How to Superpower your Con with New Insights into Fans’ Spending
The popularity of fan and con events is skyrocketing, and hitting the U.S. with an economic impact in the billions in the process. According to Eventbrite’s 2013 research, the fan event market boasts about $600M in gross ticket sales alone. That creates an estimated market effect between $3-5 billion dollars! And the impact isn’t just shattering attendance records, it’s also creating opportunities for con events to engage fans in new and exciting ways.
To really understand the astronomical growth of these events, we need to come back down to Earth and ask the people who make it all possible: the fans. In May 2015, Eventbrite conducted an online survey of more than 2,000 fan event attendees to find out more about who’s behind the boom. The results reveal surprising insights into the demographics, spending behavior, and cosplay habits of fandom enthusiasts.
Read on to find out more about your biggest fans, and how you can draw an even larger crowd of spend-happy con-goers.
Heroes & Heroines: Fandom Is All-Access
Who are the fans spurring all this excitement? It turns out, there’s no one profile for what a fandom event attendee looks like.
Among a polling sample that was broadly representative across geography, income, age, and gender, responses were split almost exactly between men and women. That’s the strongest evidence yet that fandom is a nearly gender-neutral phenomenon.
Fans are diverse when it comes to their interests as well. When we asked attendees to identify their primary obsessions, they preferred science fiction, fantasy, and TV or film media by small margins — but most fans geek out over multiple genres. In fact, nearly as many attendees considered themselves casual fans as super-fans, indicating the appeal of fan events to a widespread population.
Forget the nerd cliché: Comic book superheroes are on the big screen, and anime and manga are gaining global fans. Now more than ever, nerd culture has become popular culture, and cons are feeling the impact. Events that once only needed to worry about catering to hard-core geeks or collectors are now just as popular with casual fans and families. These fans may be looking for a more relaxed experience than some of the die-hard fans, so consider including activities focused on social interaction.
Call-out on cosplay
Cosplayers dominate cons, with nearly a quarter of fans identifying as serious cosplayers who go to shows to show off their costumes. Behind the mask, the majority of these costumed con-goers are female (65%) and between the ages of 23-39 (60%). They’re also more than twice as likely to be anime or manga fans than most attendees.
A majority of cosplayers identify as super-fans, and it shows. They attend more cons than practically any other group: nearly two thirds attend at least 3 fan events each year, and a quarter go to five or more. Make sure they choose to attend your con by prioritizing activities that are interactive and embrace their alter-egos. Incorporate fun photobooths, a wizard duel, or meetups for characters from different anime or manga series.
The Types of Events Today’s Fans Love
Fans rarely seem to get their fix from just one event, as shown by the nearly three quarters of attendees that go to many fan events each year. Many also say that they’re willing to travel to attend an event they’re excited about. Sixty percent have traveled out of town for a fan experience at least once, and 40% do so every year.
To get these fans to add your event to their calendar, you have to understand what they’re looking for. Over two thirds of fans say they prefer general-focus shows, and most go for medium-sized shows with between 10-45K attendees.
Know your audience: Large cons and expos are growing in popularity, but there’s room for more than just big cons in the fandom world. The key for organizers of smaller events, from exhibits to tournaments and beyond, is to know who you’re appealing to.
Smaller, niche events are in highest demand from attendees in smaller fan subgroups. Most fans of a specific pop culture property — think Star Wars, Doctor Who, or My Little Pony — prefer smaller events (under 10K attendees) with a single focus. Comic book and graphic novel fans, as well as anime and manga enthusiasts, are also likely to opt for smaller, focused event experiences.
Delight Fans with Connectivity and Convenience
There’s not much fans have to complain about after an event, but there are a few frustrations. Their complaints were mostly technical: 40% of fans are unsatisfied by the WiFi, 15% are disappointed in the mobile apps, and 12% are frustrated when they’re unable to prepay for parking or premium activities during registration.
Keep fans happy: Don’t leave fans frustrated at your event. Instead, make it as easy as possible for them to get online and show everyone how much fun they’re having. Based on our survey data, here are a few fast fixes that will keep fans coming back for more:
- Invest in good Wi-Fi coverage. Given the crowds and the unpredictable demand, this can be a challenge, but it’s also the #1 complaint that fans expressed in our poll. Consider partnering with a WiFi provider who will provide service in return for a branding sponsorship.
- Build a good mobile app. The majority of fans are happy with con websites, but those numbers dropped when we asked about mobile apps. Find a good partner or platform that can deliver a mobile-friendly, up-to-date version of your event programming. (One that integrates social sharing features is always a plus.) For example, Eventbrite’s partner DoubleDutch is just one of our many integrations that helps events create stellar apps.
