Differentiating a Music Festival from Competitors.

An increasing number of new entrants into the music festival sector are making the industry more competitive and challenging to make money. What steps can festival organisers take to differentiate their event from the plethora of music festivals now appearing in the traditional summer festival season.  

There is not much solid research available currently on the failure rate of new music festivals although it was suggested in a 2019 study* that almost a third of the new events launched in 2014 failed to return in 2015. This makes any music festival venture look particularly risky and with the current economic crisis pushing up costs this failure rate may be even higher next year. This makes the task of differentiating an event to stand out from the competition even more important in the near future.

Artist Line-up. 
Focusing on a niche or specific genre of music is a great way of making a new festival stand out and immediately reduces the potential number of competitors as most festivals offer mixed genres. Specialising in a genre can, however, limit the size of a potential audience. If organisers really want to go down the mixed genre route, they will need to budget for some large fees to secure a great line-up with well-known headliners.

Location and Transport.
The venue location is important for potential festival-goers who prefer somewhere that is relatively easy to get to. Even a remote field can have a good transport infrastructure as long as it is reasonably close to towns well served by regular train and bus services that connect with main conurbations. A great picturesque location that is difficult to get to can put potential festival-goers off.

Marketing and Branding.
Building a trusted brand from scratch is very difficult and can be expensive, an established festival will find the process slightly easier. The marketing activities should support the brand and generate ticket sales, however, the marketing messages need to reflect selling the ‘experience’ rather than selling tickets. If organisers can create festival content that includes interactive art installations, immersive stages, or unique food and drink offerings the event can be transformed into an experience rather than just a music gig. Marketing activity and campaigns should utilise all available channels with consistent messaging that reflects the brand and clearly states dates, location and purchasing procedures along with time limited offers.

Customer Service. 
The provision of outstanding customer service starts from the first contact with potential ticket buyers and follows right through to on-site experiences. All questions and enquiries should be answered promptly with accurate information. A fast and polite entrance process at ticket gates along with easy to find information and help available on-site go a long way to making the event stand out. Good signage for bathroom facilities, stages, camping zones and vendor locations enhance the overall experience. Good follow up procedures post event to check satisfaction levels also demonstrate the organiser's commitment to providing great customer service.

Sustainability.
Music festivals have gained a reputation as being environmentally damaging activities and the industry is now taking action to address sustainability concerns. The sustainability credentials of a music festival can be a key determining factor in a ticket purchase decision. A focus on key marketing messages and communications need to emphasise specific activities that organisers have implemented to make the event more sustainable like using renewable energy, reducing waste, and promoting environmentally friendly transport options.

A focus on all these aspects of organising a music festival can make the event stand out in a crowded market. Organisers have traditionally not been great at many of these key elements so there is an opportunity to exceed expectations. 

For festival organisers planning their events using a software management platform like Festival Pro gives them all the functionality they need manage every aspect of their event logistics. The guys who are responsible for this software have been in the front line of event management for many years and the features are built from that experience and are performance artists themselves. The Festival Pro platform is easy to use and has comprehensive features with specific modules for managing artists, contractors, venues/stages, vendors, volunteers, sponsors, guestlists, ticketing, cashless payments and contactless ordering. 

*Anderton, C. (2019) Music Festivals in the UK. Beyond the Carnivalesque. Abingdon & New York: Routledge. 

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