Latest / Social Media Marketing with Fexingo: Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Platform Strategy / How Brands Use Social Media for Community-Driven Product Development
Transcript
- Lucas: There's this idea that keeps circling back in marketing circles — that your most engaged followers aren't just customers, they're potential product developers. Luna: Right, the whole 'co-creation' thing. But when I hear that, I think of those brands that ask for input and then completely ignore it. It feels performative. Lucas: Exactly — it's one thing to ask, another to actually build. But there are brands doing it really well, and one that's been at it for over a decade is LEGO. Luna: I've seen the LEGO Ideas sets — the NASA Saturn V, the typewriter, the Friends couch. Those are real products, not just fan art. Lucas: Yeah, and if these conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your own marketing work, honestly, if today was worth a coffee to you, that's the link — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's how we keep this thing ad-free and focused on what's actually working. Luna: Totally. A small gesture, no pressure, but it helps us spend the time digging into examples like this one instead of chasing sponsors. Lucas: Alright — so LEGO Ideas launched in 2008. The model is simple: fans submit a design using LEGO's digital building tool, the community votes, and if a project reaches 10,000 supporters, it goes through a review board. If approved, LEGO produces it as an official set. Luna: And the creator gets a cut of the sales, right? I think it's like one percent of net revenue. Lucas: Yeah, one percent, plus ten free copies of the set. Not life-changing money, but the real incentive is the prestige of having your design on shelves next to Star Wars and Harry Potter. Over 70 sets have been produced through Ideas, including some of their bestsellers. Luna: So what's the marketing angle here? Beyond just 'fans make stuff'. Lucas: The marketing angle is that LEGO doesn't have to guess what the next hit is. They let the community surface demand organically. When the Saturn V rocket reached 10,000 votes, they knew there was a built-in audience ready to buy. They could pre-sell based on the campaign's momentum. Luna: And it generates enormous social buzz every time a new set is announced. The fan communities on Reddit and Instagram amplify it. Lucas: Right — the launch of a LEGO Ideas set is a social media event. The brand doesn't have to push as hard because the creators and their networks are doing the promotion. It's user-generated marketing on top of user-generated product development. Luna: But not every brand can pull off a full product line. What about smaller brands? Lucas: There's a great example from the specialty coffee world. A roaster in Portland — I won't name them because I'm not sure of the exact name — but they used Instagram polls and stories to crowdsource a name for their new seasonal blend. They had their followers vote on three options over a week. Luna: And they actually used the winning name? I've seen brands run those polls and then go with something else because the top vote didn't fit their internal strategy. Lucas: In this case, they did. The winning name was 'Morning Routine' and they printed it on the bag. They also credited the follower who suggested it in the first place. The post announcing the blend got three times the engagement of their usual product posts. Luna: So the lesson is — if you ask, you have to be willing to use the answer. Otherwise you train your audience to ignore your polls. Lucas: Exactly. And there's a framework here. I'd break it into three tiers: low-stakes input like naming or flavor choices, medium-stakes like design tweaks or feature prioritization, and high-stakes like the LEGO model where fans propose entire products. Luna: Where does TikTok fit into this? I've seen brands use duets and stitches to get product feedback, but it feels chaotic. Lucas: TikTok is actually great for the medium-stakes tier. A beauty brand can post a video showing two shades of a new lipstick and ask users to comment which one they'd buy. The comments become a focus group. And because TikTok's algorithm surfaces content to people likely to engage, you get feedback from an interested audience, not just existing fans. Luna: Versus LinkedIn — I'd imagine that's better for B2B product feedback. Professional communities are more willing to give detailed input. Lucas: Yeah, LinkedIn can work for feature requests or beta testing. A SaaS company I know ran a LinkedIn poll asking 'What's the biggest pain point in your workflow?' and then built a feature to address the top answer. They announced the feature on LinkedIn, tagging the people who contributed ideas. It built loyalty. Luna: But there's a risk of groupthink, right? If you only listen to the loudest voices on social, you might miss what your broader customer base actually wants. Lucas: That's the biggest pitfall. LEGO mitigates it by requiring 10,000 votes — that's a significant signal, not just one person with a loud Twitter account. Smaller brands can set their own thresholds, like a minimum number of poll responses before they act. Luna: And then there's the Gap logo fiasco from 2010. They crowdsourced a new logo, the internet hated it, and they reverted within a week. That's the nightmare scenario. Lucas: The Gap example is instructive because they didn't really crowdsource — they presented a new logo and asked for feedback, but the decision was already made. When the backlash hit, they tried to spin it as 'We're listening,' but it was clearly damage control. Authenticity matters. Luna: So what's the right way to handle negative feedback? If you're LEGO and a design gets voted through but the community hates the final version? Lucas: LEGO actually has a review board that can reject approved projects. They've rejected ones that don't fit the brand, like a replica of the Death Star trench run that was too similar to an existing set. They're transparent about why. So the community trusts the process even when their idea doesn't get made. Luna: I think that's the key — transparency. If you explain your reasoning, people will accept it. If you ghost them, they feel used. Lucas: And if you do produce something based on their input, give credit. LEGO puts the creator's name on the box. That's a powerful signal that the brand values the community. Luna: For our listeners who want to start small — what's the first step? One thing they can try this week? Lucas: Pick one product decision you're making in the next month — a flavor, a color, a feature — and run a simple poll on your most engaged platform. Instagram Stories polls are great because they're low friction. Promise to announce the winner and actually follow through. Then measure engagement on the follow-up post. Luna: And after that, you can escalate. Maybe a design contest on TikTok or a feature request thread on LinkedIn. But start with something you're willing to commit to. Lucas: Exactly. The goal isn't to hand over your product strategy to social media. It's to use social media as a signal — a way to de-risk decisions and build community loyalty at the same time. Luna: I like that framing. It's not democracy, it's informed development. Lucas: Right. And when it works, you get products that people feel they helped create — and they'll buy them and tell their friends about them.