Innovations in measuring economic impacts of regional festivals: A Do-it-Yourself kit

Festivals and events are increasingly important to the tourism industry, especially in regional areas, where the possible sources of gross regional product are more limited than in metropolitan areas. In recognition of the potential economic contribution of arts festivals and other special events to regional economies, there is a need for a rigorous and replicable model/methodology for assessing such impacts. A project initiated in the state of Victoria, Australia, by Arts Victoria, constituting the development of a software tool, the Festivals Do-it-Yourself (DIY) kit, enables regional event organizers to assess the economic impact of their events to the region simply and relatively inexpensively. As well as providing information to the festival organizers, the results for festivals are able to be compared by external sponsors and stakeholders. A key to the successful application of the kit was the dissemination project discussed in this article. Preliminary results from the use of the DIY kit and reactions of some users are also presented.