Use of effective branding is key in gaining the attention of and engaging an audience in the product you are selling. This piece will discuss the artist Sam Fender, and the way in which he uses branding to engage and grow his fanbase within his market. Using Aeker’s Brand Equity Model and the Consumer Behaviour Theory it is possible to see how his audience may engage with his music and how branding may impact the connection between the audience and both Fender’s music and Sam Fender as a person or artist.

David Aaker’s Brand Equity Model is split up into 5 different areas which all make up the amount of equity a brand holds and how that impacts its relationship with its fans or customers.

1. Brand Loyalty
2. Brand Awareness
3. Perceived Quality
4. Brand Associations
5. Other Proprietary Assets

Sam Fender has built a dedicated and loyal fanbase over his ever-growing career as a musical artist, playing huge sell out shows and producing 3 number one albums. There is no doubt that Fender has had a successful career thus far. Beyond his music and live shows there is a brand that has helped grow his fanbase by attracting new fans over the years while keeping hold of the ones that were there from the start. Fender has a loyal customer base, which he has nurtured through building a deep connection with his fans, using a genuine personal narrative, included in his music, that he does not shy away from sharing (Radio X, 2021). This creates resonance with people and prompts them to buy into Sam Fender as a person or artist, not only his music, however this certainly impacts the relationship between his audience and the music. From a monetary perspective, creating a loyal fanbase is an effective use of branding as it is likely cheaper to adhere to loyal customers compared to trying to reach further for new ones (Aaker D, 2009). Also, more likely to payoff as there may be a level of risk involved as there is no guarantee those outside the usual brand demographic may be invested.

Brand loyalty is also key in developing awareness of brand, as loyal fans are more likely to spread the brand’s name and talk about it in a positive manner. Since July 2021, Fender has grown in fame from 37% to 69% in October 2025 (YouGov, 2025) demonstrating that people have become more aware of his brand over his career. If a brand has quality, typically this would be a reason to purchase their product. However, as music is much more subjective and its quality is hard to quantify, other than looking at sales numbers, which is not necessarily an accurate measure. However, there may be a perception of quality in artists that convey realness and honesty in their music, especially if this is followed upon in their branding, as this makes them seem more authentic, and therefore, worth your investment. Fender’s brand comes across as authentic, as he portrays an honest and humble persona, which corroborates with the narrative in his lyrics. People Watching, the title track of his latest album, is clear example of this. (Fender, 2025) A song where he describes the events of him visiting a dying loved one and the feelings surrounding it. He then dedicates his Mercury Prize award to this person(BBC Music, 2025). Simply, this helps the listener believe what he is singing about is truthful, giving his lyrics much more weight, a perceived quality, as opposed to ingenuine, or surface level lyrics. This perception of authenticity helps fans engage with the brand on a deeper, emotional level as now the brand may relate to their own personal life, and therefore fans are more willing to invest their time and money into them, because of what they get out of the product. Brand associations can help create positive feelings about a brand and can impact their position in the market (Aaker D, 2009). Sam Fender is from Newcastle, and being a Newcastle United fan, has allowed him to create a link between himself and the club. Fender does not shy away from his roots in Newcastle and has worked with the club in advertising his latest release. This association could also be seen in the current colour scheme in his branding.

Associating himself with his hometown and his home football team, can help build a deeper emotional connection with fans in that location, whereby those from his hometown will feeling a higher sense of pride in Fender, and therefore, will invest and champion his product. On the flip side, those who may not feel part of these associations, may feel alienated and could potentially put off, what could have been new customers.

Consumer Behaviour Theory can be used to help us understand why customers buy into a brand and the factors that can affect their decision to consume or invest. Emotional elements can influence consumer behaviour. Impulse can be significant in the decision to buy or not to buy and the emotional connection a brand builds can have a significant impact on this. This connection may provide the buyer with a high level of faith in the artist, where the buyer is compelled to invest, as there is such trust in the quality of the product. Again, this comes back to authenticity, which Sam Fender has in abundance, as his brand is honest and true to his music and persona. All areas of his branding corroborate one another, which will create trust in Fender’s product. (Roy & Datta, 2022).

Cultural factors can influence a consumer’s decision, dependant on their subculture or social class (Roy & Datta, 2022). Fender comes from a working-class background and has never shone away from sharing the hardships he has faced through this kind of upbringing. This can be seen in his song ‘Seventeen Going Under’ where talks of his mother’s financial struggles (Fender, 2021). He has openly discussed this in interviews, and this helped create more resonance with people from similar backgrounds as Fender and may have gone through the same difficulties (Radio X, 2021). Again, this makes Sam come across as authentic helps him connect with fans on a more meaningful level and makes him relatable. However, people that fall outside of this social class, may not relate to his music and therefore, may not have the same emotional connection that would prompt a customer, to invest in the brand.

