Post-Festival “We Heard/We Changed”: Using Feedback to Build Legendary Reggae Festivals

Introduction

The final encore of a festival may have finished, but the work of a festival organiser isn’t over when the music stops. The days immediately after a reggae festival – or any festival – are a golden opportunity to strengthen your event’s legacy. Legendary festivals are built not just on great performances, but on accountability and listening to the community. From fans and artists to neighbours and crew, every voice can offer insight into how to improve the experience. Smart festival teams around the world act quickly in this post-festival window: conducting surveys, debriefing with stakeholders, and pledging visible changes.

In reggae festivals especially, where the spirit of “one love” and community runs deep, embracing feedback can turn a great event into an unforgettable institution. This article shares practical, battle-tested advice on gathering post-festival feedback and converting it into real improvements – a process often summed up as “We heard you, and we changed.” By surveying your attendees, performers, crew and community within 72 hours of event closure, and then publishing concrete changes tied directly to their feedback, you demonstrate transparency and gain trust. We’ll explore how festival producers across the globe – from Jamaica to the UK, from boutique gatherings to mega-festivals – leverage this approach. We’ll also highlight examples of successes (and missteps) to illustrate why accountability builds legends in the festival world.

Collect Feedback from All Stakeholders (Within 72 Hours)

Time is of the essence once your festival wraps up. Within about 72 hours, aim to gather input while memories are fresh. This quick turnaround shows stakeholders that their opinions matter and that you’re committed to action. Importantly, don’t just survey the fans who bought tickets – reach out broadly to everyone involved in or affected by your festival:

Fans & Attendees

Your attendees are your festival’s lifeblood. As soon as the festival ends, send a well-crafted post-event survey to ticket buyers (many ticketing platforms, like Ticket Fairy, make this easy to do via email or mobile notification). Keep the survey short and focused – for example, ask about overall satisfaction, favourite aspects, any issues with sound, lines, facilities, etc., and allow open comments for detailed feedback. Posting the survey link on social media can capture feedback from those who attended casually as well. It helps to offer a small incentive, such as a chance to win free tickets or merch, to boost response rates. Real-world tip: The team behind California’s “Reggae on the Mountain” festival sends their survey out the morning after the festival and reportedly gets thousands of responses. By acting quickly, they capture fans’ highs and lows before the post-festival glow fades.

Don’t forget to listen on social media too. Often attendees will be posting on Twitter, Facebook, or Reddit immediately with feedback – both praise and complaints. Assign someone on the festival team to monitor and compile common sentiments. For instance, if multiple people tweet that a particular stage consistently had sound issues or that water refill stations were hard to find, note it down. These unfiltered comments can be gold because they’re often very candid. One could even prompt discussion by asking fans publicly, “What would you improve for next year?” – showing you’re open to critique.

Artists & Performers

Artists have a unique perspective on your festival’s operations – from how they were treated to the technical setup on stage. Reach out to every artist and their management within a couple of days post-event. Thank them for being part of the festival, and ask if they have any feedback on their experience. This can be done through a personalised email or phone call. Many artists will appreciate the gesture; it shows professionalism and that you care about their needs.

Key areas to ask performers about include: stage sound quality (Did they have any monitor issues? Was the soundcheck smooth?), logistics (How was the transport from hotel to venue? Any delays?), hospitality (Were the green rooms/backstage comfortable and well-stocked?), and the overall vibe.

Case in point: After Rototom Sunsplash in Spain, organisers often solicit informal feedback from headlining reggae artists about the stage and crew. Over the years, this helped them fine-tune their stage scheduling and hospitality – e.g. adjusting set lengths or improving the backstage catering – to better accommodate the artists’ comfort.

By involving artists in the feedback loop, you not only improve the event for future performers but also build a reputation in the artist community as a festival that’s accommodating and well-run. This can give you an edge when booking acts next time, as artists talk to each other about which festivals treat them well.

Crew, Staff & Volunteers

Your crew and volunteers are on the front lines and often notice operational issues that attendees might not directly see. Within a day or two after the festival, host an internal debrief meeting (or series of meetings by department: security, production, vendors, etc.). Encourage every team lead to report what went well and what problems arose. It’s equally important to invite frontline staff and volunteers to share their experiences – perhaps through an anonymous survey or a casual wrap-up party where feedback is welcome.

