Fans First
Designing Experiences, Not Just Deliverables
Inspired by the Savannah Bananas and Jesse Cole's Fans First philosophy, I've spent the last year exploring a simple question:
What would make someone voluntarily advocate for this?
That question changed how I think about dashboards, presentations, surveys, training, meetings, communications, and organizational change.
Because people rarely become fans of reports. They become fans of clarity, confidence, trust, direction, and momentum.
The Story Behind Fans First
While studying the Savannah Bananas and Jesse Cole's Fans First philosophy, I realized they weren't simply building a successful baseball team. They were intentionally creating memorable experiences.
That idea challenged me to think differently about my own work. Whether I'm designing a dashboard, writing a survey, leading an initiative, or presenting an idea, I now ask:
What would make someone voluntarily advocate for this?
That simple question became the foundation of Fans First: a framework for creating experiences people remember, repeat, rally around, and share.
What Is Fans First?
Fans First asks a simple question:
Is It Fans First?
Before making a decision, ask:
Does this create value?
Does it reduce friction?
Does it improve understanding?
Does it build trust?
Does it make someone's experience better?
If not → redesign it.
Customers, Users, & Fans
One of the simplest ideas within the framework is distinguishing between three groups.
Customer → Consumes
User → Uses
Fan → Advocates
Fans remember. Fans return. Fans share. Fans recommend. Fans create momentum.
Whenever I create something, I ask:
“ What would make someone voluntarily advocate for this? “
Framework & Principles
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What should people consistently experience?
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Would the person furthest from the action understand?
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Can people…
Remember your message?
Repeat it to others?
Rally around it?
Share it?
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What makes something more challenging than it needs to be?
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What’s the smallest experiment worth running and testing today?
Go Bananas
Go Bananas
Learn the core concepts and begin applying Fans First thinking in minutes.
A deeper dive into the philosophy, principles, frameworks, and real-world examples.
Facilitation guides, exercises, worksheets, and activities for teams and organizations.
Step-by-step instructions, prompts, templates, and files for creating your own Fans First Coach.
Inspired by the Savannah Bananas, these resources will help you transform deliverables into experiences people value, remember, and advocate for.
Acknowledgements
Fans First Coach was inspired by the Savannah Bananas, Jesse Cole, and the broader Fans First philosophy that transformed a baseball organization into an experience-focused movement.
This framework represents my attempt to apply those same principles to analytics, communication, leadership, organizational development, and workplace experiences.