When we were asked to discuss someone on social media we trust, I immediately thought about Michael Bublé. What a cool cat! He has the unique ability to make a stadium feel like an intimate living room, where you are one of his dear friends. My husband and I have attended two of his concerts and they are the best concerts I have ever attended. He makes everyone feel warm and welcome through his humor and delivery. He speaks to you as if you are the recipient of his story or joke.
This is not exclusive to his live shows. He is able to continue this intimate feel through social media. I follow him on Facebook and it makes me love him even more. He posts pictures of his son and wife pretty often. When he writes about them, it almost seems like a normal post that one of your friends might write about their own family. It’s personal. How can you not love this guy?
One of my favorite types of posts is his backstage warm-up before a show. He and his band cover the most random songs requested by fans and rock out before they go on. It’s not uncommon for him to be holding his son while singing with the group.
I think any artist benefits from social media engagement in order to promote a tour, a particular show, an album, or brand awareness in general. Each time he posts a pre-show warm-up, I long to see him again live. Every so often, I check his website to see if I find anything new. I’m looking for a new album or a tour that will bring him my way again. Someone manages his Facebook account for marketing purposes. The great thing about it though, is that it is obvious when it’s a promotional post and when he has actually posted something himself.
Bublé has earned my trust because he has a number of qualities on and offline that harbor trust. He is solid. He knows who he is and he knows music. He is competent and has authority in his field. I know what to expect when I listen to his music, follow his posts, or see him live. He is reliable. Even if none of these other qualities existed, he has me with intimacy. I feel like I am a welcomed part of his life and I trust that he won’t ever let me down.
Erin Tracy's Social Media and Content Strategist e-Portfolio 
Hi, Erin! I appreciated your thoughts on trust and how they applied to the way you have come to trust Michael Bublé on social media. Although, I have never been to one of his concerts, nor do I follow him on social media, I think you’re right that his show of intimacy with his fans is a huge strength and leads to that sense of trust. I really think it’s one of his strongest qualities online and not one that can be overstated.
I remember seeing a video of him with a 15 year old boy at one of his concerts that shows this quality well. (Warning: there’s profanity)
I especially liked how the personal photos of his you shared did seem to be like ones you’d see from your own friends. They didn’t seem to be staged at all, which again, adds to that intimacy. Another recording artist who really understands how to share intimacy well on social media with her fans is Taylor Swift. Over the holidays, she personally wrapped and delivered gifts she bought from her tour location to some of her fans. Naturally, she filmed and shared these experiences, as shown on an ABC report here: http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/taylor-swift-surprises-fans-holiday-gifts-27968200
As you can see from the reactions of both the fans and even from the comments from the reporters, Taylor Swift has really strengthened her brand through this kind of shared intimacy online with fans. Great post!
Ann Marie, that Bublé video you shared is spot on! Did I mention how much I love him? I think even his use of profanity makes him seem more real and down to earth. I feel like you are getting the real him.
Thank you for sharing the Taylor Swift clip as well. What a great story! Even if you aren’t one the fans selected, you can’t help feel like she’s so genuine and kind. I love it!
That was a fun post — thanks for sharing. I’m sort of torn on the idea of using one’s kids in social media. One person I follow is Lin-Manuel Miranda, a really talented young guy who wrote and starred in the Broadway musical “In the Heights” and has an improv show on Pivot right now. He has a new baby, and he posts cute pictures all the time. But how do we know that this baby wants — or, more to the point, will want a few years from now — to have his life on display? Celebrities have successfully begun pushing back at paparazzi about taking pictures of their kids, but how different is this? (I admittedly come at this from a very different point of view: My wife’s line of work requires that I have virtually zero personal stuff out in the social sphere.)
Anyway, the bigger point is that Buble clearly seems to set a tone (friendly, accessible, funny) that carries through to his work. That’s really important and really hard to do.
Eric, you pose an interesting question. I think about it often with my own family. Will my own kids one day object to all of the photos I post of them? I guess if a celebrity chooses to post anything about their children it puts them in control. Maybe the paparazzi wouldn’t go so crazy if photos were already out there. Fans just want a glimpse into the lives of their favorite celebrities and taking this route on social media is like cracking a window to take a peek. It does make us feel like we know him a little bit better. In everything he does, he is able to draw us in. Even just casual, blurry selfie he snaps goes a long way with the fans.