#FestivalBetter

#FestivalBetterby @TheFestivalGuy

From 2011-2014

After 62 festivals & 4 trips to Burning Man, here is what I’ve learned:5 Parts Of A Successful Festival

1. World class music viewing experience from the front to the back of the crowd.

2. Lines should never be an issue for any provided amenity (bathrooms, food & water).

3. Awesome food options for $10.

4. A clean venue with plenty of waste bins and signs reminding everyone to fill them.

5. Inspiring artwork in every direction.

Ways to keep your festival looking its best.Rule Number 1: Never let your waste bins overflow. Once attendees see bins overflowing they loose any motivation to pick up after themselves

Rule Number 2: Having staff pick up each individual piece of trash is time intensive and costly. Alternatively, have the staff walk around with signs and trash/recycling bags encourages festival goers to help pick up the trash around them which encourages positive festival-going behavior.

Email Tucker to hear more about this: [email protected]

Trash and Cigarette Butt Receptacle StrategiesReceptacles should be placed at a maximum of 50 yards away from each other. Areas prone to higher levels of waste (stages, concession stands) should be in closer proximity. Receptacles should also be easily identifiable at night.

It takes a village: Add fun and friendly signs around the festival to remind attendees to help keep the festival clean.

Water For AllFreely accessible water is a priority for every attendee. Making it easily accessible should be a priority for every festival. Explore corporate water sponsors like CamelBak and Mio to work to become single use water bottle free. (Lightning In A Bottle Does It)

Information/Lost & Found Booth 2.0• Booths should be staffed with individuals most capable of answering all festival questions. In the case of them not knowing an answer, a radio to call in supervisors should be provided.

• A multitude of iPhone, Android, Blackberry, and Windows Phone chargers should be ready to restore power to phones that have lost their charge. Have staff respond to calls and text messages from attendees looking for their phones to find their owner.

• Attendees who wish to claim a lost phone should prove ownership by unlocking the phone’s security code, knowledge of the phone’s number, or having identifiable pictures on the phone’s memory.

• Create a lost ID/credit card rolodex to make retrieval more efficient.

• Have a computer available so attendees can report lost goods.

A Successful Camping Experience.

1. Have activities available 24/7. Some examples of day time activities include: • Self improvement speakers • Yoga (multiple classes are better) • Sunrise hot chocolate • Arts and crafts making • Frisbee golf • Talks led by festival musicians or other people in the industry. • Dance classes. • Slip ‘N Slide • Games like Cornhole, football, ping pong, Jenga, giant chess & volleyball.

2. Some night activities include: • Silent Disco (full production) • Movies on a giant screen • Bingo • Tea House • Acoustic Stage • Glow Frisbee Golf • Burlesque Show

3. The campground should be just as decorated with art as the rest of the festival.

4. Light it up! The campground should glow at night. Encourage attendees to bring their own lights and decorate their own campsite to help make the campground their own glowing wonderland.

5. Setup a spot during and after the festival for attendees to leave unneeded festival gear for donation purposes.

6. Provide rental pull-carts for attendees hauling their camping gear in exchange for IDs held as collateral.

7. Don’t allow attendees to bring cases of individual water bottles. Instead allow gallon jugs of water. This single change will help keep the festival cleaner and more environmentally friendly.

What We Can Learn From Burning Man:While Burning Man is not a music festival, it should be referenced by festival organizers everywhere. Burning Man is proof that an organized event with paying attendees can successfully establish guiding principals that lead to a more enjoyable and positive experience for all. After Burning Man established their 10 guiding principles, the event became a cleaner environment and more importantly, the attendees had a much more clear code of conduct to follow for everyone’s benefit.

FestEvo would like your input on creating the basic principals of festivaling. Email us at: [email protected]

What Are The Festival Communities Principles?(Festival Guy’s Suggestions)

1. Leave no Trace +1: Pick up after yourself as well as someone else who might not be following the principle.

2. Pay it Forward: Help others out by selling extra tickets at face value. Take any personal objects you might find in the venue to a lost & found so it can find its way home.

3. Be Green: Avoid bringing one time use trash to the festival such as plastic water bottles and glow sticks.

4.Respect: Be mindful of other’s music viewing experience.

5. Positively represent the festival community: Strive to embody what it means to be a positive force on the festival-going community. Be mindful of other’s cultural and personal sensitivities by avoiding doing or wearing anything that may harm this idea.

Introducing FestEvo & FestEvo Lite. FestEvo: Allows attendees to discover festivals, listen to the lineup, and see which of their friends are going.

FestEvo Lite: A brandable app that allows any festival to have their own reliable app free of charge.

Visit FestEvo at www.FestEvo.com to claim your festivals page and join the festival evolution.