Taylor Swift just released her tenth studio album this past week, and is ✨easily✨ considered one of the most successful artists — winning 11 Grammy’s (with 42 nominations) and a net worth of around $400M.

What’s the secret to that success? Well, if you ask us, it isn’t just pure talent or luck or hard work. We think it’s due to the fact that Taylor Swift has a marketing brain and knows how to use it to her advantage.

She has a strategy.

Whether it’s surrounding her album releases; hidden easter eggs; documentaries; interviews; or collaborations, everything Taylor does has a purpose.

In a Rolling Stone interview, one of her former producers, Nathan Chapman, stated, “Taylor was writing with a bigger scope in mind than just a studio album” (Rolling Stone, 2018).

We once watched an interview where she said everything she does is planned years in advanced. That’s right: YEARS.

If you look back over her releases, all of her albums (with the exception of Reputation and Folklore) were released on almost the same schedule: two years apart. We’re assuming that would mean she’s working on producing her album as well as planning out her content surrounding its release at least TWO YEARS in advance.

She understands her target audience and the importance of storytelling.

The Swiftie community is like none-other. You can get lost down deep rabbit holes on almost any online platform of fan theories, analysis, updates, and more. And not only from teenaged girls crying over their latest breakup; her audience spans generations and continents.

So how did Taylor get such a loyal fan base? It’s because she knows her target audience and the importance of storytelling.

Taylor once said she considers herself a songwriter above all else, “I write songs and my voice in just a way to get those lyrics across” (The New Yorker, 2011).

She writes songs that are relatable at almost any age — coming of age, falling in love, getting your heart broken. But if you listen to just one of her songs, it paints an entire stand-alone story.

By understanding her target audience, she knows which stories are going to resonate the most, as well as what her fans will want.

Taylor is known for hiding “easter eggs” and her audience loves going on the hunt to try to crack the code. She knows that and uses it as a way to engage with them.

She uses social media to her advantage.

If you look at her social media, Taylor Swift is hardly the type to post every day. In fact, she really only consistently posts surrounding the release of an album. And when she does, she is using each platform to her advantage by leaning into its specific strength(s).

For the release of her latest album, Midnights, Taylor released a series of 13 TikTok videos where she revealed the song titles using bingo balls. Those videos together have over 74M views!

She isn’t afraid of change.

Taylor Swift released her first album in 2006 at the age of 16. Now almost 33, it’s safe to say that she’s grown up a lot since then. And her audience has grown with her.

In an interview, Taylor once said, “When other kids were watching normal shows, I’d watch Behind the Music. And I would see these bands that were doing so well, and I’d wonder what went wrong. I thought about this a lot. And what I established in my brain was that a lack of self-awareness was always the downfall. That was always the catalyst for the loss of relevance and the loss of ambition and the loss of great art” (GQ, 2015).

She seems to have really taken that to heart, because she’s continued to remain self-aware; to grow and pivot and embrace where she’s currently at — and it’s paid off by allowing her audience to grow with her and embrace who they are, too. It’s part of what’s (likely) kept her relevant for the past 16 years.

What does this mean for your business?

Want to learn from Taylor Swift and apply these lessons to your own business?

1. Start with a clear strategy — what is the purpose behind what you do?
2. Understand your audience — who are you trying to reach?
3. Incorporate storytelling — why should your audience care about what you do? How does it relate to them?
4. Use social media — social media is a great, free tool that can be helpful in engaging with your audience and building brand awareness.
5. Embrace change — it’s okay for your business to pivot and grow. In fact, it’s necessary.

Need help applying these principles? Check out our Content Strategy Embracive to delve more into creating a strategy; identifying your audience; and how to incorporate social media. Or hop on a consultation call with us to pick our brain. Remember, you’re not in this alone and we’re here to help!

📸: @taylorswift