The 3 Hidden Reasons Fans Pay You (And It’s Not the Music)

If you think generating revenue without streaming is hard, it's not! It's so simple that you're missing the point every day! We're all in the same boat—streaming is a tool more than a lucrative opportunity—and I'm going to give you three fan behavior types you need to sell directly to in order to monetize your fanbase without streaming.

Currently, you're probably developing your plan to jump on the direct-to-consumer wave. Congratulations on your mindset shift—you've made it! However, as soon as you made the shift, you probably said, "I'm going to sell my album digitally and that's it." Ehh, wrong answer! People don't buy digital albums alone because they love you. No, they buy them because they're saying, "Aww, I want them to win," so they buy them to support your journey. Now, you get paid, but what about them—what do they really want? You're missing out on the reciprocal relationship that this potential artist-to-fan connection could be. That's why if you've already sold some D2C albums, it may have been unfulfilling for both sides: not enough money for you and not enough substance for them.

I came to this conclusion on two fronts. One, when I bought Pocket Queen's new EP on EVEN, and loved it! I listened first—the EP was amazing, she put her foot in it. I was in supporter mode, but as a music fan, I wanted more. There is proof of this expression in my Music Money Makers community because I recorded the live buying process and posted it. The second realization was when I was at a live single release listening party with Kennedy Ryon, and she shouted me out as well as others. Inside, it made me feel some type of way, and I'll explain it in a bit.

So there were two feelings: one of unfulfilled desire and one of fulfilled desire. It was at this moment I realized I felt acknowledged in one aspect but was unfulfilled in the payoff I expected in the other aspect. So let me break it down because you're going to need to understand this if you want to monetize without streaming.

Grand Fan Rule #1: Fans Want Access

Most people think fans want the show. Don't get me wrong, they do, but the reality of a new artist being able to afford to put on shows consistently early in their careers is a tough feat, especially if they don't have the pull, favors, and money to do it. That milestone takes time. Fans come to the show because they truly want access. Therefore, you can start monetizing without streaming or a live show through: Private Digital Spaces, Early Access & Unreleased Content, Virtual & In-Person Interactions, and Exclusive Events & IRL Experiences. Many times, when you have these in-person interactions, listening parties, intimate acoustic shows, and meet and greets are all they want—access to you. Implementing this into your monetizing process as you grow will be key to your survival in this music game.

Grand Fan Rule #2: Fans Want to Feel Acknowledged

If you're an artist, yes, you want to feel acknowledged for your work as an artist, but your fans are people too, and they want to feel acknowledged that you see them supporting you as they are a part of your army. This is what Kennedy Ryon did for me. The thing about acknowledgment is it's a basic human desire that feeds the ego but also makes you feel at ease when there is enough of it. So you can start monetizing your acknowledgment in these ways: Personalized Shoutouts & Gifts, Recognition in Public & Digital Spaces (which is what happened with me), and Engagement & Fan Contributions. If you apply these aspects to your monetization strategy, it will get you more word of mouth than ever because you made that fan feel seen! That's all it is.

Grand Fan Rule #3: Fans Want to Feel Achieved

If by this point you still think fans want a product, they don't—they only want their desire fulfilled. For me, this is what I wanted with Pocket Queen. I wanted to feel like I was a part of the creation process with more in-depth behind-the-scenes footage and fun facts about the album creation process. I would have paid more for this footage. This gives me more information to share when someone asks me about new music or when it's prime time in a conversation to mention her. This is how word of mouth is created: with information. Even though that's part of feeling achieved, with additional information, you can also sell that feeling to fans with Interactive Fan Challenges & Leaderboards that reward them for being a part of your process, Participation in Creative Projects, Milestone-Based Perks, Co-Creation Opportunities, and Meet & Greet Tiers. Again, as the artist, we're selling feelings to our fans in addition to the music, so by making them feel achieved, these fans feel the most special of all three fan behavior types.

Here's What You Don't Want to Do!

Here's what you don't want to do. You don't want to make these experiences free. Especially if you have great talent, because then fans won't see you as important in their eyes. They also won't see that you value yourself and what you create. Also, you've got to think, if they value you, why would you devalue yourself? Remember, fans want to pay you for the feelings of access, acknowledgment, and achievement. In fact, they already expect to pay you for it, so don't put everybody into one pot. If you do that, you do what I call cannibalizing your fanbase, and people who want to be VIP end up in the same category as General Admission. Just like people who want to fly first class don't want to be in the back with the coach flyers. Doing this is a recipe for failure.

The Near Future

If anything, fan culture and behavior is shifting to a place where they expect these offerings to be there for them. Prepare your offerings so you can get the money needed to fund your career from the inside. This is where the industry is headed, and the cool thing is I don't see this as a place of over-saturation because it takes a while for a person to become a die-hard fan enough to pay you more than once. So in a sense, this is an achievement process for you as well to build your tribe—there is a sense of gamification at play here. Not only is it exciting to create music and put it out, but it's also exciting to create and cultivate a culture and feed it ultimately to change the culture of music at large.

Start with building an email list first so you can test your consistency with your potential fans, and then move into a subscription-based product that works for you. You'll be glad you started.

Here's What You Can Do!

In every moment, you have a choice to move forward. But the one thing you can't do is sit on the fence. It's just which side of the fence will you hop down on—the side where you keep things the same or the side where you push forward, even if it's just inch by inch. At least you're moving forward. Because the real question isn't "should you do this?"—it's "how much longer can you afford NOT to build a fan culture for your fans and your pockets?"

We talk about strategies like this in the Music Money Makeover community on select Thursday nights at 7 PM EST during the pulse sessions and during our weekly Q&A call on Monday nights at 7 PM EST. Join the Music Money Makers Crew so you don't have to do this alone.

What if Selling to These Fan Types Doesn't Work?

Selling to different fan types isn't the real challenge—the real issue is not having a clear strategy for engaging them. The beauty of these fan types is that they're based on fundamental human desires that will never change. So you can bet on them. Now, when you understand and cater to these core needs (access, acknowledgment, and achievement), you're tapping into proven psychological principles that work across all audiences. Even if you're just starting out, you can begin with simple, authentic interactions based on these core needs that make your fans feel valued. But here's the reality of it all—implementing fan engagement strategies doesn't require huge chunks of time. You can start with just 15-30 minutes a day, focusing on one fan type at a time. The key is consistency over intensity. Serve your customers with great customer service.

What's It Going to Cost to Ignore the Fans

Ignoring your fans' needs can lead to devastating consequences for your music career. First, you'll miss out on building genuine connections that could turn casual listeners into dedicated supporters willing to invest in your journey. Without cultivating these relationships, you'll struggle to create sustainable income streams beyond streaming, leaving potential revenue and growth opportunities untapped. Most importantly, you risk losing the very people who could become your most powerful advocates and word-of-mouth marketers.

At The End of the Day

If you were struggling with monetizing your fanbase without streaming, you now know the human behaviors (Access, Acknowledgment, Achievement) to target in order to scale your fan culture quickly.