Social Research ¦ Market Research ¦ Behavioural Insight ¦ Evaluation ¦ SROI
Social Research ¦ Market Research ¦ Behavioural Insight ¦ Evaluation ¦ SROI
Light shows are increasingly being seen as an option for cities, local authorities and other organisations – including existing visitor attractions – to draw visitors and boost local economies, the hospitality sector and wider secondary spending through events such as Lumiere delivered by Artichoke or River of Light, taking place in a few weeks in Liverpool.
If you are keen to discuss an evaluation project or how to measure visitor experience for a light show, drone show or other light art or visitor experience, please do get in touch with Elliot Simmonds, our arts and culture lead, via our contact form.
Shows provide a particularly useful option in winter – as days shorten and darkness sets in earlier – to provide an activation in the calendar space between outdoor summer festivals such as music or culinary events and those later in the year, such as Christmas markets and other festive offerings delivered in many cities and towns.
Once relatively rare, there are now a wide range of light festivals taking place across the UK and there are a range of approaches, including light pathways and light trails such as River of Light in Liverpool, Our Place in Space (various), Illuminature at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and Kenwood House in North London.
Many festivals also feature lanterns – Lightopia (Crystal Palace), Glow Wild (Wakehurst by Kew) – or make use of existing spaces, such as the light and sound art being delivered by Luxmuralis in settings such as Winchester Cathedral!
Larger towns and cities have clearly identified the potential return on investment – with MEL Research poised to deliver the visitor experience research and economic impact assessment for River of Light Liverpool in mid-October. Of course, in addition to the cost of any ticketed element, organisers can benefit from food and beverage sales, and in some cases a boost to the overnight hospitality sector.
Of course, in addition to the cost of any ticketed element, organisers can benefit from food and beverage sales, and in some cases a boost to the overnight hospitality sector.
Lumiere London 2016 in central London welcomed 1.3 million visitors as a free event with an economic impact of £6.2 million in direct economic impact and £22.2 million in spending overall.
However, there are also other benefits. Our own research has suggested that simply being out among the lights can improve people’s sense of wellbeing and feelings of connection with others, for instance – particularly important at a time of year when dark nights are setting in. Our own Adam Knight-Markiegi is a specialist in Social Return on Investment (SROI) evaluation and this can be integrated in to projects to support economic impact assessments.
Finally, light art can be integrated in to other activations to add a point of difference or a strong opening or closing, for instance. As well as being delivered as standalone events, drone shows are certainly a popular addition to many different types of activation – such as the drone shows at SEE MONSTER and as part of the run up to the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, both delivered by SKYMAGIC.
Overall, it feels likely that we should expect to see an increase in the use of light shows in coming years as more organisations become aware of the advantages and potential economic and social impact of these displays, which can also remain in a city for several days or weeks to maximise return on investment.
If you would like to discuss economic impact assessments or how to measure visitor experience for a light show, drone show or other light art or visitor experience, please do get in touch with Elliot Simmonds via our contact form.
