My girlfriend and I just watched the Netflix Documentary “Fyre The Greatest Party That Never Happened” (I highly suggest you watch it if you haven’t yet) and I believe the main character, Billy, is one of the best marketers in the world.
The true marketing geniuses in the world know how to appeal to an audience. In my opinion, Kris Jenner, the Kardashians mom, is the best marketer I’ve ever seen. Now Billy McFarland may rival her after watching the Netflix and Hulu documentaries about this festival and taking a deep dive into his vision.
Fyre Festival was a marketing masterpiece for 3 reasons.
1. Social Media’s Power
2. Status and Power
3. The Shortcoming of the Millennial Audience
The true beauty behind the Fyre Festival marketing scheme wasn’t the top supermodels in the world, rather the simplicity of the campaign. One weekend video/photo shoot was all it took to create this entire festival out of thin air. Billy recruited the top supermodel/instagram influencers to come to the Bahamas and party for 3 days, all while the cameras were constantly rolling. The video was constantly posted on all of the models social media feeds to their combined 100 million LOYAL followers.
Billy constantly said, “We are promoting a dream to your average middle American”. Billy knew that his audience wasn’t the upper class but the people who dreamed of being in that class. The luxury lifestyle is what Billy was selling, and no ordinary man or woman would want to pass up on the opportunity to live that lifestyle for 3 days in the Bahamas. Billy knew that power and status create envy.
The true shortcoming of the millennial audience is our desire to be something that we are not. We constantly view other people’s lives on social media and compare their materials to our own. The “lifestyle” we wish to live becomes our aspiration and this is why the Fyre Festival worked. We saw the lifestyle we always dreamed of and Billy gave us the ticket to live it.
A true marketing genius.
Consider the power of social media, influence, brand, and lifestyle in your next marketing campaign.