Emotion, memory and re-collective value: shared festival experiences

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to explore how emotionally rich collective experiences create lasting, shareable memories, which influence future behaviours. In particular, the role of others and of music in creating value through memories is considered using the concept of socially extended emotions. Design/methodology/approach Over 250 narratives were gathered from festival attendees in the UK and Finland. Respondents completed a writing task detailing their most vivid memories, what made them memorable, their feelings at the time and as they remembered them, and how they shared them. The narratives were then analysed thematically. Findings Collective emotion continues to be co-created long after the experience through memory-sharing. The music listened to is woven through this extension of the experience but is, surprisingly, not a critical part of it. The sociality of the experience is remembered most and was key to the memories shared afterwards. The added value of gathering memorable moments, and being able to share them with others, is clearly evidenced. Practical implications The study highlights the importance of designing events to create collective emotional moments that form lasting memories. This emphasizes the role of post-experience marketing and customer relationship building to enhance the value that is created customer-to-customer via memory sharing. Originality/value The research addresses the lack of literature exploring post-event experience journeys and the collective nature of these. It also deepens a theoretical understanding of the role of time and sociality in the co-creation and extension of emotions and their value in hospitality consumption. A model is proposed to guide future research.

Experience perceptions, memorability and life satisfaction: a test and theory extension in the context of Oktoberfest

“…Finally, measurement of desired outcomes according to the MDL theory included outcomes other than general satisfaction or loyalty (Harrington et al, 2019). A premise was that desired outcomes of memorable experiences include an impact on perceptions of well-being, life satisfaction or happiness (Neuhofer et al, 2020) as well as the desire to share memorable experiences on social media and with friends and family (Wood and Kinnunen, 2020). This also is part of the customer journey with benefits for both the consumer and activity provider.…”

“…While the concept of memorable experiences tied to the experience economy is not a totally new concept (i.e. Pine and Gilmore, 1999), the importance of collective hospitality experiences such as part of a shared festival such as Oktoberfest has been an overlooked dimension related to marketing strategy, co-creation and transforming consumer behaviors (Neuhofer et al, 2020;Wood and Kinnunen, 2020).…”

From pirates to subscribers: 20 years of music consumption research

“…Social media allows to establish relationships and interact with fans in order to co‐create value and vitalize the collective consumption, engagement, and participation. This scenario of communication and socialization favors the transmission of emotions and self‐extension through music consumption (Belk, 2013; Wood & Kinnunen, 2020). It also emphasizes its symbolic nature through specific patterns of behavior such as imitation (Guerzoni & Nuccio, 2014) or technology adoption (Nokelainen & Dedehayir, 2015) which can also be a means of self‐expression (Miquel‐Romero & Montoro‐Pons, 2017).…”

Social Sustainability in Adolescents’ Music Event Attendance

“…Adolescents rate people with similar musical taste positively [3], and a sense of belonging can even be achieved when listening to music alone [45]. However, attending a live music event adds to the communal feeling, as there are lots of like-minded people who share the same musical interests and demonstrate shared emotions in the form of dancing and singing along [46,47].…”