How can popular DJs use social media to innovate their business models and differentiate in the music industry?

How can popular DJs use social media to innovate their business

models and differentiate in the music industry?

University of Amsterdam; MSc Business Administration Entrepreneurship and Management in the Creative Industries Student’s name: Péter Sebestyén

Student number: 10975519 Supervisor: Matthijs Leendertse Date of submission: 24.06.2016

1 Abstract

The study examines how top 10 Dutch DJs use social media in order to innovate their business models and differentiate. The paper identifies common patterns about the social media usage of the DJs and test the established conceptual framework. It takes a qualitative approach through multiple case studies to appropriately answer for the “why” and “how” questions. Based on the results, DJs should consider both business model elements – value propositions and customer relationships - in order to differentiate on social media. Even though, both elements gain importance, the value propositions’ building blocks are more emphasized by the DJs. In general, the study makes contribution to the business model innovation, differentiation strategy as well as to social media strategy. The findings of this research also function as best practices that can help artists to strengthen their strategic position in the music industry by using social media. For musicians who use social media and aim to develop their business models in order to differentiate, the paper provides clear suggestions how to improve their value propositions as well as customer relationships.

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Statement of originality

This document is written by Student Péter Sebestyén, who declares to take full responsibility for the contents of this document.

I declare that the text and the work presented in this document is original and that no sources other than those mentioned in the text and its references have been used in creating it.

The Faculty of Economics and Business is responsible solely for the supervision of completion of the work, not for the contents.

3 Table of content

1. Introduction ... 4

1.1. The research question ... 6

2. Literature review ... 7

2.1. Strategic positioning ... 7

2.2. Differentiation strategy ... 8

2.3. Social media as a differentiation tool ... 11

2.4. Business models, strategy and business model innovation ... 13

2.5. Business model canvas and the relevant building blocks ... 15

2.5.1. Value propositions ... 17

2.5.2. Customer relationships ... 22

2.6. The music industry ... 27

2.6.1. Electronic Dance Music (EDM) ... 28

3. Methodology ... 29

3.1. Qualitative approach ... 29

3.2. Multiple case study ... 30

3.3. Selected cases ... 30

3.4. Operationalization ... 31

3.5. Case study template ... 32

3.6. Data analysis – Thematic analysis ... 35

4. Results ... 36 4.1. Value proposition ... 36 4.1.1. Connecting people ... 36 4.1.2. Relevant content ... 41 4.1.3. Entertainment ... 44 4.2. Customer relationships ... 45 4.2.1. Personal relationships ... 45 4.2.2. Interactivity ... 48 5. Discussion ... 50

5.1. Reliability and validity ... 54

5.2. Limitations and further research ... 54

6. Conclusion ... 55

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1. Introduction

With the emergence of the internet, numerous changes have taken place and affected the music industry (Morris, 2014). Among other things, new genres have evolved, gone viral and gained popularity. The Electronic Dance Music - EDM - is one of those genres that benefits from the internet. Although, EDM has been around for decades, it has become more viable due to the technological revolution (Feinstein and Ramsay, 2012). More specifically, social media has played a significant role in this process. As Kaplan and Haenlein (2012) declare, now anybody can produce music and share it through various social media sites. Porter (2001) adds that, in the era of the internet the entry barriers lower, which results in hyper competition. Thus, the simplicity to enter to the market and become a Disk Jockey - DJ - has never been so easy. While being a DJ is gaining popularity, the rivalry among the new and existing producers is increasing. DJs have to cut through the noise and stand out from the crowd. This phenomenon leads to the need to differentiation (Kim, Nam & Stimpert, 2004). Differentiating can be done by many ways, ranging from unique offering to selecting particular marketing channels (Allen and Helms, 2006). According to Porter (1985) differentiation requires a firm to create a product or service, which is considered unique in some aspects to the customers. Differentiating via social media is a possible solution for DJs to create real value for their audience and increase their own chances to become famous. Feinstein and Ramsay (2012) claim that social media is catalyzing the growth of EDM and brings opportunities that contributes to the success of the DJs. Even though, the necessity of differentiation and value creation is evident, it is still uncertain how it could be captured and performed on social media.

Porter (1985) also states that differentiation is at the forefront of value creation. It is hard to interpret the exact meaning of value, however there are some methods that help with the understanding. The business model is one of the tools which allows to create, provide and capture value for the customers (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010). Organizations realize that the

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ever changing business environment requires to innovate their business models in order to stay competitive and attract customers. The business model describes how an organization creates, delivers and captures value, therefore it serves as an illustration of the ongoing processes within and around the company (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010). However, in order to select the appropriate business model, first the strategy needs to be determined (Casadesus-Masanell and Ricart, 2010). According to Kim, Nam and Stimpert (2004) differentiation serves as one of those strategies that can create a durable strategic position. DJs are treated like organizations, because they also require a strong strategic position in order to stay competitive in the EDM industry. Moreover, they want to pursue their mission as well, which is primarily producing and performing music, while make a living out of that (Feinstein and Ramsay, 2012). Due to the similar nature with organizations, DJs also have a business model, whether they are or are not aware of that. To be able to create a durable position on the EDM market they need to constantly adjust their business model and create value for their fans (Gallaugher, 2007). Thus, the current research relies on the differentiation strategy, business model theory and social media strategy. In addition, it uses some elements of the business model canvas to create a conceptual framework as well as to illustrate the findings. There is existing literature about differentiation strategy that roots far back to early 1980’s (Porter, 1985). However, due to the emergence of the internet the researchers have reconsidered the validity of the concept (Kim et. all 2004; Porter, 2001). Moreover, there are many studies (Kietzmann, Hermkens, McCarthy and Silvestre, 2011) startups, (MusicPromoteToday.com), blogs (Solveig Whittle), best practices and frameworks that attempt to provide social media applications, there is a lack of academic literature specifically about how the business model blocks can be innovated in order to differentiate in the music industry. Therefore, the deficient knowledge about differentiation strategy on social media sites – particularly in the music industry – drives the focus of this research.

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As a consequence, the study makes a contribution to the differentiation strategy as well as to the business model innovation concept, particularly within the EDM industry. The thesis also contributes to the social media theory. In addition, besides the DJs and social media managers, the findings are also suitable for other artists competing on social media platforms. In general, organizations dealing with social media implication can all benefit from the results.

