DENVER — Between fans paying hundreds of dollars for a Taylor Swift Eras tour ticket, hotel room, parking spot, costume and getting up before the sun Thursday to wait in line for merchandise, the artist's arrival in Denver has many wondering how she's able to create such a frenzy.
"As a result, there's a lot of nostalgia going on. It's also genius from the marketing perspective because it's going to be tapping into pretty much all of her customer segments," Alix Barasch, associate professor of marketing at the CU Boulder Leeds School of Business, said."So if you loved her in her early days, her rebellious days, or country days, or her more recent indie days, there's something for you here.
That anticipation is compounded by the fact that large group gatherings like concerts were limited during the pandemic, and Swift herself hasn't toured in five years. The last time was during her"Reputation" tour in 2018.
Not only that, Swift adds to her brand by engaging with fans intentionally on social media through giving teasers and creating mysteries, both Barasch and Akaka analyzed. The mystique is only made more intriguing by the unique offerings Swift concocts. For her latest"Midnights" album, she released four separate vinyl editions to form a clock, making it a"collectible."
"As you walk away from this, you can remember you have these tokens of memories that kind of trigger these memories of that experience, that amazing experience that you had," Akaka said.