How to Stand Out at Goodwood Festival of Speed

Every year, Goodwood Festival of Speed (GFOS) sees the biggest car brands and racing figures attend an action-packed weekend in Chichester, West Sussex.

What makes the event so magical, is seeing the estate transformed into a metropolis of car brands, racing, lifestyle shops and food vendors.

It’s not just your average car event, though. Its secret ingredient is the vast experiences that are on offer to the public.

Everyone remembers the days that Ford let people jump from the second floor of their stand to experience ‘the thrill of electric acceleration’, and the classic staples of the Jaguar Drifting Experience or the Land Rover Assault Course. These experiences turned heads and got bums on seats.

In recent years, however, we’ve started to see a more passive experience from brands, with a shift towards more of a classic motor show approach. This essentially means there’s more of a focus on the latest cars, and less on the stories and the experiences that make the brands shine. This approach ultimately makes it harder for brands to stand out from the crowd and truly connect with their audiences.

So how can brands disrupt this new norm and shine amongst the competition?

1. Build stories, not stands

Our most successful stands at the festival have embodied the stories we want to tell.

By delving into the brand’s values and what it stands for, you can start to shape a narrative that will really resonate.

Let’s take MINI Electric Avenue as an example. We took on MINI’s brief to celebrate its 60th birthday in style – as well as looking to its electric future – by creating an immersive brand world for festival-goers to dive into. We transported guests to a 60s themed street and let each pocket of space tell an authentic story. From getting a treat at a classic sweet shop, to finding your style at Murdock Barbers – our experiences fully immersed guests into this retro world.

We can also look at BMW in 2022. To tell an authentic brand story of how BMW is partnering with national parks around the country, we immersed guests in a micro forest with a journey that explored how each innovation has brought BMW one step closer to their sustainable goal. The contrast of forest, cars and the iconic estate made the Stable Yard a destination worth visiting.

2. Encourage participation over spectatorship

The experience must be the heart and soul of the stand, and experience means nothing without participation. After all, why attend in person if you’re not going to get involved?

The starting point is to truly understand how audiences interact with the brand and what they care about, finding the niches, subcultures and rituals around the brand and products. From there, you can craft interactive touchpoints that feel authentic, and that you can build anticipation around. 

To celebrate 50 years of BMW Motorsport, we created a turbo-charged experience space that brought the iconic marque to life. All centred around an open, ‘meet up’ style stand layout that encourages exploration. We paired the products with activities which reflected their energy and thrill. Beatboxers, competitive SIM racing, high tempo DJ sets, and a livestreamed unveiling of the first ever BMW M3 Competition Touring car, all came together to create one of the most talked-about brands on site. Once you stepped onto the stand, you couldn’t help but feel part of that BMW street culture.

3. Make location count

The beauty of having all the biggest car brands at one event, is seeing all the different personalities shine across the festival. But with such a variety of locations, how can you use them to your advantage?

Location choice is playing an increasingly central role in brand experiences more broadly, often being a key element of the story, and Goodwood is similar in this regard. Aside from The Grid, a space where brands are rubbing shoulders with one another at the heart of the festival, fans have come to expect certain experiences in certain areas. These include BMW at The Stable Yard, Rolls-Royce on the Laundry Green, Porsche on The Hill and JLR building their stand around an ancient Goodwood Oak Tree.  One thing these brands have done well is maximise their setting, using the natural and built features to elevate or enhance their experiences.

It’s also interesting to see experiences show up in spaces that are more ‘untapped’. For example, as honoured marque in 2023, Porsche integrated artistic installations by Chris Labrooy into locations including the cricket green, which was elevated further by an electric orchestra alongside it. This broke outside of the norm of Porsche’s usual presence, creating more intrigue and engaging new audiences.

4. Schedule the day, to own the day

At an event where there are always 100 things happening at once, it’s essential to time your experiences to perfection. This is where brands can create FOMO through creative programming.

Surprise and delight moments, talent that gets people talking, product reveals and more, all create reasons for audiences to visit and re-visit, as well as becoming the stories that will be shared far and wide.

The right balance will give people enough time to admire the products on the stand without too much distraction.

5. Reward loyalty

Goodwood Festival of Speed is full of exciting hospitality prospects and trackside seats that are exclusive to certain ticket holders. But not everyone is part of this, and people will look to brands to find other forms of connection, creating a real opportunity to add value for true fans.

Porsche provides the owners’ car park – not only do guests get a fantastic parking space, t it also creates a sea of Porsches for all to see and admire.

Brands shouldn’t overlook the simple wins either – like seating, cover, or a live feed of the hill climb. Utilities are always in demand at festivals of all shapes and sizes. Pairing this with an added layer of hospitality helps to create brand affiliation. Our BMW trackside seating has been one of the most popular and successful features of the stand since we have been situated Trackside. Giving this option to guests for simply showing your key is a no brainer.

​This year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed is fast approaching – and we couldn’t be more excited to see how brands will be brought to life this year. See you there?

This article originally appeared on TRO's website on 27 June 2024.