Why Taylor Swift is good for business

Ted MarzilliCEO YouGov Direct
July 11, 2019, 6:06 PM GMT+0

Taylor Swift is everywhere these days.

The “Shake It Off” singer is getting ready to drop a new album in August titled “Lover”, and like previous releases, it will only be available at Target.

Swift also helped Amazon celebrate its annual Prime Day by putting on a live concert that will only be streamed to Prime customers (if you’re not a member, you have to sign up to see the show).

In the past she’s appeared in Got Milk campaigns and helped hawk Apple Music.

According to YouGov data, there’s a reason brands align with the singer. Taylor Swift Fans are highly attuned to advertising.

First of all, she’s well known: 97 percent of Americans have heard of the pop star, according to YouGov Ratings data. What’s more, half of America has a positive opinion of her and just 21 percent have negative feelings.

YouGov’s Plan and Track tool gives us a look at just who is a Swift fan. We compared the answers of 3,800 individuals that have expressed a positive opinion about Swift, or Swift Fans, to those the rest of the country and looked for differences on a range of issues. Advertising jumps out.

Swift fans were more likely than average Americans to agree with a host of statements about advertising, including enjoying watching their favorite celebrity in advertising campaigns.

This group, it seems, is also more highly attuned to seeing advertising than the average American. They were more likely to say they noticed advertisements all around them.

Brands have more to love about Swift fans, too, because they’re more likely to be proselytizers. Taylor Swift fans were more likely than average Americans to say that they “love recommending things.”

From a brand perspective, Swift is an ideal partner. Not only does she resonate positively with at least half of America, her fans seem to absorb advertising messages more than most Americans do. And, in a lot of cases, they seem more likely to pass along the message as a recommendation to a friend or family member, or to post on social media.

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