Scotland's 'wee Woodstock' Solas Festival

The brief

Since 2023, we have delivered strategic multi-channel campaigns for Solas Festival, helping this much-loved Perthshire arts festival reach new audiences and strengthen its profile through a challenging period for live events. Across three festival editions, overall ticket sales targets have been exceeded each year, even in a competitive and uncertain market.

Our role

We developed the communications strategy, commissioned Scottish illustrators for new visual identities, and executed company-wide rebranding. This included managing a five‑figure marketing budget to maximise return on investment across print, digital and outdoor activity.

Using a 'heat map' of ticket booker postcodes, we selected key areas for print and online advertising. A photocall with The Courier generated extensive preview coverage. National and specialist arts press were targeted with tailored pitches, resulting in features across multiple titles.

In 2024, we launched a video podcast with festival acts, and collaborated with a Meta ads specialist to optimise online advertising. For 2025, we delivered a successful Crowdfunder campaign to support the festival’s long-term sustainability and build deeper engagement with core supporters.

Poster

The result

The campaign achieved record attendance with 1,000 attendees - the highest in eight years - and increased website visits to 20,000 from January to June. Social media engagement grew significantly, reaching 61.7k on Facebook with interactions up by 1.1k year-over-year.

The festival also secured media coverage. Preview coverage was secured in The Courier, while roundup pieces appeared in The Skinny and The Herald. Snack Magazine also attended the whole festival to review.

Campaign performance was also reported to funders and stakeholders, including EventScotland and Creative Scotland, demonstrating impact against agreed KPIs.