#613: Building Fans for Your Business with David Meerman Scott
In this episode, Bradley sits down with David Meerman Scott, author of 14 books and longtime speaker, to talk about his newest book, The Fandom Playbook. David explains how years of studying the Grateful Dead, the Apollo lunar program, and the neuroscience of fandom led to a practical guide built around nine plays for generating fans of a business. They discuss why nobody cares about your products and services, how a Southern California dentist more than doubled his new patients by sharing his love of skateboarding, and why bringing customers together in person meets a deep human need to belong to a tribe. David also shares where AI fits, from querying his own library of content to drafting a first pass of an episode recap email, and why he still edits the final version himself. This conversation moves beyond marketing tactics and into the human side of building a business. What would change if customers knew what you care about outside of work? Where does automation help, and where does it cost you a relationship? And how much of your marketing still sounds like you? If you want to stand out through real human connection while everyone else leans on AI, this conversation is for you. Join us in the free Circle community and hop on the email list to get practical tools, resources, trainings, and updates on what we’re working on next. https://blueprintos.com/assets/ Resources Pick up David’s new book, The Fandom Playbook Get the free Complete Guide to Fandom Marketing and an excerpt of The Fandom Playbook, no registration required: fandom.marketing Check out Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead by David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan Listen to the previous episode with David Meerman Scott, here . Thanks to our sponsors Coach P Consulting Coach P found great success as an insurance agent and agency owner, leading a large and stable team of top-performing professionals. Today, he shares the systems, delegation strategies, and specialization methods he developed along the way. Gain access to weekly training calls and mentoring at: https://coachpconsulting.com Be sure to mention you heard about it on the Above The Business Podcast. Autopilot Recruiting Autopilot Recruiting helps small business owners solve staffing challenges by taking the stress out of hiring. Their dedicated recruiters work on your behalf every business day. They optimize your applicant tracking system, post job listings, and source candidates through social media and local communities. With their continuous recruiting approach, you can save time, reduce hiring costs, and receive pre-screened candidates without paying hiring fees or commissions. https://www.autopilotrecruiting.com Mention Above The Business Podcast when you reach out. Direct Clicks Direct Clicks specializes in digital marketing solutions designed for business owners who want measurable results. Their team supports companies through paid advertising, SEO, and strategic marketing systems that help generate consistent leads. Exclusive offer for listeners: https://directclicksinc.com/abovethebusiness Get a free marketing campaign audit where their team reviews your website, SEO, content, social media, and paid advertising, then provides actionable recommendations. If you partner with them, all setup fees will be waived. About Above The Business Above The Business is hosted by Bradley Hamner, founder of BlueprintOS, and focuses on helping small business owners transition from Rainmaker to Architect by building systems, teams, and operations that scale without their constant involvement.
