This week FoxNews.com offered up a review of the new Jimmy Buffett album “Buffett Hotel”, saying the album is one to skip.  According to Fox, the only people who will like it are Parrotheads.

So what’s the problem?

The Parrotheads, like the oft-written about Deadheads, number in the millions.  They care deeply about their favorite artist and his music.  They will buy his new album, go to his concerts, eat at his Margaritaville restaurants, wear his branded clothing, and drink his Landshark beer.  And it doesn’t matter one bit what FoxNews or any other reviewer says.  In fact, a quick look at other review sites brings up phrases like “typical Buffett fare” and “no surprises here”.

Perfect.

At one time, the prevailing thought was that the masses matters. Today, a more “long tail” type of thinking dominates.

Jimmy Buffett doesn’t need to appeal to a bunch of new fans. He has an incredibly loyal group of hard-core fans who are going to buy the new album.  And if it is “typical Buffett fare” and offers “no surprises”, they are going to love it.

What would you rather have… a million fans who are only mildly interested in your business or a thousand passionate raving lunatics?  The cost-of-sale to those million mildly interested people is very high, and the chances of repeat business are low.  But to those thousand raving lunatics, you are gold.  Cost-of-sale is minimal.  Keep them happy, and you’ll never go hungry.

And if you do happen to get hungry, Jimmy Buffett will be happy to sell you a “Cheeseburger in Paradise” at any one of his Margaritaville locations.

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