Collecting the Collectives:
Refining and Extending
Brand Community
ALBERT M. MUÑIZ, JR.
DEPAUL UNIVERSITY
YUN MI ANTORINI
AARHUS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS,
UNIVERSITY OF AARHUS
ACR
OCTOBER, 2011
Conceptual context
 After ten+ years of research, what the @#$%! do we
know?

Lots of interesting work
• Broderick, Maclaran & Ma, 2003; McAlexander, Kim & Roberts,
2003; Algesheimer, Dholakia & Herrmann, 2005; Muñiz & Schau,
2005; Cova & Pace, 2006; Carlson, Suter & Brown 2007; Ouwersloot
& Odekerken-Schröder, 2007; Fournier & Lee, 2009; Schau, Muñiz
& Arnould, 2009

Still a need for conceptual clarity
1) Over-use of the term
 2) politics of competing terms and constructs
 3) competing terms too often presented as an all or nothing sort of
thing.

Conceptual context
 In search of a multidimensional typology that
includes ideal types of community, tribes and
subcultures.

Advantages (Lesage & Wechlter, 2007):
helps researchers identify the studies related to their question of
research.
 helps formalize the fields of research passed and future directions

 We contribute to the typology by proposing a
preliminary classification for different types of brand
community.
The method to our madness
 The Adult Fans of LEGO (AFOL) brand community
 In 1998 the LEGO Group launched the LEGO Mindstorms RIS
The method to our madness
 The Adult Fans of Lego (AFOL) brand community
 In 1998 the LEGO Group launched the LEGO Mindstorms RIS
Sales data showed that many adult males (not the target market)
bought and used the product.
 They were also innovating the product, frequently quite
significantly.

The method to our madness
Kekoa Proudfoot
(1998), who was
among the first to
hack the RCX:
“While the RCX is
certainly a fun and
useful product outof-box, it is even
more exciting under
the hood.”
A robot that writes (with a pen/pencil) on
common paper tapes made for printing
calculators or cash registers. By Mario Ferrari
Easter egg painter. Creator unknown
Plant sprikler, indirect fluid pump.
By Mario Ferrari
The RCX turned into a musical
instrument capable of playing
36 different notes, while using
just a single RCX input port.
By D. Sculley
A robot solving the 3x3x3 Rubik's Cube®.
By JB Brown
The method to our
madness
 The Adult Fans of LEGO
(AFOL) brand community






