Skip to Content

30th Annual Communicator Winners are Announced   SEE MORE

Winner Spotlight

Honda, Amplified at Austin City Limits Music Festival
by George P. Johnson Experience Marketing

Automaker Honda turned to George P. Johnson Experience Marketing for an engaging experiential event that caught the eyes of more than 70,000 guests at the Austin City Limits Music Festival. See how this project combined comforts for tired festival-goers with education on electric vehicles, and why it earned the 2023 Award of Excellence in Branded Experiences – Outdoor Entertainment or Festival Activation.

The Challenge
The Austin City Limits Music Festival (ACL) is a popular music festival (70k daily attendees), held over two weekends in the Texas capital every October. Honda has a large presence at the festival; their sponsorship includes rich opportunities for Honda marketing and branding. An activation space, hospitality area, website and onsite branding and social media posts create the opportunity for a 360 brand moment for Honda.

To connect with the young audience and journalists in attendance, Honda wanted to leverage data collection, onsite activations and public relations opportunities to market rugged adventure and electric vehicles.

The Solution
Honda turned to trusted experiential partner George P. Johnson (GPJ) to make the most of the festival, and GPJ made sure that they explored each element of the sponsorship for maximum impact.

They brought in sister agencies Praytell and G7 Entertainment Marketing to help meet client objectives, and also worked with Honda marketing and PR to align messaging and amplify social media components.

The Experience
The main activation included festival essentials such as shade, charging stations, a seating area and a water misting station providing relief from the Texas heat. A temporary tattoo station gave attendees a fun take-away with ACL-themed tattoos, while data collection gave Honda the opportunity to follow up with current and future owners. Social media influencers amplified the experience online.

Rounding out the activation area, the latest Honda vehicles were featured across an edgy and rugged theme, with 3 different options for attendees to explore, and a sweepstakes entry gave attendees a chance to win a 2023 HR-V Sport.

Invited guests were also treated to branded LED cowboy hats and access to Honda’s VIP area, which included backstage access to the Honda stage. The VIP area also hosted a special interview with the Honda Civic Tour featured band, The Future X.

View the full case study here.

Get the Newsletter