1.1. The research question

The thesis attempts to reveal the top 10 Dutch DJs’ current differentiation strategy in the social media context. In addition, the study sheds light on how the particular building blocks can be innovated within the business model. Since, it is important to examine how DJs can innovate their business model and differentiate via social media, the following question is formulated: How can popular DJs use social media to innovate their business model and differentiate

themselves in the music industry?

In order to answer for this question, this thesis relies on some elements of the business model canvas and focus primarily on the value propositions and customer relationships. The other blocks of the business model are not researched in detail, but are mentioned amongst the findings. The sub-questions are formed as follows:

How can DJs use social media in order to innovate their value propositions and stand out from

the competition?

How can DJs use social media to improve their customer relationships and create a durable

strategic position in the music industry?

By conducting a multiple case study, the thesis explores how top DJs differentiate via social media and gain strategic position in the music industry. To gather insights, the 10 most popular Dutch DJs’ social media activities are studied on three social media platforms – Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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2. Literature review

This section provides the background of the thesis. It begins with the related concepts and progresses towards the conceptual framework. Firstly, the importance of strategic positioning is discussed. This part introduces what strategic position means and why organizations need to adapt the internet in order to gain sustainable position on the market. It is followed by the concept of differentiation strategy. Numerous sources are used to illustrate the meaning and relevance of differentiation. Moreover, the chapter stresses why differentiation strategy is essential and how it can contribute to the online success of the artists. Afterwards, social media is investigated as a potential differentiation tool. This part explains the major types and characteristics of social media. Since, the conceptual framework (Table 1.) is based on the business model canvas, the next chapter discusses the concept of business model, business model innovation and the relevant building blocks.

2.1. Strategic positioning

Strategic positioning is a process of defining and maintaining a particular place in a market in relation to the competitors (Hooley, Saunders and Piercy, 2004). The authors further explain that strategic positioning is a long-term process that requires an organization to develop a comprehensive competitive advantage in a marketplace and identify its place in the environment in connection with its vision, mission and core competencies (Hooley et al., 2004). Porter (2001) discusses the relationship between strategic positioning and the internet and illustrates a model for companies that are shifting towards operating on the Internet. Porter (2001) highlights that the Internet provides better opportunities for companies to establish unique and durable strategic positioning. However - as Porter (2001) continues - this does not require completely new strategies, but requires building on the existing successful strategy that can be used to gain a strategic position. One force that Porter specifically highlights related to

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the Internet is the threat of entry. The Internet lowers the barriers to entry, which can be dangerous and possibly harmful for the strategic position of those companies that are active on the Internet (Porter, 2001). Gallaugher (2007) examined in more detail, how companies can create a strategy on the Internet. He believes that the Internet intensifies competition among firms, resulting in a sort of hyper competition. This is due to the global reach of the Internet, which makes it easier for companies to enter new markets. As a consequence, firms are advised to differentiate themselves from their competitors in order to avoid this kind of hyper competition and to create a stronger and more durable strategic position.

2.2. Differentiation strategy

Porter’s (1980) generic strategies were formulated more than twenty years ago, however they still form the base of the strategic management literature. Porter (1980) argues that there are four generic strategies - cost leadership, differentiation, focus and differentiation focus - and they have equal potential in terms of effectiveness in every industry. However, based on an empirical research, there are industries in which one strategy works better than another. For instance, cost strategies are more effective in industries with low rivalry and stable prices, while differentiation strategies are more effective in comparatively turbulent environments (Lamont, Marlin and Hoffman 1993; White, 1986). Kim, Nam and Stimpert (2004) also expect differentiation strategies to be more effective in e-businesses as they perceive that price competition is escalating so much that differentiation is the only way to distinguish oneself from the crowd. In addition, Porter (1980, 1985) states that a firm’s position within an industry determines whether it gets above or below industry average returns. The key to realize above average performance on the long term is a sustainable competitive advantage. Among other strategies, Porter (1980) considers low cost and differentiation as the two types of competitive advantage. Due to the dynamic environment of the Internet and the lack of relevance of the cost leadership strategy, this thesis only examines how DJs can utilize the differentiation strategy.

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In his work, Porter (1985) states that differentiation is about a firm’s ability to be unique at something that is valuable to its customers. He (1985) argues for a number of drivers for differentiation: timing, location, integration, linkages. Timing is one of the crucial drivers for competitive advantage. If a firm is able to push a product at the right time, perhaps before its competitors, this is a step towards creating competitive advantage. By targeting different locations, organizations can reach customers in more and better ways than the competitors. Porter (1985) claims that an organization’s level of integration into value activities also create competitive advantage. This is due to a stronger connection between decision-making parts and systems. Similarly, linkages can also lead to uniqueness that might result in competitive advantage (Porter, 1985). Later on the thesis illustrates that the social model ensures many of these functions, thus serves as a differentiation tool for DJs.

Besides Porter, several other authors have realized the relevance of differentiation and further analyzed the concept. Miller (1986) describes differentiation as an aim to create a product that is perceived as uniquely attractive. It emphasizes strong marketing abilities, creative, well-designed products, a reputation for quality, a good corporate image, and a strong cooperation from marketing channels (Miller, 1986). In addition, researchers agree that defining the strategy is not sufficient to achieve success. Ebben and Johnson (2005) argue that one of the most important characteristics of an effective strategy is that it fits the company. Fulmer and Godwin (1988) further stress the previous discussion and claim that all the successful strategies are differentiation. The authors also add that, cost is just one of the factors in which a firm can be different from the competition, thus there are many other methods available for an organization. Porter (1985) clearly determines the concept by stating that differentiation happens when a company decides to be different from its rivals. Similarly to Fulmer and Godwin (1988) he also argues that differentiation can be done in numerous ways, moreover it depends on the industry in which the firm operates. According to Allen and Helms (2006), better quality, innovation,

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more service, and customizability of the product are examples for differentiation. As mentioned earlier, one of the goals of differentiation is to satisfy the customers by creating some sorts of value for them (1985). Druker’s (1973) explanation underlies Porter’s statement by claiming that the primary purpose of a business is creating customers by satisfying their needs. As the thesis illustrates later, social media provides several ways for value creation, which implies that the DJs are more likely to meet their fans’ needs.

