Friday, August 14, 2009

LEGO and the mass audience

Conspiracy theorists pay attention. Here is your way to connect LEGO to a future world wherein the concept of a mass audience -- outside of LEGO fans -- doesn't exist.

In this new book, "The Chaos Scenario," Bob Garfield posits that marketing, media, and commerce will all be dramatically reinvented through digital technology. Instead of looking for consumers to listen to pitches, Garfield suggests that companies will need to listen to consumers -- what he dubs "listenomics."

And one of his primary examples is how the adult fan community helped inform and drive beta testing of the next generation of LEGO Mindstorms. By listening to fans and seeking out product testers, LEGO has demonstrated a model for success in an individualized world where people seem resistant to be grouped together.

I might suggest that Garfield is a bit late to the party, even if it's a party that he suggests is already over. The idea that LEGO is bringing people together isn't revolutionary -- it's been in place since two kids sat hunched over the first interlocking bricks more than 50 years ago.

1 comment:

Ted Godwin said...

I wonder if he watched Jake McKee's presentation: How LEGO Caught the Cluetrain.