Class Director – (UK Reviews), Leisure, Journey and Foodservice
During times of lockdown the consumption of reside leisure was consigned to the house, as artists and organisers developed on-line or digital options to in-person occasions in an effort to proceed to succeed in followers. As enterprise returns to regular and with Glastonbury across the nook, we look at 3 ways in which occasion organisers can proceed utilizing expertise to reinforce the concert-going expertise for followers.
1. Step into the metaverse with XR
The usage of prolonged actuality (XR, together with VR and AR) is now being explored to offer followers with extra immersive experiences, as recognized by Mintel’s International Shopper Pattern Enjoyment All over the place. One of the crucial attention-grabbing examples of this noticed American DJ Porter Robinson’s 2021 Secret Sky pageant transport viewers right into a digital crowd, with every represented by an avatar that recognized their bodily location. This allowed attendees to strike up conversations and even dance in VR! This might present the blueprint for future concert events and festivals to happen within the metaverse, with Mintel’s analysis displaying that one in 5 US adults can be concerned with attending a digital occasion within the metaverse. Youthful shoppers aged 16-34 are much more more likely to be motivated by novelty and variation, whether or not or not it’s to take pleasure in new experiences or to satisfy new individuals. Occasion organisers ought to reply to this want for brand spanking new, various and thrilling experiences by organising gigs that provide a way of the unknown, in addition to begin to think about methods they will create reside occasions within the metaverse.
Supply: Getty Pictures. On-line concert events are right here to remain after the pandemic, however numerous digital alternatives are nonetheless but to be totally explored.
2. New immersive venues enchantment to shoppers’ want for escapism
Corporations need to develop new leisure venues that talk to shoppers’ want for escapism by way of delivering extra immersive experiences than ever earlier than. Maybe essentially the most thrilling of those is the proposed MSG Sphere venue deliberate for Stratford, London. Designed by MSG Leisure, the corporate behind Madison Sq. Gardens, this “state-of-the-art” music and leisure venue guarantees next-generation immersive experiences due to the usage of the world’s largest and highest decision LED display, adaptive acoustics and haptic expertise (3D contact) to permit gig goers to “really feel the expertise”. The venue, which has obtained full planning permission, can be London’s largest multi-use area with capability for 21,500 individuals. As technological enhancements within the livestreaming sector permit followers to really feel as if they’re getting up shut and private with artists, this can put stress on venues to ship the next high quality expertise and environment.
Supply: MSG Sphere London. The venue options cutting-edge applied sciences that allow the creation of transformative, immersive experiences.
3. Join with followers and create personalised experiences
Music occasion organisers and promoters have alternatives to interact with followers through the usage of expertise all through the shopper journey, beginning with alerting them about tickets occurring sale, during to permitting them to purchase objects utilizing contactless wristbands at concert events and festivals. Almost 8 in 10 music occasion goers wish to get alerts when tickets go on sale and seven in 10 wish to be notified about modifications to schedules and occasions through an app. In the meantime a majority of followers can be concerned with utilizing a contactless wristband to make funds at concert events/festivals, and the identical proportion wish to use an app to assist navigate a venue. Wearable tech is now not only for the tech-obsessed as extra individuals realise the advantages referring to its comfort and safety. Some software program corporations work with occasion organisers to ship info to live performance and pageant attendees through an app, while additionally enabling customers to personalise their feed. On this perspective, personalisation works each methods, as its information and analytics performance additionally permits occasion organisers to be taught extra about buyer behaviour and tailor communications accordingly. Organisers may use buyer info to create customised presents on meals, drink and merchandise throughout the pageant, while additionally linking them as much as related occasion sponsors.
Supply: Glastonbury Competition. Organisers launched an app to “permit customers to remain related with the newest reside Competition updates, navigate their method across the 900-acre web site and even create their very own personalised line-ups”.
What we expect
While participation in attending in-person music occasions is more likely to surpass livestreaming participation in 2022 and dominate the sector’s income stream, shoppers’ motivations for livestreaming occasions point out that the expertise will proceed to have a key function to play available in the market post-pandemic. As extra individuals will probably be pressured to think about cheaper options to attending in-person, the music sector ought to proceed to discover progressive methods to interact with shoppers by way of livestreaming. They’ll additionally discover methods to extend the worth of those experiences, resembling by way of providing restricted version merchandise or behind-the-scenes entry to these paying further.
