Church of the Customer Blog
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August 09, 2007
On becoming a fan

Geno created this nifty "Cycle of a Fan" graphic by mashing up our loyalty ladder with a diagram from David Armano. I like it.
Participation is the power source to any energy created by fans. Participation is crucial to the cycle of fandom.
I'm not sure how I would draw it, but participation could be a circle that encompasses everything inside Geno's diagram, with key activities identified that engage fans at every point.
Other blogs that reference On becoming a fan:
» Quick Takes: Cycle of a Fan from Leading Questions
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» Quick Takes: Cycle of a Fan from Leading Questions
I'm a visual person. I love graphics. I know I'm not an artist, but I like using Visio. Check out my diagrams. They help me think more clearly and in a more integrated way. This is what I immediately saw [Read More]
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» How a User Becomes a Customer Evangelist (or a Loud-Mouthed Detractor) from Search Engine Guide Blog: Small Business Search Marketing
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» Dynamics of Word of Mouth Marketing from Tyner Blain
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I like the mashing up tag.
Hiya JackieāI like it too. Just a point of clarification that Geno did the visual all on his own, the style was inspired by some of the stuff I do.
Regardless, it's an interesting way to think about it.
So how is Austin treating you?? :)
Great topic, and a graphic that easily stimulates both thought and conversation.
In fact, it looks surprisingly like a chart used in our office that merely shuffles what is offered.
We in essence rearrange the last three to instead have:
- Introduction
- Participation
- Adoption
- Community
- Ownership
- Evangelism
...to continue ad-infinitum
Thanks for the great blog, which remains on our daily must-read list.
Respectfully Yours in Safety and Service,
Brian Humphrey
Firefighter/Specialist
Public Service Officer
Los Angeles Fire Department
I really love this diagram. It hits all the spots I try to emphasize to the new marketers on my team.
The most critical part of that graphic is participation to adoption. The customer experience is perhaps the thing that creates evangelists the quickest. The rest of the graphic takes care of itself. Could there be a graphic that dives deeper into the transition from participation to adoption?
Most companies strive for that perfect customer experience. It's the good ones that grow and the bad ones that die. What are the most critical factors for improving the customer experience? I think they are:
1) Having the right person handle the customer. A Wharton School study suggests that better trained sales staff can have the largest impact on revenue.
2) Having the right products on the shelf...if an ad is placed that says this product is available at this price it better be so.
3) Managing the flow of product from the stock room to the store shelf. A retailer in the UK once told me "It cost more to get the bottle of wine from the stock room to the store shelf then it does from Australia to the stock room".
Caught this parody of the dysfunctional retail store on youtube...hilarious!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIvhcwlS1sk
Love the diagram. I need to post this up in my cube at work and e-mail it to everyone in our Communications department who just doesn't get creating a fan rather than pushing them away with legal take down notices.
I have a post on my blog http://www.onehalfamazing.com detailing customer evangelism which is just one portion of your total circle of life. You can find it at
http://onehalfamazing.com/files/Creating_Customer_Evangelists.html
Thanks for the head's up. We took the concept a little further, looked at the funnel that represents the gradually shrinking population as you take laps around the circle. We also point out what folks can do to minimize the fallout at each transition.

