clearly defined by Fyre stakeholders and if achievable
could have been an aspirational
edition to an elite social calendar.
However, the festival visionaries
failed to realise that the moment
expectations weren’t going to be
met they had a big problem.
“This happened from the first
marketing materials, as they failed
to realise that you can’t Photoshop
real life. The documentary painted
a bleak picture of how the team
instigated a high-profile marketing
campaign for, essentially, a fictional
event. However, in theory, their
approach to marketing the event
- using relevant influencers to
engage their target audience - was
standard practice. In fact, the
mass social media takeover was
very disruptive and drove ticket
sales; the issue came from the
misrepresentation of a) the event
and b) the influencers’ official
endorsement.”
Jo Eaden, live producer WRG,
part of The Creative Engagement
Group adds: “Selling the dream
works, the failure comes when
that dream is at no point
grounded in reality. It can never
be overestimated: the meticulous
planning that goes into events,
the never-ending balancing of
the creative aspiration and the
logistical needs.
“The problem here was not
Fyre’s ambition. Ambition is
great. It’s what creates the things
we have never seen before. But
ambition takes structure, planning,
a great team full of experience and
a thorough understanding of what
you need to deliver.”
Maybe, however, the consumer
is wising up to the exploitative
practices of brands like Fyre
Festival. Warm Street, a ‘new age
network of cultural consultants’,
stresses the importance for brands
of earning ‘Cultural Capital’,
something Fyre’s bosses hadn’t
achieved.
Warm Street co-founder Theo
Gentilli says: “Audiences on social
media are demanding that there
has to be real, authentic action
behind the messaging. It’s no
longer about insincere promises,
it’s about gaining consumer trust
in order to earn your right to
lead culture. Gillette are a recent
example of getting this wrong.
They were talking about equality,
but haven’t done anything over
the last 20 years to earn that voice.
Brands like Red Bull however, get
it right, and have proven that when
you’ve generated that cultural
capital, you can start and lead a
movement.”
The execution
“Instead of thinking about models,
you’re gonna have to think about
toilets”, Fyre Festival organiser
Fyre Festival’s founders were
lost in the hype of their event, and
lost sight of its execution.
Indeed, as NoNonsense director
Liz Madden points out: the
marketing efforts only worsened
the divide between expectation
and reality.
“The Fyre founders were used to
high-end bars and parties. They’d
never considered the planning,
hardwork, and hours that go into
making one weekend happen.
“They were not sensitive or
brave enough to stop it at the
point where they could. At that
point it could have been down to
good intentions. The responsible
thing to do was cancel, but they
lumbered on.
“Fyre Festival were only looking
at what the guests could get, not
how they could get it. They’d never
planned anything like this. The
lesson is: if you get the right people
you get the right thing.
In order to achieve their vision,
Madden recommends looking at
what similar events have achieved.
“If they wanted to create a sort
of ‘high-end Mayfair club on an
island’ they could have gone to
the kind of brands they wanted
to emulate, and see how they do
things.
“There’s no one company that
can do each element, it depends on
the aesthetic.”
Emmins agress, and says one of
Amplify’s core beliefs is ‘the idea
is only as good as the execution’.
“Don’t sell a dream you can’t
deliver. We’re an agency built on
creativity and big ideas, but with
this we have a responsibility
to manage the expectations of
our clients and those of their target
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