Topics to cover with the crew could include: Did any equipment fail or prove insufficient? Were there enough hands for each task or were some teams overworked? How did the new ticket scanning system perform? Were there choke points in foot traffic that staff observed? Often, solutions to logistical challenges (like better positioning of barricades or more radios for communication) will come directly from those who experienced the hiccups.

For example, the Glastonbury Festival in the UK (a massive event) holds comprehensive debriefs with its area managers and volunteers soon after the festival. Insights from those sessions have driven many improvements – such as increasing the number of trained stewards at entry gates after staff noted bottlenecks, and providing stronger lighting in parking areas when volunteer teams reported safety concerns.

By applying the same principle, even a small reggae festival in a city park can benefit: your volunteers might point out that signage was confusing or that the first-aid tent wasn’t visible enough, and you can address it next time.

Besides solving problems, involving your staff in post-festival evaluation makes them feel valued. It boosts morale and retention – your crew will be more likely to return if they know their voice matters in making the festival better.

Neighbours & Community

Every festival, especially outdoor music events, has an impact on the local community and residents. Noise, traffic, and crowds can affect those living nearby. Smart festival organisers proactively engage with neighbours and local authorities after the event to gather input. Within a week of the festival, consider doing one or more of the following:
– Send a letter or email to local residents (particularly those in closest proximity) thanking them for their patience and providing a contact or survey for feedback. Keep it polite and appreciative: acknowledge that an event can be disruptive and that you sincerely want to hear any concerns.
– Hold a community meeting or forum with neighbourhood representatives and officials. This could be a town hall at a community center or even a casual “coffee and chat” session. Invite people to speak candidly about noise levels, litter, traffic management, and any positive outcomes too (such as business boosts from visitors).
– Coordinate with local authorities (city council, parks department, police, etc.) for their input. Often, these stakeholders will have post-event debriefs as well. Getting their perspective – for example, the police might share data on any incidents or traffic control issues – is invaluable for maintaining your permit and improving community relations.

Remember to approach community feedback with a listening and appreciative attitude, not defensiveness. If a neighbour complains that “music was thumping past midnight on Saturday making it hard to sleep,” that feedback is a gift. It might indicate you need to lower stage volumes after a certain hour or improve soundproofing on the fence line next time.

In one instance, a festival in Chicago faced strong neighbourhood opposition initially, but after the event the local alderwoman noted that the organizers “did an excellent job making sure that they were listening to residents’ concerns” regarding safety and traffic (blockclubchicago.org). That kind of goodwill only comes if you truly engage and adjust based on community needs.

By surveying and talking to your festival’s neighbours, you not only prevent future problems – you might also gain some allies. People are more likely to support (or at least tolerate) an event that respects them. Some festivals even invite the local community into the celebration as a goodwill gesture (free or discounted local tickets, community booths at the festival, charity donations to local causes from festival profits, etc.). These steps, combined with a genuine invitation for feedback, show that the festival wants to be a responsible member of the community.

“You Said, We Did”: Turning Feedback into Action

Collecting feedback is only half the battle – what truly sets apart a great festival producer is the ability to translate feedback into visible improvements. Attendees and communities will be watching to see if you actually respond to their input. Publishing the changes you’ll make (and then following through on them) closes the feedback loop in a powerful way.

Start by analyzing all the input you received from fans, artists, crew, and community. Look for common threads and prioritize issues that had the most mentions or the biggest impact on experience. It’s unlikely you can fix everything by next year, but you can certainly address the top recurring points. Next, at least a few weeks or months before tickets go on sale for the next festival, prepare a “We Heard You – We’re Changing” report to share publicly. This could be a blog post on your site, an email newsletter, or a series of social media posts. The key is to be specific and transparent.