It is important to look at not only the strategic management, but also the marketing literature when researching the concept of differentiation. The marketing literature mostly takes a motivational perspective while placing the organization as a brand to the spotlight. Textbooks talk of a significant perceived difference that provides buyers with motives to purchase and be loyal to the brand (Kotler, 1994). The marketing literature emphasizes that the differentiation has to be perceived by customers as different (Ries and Trout, 1986) and must be valued (Kotler, 1994). This valued difference does not have to be a material product feature. Rather, it may be symbolic, emotional, or even quite trivial (such as in Broniarczyk and Gershoff, 2003). However Sharp and Dawes (2001) argue that differentiation is largely a market characteristic. Competitive brands within a market are similarly differentiated, with predictable asymmetries between small and large brands. Brands are mainly differentiated at individual buying situation level rather than at brand level. The thesis partly builds on Sharp and Dawes (2001) argument, because presumably the top DJs are differentiated the same way. In addition, as DJs are treated like organizations or brands, it is also assumed that customers perceive them different, but value them for similar attributes.

Other researchers examined how the differentiation affects organizational performance (Prajogo and Sohal, 2006; Allen and Helms, 2002). They all concluded that when differentiation strategy is established, the performance is higher than for other firms. Similarly to that, Sharp and Dawes (2001) investigated the relationship between differentiation and superior profits.

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The authors argue that differentiation makes the product unique and desirable, therefore the customers are more willing to pay higher prices, which results in increasing profit generation. Even thought, differentiation affects the sales performance of an organization, this study does not cover this topic. It is due to the limited access and information about DJs’ revenue stream generated by their social media use. Even by providing information about DJs performance in terms of revenue, it is hardly translated and connected precisely to the social media activity.

Summarizing the existing literature about strategic positioning and differentiation, it can be concluded that these concepts are essential to create value for the customers and gain competitive advantage over other firms. However, that is still questionable, how organizations differentiate from others when they have the same tools available online and how it shapes their business models.

2.3. Social media as a differentiation tool

Social media serves as the basis of the current study, since the content of three social media sites – Facebook, Twitter and Instagram - are analyzed in order to recognize potential differentiation strategies. Thus, it is important to first understand what social media really means and how it can be used to create strategic position and added value.

Social media is a widely applied tool. People use it to connect to one another and share personal information (Henderson & Bowley, 2010), while organizations aim to enhance their customer engagement (Kietzmann, Hermkens, McCarthy & Silvestre, 2011). Besides that, social media is used by celebrities as well to help them maintaining contact with their fan base and promoting their celebrity brand (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2012). Thus, social media can be a powerful tool for both organizations and famous individuals if it is employed in a strategic manner. Firms can differentiate in many ways by using social media. However, many of the organizations have difficulty with the appropriate application.

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To be able to understand how social media can be used for differentiation, it is essential to discuss what social media implies as well as talk about the phrase of Web 2.0 in more detail, since the two definitions are strongly related Web 2.0 is a term that was first mentioned in 2004, indicating a shift in the usage of the Internet from the Web 1.0 era (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Kaplan & Haenlein (2010) state that the online content is no longer generated by individuals, but is constantly altered by users in a collaborative and participatory manner. Social media and Web 2.0 are connected to each other, because social media would not exist without the foundation of Web 2.0. The two terms are often used interchangeable (Constantinides & Fountain, 2007), however, they are not the same. Web 2.0 allows for a more social use of the Web. Kaplan & Haenlein (2010) defines social media as a group of Internet-based applications that is based on the technological developments of Web 2.0, and which enables the creation and exchange of user generated content. Other researchers provide definition of social media sites „as web-based services that allow individuals to (1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system” (Boyd and Ellison, 2008, p. 211).

Beyond profiles, comments, and private messaging, social media sites vary in their features and user base. One has photo-sharing and video-sharing capability; others have built-in instant messaging or blogging technology. Many sites target people from specific geographical regions or linguistic groups (Boyd and Ellison, 2008). In relation to this, Kietzmann et al. (2011) distinguish three types of media sites: sites for the general mass (Facebook), professional networking sites (Linkedin) and media sharing sites (YouTube). The authors also provide an illustration about the functional building blocks of social media and highlight the contrasting functionalities of the different sites. In addition, Boyd and Ellison (2008) also state that with structural variations around visibility and access social media sites can differentiate themselves

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from each other. Meaning that differentiation is intended, it is probable that each social media site has its own unique offering. With these unique offerings, social sites can target customers with various needs. This thesis however, is primarily focusing on the common practices that can be identified in the social media use of the top 10 DJs, thus does not particularly consider the dissimilar characteristics of the social sites. Even though, the paper does not intend to investigate the features of the analyzed platforms, some aspects are touched inevitably.

As stated, businesses – as well as individuals - can now create content themselves and share this with others on the internet. Web 2.0 is the technology that enables these activities (Berthon, Pitt, Plangger, Shapiro, 2012). Moreover, when it comes to using social media for business purposes, organizations need to take into account that Web 2.0 allows a shift in focus from businesses to communities (Berthon et al, 2012). Social media is now available to anyone and can serve as an essential business tool for communication, performance improvement and revenue generation (Berthon et al, 2012; Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).

2.4. Business models, strategy and business model innovation

In order to understand DJs’ differentiation strategy and subsequently the changes of their business model innovation, first it is important to understand what a business model is. In addition, since the thesis analyzes potential differentiation strategies on social media, it is also essential to apprehend the link and differences between the concept of strategy and business model. Casadesus-Masanell and Ricart (2010) describe strategy as the device through which firms decide on a business model, out of the many possibilities on how to run the business. DaSilva & Trkman (2014) add to the discussion by giving two reasons why strategy is different from the business model concept. First, the authors see strategy as the broad direction of where the firm is headed, which then shapes the capabilities the firm has (DaSilva & Trkman, 2014). These capabilities are then able to influence the business model the firm employs. Second, the

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authors emphasize the idea that strategy is the representation of what a company aims to become whereas business models represent what a company really is at a given time (DaSilva & Trkman, 2014). According to the researchers, this differentiation is necessary as previous studies often used the terms business model and strategy as synonyms, thus creating confusion around what a business model is and how it differentiates from strategy (DaSilva & Trkman, 2014).

