Explaining BTS' Ability To Collect Fans w/ Science!

[A THREAD]

For some time now, I've been fascinated with BTS's ability to garner new and very loyal fans.

While ARMY promo played a role in recruiting awesome individuals into our ranks, one could argue that BTS, through their content and charisma, is at the heart of why people stay.

I was curious if I could make the case, using science, for why so many people elect to join the fandom, allowing BTS to enjoy a very active, loyal, continuously growing fan base.

So let's try!

I. BTS & The Brain: Sharing Is Caring

A while back, I created a thread discussing how BTS enjoyment likely triggers the reward center in your brain, incentivizing you to continue to enjoy the group and their music. https://twitter.com/sweetbtstea/status/946953998875193344

The thread more or less addressed enjoyment on an individual level, but part of the pleasure that comes with enjoying BTS's music, videos, and various other content comes with sharing it with other people.

According to Jonah Berger, who wrote a 2011 study for Psychological Science, "When people are physiologically aroused, whether due to emotional stimuli or otherwise, the autonomic nervous is activated, which then boosts social transmission." https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0956797611413294

In other words, if something moves you, you're going to want to share it. I suspect the more overwhelming the material, the greater the desire to share.

I think ARMY's fandom growth is partially driven *by* our desire to share BTS-related material & interact.

BTS is able to gather fans because they make such a positive early impression.

They cause people to:

(1) continue to engage to further experience "the feels"
(2) actively share their experiences with people they know as well as strangers. Thus we get a cycle.

II. Gaining & Retaining Fans In Waves

It's pretty clear that when it comes to gaining fans, BTS's primary strength is garnering new fans in overlapping waves.

Sort of like this:

PROMO PERIOD (new fans) >> INACTIVE PERIOD (new fans) >> NEXT PROMO PERIOD (returning + new fans)

It's fun to watch BABY ARMY experience their first comeback/period of promotion, something widely treated as a rite of passage.

There are various rites of passage in ARMY, and I'd argue that a part of the reason BTS retains fans is that newer fans anticipate experiencing their-

own rites of passage, thus having more and more in common with older fans.

As these fans garner exciting experiences that bring them closer to the rest of the fandom, they move further along in their happy stanning, and behind them is the latest wave of "Baby ARMY."

BTS's ability to gain & retain loyal fans could be seen as a direct result of how individuals behave in seeking groups & how they behave after joining them.

"Joining groups satisfies our need to belong, gain information and understanding through social comparison, define our sense of self and social identity, and achieve goals that might elude us if we worked alone."
- Donelson R. Forsyth, University of Richmond

^^^
https://nobaproject.com/modules/the-psychology-of-groups

That last part is an incredibly accurate description of ARMY. When working apart, we might find certain tasks overwhelming, but when operating as part of a massive fandom, we set amazing goals and the rush of achieving them is very intense.

And so, new ARMY could join the fandom out of curiosity & the initial positive sensations, but then stay due to fulfilling various needs, whether it's the need to belong, the comfort that comes with feeling part of something bigger than one's self, or the encouragement to grow.

III. In This Bangtan Sh!t For Life: BTS & Participatory Culture

ARMY could be seen as participatory culture, a concept that's set up as being opposite to consumer culture. ARMYs do consume, but we *also* produce an incredible amount of content in our own right.

( http://sk.sagepub.com/books/social-media-a-critical-introduction/n3.xml)

Look at all the fan accounts who share everything from recipes to interactive fan fiction to thread discussions. We inspire BTS content and BTS content inspires us! It's not a situation that begins and ends with transactions.

Through official activities like ARMYpedia and Connect BTS as well as unofficial experiences like funding @ONEInAnArmy or @fundsforbangtan, ARMYs link up to participate in activities that causes our community culture to expand and evolve.

BTS members interact directly with the fandom and facilitate means of the fandom members to continuously interact with and engage each other.

As people become more involved in these activities, it strengthens the desire of many fans to remain and continue these interactions.

The combination allows each person to develop fandom experiences that keep them mentally and emotionally invested. When you feel part of something and like your investment matters, you're more likely to stay.

SO, HOW TO EXPLAIN BTS GAINING/RETAINING FANS...

Based on my Diet Coke-driven peer-reviewed research, I'd argue that BTS is able to collect new fans for a few key reasons:

1.) Endless visibility due to having ARMYs be active & engaged during and between promotions. We basically never shut up.

2.) Encountering content that leaves a strong positive initial impression, followed by a series of further positive encounters, snowballing into a desire to repeat positive experiences as well as share them with others (which repeats the cycle of discovery and sharing)

3.) In addition to gaining fans, BTS is able to retain fans because of the high quality of their music, the enjoyable nature of their non-music content and the active effort of ARMY to keep new fans encouraged and engaged. BTS are genuine and welcoming and ARMY gatekeeping is-

something that, while it exists, is far different than other niches/communities seeking to limit new members or abuse them. BTS is able to retain fans due to an open desire by ARMY to court and convert as many new fans as possible.

4.) ARMY is more of a participatory culture in that we aren't satisfied by being passive consumers. We are active in how we spend money and use our joint power as well as constantly seeking positive ways to engage fellow fandom members.

CONCLUSION

First, diet coke is amazing. I am going to be awake for the rest of the night.

Second, I think it's clear that, logically, BTS is earning organic engagement and they will retain enough fans to enjoy significant global fame for many years to come.

BTS have great personalities, a wonderful story worth cheering for, and an incredibly solid discography. They are easy for fans to introduce to others. They have a strong positive vibe that will continue to draw people to them, especially those seeking enjoyable experiences.

/THREAD

QUESTION:

BTS definitely has a strong fan attraction/retention rate as well as an incredibly high engagement when compared to other celebrities.

Why do YOU think that is?