NORTH KARELIA UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES Degree Programme in International Business Tanja Heiskanen (0601022,
[email protected]) Jonna Puhkala (0800761,
[email protected]) ROCK IN THE EAST - Expectations Towards a Finnish Rock Festival in the Russian Context Thesis May, 2012 THESIS May 2012 Degree Programme in International Business Sirkkalantie 12 A FIN 80110 JOENSUU FINLAND Tel. 358-13-260 600 Authors Tanja Heiskanen, Jonna Puhkala Title Rock in the East – Expectations Towards a Finnish Rock Festival in the Russian Context Commissioned by Joensuu Pop Musicians’ Association Abstract Competition amongst rock festivals in Finland is a notable pushing factor towards seeking growth from international festival-goers. In a country the size of Finland, festival organizers are bound to compete for the same audience, and thus increasing the amount of international visitors may fill this gap. Currently, the share of festival-goers from abroad totals only 5%. Joensuu Pop Musicians’ Association, which organizes Ilosaarirock, are increasingly interested in the benefits that internationalizing the customer base generates. The close proximity of Russia and St. Petersburg create a potential market area for Ilosaarirock. This study explores the perceived expectations of potential festival-goers in the Russian context. The primary purpose of this study was to adduce the image Russians have concerning Finnish rock festivals and furthermore compare the differences in behavior between Finnish and Russian festival-goers. The secondary motive was to determine how the research results could be incorporated into the marketing activities of Ilosaarirock. The empirical part of this study was conducted by both qualitative and quantitative research methods.