According to Amit and Zott (2001) the business model and business model innovation concepts have become recently popular during the Internet bubble. Although the different definitions might be fairly diverse, researchers agree on that the business model and business model innovation are concepts that are of big importance to the success of businesses. According to Amit and Zott (2001) a business model represents the content, structure, and governance of the business operations designed so as to create value through the exploitation of business opportunities. Chesbrough and Rosenbloom (2002) state that the business model is a mediator between technological development and economic value creation. In addition, the authors argue that one can identify the following elements of a business model: value proposition, market segment, value chain, cost structure, profit potential, value network and competitive strategy. Chesbrough and Rosenbloom (2002) mention that firms constantly need to adapt their business models to the changing environment in order to be successful in a long run. They define business model innovation as a change in one or several elements of the business model. According to Teece (2010), business model innovation can lead to a competitive advantage only if the model is sufficiently differentiated and difficult to replicate by other firms. Thus, designing a successful business model by itself is insufficient to assure a competitive advantage. Teece (2010) emphasizes that it is essential to have a business model that is differentiated in a way that it is hard to imitate by competitors. By doing that firms can achieve a significant and sustainable competitive advantage (Teece, 2010). Casadesus-Masanell and Zhu (2013) define

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business model innovation as “the search for new logics of the firm, new ways to create and capture value for its stakeholders” (p. 1). In addition, it mainly focuses on new ways to generate revenues and define an appropriate value propositions for customers, suppliers, and additional partners (Casadesus-Masanell & Zhu, 2013). This thesis partially builds on Osterwalder and Pigneur’s (2010) business model canvas. For this reason as well as the authors’ comprehensive description, the following definition is used: “A business model describes the rationale of how an organization creates, delivers and captures value” Osterwalder and Pigneur’s (2010). They propose that a business model contains nine basic building blocks that together form the “Business Model Canvas” which serve as a helpful tool to map an existing business model or generate a new one.

Based on the existing theory on business model, one can conclude that business models allow firms to create, provide and capture value for their customers and for themselves. While business model innovation stands for value generation by reuniting the existing processes and building blocks. Lastly, by reflecting on the literature, it is hard to create one business model, where the success is granted on the long term.

2.5. Business model canvas and the relevant building blocks

The section illustrates the concept of the business model canvas and explains the relevance and meaning of the two selected elements. It is followed by the introduction of the value propositions of social media. Thereafter, the identified categories of the customer relationships are demonstrated. After the description of each business model element and the associated categories, additional sub-categories are specified. As seen below, the basic value propositions of social media are connecting people, relevant content and entertainment. The sub-categories provide information how DJs intend to meet these propositions. The identified categories of customer relationships are personal relationships and interactivity. Similarly, these

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categories describe how DJs create a personal relationship and generate interactive environment on their social media sites.

As mentioned, the Business Model Canvas is a helpful tool to gain a coherent overview about the current operations of the business processes, thus it contributes to an easier understanding of the existing business. In addition, it is a template for developing new or existing business models. Therefore, the canvas helps to demonstrate a firm’s key activities, value proposition, customers, revenue stream and infrastructure on one chart (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010). Apart from that, the canvas provides a consistent picture about the current processes. Since, this study is partially based on two of business model elements, the canvas is also used to support the analysis as well as to demonstrate the findings.

This section gives an overview of those business model blocks that are relevant for the DJs’ social media activity. The study investigates how popular DJs can differentiate themselves by innovating their value propositions and customer relationships in the social media context. These business model building blocks are selected, because they specifically address how DJs create value through their social media sites. As stated earlier, value creation is one essential part of the differentiation strategy, thus it makes these building blocks meaningful research units (Amitt & Zott, 2001). This thesis aims to examine how the organization operates externally and what is actually visible and valuable for the customers which after all leads to differentiation. Since, the key partnerships, key activities, key resources and cost structure refer to the internal operation of the organization these elements are excluded from this research (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010). The channels building block is the social media itself, which serves as the base of the thesis. Hence, examining how social media – as a channel - can be innovated is another big topic and not part of the current research. Even though, the conceptual framework does not include the channels element, some parts are discussed. Lastly, the

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customer segments block is not investigated, because the majority of the essential actions are invisible for an observer.

In sum, while analyzing the differentiation strategies used by DJs on social media platforms, the following business model blocks are considered to be relevant: value propositions and customer relationships.

2.5.1. Value propositions

Adding value is essential for a successful strategy and is highly important to gain competitive advantage (Amitt & Zott, 2001). The value proposition is the reason why customers turn to one company over another. It solves the customer’s problem or satisfies the customer’s needs. It also describes how companies satisfy the needs of customers and how this differs from their competitors (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010). Examining the value propositions means that certain propositions need to be described that deliver unique value to customers (Porter & Kramer, 2006). Osterwalder gives examples like accessibility, newness, performance, customization, design, branding, price and convenience. Hereby, some of the most important value propositions of social media are formulated.

2.5.1.1.Connecting people

An enormous advantage of social media is the ability to connect people and build communities. Kietzmann et al. (2011) argue that many social media sites are designed primarily to facilitate conversations among individuals and groups who have similar interests. These kind of interests might range from meeting new like-minded people, looking for trending ideas, impacting humanitarian causes to finding true love (Kietzmann et al, 2011). The authors also state that users can form communities and sub-communities in order to control the traffic on social media and filter the relevant content. Constantinides & Fountain (2008) claim that these communities allow individuals to learn about the existence of new products or services and get in touch with

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other customers sharing the same interests. According to Osterwalder (2010) communities provide great opportunities for organizations to understand their consumers, since they ensure insights into the consumers’ habits and perspectives. In addition to that, it is beneficial for the consumers as well, because they can strengthened their bonds by sharing their opinions and communicate with each other (Osterwalder and Pigneur, 2010). Thus, connecting people is really amongst the most essential characteristics of social media sites. By providing platforms for consumers where they can find people with the same interests and connect them together most likely serves as a good differentiation tool.

Creating community by using tags and hashtags

Connecting people and building communities can be done several ways. One possible method to extend one’s network is tagging people who are somewhat relating to the main user (Bruns and Burgess, 2011).In short, tagging means that one can mention another user in his or her own post. Thereafter, the tagged user’s account will be easily accessible. According to Marwick (2011), people spending time on social media often identify the other users by tagging their social media username. He also adds that celebrities mention fans to accomplish connection and give back to loyal followers, and manage their popularity (Marwick, 2011). By doing so, a musician’s follower can directly connect to the tagged unit. Most likely, the tagged person has some kind of relatedness to the musician, thus it is still relevant to the follower, while the community is extending. Similarly to tagging, the use of hashtags also facilitates the formation of certain kinds of communities, by including ad hoc publics, forming and responding very quickly in relation to a particular event or issue (Bruns and Burgess, 2011). However, in some cases, hashtags are not used with a community building intention. Thus, users only intend to enhance the description or caption of the shared photo or video (Bruns and Burgess, 2011).