- Provide one-stop shopping. Fans value the convenience of being able to book travel, accommodations, and tickets through an event’s website or app. But why stop there? If you have partners, special events, or VIP parties that require additional ticketing — or even restaurants near the con that encourage reservations — consider including the option to book tickets to those activities on your website and app as well.
BriteTip: Make sure fans feel safe & welcome
Scary fact: 7% of fans report feeling unsafe or uncomfortable at cons. While these fans slightly skewed female at 54%, the problem popped up across demographics. Surprisingly, the fans reporting discomfort were actually significantly more likely to be super-fans (77%, compared to 41% generally) who have been attending events for more than 10 years (39%, compared to 23%).
While it doesn’t seem to stop these fans from coming back — 36% have attended five or more cons in the past year — you don’t want anything to discourage your most loyal customers. Consider emailing repeat attendees for feedback on if they’ve ever felt uncomfortable, and if so, why. Then make real changes next year so that your event is the one they tell all their friends about.
Con Goers with Cash
You don’t have to convince fans to spend money at your con. Over two thirds of attendees plan to spend over $100, not including basic costs like tickets, food and parking. Especially effective at catching fans’ eyes are prints and original artwork, clothing, and collectibles.
Most niche items also have their own fan bases as well. About 85% of comic book fans almost, usually, or sometimes buy new or collectible books and comics. Toys, figures, props and collectible merchandise have dedicated fans as well. An incredible 94% of toy fans say they always, usually, or sometimes invest in these items. More than three quarters of anime and manga aficionados are frequent toy purchasers as well.
But just because people are fans of particular genres doesn’t mean they always want to buy stuff related to their interests at shows. Over half of gaming-obsessed fans in our poll say they seldom or never buy games or game supplies at events. And while 70% of cosplayers spend over $100 at events, they’re not all buying costumes: almost as many say they never buy cosplay items as those who say they always or usually do. The numbers are even worse among all attendees, half of whom say they “never” buy cosplay items.
Despite traditional belief, only around 20% of people regularly buy celebrity autographs at conventions. Celeb-signed gear actually ranked among the least popular of purchases, with nearly 38% of fans saying that they “never buy” it when at cons.
Understand fan spending: Fans want to spend money at your events, making them the most valuable customers for exhibitors. To make each seller successful and every fan happy, include a mix of popular items and niche fandom collections.
Unmasking the motivations of fandoms’ biggest spenders
Fandom’s biggest spenders are also repeat spenders, often attending multiple events a year for over 10 years. Considering they shell out over $500 at each event, those numbers add up quickly.
To cater to these primarily male super-fans, think about comics and collectibles. Nearly half of them are fans of graphic novels or comic books, or other comic-based media. As a result, super spenders are almost twice as likely as most attendees to invest in collectible books, comics, toys and props.
It turns out, the only superpower you need to throw an incredible fandom event is the ability to listen. Whether you host a big-budget con or festival, or a smaller-scale fan party or celebrity meet-and-greet, here’s our advice to become a hero in your attendee’s eyes:
4 Tips to Animate Your Event
- Delight in fandom diversity
Fandom is more diverse than ever — but fan behavior, intensity and spending still follow recognizable patterns. This is a valuable opportunity for your event to expand its reach. Make inclusivity a priority so everyone feels safe and welcome, and you’ll see attendance continue to rise. - Embrace niche fandoms
Regardless of your event size, it’s worth finding unique ways to appeal to different fans. Fandom is large enough to accommodate crowd-pleasing cons and specialty shows that cater to fan subgroups. Whichever you are, it’s worth finding ways to appeal to the different fans. If you’re expecting comic book or anime fans, get exhibitors with collectibles and graphic novels. If cosplay is popular at your event, brainstorm creative ways for attendees to show off their costumes. - Pay attention to fans’ favorite purchases
Share your new insights with your exhibitors, so they make more money and fans leave happy. Everyone loves art, apparel, and books; only select fans like celebrity photos, gaming supplies, cosplay or event exclusives. When exhibitors are successful, fans are happy and come back to your event next year. So stock up on comic books and geeky-chic T-shirts. It’s a win-win-win.
Fix fan frustrations
Fans like the convenience of online ticketing, especially when they can buy varied levels of membership on the event page. But they get frustrated by slow WiFi, cursory mobile apps, or an inability to register for additional activities in advance. Don’t let minor frustrations drag down your event by making sure your ticketing and your tech are both as streamlined as possible.