Music Festivals and Their Dependence On Reputation

Lollapalooza

CoaChella

Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC)

Ultra



As many avid fans of the large music festivals know, Lollapalooza tickets just went on sale, and it has almost sold out even before the lineup was announced. How can somebody pay $200 dollars or more without even knowing who is playing? The simple answer....REPUTATION. Brand name festivals such as Coachella (California), Lollapalooza (Illinois and surrounding states), Electric Daisy Carnival (Las Vegas and now this year in New York), Bamboozle (New York), Ultra (Miami, Florida), and many others as well (tell me if I missed any other major ones). Every year, these major concerts sell out within minutes or hours of the tickets being released because they have established their ability to bring in big time talent, new hot groups, and other types of music to appease any possible listener. There are hundreds of music festivals, but some are more famous and able to charge higher premiums in order to have the ability to experience their festivals, solely because of their reputations. So why do people trust these organizations to provide a great show on an annual basis? Well based on the past, the acts, friends anecdotes, and the desire to have a fun and wild time at the concert people can't resist. Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) was sold out within the first two hours after the tickets were released and within three days the prices on ticket sales websites were multiple times the face value, and continually increasing. It almost proves that it's a safe way to make a little money by becoming a miniature ticket broker because people pine for the experience. Is this ridiculous? People seem not to think so, what do you think? Which logo is most reputable and recognizable in your mind? This is just a story of branding at it's finest. Honestly, who can identify what music festival this is?
The answer is....Summer Fest! One of the most well known music festivals in the country, or this logo?


This is South by Southwest.

The bottom line is this, if the concert isn't branded into main stream media and social network sites, it can only be a niche brand, and will never be nationally recognized and demand high priced sell outs prior to lineups being released, let alone any sell outs. Recognition, that is the key word here.