165: Charlie Copsey on bringing fans experiences that aren’t f*ing boring

This week we tried to arrange a VIP brand event for Call To Action® fans in an abandoned toilet brush factory, all just to prove our cool credentials to Charlie Copsey, the founder of Underground Fan Club.Having conquered the media mountain earlier in her career – working in TV, radio and film with the likes of Johnny Vaughan and her good pal Colin Murray – Charlie realised that her next great mission would be to rescue fan experiences from the desperately dull doldrums they were in at the time. From there Underground Fan Club was born – a studio devoted to producing more memorable, more believable and more exciting experiences between brands, fans and talent. At the heart of the mission is something many marketers bang on about with no clue, or care, about what it means in reality – authentic connections with your most valuable audience, something Charlie is already proving to be much more than the same old brand baloney.  There’s an increasingly long line of brands queuing up for the Underground treatment but luckily for your ears and brains, CTA is nothing if not a queue jumper. In an episode that’s all about fans, super-fans, stan-fans and ceiling fans (not that one) we learn what it takes for your brand to actually mean something more to the people you’re doing it all for.This episode is proudly dedicated to Colin Murray. ///// 04:09 - Studying Drama at Loughborough 10:12 - Working with Johnny Vaughan 12:28 - The Evolution of Fighting Talk and Live Events 16:38 - Identifying the Gap: Connecting Talent and Fans 17:52 - Building Underground Fan Club: The First Event 20:32 - The Importance of Authentic Experiences 22:21 - Navigating Brand Partnerships 26:13 - Finding the Right Brand Partners 28:05 - Balancing Involvement in Events 32:29 - The Challenges of Running a BusinessCharlie’s Book Recommendations are:Careless People - Sarah Wynn-WilliamsShoe Dog – Phil Knight Losing my Virginity – Richard Branson/////