The behaviour of consumers can be influenced by individual characteristics, like age, income and personality (Roy & Datta, 2022). These characteristics can all affect one another. Age in particular is crucial in the way a person is likely to consume music. Someone of a younger age is likely to consume new music through social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, before making any monetary investment. Fender, has used this form of media when advertising his latest releases, focussing on the lyrical content of his music, which is where the emotional connection can be built, due to the nature of them. Not forgetting to mention these posts are consistent across his different social media platforms. This is effective use of branding, as Fender is reaching out to a large part of his demographic and the consistency helps create familiar imagery, that his audience will then be able to associate with him. This not being the first time Sam Fender has gotten exposure through social media, with a TikTok trend on his song ‘Seventeen Going Under’ in 2021. (Mensah, 2025) The result of this trend being that he will have fans of an age that use social media, so taking advantage of this in his branding is an effective way of connecting to his demographic. However, so much focus on an online presence may alienate the older generations who, aren’t as adept with the online world and therefore, may be alienating a large group of people, who just aren’t aware of who Sam Fender is as an artist.

Sam Fender sits within a very saturated market of Indie music yet manages to appeal to a wide demographic and has built a large fanbase, despite the number of acts in the same genre. Due not only to the ‘quality’ of music he produces, through his music and the brand he has created around it, he has built an emotional connection with a loyal fanbase, that has propelled him into the mainstream, where typically in modern times, you would find pop acts. Interestingly, as grassroots music lacks funding, in the current economic state, there is a view that this could actually benefit Fender, as it will be harder for other artists to grow their brand, therefore, future competitors from a similar background may be less likely to pose a threat. However, Fender may face competition from AI artists in the future, as they begin to enter the music scene (Reilly, 2025). Although, this may seem hypocritical as this piece has stressed such importance on authenticity in a brand, there is a potential this could further saturate the market. Those who are not as culturally aware or interested in music, may not care so much where the music has come from, especially if music is background entertainment. That being said, if that is one’s outlook on music, then they are less likely to invest their time and money in a product, if they are not looking for an emotional connection with an artist. Fender reaches out to his generation by being so open and honest about the social and political landscape of the time, and the younger generation, which is being affected by this, feel an affinity with him as a result. Although, it could be seen that exploring these themes, may not appeal to those who may be looking for an escape from these topics or people who do not agree with his stance on things. These topics may undermine the nature of strategic marketing but does add to the authenticity of his brand.

Ultimately, it is clear to see that Sam Fender uses effective branding which helps to engage an audience in a competitive market. Creating a deep emotional connection with his audience, Sam has slowly grown a large loyal fanbase over the years, which as well as his branding has helped his career grow. This emotional connection has been created by being authentic throughout all areas of his brand, and in return his fans want to invest into his brand as there is reward from doing so, due to the perceived quality of his products, that have been continually successful. Fender reaches out to his young demographic through having a strong, consistent online presence, where new fans will continue to be introduced to him. It is hard to deny that his branding is effective, as he continues to reach new heights in record sales and after his latest album, has played the biggest shows he has ever played, and ultimately the brand is a business and it continually engaging an audience, who are willing to invest.

Bibliography:

Aaker, D. (2009) Aaker’s Brand Equity Model. European Institute for Brand Management.

BBC Music (2025) Sam Fender – Winners’ Speech (Mercury Prize 2025). Available Online: https://youtu.be/RqC3lw6187o?si=qXOpVtQ2LLcimbQu [Accessed 05/23/2025].

Mensah, J. (2022) How Sam Fender’s Seventeen Going Under became a TikTok hit. Available Online: https://www.radiox.co.uk/artists/sam-fender/seventeen-going-under-meaning-lyrics-tiktok-viral/ [Accessed 05/12/25]

Radio X (2021) Sam Fender breaks down new song Seventeen Going Under | Behind The Lyrics | Radio X. Available Online: https://youtu.be/HQjpLna42yI?si=luxgMokjn9t_icnR [Accessed 07/12/25]

Radio X (2021) Sam Fender – Seventeen Going Under | X-Posure Album Playback. Available Online: https://youtu.be/pmBwCzsFlB8?si=wS6xBXRrjj2Vdfiy [Accessed 02/12/2025].

Reilly, N (2025) BBC Introducing criticised after championing ‘pitch perfect’ AI-generated music. Available Online: https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/news/bbc-introducing-criticised-after-championing-pitch-perfect-ai-generated-music-55904/ [Accessed 05/12/25]

Roy, P & Datta, D. (2022) Theory and Models of Consumer Buying Behaviour: A Descriptive Study Parishodh Journal, 11(8), 206-213.

Fender, S (2021) Seventeen Going Under. Seventeen Going Under [Vinyl]. Polydor.

Fender, S (2025) People Watching. People Watching [Vinyl]. Polydor.

YouGov (2025) Sam Fender Fame & Popularity Tracker. Available Online: https://yougov.co.uk/topics/entertainment/trackers/fame-and-popularity-sam-fender [Accessed 02/12/2025]