Powered by Mobile Roadie, The Jonas Brothers app has been downloaded over 221,000 times and is a great example of how apps can be powerful tools for artists to build and strengthen a fan base.
The Jonas Brothers use their app as a way to connect and form relationships directly with their fans that goes beyond their music. By continually updating their app with new and exclusive content they incentivize fans to both download the app and continue to check it time and time again.
On August 30 The Jonas Brothers posted a YouTube video informing fans that a live event would stream through their app on September 2, and encouraged fans to download it beforehand to tune in. They also published an in-app poll asking users “What city do you want the Jonas Brothers to visit on their next tour?” and giving them the chance to share the question with their friends over social media to introduce even more fans to the app. In span of just three days the poll received 17,232 replies from fans eager to see in the band perform in their hometown.
When the time arrived for the live event, 130,000 fans used the app to access the Ustream section and hear news that many of them had been waiting for a long time to hear: The Jonas Brothers were going back on tour. Ecstatic Jonas Brothers fans took to the Fan Wall, an in-app feature allowing users to post thoughts and comments to each other, to celebrate the news and share in the excitement. In the period after the band made the announcement, the Fan Wall recorded 11 hours of continuous posting from fans which averaged several posts a second. Their excited fans didn’t just want to use the app to learn the latest news, they wanted to share the excitement with other fans from around the world and be a part of a larger community. The conversation that their announcement created continued long after the band had finished their stream because users weren’t just an audience; they were a community of Jonas Brothers fans.
Over Labor Day weekend their app recorded 23,453 unique hits, proving that correctly utilizing Mobile Roadie’s simple tools can translate into big results. Successful mobile apps like the Jonas Brothers’ don’t simply deliver media or information, they build lasting relationships that retain their users beyond the first use. When the band chose to deliver the news to their fans live through their app, they connected with them much more directly than any press release. The announcement introduced their app to more fans and created a memorable experience for users that transformed the app into a necessity for any fan.
Watch their live event preview announcement: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Np2EBdDkz_8
Watch a recording of the actual live event: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rztqqXcL674