‘Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened’ is a documentary currently airing on Netflix. To say it’s awkward viewing is an understatement. For its 97-minute run time, you’re subjected to what can only be described as the slow-motion crash of a train carrying clowns. You want to look away but you can’t; you don’t want to laugh, but you do (if only out of relief you aren’t the documentary’s main subject, Billy McFarland (pictured above, with rapper Ja-Rule) and that you weren’t a victim of his catastrophic scam).
Together with Ja-Rule, McFarland had the idea to host a “luxury” music festival on an island in Exuma in the Bahamas. To promote the festival, they employed a crack promotional team to publicise the event in the months leading up to it. Think bikini-clad supermodels and influencers like Emily Ratajkowski, Hailey Baldwin and the Hadid sisters bathing in crystal clear water and sipping cocktails on the deck of a superyacht and playing with the island’s famous swimming pigs. The premise of this promotional video is that festival goers would enjoy a similarly glamorous experience and even mix with the celebrities themselves. The result was that 95 percent of the tickets sold out within 24 hours. This was when the problems started.
Photo: Flickr
Long story short, the festival wasn’t even vaguely organised or planned properly. The island proved too small to accommodate the numbers, the promised luxury tents were ones used in refugee villages, and the haute cuisine was a dry cheese sandwich and some side salad. Workers on the island were unpaid, a local restaurant owner went bankrupt, ticket holders were never refunded and the investors that McFarland had lured lost millions. McFarland was swiftly sentenced to six years in jail for fraud, but not before he tried to launch another scam while on trial.
‘Fyre’ is riveting viewing and also offers entrepreneurs examples of what not do to, especially if you’re new to business and keen for quick success.
Here are five things you can learn from ‘Fyre’:
Plan your budget
McFarland basically did no research into his budget. When investors told him the festival would cost between USD$5-12 million, he ignored them, then squandered $4-million he managed to secure on high-end offices in Manhattan. He was practically dry before the festival had even started.
Don’t promise more than you can deliver
A slick promotional video or website, well-managed social media and plush offices might promise much, but if you can’t back it up with professional service and informed management, you’re going to be more embarrassed than if you’d just started small and adopted realistic expectations and promises.
Listen to the expertise you’re paying for
More than once, the marketing and content people whose knowledge and skill McFarland had paid for, advised him not to go through with the festival. They told him when it wasn’t too late to cut his losses and pull the plug. But he didn’t listen. Thinking you know everything and can do everything never works. Learn to delegate and let those in the know do their thing.
Photo by Forest Simon on Unsplash
Admit when you’re wrong
Perhaps the most shocking part of the documentary is that McFarland never really apologises or owns up to his disastrous actions. Being unaccountable is a terrible trait because it means you’re not humble enough to learn from your mistakes and therefore grow as a person and an entrepreneur.
Do your research before working with people
Collaboration is great. You get to combine talent and ideas with people who are as passionate as you about your business. However, make sure you’ve researched the credibility of the people you chose to work and invest with. These days, it’s easy—most people are just a Google search away.