The intersection of niche markets and pop culture: when your users aren't who you thought they were. Prepared for the Product Insights Conference in San Francisco on 12 April 13.

1. 1
The
Rise of
Bronys
New
Sincerity
and Niche
Markets
@tyahma
12 April 13
Wings
Hair

2. In the
beginning
The original line of My Little Pony
began with the Earth Ponies in
1982. The Earth Ponies were
followed by Pegasus Ponies,
Unicorn Ponies, Flutter Ponies
and Sea Ponies. Flutter Ponies
were smaller and thinner than
Pegasus Ponies, and had
fluttering wings. Windy Wing and
the Summer Wing Ponies were
smaller than the Flutter Ponies
and were proportioned in a
similar way, with larger, butterfly-
like wings. The Sea Ponies
resembled seahorses, and were
produced as both adults and
babies. There were also male
ponies called 'Big Brother
Ponies', which had slightly larger
bodies and feathered hooves
resembling those of Clydesdale
horses.

3. 3
G4
Generation 4 began in 2010: Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash,
Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, Spike the Dragon,
Princess Celestia, and Princess Luna are the top characters.

4. Types of ponies in G4
Earth
ponies
Pegasii Unicorns Pegacorn/Alicorn
Haunch marks. Wings. Horns. All of that at once.

5. 5
The primary market
Young girls aged 5-10. Note
that I used stars here.

6. 6
From 4 Chan
Bro + Pony = Bronies
+ =

7. New Sincerity
“Runs against post-modernist irony or cynicism”
These guys are not in the movement.

8. 8
Bronies in the
military
A few soldiers in Afghanistan are part of the Brony
movement, as a reaction against the violence there.
Illicitly, they use the hindquarter’s marks as call signs.

9. 9
What they do at BronyCon conferences
Cos’
play
TV Voice
actor panels
Brony
palooza
Show
premieres

10. 10
Their mission
statement
“BronyCon is a convention held by and for fans of the
cartoon My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.”

11. 11
The BronyCon general attendee is
drawn from . . .
1. 7-12.4MM people in the US (!)
2. The 1-3% of people who fall into INTJ in Meyers-Briggs

12. 12
Their
favorite
character
Derpy Hooves

13. 13
What Hasbro did with that character
Hasbro was worried that Derpy Hooves was a
subtle attack on people with mental challenges, and
thus reduced Derpy’s role in the show.

14. 14
But
then
. . .
There
was
serious
backlash
for the,
uh, Derpy
role-
reduction.

15. All roads lead to Dubstep.
15
Tangent:
Dance Music Genres
Dub
House
Garage
2 Step
Techno
D&B
Breakbeat
Reggae

16. 16
The face of DubstepThe face of Dubstep

17. Skrillex + My Little Ponies = DubTrot
+ =
A micro-genre of two sub-genres.
Genre-Twisting

18. 18
The moral of the story
1.We have some partial religion
around product-market fit
2.But your market may change as
you align against an old target.
3.Understanding organic markets is
a vital part of product-market
alignment.

19. 19
BronyCon is only 111 days
away, but tickets are still
available.
Do you know your users?
Thank you. I am here all week. Tell your friends. @tyahma