Exclusive: Top 10 festival factors for success from Edinburgh chief

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In an exclusive interview on the eve of the 2010 Edinburgh Festival CEO of Edinburgh Marketing Partnership gives his factors for success.

Kenneth Wardrop, on the eve of the opening of Edinburgh’s festival season, gives his reasons for Edinburgh’s phenomenal success.

Every year Edinburgh attracts millions to its wonderful festivals, not only numbers of tourists but the right sort of people and a top quality, locally retained, spend.
How do they do it?
 

Says Kenneth, “The key factors are:

1. “Organic growth from strong local roots, matching event to local demographic, engendering ownership and civic pride, plus generating underpinning ticket sales”
2. “Taking the long term view, sustained support to establish the event, festival and market position, plus customer recognition and loyalty”
3. “Mix of showcasing best of local with international”
4. “Knowing your customers”
5. “Critical mass and creating that buzz”
6. “Edinburgh’s scale, concentration of venues and critical mass, as well as the city acting as a natural stage, walk ability”
7. “The base cultural and physical support infrastructure for staging/ supporting events and the talent pool (sustained year round – sustained by cultural activity)”
8. “The visitor infrastructure ref hygiene factors – hotels , transport, restaurants etc”
9. “The freedom of programming in the Fringe (it is as much about right of passage and creative experimentation as drawing audience – getting spotted and the experience)”
10. “All mixed with curated and programmed activity such as the Edinburgh International Festival (the gravitas of which gives a legitimacy to the Fringe too)”
11. “The diversity of offer from comedy , to high art, to fringe experimentation”
12. “The power of the festivals coming together collaboratively to share practice, pool talent resources, joint marketing, packaging, PR, audience research , influencing policy and resource allocation and innovation”
13. “The recognition of the value of their product – the content and the need to take control now of how that content is utilised in the media (helped by the internet now of course  example EdFest TV);
14. “The value as a global brand and opportunity to export that and raise profile at the same time.”

As told to Valere Tjolle
Valere Tjolle is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite and Masterclasses current details and special offers at: www.travelmole.com/stories/1142003.php