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Another way to connect people and let them share their opinions is to create forums, blogs or chatrooms closely related to the artist (The Hub, 2014). These sites allow fans to engage in conversations with each other, express their feelings and share their experiences (Mangold and Faulds, 2009). Thus, artists can build these platforms either to facilitate the relationships among fans and/or between the musician itself and fans. In addition, these sites also enable artists to broadcast issues about their everyday life. Whether artists use this opportunity to differentiate is one of the questions of the current study.

2.5.1.2.Relevant content

According to Hanna, Rohm, and Crittenden (2011) social media sites allow consumers to get access to content in real time. On certain cites, new content fills in each time the screen is refreshed, so there is a constant incentive for consumers to return to the site (Hanna et al, 2011). Besides that, Mangold and Faulds (2009) also add that in the era of social media, consumers have greater access to information and greater control over media consumption than ever before. Saboo, Kumar and Ramani (2015) state that social media allows consumers to create and exchange user generated content, enabling them to connect with the organization and other consumers. Thus, as it seems from the existing literature, content is one of the basic and most important propositions of social media. Since, it is the consumers’ decision what kind of content they want to get access to, they are most likely to search for information that meets their interests. Saboo et al (2015) somehow confirm this statement by arguing that the consumers are no longer passive recipients of media content, but they actively participate in its generation. In their research, Mangold and Faulds (2009) also mention the importance of relevant information sharing. According to the authors, participants of certain sites are allowed get access to hear new songs or watch videos before they are released to the general public. Therefore, having a

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membership in a community might provide some kind of privilege like instant access to relevant content.

Frontstage - Music related content

The musician decides what kind of content is shared on the social site. Whether it is closely related to the main activity or slightly differ from that, is depending on the creator. Some artists use social media to inform the audience about their main activity (Baym, 2013). They might use the social sites to share photos or videos about the previous gigs or write announcements. This content is often professionally edited, thus it seems highly similar to corporate advertising.

Promotional content

While traditional advertising, public relations, and direct selling still exist and remain essential, social media is becoming an increasingly important tool used in the promotion of a music star image (Margiotta, 2012). According to Nielsen, active adult social networkers are 75% more likely to be big spenders on music compared to the average adult Internet user, therefore promotion via social media is crucial to an artist’s success (in Margiotta, 2012). The author specifically mentions artists - such as the Black Keys - who have published music videos of unreleased songs on Facebook as a means of promoting an upcoming album release.

2.5.1.3.Entertainment

According to Shao (2009), people have several motives for engaging in social media. The three main categories that emerged from his study are the following: 1) information processing, 2) entertainment activities, and 3) social connection. Two of these themes are already stated above. The “connecting people” theme applies to social connection, while “relevant content” relates to information processing. However, as it comes out from the literature, entertainment is another essential value proposition of social media. Hanna et al (2011) propose that social media is

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primarily about creating experience for the mass. Mangold and Faulds (2009) also mention, why entertainment is one of the basic components of social media. They state that, online activities can entertain and engage customers while organizations communicate their product benefits. So from the organizations point of view, providing entertaining content or engage customers with enjoyable online activities might result in differentiation. Heinonen (2011) asserts that companies can strategically benefit - attract new customers or maintain relationship with existing ones - if they use entertaining tools and enhance participation.

Sharing visual and audio content

Content sharing is one of the basic functions of social media sites. Users able to post various forms of media ranging from text, audio, photo to video (Mangold & Faulds, 2009). Naturally, the role of this kind of content is to entertain the audience in some ways. Artists share photos, text messages, videos and audio content continuously on their sites to provide entertainment as well as fulfil other purposes at the same time (Voogt and Martin, 2016). This category deals with the different characteristics of the examined social media sites. More precisely, it examines what kind of content is shared most frequently on these platforms. As mentioned, each site has its own feature. These features might have an influence on the form of the posts.

To discussion begins with Facebook, which allows users to build and maintain social capital, communicate and keep up with other people’s life (Smith, Fisher and Yongjian, 2012). Moreover, it enables people to instant messaging, image and video sharing and participating in a wide range of activities and forum discussions. Twitter is a micro-blogging site, which allows people to share, reply to and forward posts that cannot exceed 140-characters in length. Besides only text messages, these posts can include hyperlinks to blogs, photos, videos or news stories (Smith et al., 2012). Lastly, Instagram provides users an instant way to capture and share a series of photos or videos. Users can add descriptions next to the shared content, however

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textual messaging is not the primarily intention of Instagram (Hu, Manikonda and Kambhampati, 2014). As it can be seen, all the analyzed social media sites enable users to share visual and audio content. Therefore, by taking into account that the majority of the social media content is visual or audio content, this category cannot considered to be completely unique and clearly distinguishable. As a consequence, overlapping is expected with the other pre-identified categories.

2.5.2. Customer relationships

The customer relationships element defines how customer relationships are established and how this benefits the customer experience (Osterwalder & Pigneur, 2010). Osterwalder (2010) distinguishes several types of customer relationships like personal assistance, self-service, automated services, communities and co-creation. According to Dubosson- Torbay, Osterwalder and Pigneur (2002) it is essential to highlight the need of customer relationships for Internet companies in specific, since the Internet brings new opportunities to gain more information and knowledge about customers, which helps to serve them better. In case of social media, certain types of customer relationships are more likely to occur. The most common customer relationships themes are described in the following section.

2.5.2.1.Personal relationships

Osterwalder (2010) mentions personal assistance as one type of customer relationships, which is characterized by human touch. In this case, the customers have the opportunity to interact with the organization. Even though, social media sites do not allow content creators – DJs - to meet the users in live, they can build a personal relationship through the platforms. According to Saboo et al. (2015) musicians are human brands who are able to engage and build emotional relationship with consumers. The authors state that such relationships have many of the same expectations, emotions, and behaviors that exist in a regular interpersonal relationship and

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consumers often view human brands as a companion or friend (Saboo et al., 2015). Therefore, the relationship between artist and fans is not formal, but becomes personal. In order to establish an informal relationship, the content manager needs to possess certain kind of personality traits before entering social media and thereafter further convey this personality on his social media site (Mangold and Faulds, 2009). Mangold and Faulds (2009) further stress the importance of personal relationships by arguing that consumers are more likely to talk about organizations or brands when they feel they know a lot about them. Social media enables content creators to share any type of information, including photos, videos, texts and audio files, thus contributing to build close relationships with their customers (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2011). When the customers feel that they meet a real person who represents the organization, stronger bonds are more likely to be formed, which might result in long-term relationships (Mangold and Faulds, 2009). As Saboo et al., (2015) argue, customers are more likely to follow and support those sites where they can connect on the personal level.

