What makes up an AFOL?
Posted by Huw,
Our friends over at BrickPicker recently conducted a survey to find out more about AFOLs. I believe Brickset forum visitors were encouraged to participate whilst I was away.
The results have been collated and presented in a cool infographic created which helps make sense of them. Once you've digested it all, head on over to BrickPicker forum to join in the conversation.
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28 comments on this article
Seems to me more than just a bit slanted towards the profile of Brickpicker's English-speaking investing and trading community!
That they think two-thirds of all AFOLs live in the USA, all love a website most AFOLs have probably never even heard of until today, and the number who actually say they 'build' with LEGO is so insignificant as to be counted as 'other' - suggests to me this data should more be regarded for its pretty schematics than its breadth of coverage...
^ exactly my thoughts, but still interesting.
@Joefish
Maybe they'd put their site between the favourite websites as a joke?
I mean, if you're saying that they're manipulating the survey to profile all the responding AFOLs as people from the USA that like Brickpicker, then please explain how all those Americans still vote LowLUG (the Dutch LUG) as one of their favourite sites.
This isn't Adult FANS Of Lego, it's Adult BUYERS Of Lego And Their Information With No Regard To Those Who Actually Build With Lego, Of Which Their Are Many, But Apparently The Thousands Of Lego Builders Are Insignificant.
This is a graph about ABOLATIWNRTTWABWLOWTAMBATTOLBAIs. Very well done, though. I'm just disappointed in the content and the misleading title.
It's hard to believe the most popular LEGO website is a price guide type thing.
@WoutStopmotion - I hope it doesn't come as too much of a surprise, but I'm pretty sure there's more than one Dutch LUG for a start! And do you really agree with the result that tells us there are more than 20 times as many AFOLs in the UK as in the Netherlands?
The survey is only based on 579 responses, which means they surveyed the grand total of 4 Dutch AFOLs. I can personally name more Dutch AFOLs that that - and even spell their surnames if I have my phone handy!
This is not a representative survey of the global community of AFOLs. It's a survey of a small subset of a small sector of the AFOL trading community, and the results reflect that. And as such, seem completely bizarre to most AFOLs who are in it for the fun of building.
It is inevitable that a brickpicker survey would have itself as the most visited site but it does kind of make the results largely pointless. It also made me think a new acronym is needed for those that frequent the brickpicker site - Adult Sellers Of LEGO.
ASOL.
Although they have presented the results beautifully!
I found it interesting but agree with other comments that this isn't a summary of AFOLs, it's a study of Brick Picker users. Because of the type of site it is the users will be more concerned with the monetary value of sets/figures than users of other sites might. I'm not criticising or saying that's right or wrong it's simply a matter of fact.
Perhaps a survey from Brickset or a similar site would give a more rounded and balanced view of AFOLs as it's more about all the sets and figures that have ever been produced.
Is Brickpicker a kind of Wizard Magazine for Lego fans?
@Joefish,
As far as I'm aware there are only two (big/known) LUG's in The Netherlands. (There may be some smaller local LUG's but those aren't on the internet.)
The fact that LOWLUG is in that info-graphic is simple to explain:
Lowlug's forum is open to everyone who wants to register, Bouwsteen's forum only allows paying lugmembers to read and post. That makes LOWLUG's forum the go to place for Dutch afol's who wish to discuss there hobby in there native language.
The Dutch are known worldwide for being cheap so naturally a site like Brickpicker is like heaven for them... Yes that's a tiny bit sarcastic, But illustrates why LOWLUG made it onto the info-graphic.
But i do agree with what you said in your first comment.
A website who's main focus is helping people invest in Lego Sets (silliest thing ever, But I'm not going to discuss my opinion on that here.) is not the most reliable source for an AFOL survey.
I presume the LEGO CEE surveys are sent to all LUGS?
@cheshirecat - The way I'm reading ASOLs is making me chuckle to myself.
