Business News Digital

Direct-to-fan agency publishes guide to fan engagement platforms

By | Published on Wednesday 8 October 2014

Wicksteed Works

London-based direct-to-fan agency Wicksteed Works has launched a report comparing the ten leading direct-to-fan platforms on the market, with the aim of helping artists, managers and labels work out which of the services available best suit them and their businesses.

As previously reported, the potential of direct-to-fan was a key theme at this year’s CMU Insights-programmed Great Escape Convention in May. CMU Business Editor Chris Cooke said in his keynote speech: “The single most exciting thing – and the biggest opportunity – in the web-era music industry is direct-to-fan. In the 1990s artists didn’t know who their fans were beyond the mosh pit and fan letter”.

“Not only that, artists’ primary business partners – the labels and tour promoters – didn’t even know who the fans were, they relied on the retailers and ticketing companies to reach the fans. In the web age artists know exactly who their core fanbase are. And it seems to me that the music industry of the 1990s totally under-serviced that core fanbase”.

Wicksteed Works Director Jessie Scoullar, who previewed the report as part of the TGE Convention, has analysed how different D2F platforms assist in the process of engaging, communicating and selling to core fanbase, with Bandcamp, Music Glue, PledgeMusic and Topspin amongst those featured.

Says the company of its report: “It creates a set of standard criteria to measure and compare the core features of each platform, thereby helping industry professionals to navigate this newly crowded market and make an informed choice about which platform is most suitable for their project”.

Scoullar herself adds: “We noticed artists, managers and labels are often confused by or simply unaware of the breadth of choice now available in the direct-to-fan space. The sticking point is the question, ‘which platform?’ so we decided to create an easy-to-use comparison tool to help users navigate the market and thereby make more informed and smarter decisions”.

The report can be bought from the Wicksteed Works website here.



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