Taylor Swift - The Blueprint for the Celebrity Brand?

Taylor Swift fans were left disappointed after most failed to secure tickets to the popstars first tour in four years, ‘The Eras’. Fans were met by site crashes, error messages and hours of virtual queues, to just be left empty handed.

We are not strangers to these stories; you only have to cast your mind back a few weeks to remember the uproar that ‘See Tickets’ caused in what is our very own annual Hunger Games - getting your hands on a pair of Glastonbury tickets. Or the wildly popular comeback from Peter Kay which caused him to release dates as far away as 2025, with those even selling out almost instantly.?

But the uproar that followed across social, news outlets and even the US Senate(!) after the Eras tour pre-sale palaver felt like something we hadn’t seen before.?

This reaction, and the fact it seems to have been the final straw in taking a stance on the monopoly that Ticketmaster have over the live event industry, has forced us the power of the Taylor Swift brand and the following she has cultivated.

Fan or not, her prominence is undeniable. She has an entire generation of fans in a chokehold, and it didn't happen by accident.?

The persona she has built around her brand is one that radiates “big sister vibes”. Her songs speak of the struggles that so many people relate with on a deep level and by doing this (and doing it very well), she has fostered a cult-like following, with her fans feeling connected to her on a deeper level than just celebrity and fan.

When a lot of people were left disappointed after she sold out,?the backlash that ensued was impossible to miss online, and the Swifties were not happy. There were tearful TikToks, emotion-fuelled Tweets and even an open letter to Taylor herself which detailed their disappointment in her and the way the situation was handled. Some even labelled the ordeal as an ‘injustice’ and said they were left feeling ‘traumatised’, which is something I imagine only the most dedicated Swiftie can relate to.

It’s easy from the outside to look at this kind of fandom and label it as unhinged, but this behaviour is built upon a very natural desire to belong and feel understood - which is exactly what the Taylor Swift brand has been built and designed to do.?

The conversations happening online were mostly all of a similar tone – impassioned anger and disappointment from fans towards Taylor. But it was peppered with people rightfully pointing out that, though it very much feels like it Taylor Swift is not their best friend, she isn’t even an acquaintance. She is a business and she is a brand, and ultimately, the goal of every business is to make money.?

But how did Taylor create a brand so strong that one fan even stated they would have taken a ‘bullet for her without hesitation’ (that was before the lady in question was not able to secure Era’s tickets???). We’ve shared some of our thoughts on this below:

• People relate to her.?She has struck the perfect balance of living a totally unrelatable life, whilst simultaneously being relatable to all her fans - they feel like she has faced the same struggles as them and makes them feel ok about their failures.?
• She knows what she’s doing on social.?Taylor Swift gets social media and the power it has over her fans. She knows what drives excitement and what makes people take notice of her content. Her strategy on social is a well-oiled machine that is one of her most valuable assets.
• She makes her fans feel seen.?Going one step further than other artists of her stature, she is constantly engaging with her fan base. She even hosts secret sessions where she plays new songs to her most dedicated followers.?
• She is someone who sticks to her values.?The most important thing a brand can do is stand up for what it believes in. Taylor has always used her voice to stand up for causes she feels strongly about, be that support for the LGBTQ or standing up publicly against sexual in the music industry.

It has been an interesting narrative to watch play out. There is no doubt that building this connection with your fan base is a skill and something to be admired, however it is fair to say that when push comes to shove and ultimately money takes precedence over everything else, the backlash is always going to be a lot messier.