Another in a series of good posts from Becca over at CultureSnack, this time on the news that the Brooklyn Museum has found a means by which to monetize Twitter:
…the Brooklyn Museum has figured out a way to monetize its social networking efforts without going the expected route of selling ad space. For $20, people interested in the museum can join 1stfans to be granted access to the private Twitter feed and Facebook/Flickr groups, almost like paying a cover charge to get into a club. Assuming the combination of sites provides unique, won’t-find-anywhere-else information, sneak peeks, or glimpses behind the scenes to keep audiences tuning in for more, this idea could really work for museums and the like. But, as one 1st fan points out, setting expectations could be a vital part of success.
This is intriguing to me, particularly in light of my own recent series of posts on ‘creating value’ ( here, here, and here ). Clearly, the Brooklyn Museum has identified content that is scarce (insider information on their exhibits and exhibitors) and a set of consumers that places value on this content. They, one assumes, believe that they can generate sufficient interest among their patrons to offset the cost of delivering this content, or even turn a profit. This is fantastic. I wish them well.
Becca makes one additional point in this post, per a comment made by a subscriber1, namely that the sucess of the program will depend largely on setting expectations.
Bummer.
So a well-regarded entity, unique in its offering, with passionate followers has instituted a groundbreaking program, the success of which will be determined by managing and fulfilling expectations?
I would posit that the program’s success will depend largely on the museum’s ability to wildly exceed expectations.
This story is, to my eyes, much less about monetizing Twitter – ultimately, some will do this successfully, most will not – and much more about access. The promise of an exclusive program of this nature is almost always centered around access – in this case access to exclusive events, more content from artists, access to better movie seats.
How that access is created will determine just how successfully the program exceeds expectations.
It is worth noting, at this particular juncture, that I’ve every reason to expect that the Brooklyn Museum will overdeliver on their promises. I know them to be a fabulous enterprise, well-regarded by all. Any assertions below are in no way intended to reflect on this particular institution.
Access to the unique can be created, or it can be extracted. The former entails new programs and content, previously unavailable to anyone, now made available to a select group of users/customers. The latter is something altogether different – the conversion of the previously available into the realm of the exclusive.
A loyalty, affinity or access program that delivers new content of value is enticing. It can pay off in spades for the content provider, as well, in the form of, well, loyalty and affinity.
A loyalty, affinity or access program that seeks to monetize services or content which had previously been made available for free (or even for a lower cost) not only fails to meet expectations for those who pay for access, but disrupts the loyalty of those who have not.
In these economic times, corporations will no doubt look to increase the returns from their existing, loyal customers. As they explore premium offerings, it is well-worth considering the following:
Is the access or content to be delivered comprised of new value, or are we stripping old value and putting a new price on it?
The distinctions, I would suggest, are significant.
- to the program, not to Culturesnack [↩]
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