in turn, claimed partial responsibility for its success-and thats what happened at eBay, as well. Call them fanatical, innovative, or just plain weird, eBays angel fans, known as the eBay Army, are a faithful bunch who live and breathe eBay, so much so that 5,500 of them showed up at the first company conven- tion, held in June 2002.3There they met people they had traded with online, got autographs from CEO and idol Meg Whitman, and com- muned with other devoted eBay fans, telling stories of their virgin     eBay trades and staking their own claims on the overall success of the company. But not all was sweetness and light at the convention. As the com- pany pushed to increase large corporate sales, courting giants such as Sears and IBM to sell their wares through the eBay channel, some mom-and-pop sellers felt a bit betrayed. eBays angel fans-the early collectors and traders who helped build the company from day one-wanted their role in the early success of the company to be rec- ognized and valued. They not only watched the company go from $7.1 million net income in 1997 to $90.4 million in 2001, they traded on, talked about, and cheered for the company along the way. In this instance, the first-mover advantage belongs not only to the unique company, but to the avid fans who were there from the beginning and have enjoyed the ride to corporate stardom. However, as eBay expands beyond a community of collectors and small traders, some angel fans are beginning to develop a love/hate relationship with the company, similar to the way some music fans feel if their bands create songs designed to be commercially success- ful rather than artistically superior. Often this is labeled selling out. Aerosmith and eBay alike feel the solution to keeping fans happy is showing loyalty toward them; theyve come to learn that faithful fans expect loyalty in return for their zealous support. Just as the band allows fan club members to buy tickets before they go on pub- lic sale and makes great seats available to them, eBay shows its appre- ciation to its angel fans by offering special perks. Most recently, the company began offering its Powersellers-those who sell more than $1,000 per month on the site-group health insurance. Overall, the eBay Army continues its support of the company and its leader wholeheartedly, preaching the eBay gospel and acting as an unofficial sales arm of the company. With every convention and new transaction that occurs, eBay fans continue to add new chapters to their eBay storybooks, just as Aerosmith fans do with the release of each new album or announcement of a new tour. Though the Aero-