Consider structuring your report or posts in a simple “You said – We did” format, which many events and even city councils use to communicate responsiveness (armaghbanbridgecraigavon.citizenspace.com). For example:
– “You said: lines at the main gate were too slow.” We did: We’re adding two more entry lanes and implementing early badge pick-up options to reduce wait times.
– “You said: the sound on the second stage was bleeding into the reggae dub arena.” We did: We’ve re-oriented the stage speakers and invested in directional sound technology to contain audio within each stage area.
– “You said: there wasn’t enough shade in the afternoon heat.” We did: We will be installing additional shade canopies and misting tents, plus free cold water stations will double next year.
– “You said: the line-up could use more female reggae artists.” We did: We hear you – diversity is a priority, and next year’s booking team has committed to at least 50% female or mixed-gender acts across the stages.

Publishing a list of changes tied directly to feedback shows fans and the public that you genuinely listen. It can turn criticism into an opportunity: attendees see their comments resulting in action, which increases loyalty. A concrete example is Coachella in California – after early criticism about high temperatures and limited water access, organisers eventually added free water refill stations and more shade structures throughout the grounds, directly addressing those fan concerns. On the flip side, we’ve seen what happens when festivals ignore feedback: if year after year people complain about, say, poor toilets or overselling the venue, and nothing changes, the festival’s reputation erodes. (An infamous cautionary tale is the failed Fyre Festival, where organisers not only failed to deliver promised facilities but also ignored warning signs and complaints – the result was a public relations disaster and a collapse of trust.)

Don’t shy away from acknowledging shortcomings. Being honest about what went wrong and showing a plan to fix it can actually enhance your credibility. For instance, the organisers of Desert Daze festival (USA) faced a severe weather-related fiasco one year that left attendees unhappy; they responded with a detailed public letter explaining what happened, apologizing sincerely, and outlining step-by-step measures for future weather emergencies. That transparency won back a lot of goodwill from a disappointed crowd. Similarly, new festivals that stumble out of the gate can recover by openly addressing issues: South Africa’s debut Hey Neighbour Festival in 2023 got fan criticism for sound problems and hours-long queues (www.news24.com), but if its organisers actively communicate fixes (like improving audio and streamlining entry), they stand a good chance of redeeming the festival’s reputation.

When crafting your “We Changed” announcements, tone matters. Keep it positive, proactive, and appreciative. Thank the community for their input in the introduction of the report: e.g. “Thank you for sharing your honest feedback – we’ve heard you loud and clear and are already working on making next year’s festival even better.” If certain feedback can’t be implemented immediately (maybe there’s a request for a covered arena but budget won’t allow a big tent yet), it’s okay to address that too: explain the challenge and perhaps share a longer-term plan. It’s better to say “We hear you and we’re looking into options for this in the future” than to ignore it completely.

By committing to improvements publicly, you also set a standard that your team will strive to meet. It essentially puts good pressure on the festival organisation to deliver. And you can bet that when next year’s festival comes, attendees will remember – and they’ll notice the extra shade tent, the shorter lines, or the better sound mix. Each fix will translate to a better experience, better reviews, and likely, better ticket sales.

Thank Partners, Acknowledge Achievements, and Share Impact

While addressing criticisms is crucial, don’t forget to celebrate the positives and the people who made the festival possible. A major part of post-festival communications – typically in the same report or blog post – should be thanking partners by name and highlighting the event’s positive impact and success metrics. This not only gives credit where it’s due, but also reinforces why your festival is a valued endeavour in the community.

Thanking Partners and Crew: Big festivals and small ones alike often publish a gratitude section – for example, listing key sponsors, local authorities, and team members. Be specific: instead of just “thanks to our sponsors,” say “A huge thank you to [Sponsor Name] for backing the main stage, to Mayor [Name] and the City of ___ for their support with permits, to Chief [Name] and the ___ Police Department for keeping everyone safe, and to our incredible volunteer crew led by [Crew Director’s Name] who worked around the clock.” Mentioning individuals (where appropriate) and organisations shows sincerity. Many festival organisers also shout out their vendors and content partners (e.g. “special thanks to Reggae FM Radio for hosting our live broadcast, and to the Island Foods Collective for feeding our crowd with delicious Caribbean fare”). These public thank-yous strengthen relationships. Partners who feel valued are more likely to return next year. And crew members seeing their name or team acknowledged will feel proud of contributing to something meaningful.

