| EIA | 26 Sep 2006 |
‘Variety is the spice of life’: event marketing delivers on range of major brands’ objectives
What do brands want to achieve via marketing? Successful product launches, memorable brand experiences, increased sales, visibility/market presence, brand awareness or customer engagement? This list goes on…
Event marketing offers brands unrivalled opportunities regarding their specific marketing targets. In addition, events represent the truest form of ‘permission’ marketing (attendees choose to be there!); in the current marketing environment, where mass communication bombardment is turning consumers off, there is no more valuable an accolade. No other marketing channel can simultaneously fulfil such a full range of objectives; a fact major brands are becoming increasingly aware of.
International marketing service specialists MICE Group Plc have created and managed numerous successful event experiences for major brands, including world-renowned mobile phone producers Motorola and printing giants Xerox. The ‘live’ campaigns for these particular brands offer an insightful window into the powerful possibilities of ‘face-to-face’ marketing.
Motorola’s objectives at the 2006 3GSM World Congress (‘the biggest mobile show on earth’*), in Barcelona between 13th-16th February, centred on creating memorable brand experiences and showcasing their latest products. However, they decided not to confine their event participation to inside the venue’s walls. As well as manning a double-deck and fully interactive 340m² exhibition stand, Motorola hosted a press event for 400 media representatives and embarked on a ‘guerrilla marketing’ campaign, which took to the streets and clubs of Barcelona.
The press event allowed Motorola to present their new products to the media, and to encourage interaction with these devices back at the stand. Whilst the show was in town, Motorola took their brand experience to the Pasha nightclub, enabling them to engage with consumers in a relevant, contemporary setting. In addition, a mobile marketing trailer outside the event venue attracted delegates on their way in and out of the show; attendees were invited to sample products and compose SMS messages, which were then displayed on a giant video screen on the side of the trailer.
Motorola derived significant benefits from their integrated experiential campaign, which:
- Raised awareness of the brand.
- Gained valuable press coverage.
- Generated excellent ROI results (post-show research conveyed that show presence changed audience perceptions, had a significantly positive impact on future purchasing decisions, and vastly improved attitudes concerning the brand).
Leslie Dance, Corporate Vice President, Global Marketing, Mobile Device Business, concluded, ‘Consumers have changed the way they buy, they want to interact and experience personally, understanding the features and benefits for themselves in order to make considered purchases. That is why Motorola is increasingly focussing on experiential marketing, backed by our go to marketing strategy in retail, road shows and events.’
Xerox decided to exhibit at IPEX 2006 (the largest English-speaking global technology event for print, publishing and media), which took place between 4th-11th April at the NEC. Xerox required a strong presence that would effectively communicate that (a) they have the solution for all businesses, because they understand the ‘New business of printing’ and (b) the Xerox service is about more than just sales. MICE maximised Xerox’s show presence by designing an imposing stand, with brand experience its key focus. Delegates could interact with a vast range of Xerox products and additional stand space was saved for product demos, presentation suites, a VIP meeting room and hospitality features.
Xerox’s multi-faceted and interactive approach:
- Maximised their both their show presence and levels of consumer engagement.
- Attracted 30,000 visitors were to the stand.
- Xerox met its show sales targets (despite a conscious effort to focus on communicating brand values, not the ‘hard sell’).
Rosie Madison, Director Global Events Marketing at Xerox, confirmed that, ‘There is a huge value in making the Xerox brand a 3D reality for customers.’
So, what do brands want to achieve via marketing? The list may well go on, but it is clear that, as companies like Xerox and Motorola have demonstrated, event marketing offers a unique and effective delivery forum for any marketing objective.- ends -
To view this press release in pdf format, please click here.
*GSM reference: http://www.gsmworld.com/events/3gsm_world_congress.shtml
Notes to Editors
About the EIA: www.eventsindustryalliance.com
The Events Industry Alliance (EIA) is the new marketing arm for the exhibitions and events industry, tasked with telling business leaders and media planners about the huge prospects for business growth through the medium of “Face to Face Marketing”, and increasing recognition in Government of the considerable value of the industry to the UK economy.
This new body has been formed by and is equally owned by members of three associations that have increasingly worked together to speak with one powerful voice for the industry:
- The Association of Exhibition Contractors (AEC)
- The Association of Exhibition Organisers (AEO)
- The Association of Event Venues (AEV)
The EIA aims to:
1. Provide a single stronger voice for the industry
2. Better resource industry promotion activities
3. Enable greater sharing of information and intellect between existing association parties and new communities
4. Increase professionalism within and knowledge of the industry at all levels within member companies, In order that all members can run existing events more successfully and win more exhibition/event business.
For more information, visit the website at www.eventsindustryalliance.com
Contact
Events Industry Alliance (EIA)
Tom Treverton, EIA PR Manager
Email: tom.treverton@eventsindustryalliance.com
Events Industry Alliance (EIA)
119 High Street
Berkhamsted
Hertfordshire
HP4 2DJ
Telephone: (01442) 873331
Facsimile: (01442) 875551
About the MICE Group
MICE Group Plc is an international marketing services group providing experiential marketing solutions for the world’s leading brands.
The Group comprises sixty four companies and employs 1,700 staff at more than 40 locations worldwide, including Europe, the Middle East and North America. MICE listed on the London Stock Exchange in December 1994. Headquartered in the UK, it has an annual turnover of £180m.
The company has specific skills in creative and brand communications; sponsorship and event marketing; conferences and exhibitions; training and sales promotion; workplace interiors and retail design; leisure environments and museums.
MICE Group works for non-profit making organisations and governments as well as multinational corporations. It provides marketing services for 25 of the world’s top 100 most valuable brands (as ranked in the annual Interbrand/Business Week Best Global Brands survey) on a regional, national and increasingly global basis, driving brand leverage and measurable returns on marketing investment.
For further information, visit: www.micegroup.com
Press contact
Suzanna Lloyd, MCIPR, Group PR manager
Tel : +44 (0) 20 8607 1478
Mobile: +44 (0)7764 514 442
E-mail: suzannalloyd@micegroup.com