Backstage content

Artists can decide to share studio or backstage content, which let the fans to look behind the scenes (The Hub, 2014). By doing so, the followers have an exclusive feeling being involved in the musician’s art work. Thus, sharing backstage information creates a sense of intimacy, which result in stronger relationship among artists and fans (Click, Lee & Holladay, 2013). This kind of content is still closely related to the major activity of the musician, thus it stays relevant for the followers. The artists might share content about their everyday subjects as well. It makes celebrities more likable, accessible and approachable (Click, Lee & Holladay, 2013). When artists post content about their daily life – not including the music as a profession – the fans increasingly experience them as authentic. Due to the nature of social media, the dialogue

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between the musician and audience remains mediated, however the relationship becomes informal.

Emphasizing gratitude

Social media also allows one to share very specific feelings towards the mass. In the music industry an artist’s success - among other factors – strongly relies on the fans’ support. Without having a certain number of fan, the basic activity of the artist is pointless and most likely result in a less successful career. Click, Lee and Holladay (2013) talk about reciprocity in to the artist-fan relationship. According to the authors, reciprocity is a key component to establish a personal relationship and social media encourages and facilitates the give-and-take between artist and fan (Click, Lee and Holladay, 2013). Thus, it makes the artists aware of the importance of their fans’ supportive behavior. As a consequence, they often express their gratitude in order to thank their followers. This kind of expression also builds personal bonds between the artist and fan. „Many seemingly insignificant messages serve a social function, reinforcing connections and maintaining social bonds” (Marwick, 2011 p 147.). Among other things, the thesis attempts to examine whether popular DJs show gratitude towards the mass as a kind of differentiation tool. On the other hand, fans also want to express their feeling towards the musicians. However, this study does not aim to discover the behavior of the customers, so only the musicians’ perspective is investigated.

2.5.2.2.Interactivity

Organizations can change the nature of the customer relationships by involving them in the creation of the product (Osterwalder, 2010). In case of social media, the content of the site is considered as a product, which is created and altered by users. As Ariel & Avidar (2015) defines, social media sites are considered to be platforms that foster information sharing and participation. According to Saboo et al. (2015) social media allows consumers to create and

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exchange user generated content, enabling them to connect with organizations as well as other consumers. Moreover, certain social media sites encourage customers to generate the content of the social media sites together with other people. Therefore, the shared information is not created only by one individual, but possibly by the mass. Saboo et al. (2015) also state that due to the nature of social media sites interactivity plays a fundamental and significant role. Consumers engage in several online activities ranging from information sharing, product recommendation to participating in discussions. According to Mangold and Faulds (2009) social media serves two essential roles. First of all, it enables firms to talk to their customers through the platforms. Secondly, it even ensures the customers to communicate with one another and actively participate on the sites (Mangold and Faulds, 2009). The interaction may benefit the organizations in many ways. For instance, consumers feel more engaged with brands and organizations when they are allowed to submit feedback. Hence, some companies encourage consumers to leave comments, upload photos or videos (Mangold and Faulds, 2009).

Asking question

Musicians can post questions to be able to interact with their fans (Matla, 2015). Some of the artists actively use social media to meet their fans while touring (Baym, 2012). For instance, by asking the audience where they are at a particular moment, the musician can decide to go to the spot and meet them in live. In addition, artists can ask their audience for feedback that serves as a useful input (Baym, 2012). While musicians produce music they can ask the fan’s personal opinions. Then, using the gathered valuable insights, the artists can adjust the music based on the audience’s feedback. According to Margiotta (2012), by composing tweets or status updates in the form of a question, musicians can direct their message at fans on a more personal level while encouraging responses.

26 Call to action

Social media allows content creators to generate an interactive environment by calling to action their followers (Ariel & Avidar, 2015). It can range from a call to participate in an online contest, post videos or submit photos. In addition, artists can ask their followers to join other sites, click on links, provide feedback or listen to a new release. Voogt and Martin (2016) also argue that musicians often turn to their fans and ask for some kind of favor. This activity enhances interactivity as well as strengthen the relationships between the celebrity and his fans. Therefore, it is relevant to examine whether the top DJs also rely on this kind of strategy.

The Conceptual framework – Table 1.

Value

proposition

Connecting people:

Using tags and hashtags Building community via

other sites

Relevant content:

Frontstage content Promotion

Entertainment:

Audio and visual content

Customer

relationships

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2.6. The music industry

In order to gain a coherent picture, this section illustrates the basic characteristics of the music industry. Besides that, the importance of the internet and its impact on the music industry are also discussed. Lastly, there is a concise overview of the current state of the Electronic Dance Music and its future opportunities.

Peitz and Waelbroeck (2005) argue that the traditional music industry is characterized by three players: the artists, the record companies and the retailers. They describe the artist as the actor who creates the music. Caves (2003) states that artists make contracts with record companies who function as intermediaries between the music producers and the consumers. The big record companies own record labels and each label is active in certain segments of the music market (Caves, 2003). According to Peitz and Waelbroeck (2005) the role of the record company is to select the artists, offer them services to be able to produce music, then find a match between the recorded music and the consumer. However, this phenomenon has changed with the emergence of the web (Baym & Burnett, 2009). Morris (2014) states that the digital technologies offer new ways to distribute and promote music and novel tools for artists to interact with fans. Thus, the role of the big record companies decrease, meanwhile the individuals can benefit from internet (Morris, 2014). Moreover, according to Baym & Burnett (2009), artists are available everywhere and their fans face more music options than ever. The authors also add that when independent artists use the web, they mostly seeking attention rather than direct sales (Baym & Burnett, 2009). In order to help musicians to be successful in the chaotic online environment, many businesses have emerged recently. There are companies such as Band Metrics, which collects data about bands from websites across the web, ReverbNation and MusicPromoteToday, who create a complex fan management system that can be built on one site then embedded and tracked throughout the web (Baym & Burnett (2009). Besides that, the number of social media managers and music managers is increasing as well.

