Special Experiences Sought by Event, Concert Attendees

BY Courtney Huckabay
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A survey ran on the Pandora Soundboard in January 2016 asking Pandora listeners aged 18+ about their attitudes and opinions regarding events and concert attendance. Pandora found 67% of Gen Y would rather spend their money on "experiences" than "things."

So, what does this mean for brands?

"Gen Y’s craving for experiences gives us incredible insight into their mindset," Pandora says. "There’s an opportunity for marketers to leverage experiential to play a powerful role in their engagement strategies, whether those experiences are on the scale of a multi-​day music festival or a singular surprise-​and-​delight experience on mobile leading up to an event."


MUSIC TOPS THE CHARTS FOR MOST DESIRED EXPERIENCES

"Concerts and music festivals both hit the top five list of most desired experiences for Gen Y listeners. This shows that not only is music a universal language, but live music experiences are craved and treasured. Not only does this generation crave music experience, they attend them. Know where your audience is. It’s important."

AudienceSCAN revealed 30.2% of U.S. adults want to attend concerts in the next 12 months. And 20.5% of them are aged 25–34.

What is the motivation for attending music concerts or festivals?

"Nearly 1/​4th admitted it was because they were afraid that if they didn’t go, they would miss out," according the Pandora post. "The FOMO effect! That is why the road leading up to the event is just as important as the event itself. Marketers can help create excitement by finding ways to be part of the fear of missing out."

AudienceSCAN reports that 35% of Concert Attendees also plan to attend music festivals this year.


WHAT ARE THE USUAL (AND NOT SO USUAL) SUSPECTS IN DRIVING ATTENDANCE?

  • A third of Millennials said the event being free was a deciding factor to them.
  • 49% Said it was because their friends are going – events are social, shared experiences.
  • 55% Said it was the atmosphere – the experience once they are there means a lot to them. That’s the value brands can bring. How can your brand enhance the atmosphere? Add to their experience?
  • An overwhelming 95% — said that it was an artist they knew and liked. That seems like a “no duh” moment, but considering that a ‘popular artist’ is ranked #5, this is interesting. Millennials know what they want, and what they want is an artist that means something to them personally.

And what happens when FOMO becomes a reality and they actually cannot attend?

"Welcome, live streaming. With the acceleration of technology, live steaming has become more accessible and has improved in quality. It is becoming a more popular way for people to handle their FOMO and experience the music from wherever they are," Pandora says.

AudienceSCAN also found that streaming/​listening/​watching on the go is important to Concert Attendees. 18.6% listened to a local radio station online in the past 6 months. 33.3% viewed a television commercial on YouTube. 13.3% listened to a local radio station via their website or app. And 36.7% are using Pandora to do it. Another 10.5% watched a live sporting event on mobile devices.


MILLENNIALS LOVE BRANDS WHO BRING THEM EXPERIENCES

"Music events increase key brand metrics including awareness, positive opinion and purchase. 82% say they noticed a brand sponsoring a music event. And 1 in 3 have a more positive opinion of that brand after the event. But this hard-​to-​reach, hard-​to-​engage, hard-​to-​resonate-​with audience not only notices sponsors, they embrace them."

AudienceSCAN found that 20.6% of Concert Attendees took action based on sponsorship of an event they attended.

"Overall younger millennials aged 18–24 — as well as African-​American and Hispanic 18–34 year-​olds — are the most positively affected by a brand’s sponsorship of an event. 1 in 3 Millennials are more likely to actually purchase a brand’s product after seeing it at an event. Even though experiences trump things, experiences can help lead to purchasing things."

AudienceSCAN data is available as part of a subscription to AdMall for Agencies, or with the SalesFuel API. Media companies can access AudienceSCAN data through the AudienceSCAN Reports in AdMall.


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