Stop Chasing Vanity Metrics: Build 1000 True Fans
Most of us have done it. Including myself.
At times even when we know we are doing it, we still do it.
Vanity metrics are metrics that do not matter beyond stroking your ego. They are metrics that “feel” good because they raise your dopamine level.
A vanity metric won’t grow your business. Only building a loyal audience can accomplish this.
Yet we chase vanity metrics.
When instead we should be working on building a loyal audience.
There’s a big difference between gaining followers and building a loyal audience (More about this on a later blog).
Here are some Vanity Metrics:
- The number of likes, shares, upvotes a social media post receives
- The number of views your You Tube video gets, the amount of traffic a blog post gets, the number of times a social media post is viewed
- The number of followers or subscribers an account accumulates
Vanity metrics are easy to measure. If you are on any social media platform, you know what I mean and see them every day.
Social platforms like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube report these numbers publicly. If you're a creator on such a platform, they rub the vanity metrics in your face every chance they get.
Think of our own WA Ranking system. This is a vanity metric, and deep down many of us ALL know it. But the system works, and most people chase high rankings anyway. It also has incentivized people to write here (myself included).
At least, if you are going to chase vanity metrics (instead of a loyal audience), do it for your own entertainment – but KNOW the difference.
Social Media’s Dirty Secret
Despite what we have become indoctrinated to believe, the goal of a social media platform is not necessarily to help you, the creator/entrepreneur make money. The goal is for the social media platform to make money.
This lack of recognition (or lack of action-taking despite the recognition) is one main reason why so many online entrepreneurs fail. It’s not because something is wrong.
It’s because the system is working right!
It’s free labor. When boatloads of people are creating even bigger boatloads of content in the hopes of some far-off reward, that’s great for the social media platform.
All of these struggling creators are just unaware of how the system works.
These moving numbers are like fleeting targets lined up for you. They’re setup for most online entrepreneurs to frantically scramble towards.
They are setup knowing that most who use them will fail.
They promise salvation: work hard enough, get enough followers, rank high enough and you too can make lots of money!
This is what they are “banking on” that you will believe.
Proof Comes from Experience: Your Own Flys In
Need some tangible proof?
Think of all the online content you have personally consumed in the last 10 days. Check your recent browser history if you want a really detailed view.
I will bet you’ve visited hundreds of different pages, dozens of different websites, and visited and scrolled past posts made by hundreds of different content creators over the last 10 days.
Now be honest: how many of them can you still remember?
How many of those websites can you name and remember the URL of?
How many Instagram or YouTube creators can you name, off the top of your head?
How many of them do you actively want to come back to and learn more from?
Or be entertained? My guess is that short list is not in the hundreds, or even dozens.
The true thought leaders, entertainers, and sites you will remember and want to return to, and the real products you feel you need to own you can probably count on one hand.
Yet for each one of those websites, you were their “traffic”. You showed up in their vanity metrics. You were a number in their Google Analytics.
What About Email Marketing?
Now let’s get to email marketing.
Building a large email list is one of the most dependable ways of building a strong list of potential future customers, right?
Absolutely.
However, there’s a flip side.
You can have a mailing list full of people who don’t open your emails and don’t want to buy anything from you.
There’s nothing wrong with building a mailing list (I highly recommend you do) but if you’re just chasing that higher subscriber number, if you’re just trying to get that number to increase without focusing on building TRUE FANS (the real quality), you’re still stuck on the vanity metrics treadmill.
A Sad But True Story
You can have a website with boatloads of traffic that makes virtually zero money.
You can have millions of followers on social media and have a completely failed product launch.
You can become a "success story" in the online world but still suffer from burnout & struggle to pay the bills.
In fact, this is reality in the vast majority of cases.
It’s hard to believe, I know.
But you can easily prove this for yourself.
Do you want to hear of one tragic (yet perhaps amusing) example?
One Instagram star with 2 Million + followers decided to do a product launch. She targeted every single one of her followers with her offer.
End result. She couldn’t even sell 36 T-shirts.
What is even sadder, is one marketing expert said her case isn’t rare; in fact it is the norm.
This is what happens when you become a chaser of vanity metrics for its own sake; instead of trying to build a smaller but loyal group of true fans (your true audience), you follow to follow or “sub for sub” on social media only to get that adrenaline rush from a fresh dose of dopamine daily.
You end up building a large list of casual followers/ subscribers who are not in alignment with you, your message, your products, or your success.
At the end of the day, all the likes, followers, even traffic won’t pay the bills.
If you think about it, this makes sense.
After all, where do the vanity metrics come from? They are prominently displayed by social platforms.
They’re used by these platforms as a “dangling carrot” to get users/creators to do what’s good for the platform: post more content and make the platform more money.
Only true fans will become your customers.
And generate the income you desire.
Build 1,000 True Loyal Fans, That’s All
After what I've said you may not believe me, but this blog was not written to depress you.
The truth is, you can build a GREAT and highly profitable business with only a modest tribe of dedicated followers. This is the essence of building a true loyal audience.
A man who was a futurist and best-selling author had it right all along. Yet the majority of all internet entrepreneurs continue to ignore his ground-breaking principles even today.
More than decade ago, he wrote the most important essay for becoming a self-made entrepreneur under the new paradigm of the Internet
Kevin Kelly is the name that comes up.
Kelly presented the concept of 1,000 true fans. The idea is simple: if you have 1,000 true fans, that’s enough for a thriving business.
In other words, 1000 true FANS is all YOU and your product will need.
Not 10,000 or 100,000. Or a million.
One thousand.
Focus on building 1,000 TRUE FANS and you can be positioned to make a very good living on the internet.
Cheers,
Kaju
Recent Comments
36
What a relief. Your very honest blog is probably contains the best advice I have read in a long time. I was taught (and have practised this in business), many years ago
The 'old fashioned' explanation for success was to Stop the numbers game and look after the customers you have. If you give your current customers the best service you are able to, look after them, advice them, nurture them, befriend them, then your business will grow without you having to do to much chasing.
Jim
That's the essence of 1000 True Fans, Jim. Kevin Kelly was (and still is) a marketing genius. Thanks!
This is one of the best straight on your face true to its word blog. Thank you, Kaju. I have been thinking of this for quite some time.
The Ego Metrics is like a web that sticks on our butt we can't stand and walk the walk! That is what I am saying my next main thing. Focus on the substance of it all.
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I read that article Kevin Kelley wrote. Excellent piece and the bigger question would be what reasons or value are you providing to this 1,000? That is the challenge most of us will face, especially in a competitive niche if you are late to the party.
I also agree the viral effect would wear down so one need to prepare to capitalise on the million of followers or likes immediately since it is not sustainable to have that over the long term. An example is how many of you are still watching "Gangnam Style."
Indeed Stanley, its best to focus on a smaller group of TRUE Fans than to burn out chasing a mega-group of valueless followers. Not to say they cannot become valuable over greater time, but focusing on your core true fans is the best way to ramp up your business quickly:)
Glad you read Kevin Kelly's article, a true marketing genius:)
Kaju