5 Trends defining 2023

Trends and challenges for the Event, Experience, Amusement, Sports, Festival and Concert business in the year to come and beyond.

Whereas 2021 was expected to be the big return for the entire venue business, it never really caught momentum, and 2022 didn’t change that for several reasons. So, what does 2023 have in store for the venue, event, sports, attraction, and exhibition community? 

Hybrid is here to stay

If nothing else, covid taught us that you can interact in a meaningful way, and have great experiences, without necessarily always being psychically present. TV-shows that used to have live guests in the studio, had guests being shown on hundreds of monitors, a trend that has continued after most Covid related restrictions were abandoned. We do however believe that human interaction matters so much that being psychically there, also holds a value in its own, why hybrid is here to stay, instead of everything becoming a VR or metaverse experience. 

Participating from the comfort of your home is now not only a possibility, an option, it is becoming a meaningful way of participating, and having another take on the same experience. It’s not a surrogate, it’s not the same as being psychically there. You are not missing part of the experience, you are having a different experience, one that holds value in its own. What does that mean for venues selling great experiences? That they must incorporate the Hybrid mindset in pricing, ticketing, the actual content etc. 

Staycation revisited 

Although we can travel almost as much as we like these days, the combination of inflation and climate awareness is now the root cause for people staying at home during their vacation. This is a challenge for the venue industry, visitors will not settle for a copy of last years’ experience, they want a new experience at the same venue.  

Addressing the home audiences demand for renewed experiences does not come with a bucket of new money, which means that creativity will have to blossom for venues to successfully prosper from staycation guests. A way many venues, museums, concert halls and amusement parks face this challenge, is by creating experiences that includes more than just one visit, a possibility not lucrative for tourists from out of a time, but a way to engage and keep a relationship with the guests, and in the end selling more to them. 

Staycation also means that guests often postpone planning and booking, and that element of increased spontaneity is something that the venues must be ready to handle not only marketing wise and financially, but also the practicalities of cancelations, last minute bookings etc. 

Increased audience engagement 

Technology has made it possible to engage more directly with your audience, a simple example being the British stand-up comedian Jimmy Carr, that early on included text-messages from the audience in his show, that he then responded to live. 

The audience now a days expect to be included and have an impact on what is going on. Is it possible to imagine that before 2023 is gone, some football manager has put it up for a vote among fans, which players he should put on the team for the next match? It’s possible to imagine, unlikely it will happen the next 12 months, but not unlikely 5 years from now.  

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