Mostly men. But more women
are entering the scene.
Typically in their 20-40s.
Many have a technical/software
related background.
TLG estimates that there are
over 70.000 active AFOLs in the
world.
Self-declared LEGO purists.
Take strong interest in the user
developed creation (the MOC).
The method to our madness
 The Adult Fans of LEGO (AFOL) brand community
 Between 2003 and 2011, we engaged in multi-site,
ethnographic research.
Method
Participant Observation
Interviews
Conventions and
local user
groups/events
Online forums and Online
sites
membership
profiles
Member to
member
interviews
Face to
Face/phone
interviews
E-mail
interviews
Amount/
duration
82 hours
2 hours of video
454 photos
Artifact file (Belk
et al., 1989) that
included physical
materials produced
by AFOLs like for
example event
programs, posters,
streamers,
nametags, and Tshirts used at
conventions and
events.
Purposively
sampled online
conversation
threads (16 in
total) that
addressed
community
membership,
consumption
activities related to
the LEGO hobby,
style of innovation,
and information
exchange among
the experienced
and less
experienced
builders. At the
time of data
collection all of the
threads were
accessible for the
public.
Purposively
sampled member
profiles (24 in
total) displayed on
AFOL websites.
24 informants had
a membership
profile either on
Lugnet.com or
Byggepladen.dk.
These public
accessible profiles
provided
background
information of the
informants.
Purposively
sampled member
to member
interviews (10 in
total) with high
status AFOLs.
Collected on a
popular and
widely read AFOL
blog. The
interviews were
carried out by
AFOLs who write
for the blog. They
provided insights
about the style of
innovation among
“great builders”.
19 interviews 9 interviews*
46 hours
The
interviews
addressed
community
membership, consumption
activities
related to the
LEGO
hobby, and
understandin
gs of the
MOC and
innovative
work in
general.
Pages of text
(db. spaced
text, Times
New Roman)
170
992
24
151
554
118
Toward a typology
 Our study underscores the following:
 A dynamic and evolutionary perspective allows us to study
different forms of community.
 To drive comprehensiveness and depth, emic/etic issues
should be taken into account.
 The social and cultural context needs to be taken into account,
too.
An evolutionary perspective
Founding stage
First growth stage
Midlife stage
Second growth stage
90s -
Late 90s -
Around 2005 -
Around 2008 -
The term AFOL was first used
Large online, regional
in 1995 (on RTL, Usenet group). community sites are established,
feature forums that are centered
on specialized interests.
LEGO specific interests drive
expansion of the community.
Dramatic worldwide growth.
~70.000 active AFOLs.
The community consists of a
small number of computer
literate AFOLs who interacts via
Usenet newsgroups.
Many new LEGO user groups are
formed. These activities
contribute to driving many
AFOLs out of their “dark age”.
Many specialized subcommunities and blogs +
photo sharing platforms see
the light of the day.
Absence of community
structures and organizing
principles.
Few, very active, AFOLs drive the
many new community initiatives
and developments.
Several, very active AFOLs
drive new community
initiatives and developments.
Loose, if any, coordination
between the initiatives. User
group structures are copied
and existing online resources
link the community together
through shared practice.
Large online, global community
sites established. Lots of offline
events. Both gather people from
all aspects of the hobby.
Specialization continues to
drive growth . Wide use of
digital platforms .
A multitude of different and
loosely coupled initiatives and
developments . User group
structures and the use of shared
resources continue to link
members . Awareness of other
members become increasingly
imagined.
An evolutionary perspective
Founding stage
First growth stage
Midlife stage
Second growth stage
90s -
Late 90s -
Around 2005 -
Around 2008 -
“A small, cozy and personal
area . The people in there,
mostly intellectuals, often quite
nerdy, were very happy to find
ANYONE who liked LEGO.””
“The intimacy is gone, although it
was nice, the growth is wonderful
because new people brings fresh
eye and new ideas .”
“As the community grows,
groups split off and become
isolated from the whole.
Groups become more focused
(positive), but creates a “us vs.
them” point-of-view”
“There used to be 50 home
sites, now they need to be
counted by the 100.000…there
are so many impressions, you
see so many things that I can’t
tell who or what or where I have
seen a thing .”
“LEGO is a common language
to all AFOLs. Imagine if you
were in a foreign country where
you couldn’t understand the
language. Suddenly you walk
around a street corner and find
a tavern flying the Danish flag.
You walk in, and everyone is
speaking Danish. You’d
instantly feel “at home”, and
would probably feel
comfortable walking up to
everybody and starting a
conversation.”
“As to the splitting of the
community, this is a topic that
has been covered many times
in the past. I truly believe that
a growth of sites has led to a
growth in the number of
people involved in the hobby.
Yes, it is harder now to know
everything that’s happening in
the community, but it’s a
much larger community .”
“At Brickworld 2009, the
fragmentation of the AFOL
online community was the
subject of several discussions.
This fact seems to be wellknown to AFOLs at this point.
Even the LEGO Community
Team knew about this.”
An etic perspective
 RTFM
 Are the three markers present?
An emic perspective
In members’ words…
Terry: Every fan of LEGO
