Experiential marketing allows you to interact directly with consumers outside the mass-media landscape. Through live events or in the new interactive media world, experiential marketing is an holistic approach to creating environments that engage consumer’s senses and emotions. It opens up personal dialogue and leaves consumers with a truly immersive brand experience.
Experiential marketing is forecast to become one of the biggest growth areas in marketing in the next five years as senior marketers shift an increasing proportion of their marketing budgets towards it, according to a new research study carried out by international marketing services group MICE Group. Convergence Communications can manage and drive your experiential activity, from creative concept and design through to execution and evaluation.
“Experiential marketing offers the chance for people to 'touch and feel' the brand and spread positive impressions about it in a powerful way, by word of mouth ... Experiential marketing is an attractive proposition as consumers -- particularly the young -- appear to be less and less sensitive to traditional commercial messages in places where they expect to see them, such as on television.” – Marketing Week (UK)
To manage events effectively you need an eye for detail, creative flair and a level head! Marketing and the media relations of events requires specific event marketing skills, accurate timing and a dogged determination to hit the front page and screens of the entertainment and general news sections of the media.
Suzanne McNamara has wide ranging experience gained during her time at Airwalk and TVNZ where she executed numerous product launches. Most recently she has worked on The Auckland Festival of Photography and taken on key roles for Splore 06, 08 and 10, a biennial music and arts festival in Auckland, see www.splore.net including managing the traditional media buying and communicating to the potential audience through new media, such as viral campaigns, youtube, myspace and facebook. Convergence also developed the sponsorship portfolio for each Splore event successfully managing the sale process so that sufficient sponsorship was secured for the festival to proceed.
In Christchurch, Erin Jamieson is the company’s local events specialist. She was recently contracted to project manage the revamp of the Lincoln University Foundation South Island Farmer of the Year Awards while past successes include marketing and sponsorship of the John Britten Memorial Superbike Event, and HarbourFest, Lyttelton Port of Christchurch’s annual open day. Erin developed and directed this complex annual event for eight years, growing it to the point where it attracted over 8,000 people and provided the port and local community with excellent promotion. HarbourFest was an opportunity for the general public to see what happens behind the scenes of a busy port and required co-ordination of a variety of stakeholders, from the port itself to community organisations and businesses, entertainers, food providers, health and safety officials, and security.
Convergence has proven sponsorship leveraging expertise thanks to the in-house communications management experience of Leigh Harris and Erin Jamieson who have previously been responsible for large budget sponsorships involving Wools of New Zealand, Smirnoff, Jack Daniels and Moet & Chandon brands in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. We concur with the best practise recommendation that, to gain the most from your sponsorships, 50% of the dollar value should be dedicated to leveraging activities.