Harrogate Comedy Festival is an annual collection of some of UK comedy’s finest acts with Jimmy Carr, Jon Robins, Miriam Margoyles, Maisie Adam and Adrian Edmondson just some of the outstanding comics dropping by to offer an evening of laugh out loud comedy.
My role was to lead the creative direction for the festival across a wide range of print and digital marketing assets. The main aims for the festival were to increase ticket sales year-on-year and to begin to make a name for Harrogate as a prime destination for comedy in the UK.
Discovery sessions, visual research and customer surveys revealed the need for an eye-catching, high-energy design system to match the energy the comedy festival brings to the town. This was achieved through the bold, punchy aesthetic of the typography choices, a dynamic and consistent tri-tone wave colour system as well as a humorous, mischievous tone of voice to ensure consistent messaging across all touchpoints.
To celebrate the return of this year’s festival, Harrogate Theatre partnered with a number of local businesses to elevate the festival experience even further for audiences.
This year, Harrogate Theatre joined forces with our friends down at Cold Bath Brewery to create our very own festival beer called A Barrel of Laughs. Enjoyed by audiences before performances and during the interval, this specially produced beer saw positive sales and feedback. Furthermore, to create a full evening experience for our customers, we partnered with Pizza Social to provide delicious food to guests prior to selected shows. Additionally, our festival sponsor Your Harrogate Radio built up the energy and awareness across the airwaves of North Yorkshire.
Connecting with our local business network was essential to not only bringing a fulfilling experience for our audiences, but also benefitting local businesses with the increased footfall the festival brings to the town.
It was important that our customers’ experience with the festival was consistent across each point of contact. When strolling around town, visiting venues, commuting and surfing the web, telling a consistent story yet allowing for the ability to showcase a playful, fun festival personality was essential when planning the creative course of action.
This was achieved through a flexible colour system, extrapolating performer assets into the comedy festival design system, curating a consistent tone of voice and carefully planning the various points of contact between the festival and customers.
