eROI Event

Over Labor Day weekend I headed up to North to attend the Dave Matthews Band concert at The Gorge Amphitheater in George, Washington. This event, which is commonly referred to as simply “Dave”, without further explanation for band name or location, is a three night concert with camping and debauchery during the day, happens every year over Labor Day weekend.

This was my first year attending the event, but I’m pretty sure I was the only one. My buddy who convinced me to go has been to 20 Dave concerts over the years (six at The Gorge I believe), and every person I ran into was ecstatic to meet a first timer, as they had also been to Dave many years running. The simple explanation might just be that people from the Northwest really enjoy Dave Matthews Band and that The Gorge Amphitheater is a great venue, but I think there is more to it than that.

I think the reason for it’s popular following is that the event has a great sense of community. This all starts with the band itself, who come back to play every year, talk on the mic during the show about how much they love playing the event annually, and are known to be seen riding around the campgrounds on their bikes. It works down from there, everyone camping is amazingly social, hippie vendors sell great fresh food, people reminisce about their past experiences at Dave.

When you are planning future events for your organization, remember to keep in mind that the sense of community is what will keep people talking, it is what will keep people coming back every year, and it is what has people bring their friends to it to experience the magic for the first time. Build that community from the top down, the event organizers and the stars of the show should be enthusiastic and positive about the event, the energy and community will work their way down from there.

How do you create committed followers? What are some events you always attend? Sound off in the comments section.