who wants to be part of
this community is. No
need to post on a website,
to have a folder on
Brickshelf or be member
of BrickLink,a LUG or
the FLL... Everyone,
even the ones stil
ignoring about this
community are part of it
if they love the product
and build with it.
Joe : My thoughts are
that there are many
aspects of the LEGO
community… And the
common thread of all of
these groups that make
an overall community is
that each uses the brick,
or many of them as the
case may be, to
communicate in a
common language….
Lego is a medium.
Shacklton (on Eurobrick,
2009): I am 36 and I am
an AFOL (sounds like we
are in a support group). I
am proud of my LEGO
obsession. We all should
be. We get to build and
create with one of the
most versatile "toys"
ever. Our community is
made of all ages and
walks of life across the
globe. I don't ever
hesitate to tell people
about my LEGO
collection.
Steve (on Lugnet 2007):
It seems to me that our
community is more like
comic book or sci-fi
fanzine _publishers_
than readers. We actively
create something, which
requires a lot more effort
than consuming the
creative work of others.
A context perspective
Founding stage
First growth stage
Midlife stage
Second growth stage
Technological barriers to
enter and participate in
Usenet groups are very
high.
LEGO products are hard to
come by, especially in the
US.
Technological barriers to
enter online sites lowers.
Few technological barriers
left.
Very few technological
barriers left.
Online distribution of
LEGO products and the
establishment of online
marketplaces improves
accessibility.
Distribution and
accessibility continues to
improve.
Mass customization
options, AFOL created
products,
crowdingsourcing, special
deals forLEGO user groups,
etc.
Minimal interaction with
the LEGO Group.
The LEGO brand is
perceived as a child’s
brand. AFOLs feel they
have to hide in “the closet”
as non-LEGO people
typically don’t understand
how adults can have LEGO
as a hobby.
Smaller joint projects with
the LEGO Group.
AFOL online stores
accounts for app. 25% of
the sale.
Formalized relationships
and larger development
projects with the LEGO
Group.
The LEGO Group considers
AFOLs a legitimate market
segment. Through the use
of media AFOLs actively
engages in changing the
perception of the LEGO
brand as a child’s brand.
Direct involvement of
AFOLs in NPD projects.
Official media contributes
to widening the idea of the
LEGO brand as a cultural
material beyond the child
toy positioning.
A context perspective
Magnus (2008 on Lugnet):
 “It’s become a lot easier for me to
be accepted as a LEGO builder
now than when I was a teen or in
my early 20s. Partly that’s because
my peers are older and aren't all
that concerned about being cool
and doing the fashionable thing as
they were. But partly, I think it's
also that LEGO itself has become
a little more accepted than it was
before.”
A context perspective
Dave (on EuroBrick 2009):
 “My wife and I are 29 and are
both AFOL's. …If co-workers or
friends ask about our hobbies or
what we're into, LEGO is always
the first thing that gets brought
up. I don't think anyone has ever
said anything negative about us
being into LEGO. When I tell
people at work, they are always
intrigued. ”
A typology of brand community types
The Integrated
Brand Community
Strong sense of “we’ness”.
Clarity about what people
share and what they disagree
about.
Disagreements exist, but
generally there is consensus
throughout and one key goal
is assimilation and sense of
unity.
The Differentiated
Brand Community
Awareness of fellow members but
sense of “we’ness” is experienced
primarily through sub-interest
groups.
Like the integrated community
there is clarity about what people
share /don’t. However, there is
no community-wide consensus,
the community is clusters of subinterest groups centered on a
multitude of different
experiences.
The relations between these subinterest groups can be both
enhancing, conflicting and
independent.
The Fragmented
Brand Community
An ad-hoc and situational
sense of “we’ness”.
Ambiguity, not clarity is the
hallmark of this brand
community form.
Issue specific attention to
things with no consensus, no
central unit, fluctuating.
Multiple, often times
contradictory meanings that
are simultaneously true and
false, paradoxes and ironies
thrive.
Exemplifying the typology
The integrated brand community
Low
High
The AFOL
community
during its
founding stage
The Bronco and
Saab communities
(Muniz &
O’Guinn, 2001)
The Apple Newton
community
(Muniz & Schau,
2005)
The Star Trek fan
community
(Kozinets, 2001)
The Macintosh
community (Belk
& Tumbat, 2005)
The differentiated brand
community
Low
High
Low
The AFOL
community
during its first
growth stage
The AFOL
community during
its second growth
stage
The AFOL
community
during its
midlife stage
The Mini
community
(Broderick et al.,
2003)
Schouten &
McAlexander
(1998)
The fragmented brand community
High
Thanks
Albert Muñiz: amuniz@depaul.edu
Yun Mi Antorini: yma@asb.dk
Photo by Simpson Brothers Photography
Some additional conceptual context
 Fournier and Lee (2009) offer interesting ideas on
different forms of brand community, but their
conceptualizations present some difficulties.

a) Their categories are neither exhaustive or exclusive.



Apple could be said to exhibit characteristics of both pools (shared
goals and values) and hubs (admiration for an individual via the
centrality of Steve Jobs).
b) It is clear whether or not all three of their forms possess the
three key markers
c) Still the notion of the source of the unity for the collective is
valuable and should be included in any such typology.