NEW YORK: With the summer festival season in full swing, brands need to understand the differing demographics and behaviours of music fans and the best channels they can use to reach them.

For example, music festival fans generally are 27% more likely than the average music listener to post videos to social networks while at a concert, according to data from researcher Nielsen.

And Snapchat recently announced a tie-up with leading festival producer AEG to curate content posted by fans at some of its events, with the best material being compiled into longer clips to share with the wider Snapchat community around the world via its Live Stories section.

Snapchat will also sell advertising around Live Stories, which Ben Schwerin, the platform's director of partnerships, described as "a great opportunity for brands to align with music content and reach our audience".

And it's an opening that brands appear to be seizing as Billboard reported AEG Live and Snapchat have sold all available Live Story inventory for 2016.

But brands need to be careful to pick the right festivals to advertise around.

"Two festivals may look very similar demographically, but if I'm a brand manager trying to pick a festival I can sponsor to promote my bourbon brand, it would be important for me to know if the Bonnarroo fan or the Coachella fan is a more active bourbon drinker," said Matt Yazge, Nielsen branded film and music director.

In fact, Nielsen's data indicate that bourbon drinkers at Lollapalooza spend 70% more than the average bourbon buyer.

"Knowing what behaviours these fans engage in when they're at the festival would help me understand if it's more important to include a Snapchat Geofilter as part of my activation, or promote a brand hashtag on Instagram," Yazge added.

A simpler approach can also suffice. At last week's CMA Festival in Nashville, country duo Florida Georgia Line served as guest bartenders for fans in Budweiser's 'Country Club', which offered air-conditioned relief from the 95-degree heat at nearby outdoor stages.

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Data sourced from Adweek, Billboard, Forbes; additional content by Warc staff