Using the power of W Hotels' credibility in the Music space, we set out to turn the traditional Music Festival on it's head, creating once-in-a-lifetime, members-only Luxury Music Festivals that would:
1. Increase affiliation between W Hotels and Marriott's Loyalty Programs (SPG & Marriott Rewards)
2. Improve perceived value of membership in our Loyalty Programs by drawing mass attention to the benefits of membership
3. Continue to deepen W Hotels' long-standing connection to Music
Enter: Wake Up Call-- a W Hotels Music Festival in 3 aspirational destinations around the globe-- W Hollywood, W Barcelona, and W Bali.
To achieve our various objectives for these music festivals (and of course, drive attendance of the festivals themselves), we embarked on an Integrated Marketing program consisting of a strategic blend of more traditional (PR, Out of Home, Radio and Email) tactics, to newer, emerging digital & social tactics (Content Marketing, Digital Media, Influencer outreach, partnering with Content Creators, etc.)
TO DRIVE FESTIVAL ATTENDANCE among locals in Hollywood, Barcelona and Bali, we worked with our hotel marketing teams to execute local tactics including Out Of Home / Billboards, traditional radio ads, and local email blasts (i.e. LA Weekly, etc.)
TO REACH A WIDER AUDIENCE we employed a comprehensive global digital media strategy with our partners at SapientRazorfish, promoting the festival across key digital platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Spotify (via a sponsored Spotify Playlist, distribution of content marketing efforts via native advertising, and more.
DURING EACH FESTIVAL we:
- Employed a robust content plan, gathering video, photography and GIFs of performances, lifestyle moments, VIP moments experiences and more
- Conducted interviews and content shoots with various artists at each festival to publish on The Angle, our digital lifestyle magazine (you can read them all here)
- Live-streamed select artist performances to help expand the reach of each festival beyond festival attendees
- Invited over 200 Influencers, Celebrities & Press to further amplify our reach
AFTER EACH FESTIVAL we integrated all of this content into our paid media plan to drive further awareness of this campaign (and drive ticket sales for subsequent festivals).
We pulled it off! We planned, executed and sold out THREE Luxury Music Festivals in aspirational destinations around the globe-- and everyone had access to delicious food (no sad sandwiches here), drinkable water, luxe accommodations to sleep in, and so much more!
EXPERIENCE:
- 3 Sold Out Festivals (11K attendees across 3 destinations over 6 days)
- 81 Artist performances
- 125 VIP Moments Experiences for Loyalty Members who redeemed points
- Record B&F (Beverage & Food) sales at W Barcelona and W Bali
BRAND LIFT / AD EFFECTIVENESS STUDIES confirmed that Wake Up Call:
- Successfully conveyed W's link to Marriott International (+13% lift)
- Increased perceived value of membership for Loyalty programs (+4.5% lift)
- Deepened W Hotels' connection with Music (+8% lift)
SOCIAL BUZZ:
- 16.5K Public Social Mentions (across Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, YouTube, etc.)
- 855K Engagements
- 1.6B Potential Impressions
- 170 Influencers across 3 festivals drove a 30% increase in reach of the festival
- Artists also over-delivered on their contracted posts, thanks to creative brilliance of our awesome team of content creators (see media for our line-up). Anecdotally, the Music team at IMG Live / Endeavor noted that it is rare that artists follow up after their brand events asking for the content from their shoots (and many of our artists did just that!)
- 13.1 million views of YouTube Livestreams (47,500+ hours-- 5 years-- of total view time)
PRESS HIGHLIGHTS:
NYTimes: Wristbands and Room Service: Music Festivals Check In to Hotels
BRIT + CO: Wake Up Call is the Anti-Music Festival You've Been Waiting For
FORBES: A Hotel Brand Branches Way Out Into Music
POPCRUSH: Wake Up Call Leaves All Other So-Called Luxury Festivals In the Dust
ROLLING STONE INDIA: Music Festival + Staycation: How W Hotels is Changing the Experiential Game