579 flippers do not the AFOL community make. It's actually really disappointing that most of them make sensibly more than the median OECD country income yet feel the need to stash and resell Lego for a profit. It's sadly very much representative of a lot of what's wrong in this world.
@Joefish
Well i'm not much of a survey-taking or survey-making expert but it seems interesting, regardless of wether this survery only profilizes buyers rather than builders, and regardless of wether there's only a small amount of people who participated in it.
@Sato
I doubt a lot of Dutch people would use a website like Brickpicker. I don't know the website very much but it's easy to tell that they're more orientated on LEGO prices in the USA.
It's not a random sample, so no, the results aren't accurate. Interesting all the same.
Since the majority of people would not have known about this survey until today, it should be reset with a link from Brickset for a more thorough survey sample.
Something's screwy here... how is BrickPicker the most popular LEGO site on the internet?!
@PicnicBasketSam: Probably just because the survey received the most attention from BrickPicker users, since they were hosting it. I agree, that alone throws the results of the survey into question. At the same time, some of it probably IS consistent with AFOLs in general, namely the favorite themes bit and the US having the highest population of AFOLs (since it is both a populous country and an incredibly significant market for LEGO — though if you adjusted for the overall population of the countries the picture might start to look different).
Seems like a cheap effort to advertise their site as "Most Visited LEGO Fan Website." I'm sure the age, income, spending habits, and shopping outlet data are skewed as well. Collecting is a lot more expensive than MOCing, requiring a more stable income. If the sampling were better, I bet Bricklink would crush eBay, since eBay is mostly for retired sets.
What makes an adult fan of Lego? It's a wicked mix of OCD, toxoplasmosis, nostalgia, autism, affluenza, and technophilia.
What about TFOLs? I'm one.
I am sorry that all of you are so irate about the Brickpicker Logo on that question. The designer put the logo in the center and put the other answers all around the logo to show all the other sites out there besides Brickpicker. It may not have been the best design, but he felt that since Brickpicker was the only one that used a logo compared to plain text that it would separate itself. I wish I looked at it differently and changed it before posting.
Sure I would have loved to have had 50,000 people take the survey, who wouldn't, but that is not the case. I asked a bunch of LEGO sites, some replied and were part of it including Brickset. I wish Huw was available, but he was on vacation. Surveys have a certain life span before they don't get much activity. Once I saw that the responses were drying up. I stopped it. I was actually pretty happy to get 500+ replies. Heck on Family Feud they stop at 100 people :)
I know there is no love here for Brickpicker and that you feel we are scammers or whatever by twisting the data of this simple survey, but anyone can contact me at anytime to ask questions about this before getting all excited. I would be more than happy to pick up a phone and have a conversation with you so that you can find out a little more of who we are and not these monstrous evil beings that it sounds like we are (remind me to ask my wife later why she married me :) )
@Maerskblue.. I am sorry that we upset you so much
We love Brickset. There is nothing we wouldn't do for it or for Huw. He has always been very gracious to us and we appreciate that.
11% of AFOLs are women? I was hoping there would be more than that.
^^ Word ! : ) ... Honestly , i actually did enjoy going through the survey very much and it really was easy on the eyes. Had me smirking through till the end . So "US" AFOLS
The results were displayed very interestingly. I like the graphics for the most part. It is interesting to see how I line up vs the rest of the survey takers. I definitely am in the minority when it comes to a lot of the results listed.
second biggest group of Brick Picker users are Teachers?
Teachers buying up LEGO from their students and reselling it on Brick Picker?
So AFOLs are mostly rich americans living in suburbs?
Also, wow, 11 of them spend more than 50.000 € annually on lego?
75% spend more than 1000$? You would think most people would consider 1000$ a lot.
@ Fauch: For the AFOL community, $1000 or £850-900 isn't actually as much as it sounds. Some AFOLS pay $100 in one purchase occasionally.
But I don't think this is much of a fair survey anyway. :-\