Raving grandparents and QR-code pizza at Lowlands

Either your alarm went off Thursday morning at an inhumanly early hour to head to Biddinghuizen, or you stayed home with a nagging case of FOMO. Yes, like the rest of the Netherlands, Lowlands had me in its grip again last weekend too. Luckily, I fell into the first group, and packed up and headed for the polder (only to resurface in the Amadillo again come Monday morning).

After the necessary recovery time, I was back at the office Wednesday. By the coffee machine, people weren't just curious about my favourite acts and my hoarse voice, but also about all the brand activations. Because yes, those came flying at you again this year too. So, time for a wrap-up.

Carve it in stone: genius lies in simplicity. Grandma and Grandpa Egberts were my absolute favourites. Working with Douwe Egberts, they got hungover campers going again with their coffee wake-up call. It sounded something like: "After this you're totally done for!" Or: "Come on kids, let's get going." TikTok was flooded with videos of the raving grandparents. Not made by Douwe Egberts, but by visitors themselves. User generated content at its finest: solve a problem (the hangover) and make it seriously shareable.

classic: Bol's Festivalwinkel. Forgot something? Just order it on Bol, and ten minutes later pick it up at the warehouse on site. Not new, but super handy. And then Domino's, first aid for cravings. Everyone orders food when they're hungover, so why not at Lowlands? Scan a QR code. Order a pizza. Eat.

And the fundamental need at a festival like this? Dancing. Then there was Bacardi's Hacienda. No problem being solved, just a tent where you could go dance between acts. What I mostly thought at the time? We need Hacienda's all year round in the Netherlands. Nightlife has shrunk significantly in recent years: nearly half of Dutch clubs have closed and a large share of local bars too. So I'll say it: more Hacienda's, please!

The biggest miss this year? HORNBACH's luggage carts! Where you'd normally haul your tent and airbed from the parking lot to the campsite with a half-formed hernia, their carts were the perfect rescue. Simple principle: take away a real physical pain point, and you've got yourself a good brand activation. Pretty much the exact opposite of the treasure hunt TK Maxx put on this year. The moment you ask your audience to invest unnecessary physical effort (read: friction) to engage with your brand, they drop off (read: fatal). Me included.

So, my bottom line for brand activations at festivals? Make it easy, solve a hangover (or at least the munchies), and the festivalgoer eats right out of your hand. Lowlands, see you next year!