Earlier this month Erin wrote a post about Radiohead and the fact that the band let their fans decide how much they each would pay for the new album (downloaded directly from the Radiohead website). Talk about putting a lot (almost all) your trust in the hands of the consumer.

So will Radiohead be playing on the next street corner to make up for their democratized album? Highly unlikely – so far the band has sold 1.2 million albums at $8 each ($9.6 million in one week); mind you there is no middleman involved here either. Not too shabby!

Have a look at threadless – this company has placed complete trust in their community as well. Basic and brief overview: artists submit t-shirt designs, community votes, only winning designs are printed – thus usually insuring that all inventory is moved. Obviously there are incentives for both the designers and community – threadless sure has the pulse of its people.

These are definitely two great examples of embracing your fans, trusting them, and creating a relationship that is deeper than most.