The Maine: A Case Study?

Myspace stats: 64,559,416 total plays, 42,249 plays today, 226,914 friends. Member since 9/26/2004
Youtube stats: 67 videos, 29,173 subscribers, 708,581 channel views. Member since 8/28/2006
Buzznet stats: 31,181 friends, 3,790 photos, 307 videos, and 152 journal posts. Member since 8/1/2007

What do all of these numbers mean to a band two years young? A self-paved and well-paved road to success.

The Maine, hailing from Phoenix, Arizona, is a band only two years in the making, with the oldest member just old enough to get drunk [legally] at his own shows, the youngest just barely hitting the two decade mark. Their sound is decidedly pop-punk, leaning more towards the pop than the punk. Their music is catchy as hell, filled with sugary hooks and sweet melodies; the band consisting of strapping young lads, making tweens and teens swoon all across the country. (a touch hyperbolical, but you get what i mean.)

Their music is nothing groundbreaking in this excruciatingly over-saturated "pop-punk" market, but what sets The Maine apart from the sea of shaggy side-swept hair, skinny jeans, and catchy lovelorn sing-along choruses is what one could call their own configuration of Trent Reznor's CwF+RtB business model. Much of the band's success to date can be attributed to their dedication and focus on the CwF, connect with fans, part of the equation - utilizing social networking sites like Myspace, Youtube and Buzznet to their full advantage to remain very connected to their fans. More recently, the band has begun incorporating reason to buy to further fuel their success, releasing a deluxe version of their debut album, Can't Stop, Won't Stop, that includs a 30-minute digital documentary along with bonus tracks and music videos. The digital documentary can also be streamed for free online and bought separately on iTunes, providing fans multiple options to access the same content.

Before delving into why I think The Maine is a exemplary model of how the CwF+RtB model can work for small artists, I would like to acknowledge the fact that The Maine is still a VERY SMALL BAND. Do a random polling on the street and probably 1 out of 50 people, or even less, have heard of the band. Unless you're polling the line outside one of their shows, in which case the person (highly likely to be female, age 13-16), could probably name off all the members plus Pat Kirch's alter ego.

Since their inception, The Maine have utilized social networking sites to their full advantage, diligently establishing their viral fan base through constant communication via Myspace, as the band was still waiting on two members to graduate high school before they could get on the road. The Maine have used these sites to thoroughly chronicle their journey as a band, from videos of their first ever show to regular photo/video updates to periodic Q&A videos for each member with fan-submitted questions. The Maine recently launched a website for the band, which serves as an aggregator of all the content distributed throughout the band's various social networking sites. In addition, the "Assignments" and "Forum" sections of the site not only serve as another way for the band to connect with the fan, but also as way for the fans to connect with each other. Current assignments include:

"- Pen Pal: Start a pen pal thread with someone you have never met before within the maines message board! Create a unique project that you and your new "pen pal" can send to the guys!
- Favorite Memory Letter: Write the band a letter about your favorite memories with the band or their music!
- Fan Photos: Submit pictures of you with the band!

By including fans into the site experience, The Maine is amassing a great amount of user-generated content, which will undoubtedly come in handy at some point in time of their careers, because CONTENT IS KING.

Aside from all their viral efforts, The Maine has also been touring relentlessly for the past year, spending last summer on the "Soundtrack of Your Summer Tour", last fall on "The Compromising of Integrity, Morality and Principles in Exchange for Money" tour, this spring co-headlining the 2009 AP Tour, and a summer-long stint the Vans Warped Tour. (and they're still going strong, heading out on the road again on October 17). It is through touring that a band can really see the tangible growth of their fan base, from playing to a room of 30 to a sold-out show at the House of Blues. It is also through touring that a band gets the opportunity to connect with fans through actual face-to-face interaction, whether it be signing t-shirts, CDs and ticket stubs or posing for hours of photos with the fans after the shows.

The Maine claims they "Can't Stop, Won't Stop," and at the rate they're going, they probably won't be stopping anytime soon.