FESTIVAL GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT
An expert audit and A-Z action plan to help your festival grow, scale and succeed.
OVERVIEW
You're too close to your festival to see it clearly — and too busy running it to step back.
Our Festival Growth Playbook gives you a full spectrum, expert-level evaluation of your entire festival operation — from branding to budgeting, programming to ticketing, PR to production.
We identify the gaps, constraints, and missed opportunities holding your festival back from being what you know it can be — a market leader.
That's where we come in.
DELIVERABLES
Achieve your festival goals, increase efficiencies, boost revenue, growth and profitability.
Pre-Festival
- Interviews (founders, producers, stakeholders)
On-Site
- Diagnostic (A-Z audit / evaluation)
Post-Festival
- Presentation (findings and next steps)
- Top 10 Strategy Recommendations (short / long-term)
- Tactical Improvements (pre-fest / on-site / post-fest)
Optional
- Growth & Development Strategy (dept-by-dept)
OUTCOMES
CLARITY
See what's working, what's not, and what to fix next.
GROWTH
Identify revenue and audience expansion opportunities.
EFFICIENCY
Reduce waste, risk, and recurring headaches.
CONFIDENCE
Get third-party validation, perspective, and next steps.
JK MCKNIGHT
Your point of contact — and the experience leader behind AOI.
JK McKnight has spent 25 years in festival development. He founded Forecastle Festival, growing it from 50 people into a 75,000-person destination event and one of America's most critically acclaimed festivals. He later worked with AC Entertainment (Bonnaroo, Big Ears, High Water, Railbird and more). Today, he helps founders design, produce, and grow world-class festivals through proven strategy, specialized expertise, and decades of firsthand experience.
Read JK's full bioFrequently Asked Questions
It starts with pre-festival interviews of your founders, producers, and stakeholders, followed by an on-site A-Z diagnostic audit of your entire operation. Post-festival, you receive a presentation of findings and next steps, your Top 10 Strategy Recommendations (short and long-term), and Tactical Improvements across pre-fest, on-site, and post-fest. An optional dept-by-dept Growth & Development Strategy is also available.
Engagement duration varies with festival size and scope; the Festival Diagnostic and Recommendations Report is typically delivered within 4-6 weeks of on-site attendance, with the optional Growth & Development Strategy adding time depending on the number of departments.
We attend your festival in person and run an A-Z diagnostic across your entire operation — from branding to budgeting, programming to ticketing, PR to production. Being on the ground lets us see what's working, what's not, and where the gaps, constraints, and missed opportunities are hiding.
After the diagnostic, we deliver a presentation of findings and your Top 10 Strategy Recommendations spanning short and long-term priorities. Alongside them, we map Tactical Improvements across pre-fest, on-site, and post-fest so you know exactly what to fix next and how to act on it.
From one festival founder to another — we know what it takes. You're too close to your festival to see it clearly and too busy running it to step back, so we bring third-party validation, perspective, and a clear path to becoming the market leader you know you can be.
Take your festival to the next stage
Schedule a free discovery call with our team. We’ll assess where you are, where you want to go, and exactly how we can help you get there.