Sharing Impact Metrics: Alongside thank-yous, share some concrete results from the festival. This can include feel-good metrics and interesting stats, such as:
– Attendance and Demographics: e.g. “We welcomed 15,000 reggae lovers this year from 20 different countries, including visitors from as far as Brazil and Japan!”
– Economic Impact: if available, note how the festival benefited the local economy (many tourism boards help calculate this). e.g. “An estimated $2 million was spent in the local area over the weekend on hotels, food, and transportation, boosting local businesses.”
– Community and Charity: Did the festival give back or do something positive socially? e.g. “$5,000 was raised for the [Local Charity] through our ticket donation programme,” or “Leftover food was donated to the town shelter, and our team participated in a beach cleanup on Monday, leaving the site cleaner than we found it.”
– Environmental Impact: If you have any green initiatives, report on them. “We collected 10 tonnes of recycling and compost, diverting 85% of waste from landfill,” or “Thanks to attendees bringing reusable bottles, we saved an estimated 20,000 single-use plastic cups.”
– Online Engagement: sometimes festivals share social media or streaming reach: “Our live stream had 50,000 viewers worldwide,” etc. This is optional but can show the broader reach of the event.

By highlighting these outcomes, you tell a story that the festival isn’t just a weekend party – it’s an event that brings real value. For instance, the iconic Reggae Sumfest in Jamaica often highlights how many tourists it attracted and the local jobs supported, to underline its importance to the region. Similarly, at a community level, if you can say, “20 local reggae bands got a chance to perform for new audiences” or “we hired 100 local youth as staff,” it shows you’re nurturing talent and community employment.

Combining the gratitude and the metrics, a post-festival report might read like: “We couldn’t have done this without you – huge thank you to everyone from our headline sponsor Tiki Beer Co., to the Kingston City Council and residents, to our stage crews and volunteers. Together we created an amazing experience for 5,000 attendees. And it mattered: those fans spent money in 30 local businesses and hotels, and we raised $10,000 for the Marley Foundation. Plus, we danced under the sun for 12 hours each day with zero serious incidents – one love indeed!” Such a recap not only makes people feel good about being involved, it also serves as a subtle marketing piece for next year (showcasing successes encourages others to attend or sponsor).

Invite the Community into Next Year’s Planning

One hallmark of sustainable festivals – especially beloved reggae festivals that run for decades – is that they make the community part of the festival’s evolution. Post-festival is the perfect time to extend an invitation for deeper involvement from your fanbase and your local community in planning for next year. This doesn’t mean handing over your operations, but rather creating channels for collaborative input and keeping people engaged year-round.

Here are a few approaches to actively involve people in your next edition:

• Fan Advisory Panels or Focus Groups: Identify some of your most passionate attendees (the ones who give detailed feedback, or longtime ticket-buyers) and invite them to join a casual “advisory panel”. This might be an online group or a quarterly Zoom call where you float new ideas and get their take. Having a diversity of fan voices can provide insights you might miss. For example, the organisers of a large UK reggae festival noticed many families were attending, so they formed a Family Focus Group of attendees with kids, which led to adding a dedicated family area and kids’ reggae dance workshops the next year based on the group’s suggestions.

• Community Representatives in Planning: If your festival takes place in a community, consider including a couple of local resident representatives or a liaison from the neighbourhood in your planning committee. This is especially useful if you have had past frictions. Bringing a community voice to the table early can help pre-empt issues. For instance, Glastonbury Festival informally involves local parish council members in discussions about traffic plans and curfews well ahead of each festival. Similarly, at New Zealand’s One Love Festival in Tauranga, organisers have worked closely with M?ori community leaders when planning to ensure the event respects local customs and to include a welcome ceremony. By acknowledging indigenous and local community input, they build a festival that locals are proud of, not just one that passes through.