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2.6.1. Electronic Dance Music (EDM)

Nowadays, one of the most popular forms of music is Electronic Dance Music, or EDM. EDM is a collection of sub-genres that fits within dance music, such as house, dubstep, trap, and hard-style (Sessions, 2015). EDM has a much longer history than many people realize, and the music genres that make up EDM have been around for decades. As a whole, the EDM industry is worth approximately $4 billion per year (Feinstein and Ramsay, 2012). According to the International Music Summer (IMS) Consumer Report 2012, EDM is the fastest growing mainstream genre in the United States (Feinstein and Ramsay, 2012). It is also important to note the role of social media in catalyzing the growth of EDM. For a genre so inherently tied to technology, the Internet is a natural marketing platform. As the digital music space continues to expand, EDM arguably utilize the Internet’s potential more effectively than other genres (Feinstein and Ramsay, 2012).

Several companies have emerged in order to help individual musicians to promote their work and make their work profitable – like Dottedmusic.com, Digitalmusicmarketing.com etc. These organizations offer wide variety of services for musicians ranging from marketing, distribution to marketing.

The analyzed DJs sometimes manage their online presence with a help with a professional team, other times by themselves. Regardless of the content manager, there is no one existing best solution or strategy that could be applied for every case, which is due to the evolving and ever-changing trends. Even the professional social managers try to keep up with the latest tools and practices. Whatever the case is, it is interesting and instructive to examine more precisely what kind of social media strategies are used by the top 10 Dutch DJs in order to differentiate.

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3. Methodology

3.1. Qualitative approach

In order to successfully research how popular DJs differentiate on social media, the relevant concepts and research methods need to be defined. This research uses the different attributes of the Business Model Canvas to analyze closely the value creation practices. Using the business model concept though, it seems obvious that a quantitative approach is not very suitable since it is hard to quantify relations and links within a complex business model. Thus, the study takes a qualitative approach to answer the research questions. According to Yin (2014) qualitative research is appropriate for answering “why” and “how” questions, thus it suits well to the proposed research question and sub-questions. Moreover, a large amount of qualitative data is collected to be able to generate detailed insights about the top DJs’ social media activity. Evidently, the qualitative approach is the most practical way to interpret this kind of data (Yin, 2014).

However, not every qualitative research is suitable to analyze the proposed research questions. It is due to the fact that a business model consists of various blocks which all combined together form a rigid model. Methods such as interviewing or conducting focus groups do not help to get answers for the research question, primarily because it is hard to gain access to the top10 Dutch DJs or even to their social media managers. Therefore, this study relies on a more feasible approach offered by Yin. The author mentions that the need for case studies arises out of the desire to understand complex social phenomenal (Yin, 2014). A case study most often investigates contemporary phenomenon within real-life context, when the boundaries between the phenomenon and context are not clearly evident, moreover the researcher has no control over the phenomenon (Yin, 2014). This is exactly the case in this thesis. On one hand, the examined topic is about a contemporary event - recent social media activities – while the

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researcher has no direct influence over the DJs social activity. In addition, Eisenhardt (1989) claims that case studies are beneficial for providing descriptions, generating theory or testing existing theory.

3.2. Multiple case study

In order to investigate how DJs can differentiate on social media sites, the topic is explored by multiple case studies. Yin (2014) argues that the analysis of multiple sources enables the researcher to draw an objective conclusion. Due to the different characteristics of the investigated business model blocks as well as the various attributes of the pre-determined themes, the use of multiple cases is proven to be the most practical attempt. The cases are collected from the online content. The data collection occurs by observing the data in a certain time period. Altogether, the thesis consists of 10 cases. These cases generate the sample of the research, namely the top 10 Dutch DJs and their social media activity. Each case includes 15 of the recent posts of the examined artists (Appendix1_{). The cases are collected from three different} platforms – Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The social media posts are collected between the 12th and 15th of May, 2016. To be able to further examine the data, it is captured by taking screenshots of all the relevant posts, then the analysis occurs according to pre-determined coding schemes.

3.3. Selected cases

To be able to analyze the differentiation strategies on the social media sites, 10 popular artists are chosen. More specifically, the cases consist of the 10 most popular DJs in the Netherlands. First of all, it is due to the broad availability of these DJs on all the investigated social media sites as well as their active participation. Second of all, the selected DJs all have a big follower

1 _{The appendix includes all the collected social media posts. The appendix is not attached directly to the thesis,}

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base, which makes the sample reliable. Lastly, the reason for selecting the cases from one country and from the same genre is that it allows a more in depth research, as it helps to draw more reliable results from the cases. Differentiation strategies might differ in other genres or culture. The selected DJs are the following: Tiesto, Hardwell, Martin Garrix, Armin van Buuren, Nicky Romero, Afrojack, R3hab, Noisia, W&W and Fedde Le Grand. The ranking is determined by a website, named www.TopDeejays.com, which provides the biggest organized global DJ database. The website ranks the DJs according to their social media influence by using a formula based on the number of likes and followers. One DJ implies one case. One case gathers one DJs’ most recent 15 posts on three social sites - Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The shared social media content by the DJs is collected separately, then is categorized according to identified themes in the literature.

3.4. Operationalization

All the 10 cases are researched by relying on the two business model blocks, namely the value propositions and customer relationships. The two blocks involve detailed categories which can be found in the conceptual framework. Most of these categories are researched by using thematic analysis. Even though, thematic analysis is the selected analysis method, the data collection methods also have to be determined. The data collection occurs by using document analysis and observation. As Bowen (2009) states, document analysis is a systematic procedure to elicit meaning and gain understanding from all kinds of materials. Document analysis is a form of qualitative research in which documents are interpreted by the researcher to give voice and meaning around an investigated topic (Bowen, 2009). Yin (2014) argues that document analysis is especially suitable to qualitative case studies. However, the document analysis will also help to find and add relevant data from additional sources. Bowen (2009) states that a document is something that we can read and see and which relates to some aspects of the social world. In this case, the DJs’ social media posts are the primary types of

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documents. Besides the shared content by the DJs, other relevant sources are used in the analysis. Newspapers, press releases, advertisements and survey data are amongst the sources that a document analysis can rely on (Bowen, 2009).

