How to recession-proof your event
Rally through the Downturn: How to recession-proof your event
The event industry has been one of the hardest hit in the wake of the pandemic. Many businesses were forced to close their doors, leaving event planners and venues struggling to stay afloat. With many events being canceled, event planners had to pivot quickly, coming up with creative solutions to keep events running while still providing their customers with an unforgettable (often virtual) experience.
The good news is that we have seen a real desire to return to in-person events. At PixMob we even called the summer of 2022 the summer of revenge entertainment. Finally we could get out of the house and go back to living our life, enjoying concerts, sports games and the unique feeling of being in a crowd. However with the rising costs and inflation, the future of the industry still remains uncertain and leaves us all wondering...
Are consumers still willing to pay for live entertainment in a recession?
Research shows that record inflation will force consumers to reconsider spending in live entertainment for sure. It cuts into lower income fans' budgets and in the research more than a third of event attendees said “the rising costs will prevent me from attending some live events this year.”
But that doesn’t mean people won't go out anymore, they’ll just be more picky about the events they choose to attend.
“66% of fans agree they’d rather spend more on one event for the BEST experience than attend multiple events at the cheapest price”.
So how can the event industry survive and even thrive during a recession?
Event planners must find ways to cut costs, while still delivering a safe, secure and high-quality experience. Consumers will seek value from packages and promotions that offer tangible benefits such as souvenirs or elevated experiences. As an industry it means we need to be willing to go the extra mile to ensure fans have a memorable experience.
We know for a fact that adding PixMob to your event will make for a much more engaging experience (shameless self-promotion here). Wearing our wristbands allows fans to become a part of the show, to connect with the artists on a deeper, more intimate level and will thus turn any event into an emotional and unforgettable experience.
Partnering with sponsors is also a great way to offset some of the cost and something that’s really easy to do with our fully brandable wristbands and QR code integration opportunities. But OK OK enough about us. ;)
Now of course, there are other ways as well. Despite inflation, there’s interest in premium entertainment. Packages and fans say it’s worth paying extra for VIP access so considering ticket add-ons is another way to provide more value to fans (think artists meet & greet, commemorative instagram booth, merchandise etc.)
Nobody knows what the future holds but the event industry has proven to be resilient and if the billboard thinks the show will go on, so do we!!
There are many strategies that can be employed to ensure success during a recession. One of them is to find ways to deliver added value to make sure you become that ONE event consumers would rather spend their money on.
Source: Returning to Live Entertainment 2022, Mintel (US)