• Open Forums and AMAs: Hosting an open forum (in-person or online) is a great way to signal transparency. Some festivals do an “Ask Me Anything” session on Reddit or a live Q&A on Instagram Live, where the festival director or team leads answer questions from fans about the past event and plans for the future. This can happen a few weeks after the festival, once you have some idea of changes you’ll implement. It gives fans a chance to ask or suggest directly. Keep the tone friendly and grateful, even when fielding tough questions. If someone asks “Why didn’t we have more dub artists on the line-up?”, you might answer “We hear you on the dub! We actually have a few in mind for next year that we’re excited about – any suggestions are welcome, our DMs are open.” Such dialogues can turn a critic into a champion, because you acknowledged them publicly.

• Volunteer/Staff Feedback Integration: Let your volunteers and staff know that they are welcome to contribute ideas for next year – not just in the immediate debrief, but anytime. Perhaps you set up a suggestion box (digital or physical) for staff ideas on improving workflow, safety, or fun new features. Many innovations at festivals come from the crew brainstorming. For example, the idea to have a “cooling off tent” at a festival (for attendees who might feel overwhelmed by crowds or heat) could come from a medical crew member’s suggestion after observing a need. If it’s implemented next year, credit that idea to the team member if they’re happy to be named – it shows that the festival embraces creativity from within.

Inviting community and fan participation doesn’t dilute your control; rather, it creates a sense of ownership among the public and staff. People will champion a festival that they feel invested in. They’ll also be more forgiving of challenges if they know you’re continuously working with them, not apart from them. Over time, this collaborative approach can lead to a festival culture where each year feels partly “by the people, for the people” – which is exactly the vibe that keeps reggae festival-goers coming back in the true spirit of unity.

Accountability Builds Legends

Why go to all this effort? Because accountability builds legends. The most iconic festivals in the world – be it a roots reggae gathering or a giant multi-genre spectacle – earned their status by evolving with their audience and staying accountable to their promises. When you consistently demonstrate that you listen, care, and act on feedback, you cultivate immense loyalty. Fans become more than customers; they become a community that actively wants to see the festival thrive. Artists are eager to return because they trust they’ll be looked after. Local communities become partners rather than adversaries.

On the contrary, festivals that operate with a “set and forget” mentality, ignoring the voices of those around them, often struggle to last. Especially in today’s world of instant social media feedback, transparency and responsiveness aren’t just buzzwords – they are expected.

By surveying stakeholders, communicating the changes you’ll make, thanking everyone openly, and involving people in planning, you are effectively saying: “This festival is your festival as much as it is ours.” That sentiment builds an emotional connection that money can’t buy. It turns first-time attendees into long-term fans who will proudly say, “I was there when…and I’m coming back next year.” It turns a local councillor who once fielded noise complaints into a supporter who says, “This event listens and gives back to our town.” Over years, those relationships compound, and your festival’s name will be spoken with respect and excitement.

In reggae music culture, legends are those who stay true to the people and the message. In the festival world, the same principle applies. So when you commit to post-festival accountability – through rapid feedback gathering and real, public improvements – you’re not just fixing problems, you’re forging the legend of your festival.

Key Takeaways

• Survey everyone (fast!): Within 72 hours of your festival’s end, collect feedback from attendees, artists, crew, and local neighbours. Use online surveys, social media, and direct outreach to get honest input while the experience is fresh.
• Close the feedback loop: Don’t just gather feedback – act on it. Publish a transparent “You said, we did” report or announcement highlighting the specific changes you’ll make based on what you heard (e.g. better soundproofing, shorter lines, more shade, improved line-ups, etc.).
• Be specific and accountable: Tie improvements directly to feedback points. Acknowledge what went wrong and explain clearly how it will be better. Owning up to issues and fixing them earns respect from fans and community.
• Express gratitude and share results: Thank sponsors, partners, staff and volunteers by name for their contributions. Share key success metrics (attendance, funds raised for charity, local economic impact, waste recycled, etc.) to show the positive impact of the festival.
• Invite ongoing community input: Welcome your fan community and local residents into the planning process for next year. Create channels for ideas (advisory panels, forums, Q&As) and involve key stakeholders early, so they feel invested in the festival’s success.
• Build trust through transparency: Remember that being open, responsive, and accountable is what turns a one-off event into a beloved annual tradition. When people see that you truly listen and adapt, your festival’s reputation will grow – and that is how legends are made.