosmith "wings" logo. They were printed and sold out within a matter of minutes at an Aerosmith concert.

- At the time, its main source of revenue was t-shirt sales and newsletters mailed to members.

- Their website is the band’s primary source for news, information, and media relating to the band.

AERO FORCE ONE- Aero Force One offers premium concert seating as

well as special packages to members.

- Fans can shop at the online store. Aero Force One members receive 10% discount.

- New membership package includes an official Aero Force One member t-shirt, membership pin, official membership card, access to the website’s message boards and forums to connect with fans all around the world, and can be entered for contests , prizes, and giveaways all for $39.99 (US).

- The fan club is currently operated in Worchester, Massachusetts.

YOUTUBE CHANNELS• From aerosmith.com and

aeroforceone.com, comes the official Aerosmith YouTube channel, Aerosmith. Fans can watch the band playing, interviews, and recording sessions.

• Joe Perry has his own YouTube channel, JoePerryTV where fans can watch interviews and jam sessions.

AEROSMITH'S MYSPACE ACCOUNT AND INSTAGRAM• Users are able to download and stream

music and make connections with other fans all over the world.

• Fans can listen to their music via the radio option and can tune in.

• Photos also available for viewing.

• Only Joe Perry has an Instagram account for his hot sauce company @JPRYW.

BAND MEMBERS’ PERSONAL WEBSITES

• Band members such as Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Joey Kramer each have a link to their websites that can be seen on their Twitter accounts. Tom Hamilton does not have a website but the band’s official website can be found on his Twitter account.

• steventyler.com is a more personal website where you can read a short bio, find a link to purchase your book, and look at photos of his time in Hawaii.

• joeperry.com keeps fans up-to-date with news about Joe Perry, announcements, as well as links to his Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages as well as Aerosmith’s official website, Aero Force One’s website, and Myspace.

• joeykramer.com OR rockinandroastin.com (both enter the same website) is a site devoted to promoting Joy Kramer’s new coffee blend company Rockin’ and Roastin’ with announcements about the blend as well as links to his Facebook (over 920 “likes”) and Twitter accounts (over 82, 000 followers), and his YouTube channel, containing videos promoting Kramer’s new business venture. Fans can also buy autographed coffee packages and baseball caps.

• Rockin’ and Roastin’ also has its own Twitter account, @RockinRoastin with over 4, 400 followers keeping fans informed about what is happening with the coffee company.

AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA• The social media outlets are very active in giving fans

breaking news about the band.

• These outlets allow the fans to like, share, and comment therefore building a community.

• Where Aerosmith is lacking is the ability to talk to their own fans on social media. Unlike some celebrities who actually share a dialogue with their fans (such as television actor Stephen Amell of Arrow or action star Vin Diesel), the band’s Twitter and Facebook accounts do not have members of the band respond to fans’ questions or comments.

• Their only retweets are band members’ tweets.

HAS AEROSMITH FOUND THEIR AUDIENCE?

• Aerosmith has found their audience because they have been one of the most successful bands in the music business for over 40 years.

• Their audience are fans of Rock and Roll and a bit of Blues music.

• The core members have never departed from the band which adds to their success.

WHAT IS AEROSMITH NOT DOING?

• Aerosmith has done a fantastic job of connecting with its fans over the decades but they have been lacking on the social media front.

• In order to further show fans their gratitude, the band could retweet fan posts on Twitter, respond to questions or comments on Facebook, or hold Q&A’s on YouTube.

• This would allow the band to have a closer relationship with their fans and have them more fully engaged on social media.

ROCK ON!Thank you!