However, according to Bowen (2009), document analysis is usually used in combination with other research methods (Bowen, 2009). Thus, observation is used as a data collection method besides document analysis. The objective of the observation is to gather data in a natural setting (Sapsford and Jupp, 2006). This thesis uses non-participant observation that is observation with limited or no interaction with the people one observes. It is mostly due to the nature of the researched topic, since the studied phenomena is in online context, which implies there is not direct interaction with the examined participants. According to Sapsford and Jupp (2006), in order to get valuable results the observer notes things down such as what people say, do or how they act. Besides all, observation is a suitable data collection method, because it fosters an in depth and rich understanding of a phenomenon and the behavior of the participants in that setting (Sapsford and Jupp, 2006).

3.5. Case study template

The main task of this research is to analyze the content of the DJs’ social media sites and discover what kind of pattern they follow in order to differentiate. For the analysis, the paper relies on the pre-determined social media functions. While analyzing, the following specific categories are examined (Table 2). These categories are emerged from the relevant literature about musicians’ social media use as well as from additional sources dealing with the topic. Moreover, potential elements are also identified by pre-searching for patterns in the data set. Building on the prior research, the paper relies on the assumption that the pre-determined categories will be identified in the research sample as well. The examined content consists of

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visual and textual data. Even thought, the visual data cannot be described into textual data, it can be analyzed according to the pre-determined themes.

The following template functions as a base for interpreting and analyzing the captured social media posts (Table 2).

Table 2. Connecting people

Using tags & hashtags: Observing whether DJs use tags and hashtags while

posting content on their social media sites. In case of Twitter and Instagram, tags consist of a @username, which stands for the name of an account. Facebook highlights the tagged unit with blue color. The hashtag is a symbol # in front of the word or phrase, which makes it easier for users to find specific content. Besides observation, the study analyze documents mentioning the usage of tags and hashtags by the DJs.

Building community via other sites: Analyzing online documents whether

DJs tend to build communities around their activity. Observing websites that are relating to forums/blogs where people can connect with each other. Observing the social media platforms of the artists whether they invite their fans to engage to be a member of their community.

Relevant content

Frontstage: Observing whether DJs share content about concerts and gigs.

This kind of content covers the actual activity of the musician. Photos or videos about the DJ being on stage count as frontstage content.

Promotion: Observing whether DJs use their social sites for promotion.

Sharing information about album and song releases, upcoming concerts or selling merchandise all signify promotional content. Usually, this content intends to create awareness among the fans about the art work of the artist.

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Entertainment Visual and audio content: Observing the forms of the shared content. Analyzing whether to what extent DJs share visual and audio content on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Personal relationship

Backstage content: Observing whether DJs share content about their

backstage life. This content captures the DJs in the studio, before or after concert, during preparation. In addition, backstage content also includes the artist’s hobby, personal interests, family and animals etc. Analyzing documents how common it is to share backstage content in order to create a more personal relationship.

Emphasizing gratitude: observing whether DJs express their gratitude in

order to thank their followers. This kind of content consists of any textual or visual data that intends to convey gratitude.

Interactivity Call to action: Observing whether DJs ask their audience to do some kind of activity. Call to action intends to enhance the interaction between the DJs and fans. For instance, DJs can call their fans to join other social sites, share videos or participate in a contest. Analyzing documents whether call to action the audience is a commonly used tool among the DJs.

Asking questions: Analyzing whether DJs ask questions from their fan base

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3.6. Data analysis – Thematic analysis

The data that is acquired in the case studies through document analysis and observation of the platforms that is analyzed through a thematic analysis. Thematic analysis is a method for identifying, analyzing and reporting patterns and themes within the data (Braun & Clark, 2006). This method goes beyond only counting words or phrases in texts, but it organizes and describes the data set in detail. It can be used for various types of data such as interview data, data from observations as well as written texts (Braun & Clark, 2006). The process of the present research builds on a thematic comparison of the results of the 10 case studies. Those themes that are identified in each case are considered as differentiation tools. Therefore, if a pattern is only found in a negligible proportion of the cases, that does not gain significant relevance. According to Braun & Clark (2006) a theme captures something important about the data in relation to the research question, and represents some level of patterned response or meaning within the data set. In sum, this study uses a thematic analysis, which is driven by the researcher’s theoretical or analytic interest in the area. The thesis examines themes across groups and concepts and looking for similarities and differences.

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4. Results

The following chapter summarizes the results of the research by following the structure of the conceptual framework.

4.1. Value proposition

4.1.1. Connecting people

Kietzmann et al. (2011) state that social media sites foster conversation among individuals as well as groups. The analysis also demonstrates that connecting people and facilitating interactions is one of the essential value propositions of social media. In order to constantly connect with people, DJs tend to follow some kind of strategy. On the one hand, they regularly update their social media sites, which helps them stay connected to the fans. Moreover, as the detailed themes also illustrate, they use some tools to extend their relationship with fellow artists, followers and other relevant actors within the industry. For instance, DJs often promote other musicians, which results in an encouraging environment. Tiesto’s manager underlies this statement by claiming that EDM is a highly supportive environment - compared to other music genres - where the market players are more willing to help to each other (Freeman, 2015).

This thesis attempts to dive deeper and answer specifically how DJs connect people and build communities on their social media sites. By reflecting on the conceptual framework, two pre-identified themes are investigated in the research.

Connecting by using tags and hashtags

While specifically focusing on whether DJs use tags and hashtags on their social media sites the following pattern is discovered. When DJs share any kind of content on their platform, they are highly likely to include tags and hashtags in the text – see Appendix 1. In most cases, these tags and hashtags remark the name of an event and/or a fellow artists. However, tagging the

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location, sponsors, friends and record labels also occur among the posts. The content of the hashtags however can vary endlessly. It only depends on the content generator – in this case the DJ –, what kind of text he or she writes after the # symbol. In certain cases, the DJs create their own hashtag and place it within their social media content to increase awareness among followers. For instance, Hardwell frequently uses #hoa as a hashtag – meaning Hardwell on air - which directs to his website, where the followers can get access to music, videos and additional relevant content. Armin Van Buuren provides another example. He often attaches #aoembrace – Armin only embrace – in his posts, which signifies the name of the DJ’s current world concert tour. The artist consistently promotes his upcoming concert by using the #aoembrace hashtag. The hashtag creates a community by leading the followers to a Facebook page which specifically focuses on the concert tour and provides related content. These findings are in connection with to Bruns and Burgess’ statement (2011), as the authors claim that hashtags facilitate the emergence and formation of certain kinds of communities, including the people, forming and responding very quickly in relation to a particular event or issue.

However, as stated above, there are mutual topics among the observed artists that can be found frequently.