5 Effects of the Death of the Follower on Creators
It has been over a year since Jack Conte made one of the best cultural observations of 2024 – the Death of the Follower. Here’s how the talk was framed –
With the rapid evolution of the internet, it can be increasingly difficult for creators to find their audience and build community. What has become the “traditional” form of engagement—liking and following your favorite authors, musicians, artists, etc.—doesn’t always result in a sustainable lifestyle for creators.
Co-founder and CEO of Patreon, Jack Conte, joined the 2024 SXSW Conference as a keynote speaker this March to discuss the current state of algorithmic social platforms, the progression of the internet, his personal transition from musician to tech company founder, and more.
Since 2013, Patreon has been home to over 250,000 creators who are directly supported by more than 8 million members. Using his personal experience with music, Conte set out to bridge the gap between creators and audiences who were willing to pay them for their work.
Conte credits YouTube for playing a pivotal role in Web 2.0, a huge milestone. It allowed he and his wife’s band, Pomplamoose, to foster a community of fans and provide them with meaningful experiences.
The subscribe button was foundational. It changed YouTube from being a tool to reach people, to being a way to reach them and then build a following around my work. The subscribe button allowed the people who liked my stuff to sign up to see more of it in the future. As a creator it gave me a channel of distribution to ensure that my future work was sent to those people.” – Jack Conte
Within the last four years, Conte has found it increasingly difficult to get his fans to see his work. He explains that we’re currently experiencing another shift in the history of the web, one he calls the “death of the follower”. Conte believes that the work that is being done at Patreon “will create a better way for art and community to exist on the internet.”
“I know that it is possible to build an internet where fandoms thrive and where professional creativity is possible for anyone. I believe this in my bones. It is not a choice, it’s not optimism, it’s just deep down what I actually know to be available to humanity if that is the path that we choose.” – Jack Conte
I don’t think this video got enough attention – at all. And even the attention that it did get…I don’t think the Internet & creators truly got it.
I have had a small career in the same era that Conte talks about. The formula was pretty straightforward. It was – people find one thing you made; they like it; they ask to see more of what you made via email, social, notifications, etc. When you made your next thing – you could plan ahead based on your followers.
That world is gone. For You won. The follower is dead.
I have zero idea on how this affects culture and consumers of culture. I still have no idea how historians will look back at this and whether future humans will decide if it’s a “good” thing or a “bad” thing. But after watching this idea play out for a year, I have a few notes.
Power Laws Are Even More Extreme
Hannah Hooper of Grouplove (one of the best bands ever IMO) once shared on Twitter/X that one song (Tongue Tied) has more streams than all of their 80+ songs, combined. And those 80 include plenty of other hits that appeared on commercials, movies, and video games.
This power law curve will just keep getting sharper. Popular hits will be even more popular than ever before…but the long tail will also get longer.
Lindy’s Law Matters
Lindy’s Law (or Effect) is that the longer something has existed, the longer it is likely to continue existing. There is something about just…surviving that increases your odds of making it.
This is a tough one because some projects can’t hold on forever, but I also think there is a lot of scope & creativity for maintenance mode. I love podcast creators who craft “seasons” instead of a continual production process. Just existing and slowly accruing fans over time is a weird form of cultural compound interest.
Quantity of Experiments Matter More To You & Less To Fans
Ok – this one is counterintuitive and scary. But here’s the thing – no one sees your stuff. It used to be a challenge to experiment with a following. Now – you can (and should) try everything, all the time.
If the follower is dead…then there’s no one to judge. Try stuff. Lots of stuff. Workshop in public. Yes – there is something to true craft that will never go away.
And yes – there is potential for a move to kakonomics but I also think the Death of the Follower can allow us to return to a world that stage performers never left – workshopping on a small public scale until you find something that hits.
A Findable Homebase That You Own Is Even More Important
I love a good, well-designed, informative website on its own domain. But I also know that the big platforms are where the action is. Creators simply do not need to spend time building & designing fancy, comprehensive websites anymore.
But what every creator needs now, more than ever, is something that is findable for super-fans. Word of mouth still trounces every algorithm and share button.
But you know what kills word of mouth? Trying to find a profile / video / link on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, X/Twitter, Threads, etc, etc.
People still Google – and they are mostly just trying to find something reliable to navigate to. A one-pager, Linktree, Blogger, WordPress.com, Substack, Gravatar, Soloist, etc – all are better than a buried profile.
No One Knows What They Are Doing
No one. Everyone is guessing. This is a whole new world. The exciting part, though, is that anyone can be right. There is no tried and true way anymore. Good luck goes to whoever is trying stuff out and is in the right spot at the right time.
