EVENT MARKETING

Discuss the seven P’s of Marketing of services.

Product, Price, Place and Promotion- People, process, physical evidence

Event marketing strategies leave a lasting, brand-focused impression of fun by grabbing the attention of
a group of people who are gathered together. If executed successfully, event marketing will provide
each of them with an experience that will resonate in their minds.

Event marketing is entering a guerrilla era where the physical and the virtual cross paths, offering new
options for marketing professionals who create buzz over a service or product. Consider one of
McDonalds’ most popular event marketing campaigns – McDonalds Monopoly. According to the
company, the promotion increases the chain’s revenue upwards of 5% month-over-month, even though
consumers have been participating since 1987. While the game pieces themselves have always
represented a chance at winning a variety of prizes, recent years have unveiled a new dimension to the
game – interactive Monopoly, where consumers can win even more prizes by registering their game
pieces online.

Event marketing is a promotional strategy that involves face-to-face contact between companies and
their customers at special events like concerts, fairs, and sporting events. Brands use event marketing
entertainment (like shows, contests, or parties) to reach consumers through direct hand-to-hand
sampling or interactive displays. The practice works because it engages consumers while they’re in a
willing, participatory position

A successful event marketing campaign provides value to attendees beyond information about a product
or service. A discount, free sample, charity alignment, or fun event will make customers feel like they
are receiving a benefit and not just attending a live-action commercial.

In contrast to traditional advertising, which blasts millions of consumers with the same general
television, radio or billboard message, event marketing targets specific individuals or groups at gathering
spots, in hopes of making quality individual impressions.

The key to pulling off an effective event marketing campaign is to identify the target audience correctly
and create an experience that remains in participants’ memories. By finding an opportunity to interact
with the right demographic of people – both current customers and prospective buyers – a brand can
build favorable impressions and long-lasting relationships. The best, most creative events create
interactions that not only reflect positively on the brand at the time, but generate a buzz long after the
event is over.

As long as a business is able to track and identify their target audience, they can find a way to appeal
directly to them. For example, if a company sells sporting products, they can market at a sporting event.
If they sell technology products, they can offer demonstrations of the latest and greatest technologies at
a convention event. 
In fact, any company that provides a product can give out samples, as long as it isn’t illegal. Even
companies whose products aren’t able to be handed out as samples (like pharmaceutical companies or
doctors’ offices) can provide interactive experiences to consumers. For example, a company that
manufactures a medication for high blood pressure could set up a machine that takes blood pressure
readings next to a booth supplying literature on their drug.

Event marketing shouldn’t take the place of traditional or community marketing, but should be a
supplemental tactic to both. If a brand’s national commercials feature a well-known mascot, for
example, that mascot could make an appearance at an event and pose for photos with attendees. 

The Thanksgiving Day parade

Since 1924, Macy’s department store has been hosting a New York City Thanksgiving Day parade that is
still synonymous with the start of the holiday season. Allegedly started by first-generation immigrant
employees who wanted to enjoy the American holidays in a European fashion, this famous event
marketing campaign has helped to make Macy’s a New York City staple. Additionally, many other
companies now participate in the event, with branded mascot balloons joining the annual parade.

Event marketing is unique because each event must be approached differently – in this respect, a
marketing team doesn’t necessarily need an overarching “plan” for their various events. Instead, it is
important to base each individual event marketing tactic upon the brand’s overall marketing plan and
how it fits into the personality of the event. By approaching each event as a separate chance to make an
impression, a brand can tailor their efforts to best impact each audience.

Maximising the event marketing budget

1. Host competitions or contests

2. Sponsor and/or participate in meet-ups or user groups

3. Host an unaffiliated pre-party or after-party for an industry event

4. Host a party or networking event during a competitor conference

5. Volunteer as an industry speaker

Still, teams must consider three aspects when developing an event marketing plan. First, the company
should consider the personality that their brand is trying to convey. A brand like Coca-Cola, who has
historically tried to place their product as a harbinger of global peace, happiness, and simple pleasure,
made an excellent choice by installing vending machines that dispensed “happiness” along with soft
drinks.

Second, company must keep their target audiences in mind. In recent years, grassroots efforts by men’s
heath coalitions have popularized “Movember,” a November-long moustache-growing contest to raise
awareness of prostate cancer and other cancers affecting men. This initiative would never have taken
hold if not for the ironic popularity of moustaches among young men, the audience who could most
benefit from men’s cancer awareness. 

Third, companies need to consider what lasting impression they wish to leave on their audience. Many
people remember the 2005 Sony campaign where the company dropped – and filmed – 250,000 bouncy
balls on the streets of San Francisco in order to advertise the color display their new Bravia LCD
television was capable of.

Brands can impress event crowds through a variety of creative tactics, not just sheer visual appeal. For
example, one tactic that brands use is to create an event within an event. The idea is to create a
compelling reason for patrons to stop and explore your brand, not just another booth for them to walk
past. At the Sundance film festival, Ray Ban sunglasses put on a truth-or-dare themed campaign, which
was fun for participants and also translated into social media shares after the event was over.

Event marketing can also be much more subtle – many companies use QR codes on their posters and
branding materials that work to integrate physical and virtual branding. These QR codes can lead users
to mobile sites offering discounts and special offers on physical products. Additionally, some companies
offer exclusive event benefit coupons to those who ‘like’ them on Facebook.