Q: Hello! Welcome to my interview. This interview is aimed for my MA project which is focus on fandom economy. This interview is recorded and only for academic using. OK, let’s start, what is your name, occupation, age, and whose fan are you?
A: Xiaolvhua, unemployed currently, used to be a game copywriter. 25 years old. I am a fan of many people and spend almost the same money. Arashi (a Japanese boy idol group) is the one who I loved the most in terms of time.
Q: Do you think you paid a lot of money for your idol?
A: I think I spend less in the group of people who spend money.
Q: How much you spent, approximately?
A: I can’t figure it out because I don’t record how much I spent, but I think more than 5000 yuan, I don’t remember some of the money I spent.
Q: How often do you buy side-products? Or are you going to a concert or something else?
A: The number of times I buy side-products depends on the number of concerts they hold, because every time they hold concerts, there are something I want to buy, as well as concert DVDs. At that time, I will spend a lot of money. I usually buy albums and photos if no concerts there.
Q: So in your opinion you don’t think you spent too much. And you’re not all in, are you?
A: I may all in the products of the member I like, for example, the photos of the members I like, because they are not expensive, that is, just more than 100 yuan.
Q: All in photos are really not expensive, but what about towels and fans and other side products of the concert? Will you also all in?
A: I don’t buy those because I don’t go offline concerts.
Q: How did you feel when you paid for your idols? For example, to see him get the business value because you buy something, do you have a sense of achievement and fulfillment, or do you feel happy just because you spend money?
A: Both a little bit. But, I think spending money makes me feel more happy, because happiness is bought for myself.
Q: Because my idea of designing this question is that if I spend money on other things, I can also feel happy, do you agree?
A: How much happiness is different, right? For example, if I buy things with the same amount of money, I will get more happiness by buying things with idols than normal stuff. Price is equivalent, but different values.
Q: Do you think there are any other feelings besides the sense of achievement and happiness?
A: Nothing really, mainly because on the one hand, they are national idols in Japan. In fact, I don’t think the money I spend will have any impact on them, but it may have a greater impact on myself. Every time I see them get, like very normal good grades, I still feel that “I have my share of this grade!”
Q: If you often buy products of brand A, and your idols speaks for its competitor Brand B, will you give up brand A and buy brand B?
A: I think I am a very realistic person. In this case, I will see which brand is useful to me.
Q: What if the two products are very similar? For example, the effect is the same, and the price is the same.
A: Then I will buy brand B!
Q: If the two products are similar, you will buy them. If they are very different, you will consider them, right?
A: Yes.
Q: Suppose that your idols now endorse a product of a brand, for example, a lipstick, but you don’t like the brand very much, will you still buy this product because you like your idols? Why?
A: I don’t think I would buy it because I have had this experience before. He did speak for a brand I didn’t like, and then I didn’t buy it.
Q: Then, for example, if they endorse Zara and UNIQLO, will you not buy them because of some national feelings?
A: Yes, ha ha ha ha ha! And my experience is similar to this.
Q: Do you think that because your idols speak for a brand, this brand must be good and worth buying? Or will you improve your view of the brand because your idols endorse the brand?
A: Not really. I may improve my opinion about my idols.
Q: You will think why he took the advertisement of this brand, right?
A: Right!
Q: But this is something he cannot decide by himself, right?
A: In this case, I will scold the company!
Q: So which means your opinions towards a brand will from many other aspects, such as the history of the brand?
A: Evaluation, maybe. I think what I read most is evaluation. The evaluation of people who have bought these things will not make me blindfold because of idols.
Q: That means you still don’t have the enough money to care about nothing. Because my precise question is how the brand can reasonably use the fandom economy to increase sales numbers, so I asked you these questions.
A: But I’m the kind of person, like, if idol endorse this brand, I might not buy it, but if his private clothes is full of this brand, I would buy it. Sometimes I would buy it even if he didn’t endorse it.
Q: But is it possible that this kind of clothes he wears are also advertisement, not a public one?
A: I know, but I will buy it! Compared with his overt endorsement, the things he wears will make me more desire.
Q: It seems that I am that kind of person, too.
A: For example, Michieda Shunsuke, his group endorsed GU. He also wears many GU for his own clothes. It must be from the brand. I only bought the style he wears, not the one he endorses.
Q: Make sense, because I just bought a bag of the same color as my idol.
A: I think this is a different way to use the fandom economy.