📼What they did

BMG turned Corey Taylor's album release day into a treasure hunt with their Limited Edition Mixtape for Corey's #CMF2 drop. Rather than just pushing digital promotions, they created a scarcity-driven, on-the-ground experience that got fans off their phones and into record stores.

Here's how the hunt worked:

• Fans filled out an entry form and explicitly chose their location to participate
• Once they filled out the entry form, fans received personalized emails, directing them to their nearest participating record stores
• The first arrivals at each record store got exclusive free cassette mixtapes
• Latecomers still got a perk - accessing never-before-heard content from Corey Taylor via QR codes
• All participating record stores were pre-stocked with Corey Taylor CDs and merch for impulse purchases 

The genius of this Fan Marketing play?

1. They added friction to a traditionally frictionless experience. On purpose. The digital drop to streaming is something most of us are familiar with, and they often get "lost in the noise." This injection of something in the real-world flipped a casual, "I'll listen to the new album," into a fan pilgrimage for Corey Taylor's most engaged fans.
2. It was a location-specific experience that turned online hype into real-world foot traffic across 15 indie record stores in 12 markets. 

Why this fan marketing play works

The campaign nails three fan drivers:

1. FOMO through scarcity: The limited quantities of mixtapes made fans move fast to secure their tape
2. Digital --> Physical Bridge: The street-level engagement was well thought out. A scavenger hunt is far more fun and rewarding than online passive consumption
   
3. Community discovery: The team at BMG prioritized connecting fans with local indie record stores and their culture.

The fan experience

This activation is a great example of how to bridge the digital-physical gap in a way that feels authentic to music culture. It's not too kitschy. And it matches the brand of the artist and fans that follow the artist. Release day streams were boosted while creating a one-of-a-kind offline experience that streaming just can't replicate

The data experience

From a data perspective, this campaign was also a massive success in capturing thousands of highly-engaged, location-specific fan contacts, turning the release day buzz into a long-term audience and pipeline of fans.

🥷 Steal this idea

We all love the idea of a quest. Turn something that is a traditionally "easy and passive" online experience and inject some real-world adventure into it. Add some well-thought-out friction.

💡 One more idea

Layer in a social flex moment. Amplify the street-level in-person experience with user-generated content to bring more fans into the conversation - even if they didn't participate. Something as simple as "post your mixtape hunt" moment in front of a branded background in the indie record stores would work, especially with a branded hashtag. 

If you're keen to learn more about this fan marketing play, read the full strategy, "How BMG drove hundreds of Corey Taylor fans to record stores on release day.