Event Studies: Car Trade, BMW 3-Series Launch

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1 Event Studies: Car Trade, BMW 3-Series Launch From Concept into Reality. Few venues are perfect for our clients. Sometimes the look of the venue conflicts with their branding image or their presentation style. On these occasions, our mandate usually includes changing the entire look of the venue to better synthesise with the event objectives. As you can see above, the venue itself has the facilities, but the décor style is certainly not modern. For a traditionally oriented company this would not necessarily be a problem. For BMW and the launch of their new 3-Series car, the décor certainly was not reflective of their branding and style. This therefore had to be changed. Since this venue is one of the oldest stadiums in KL, many of the invited guests have attended this venue previously, and as such, their expectations for this launch would be based upon those memories. Furthermore, the designs and event would need to be different and memorable, and would be used to form a platform of market expectation and anticipation as a PR-link with the forthcoming BMW 7-series launch. Rightly, our approach every time is to avoid any impact upon the venue structure, its fixtures or decoration, else we face repair costs. The proposed designs maximise available space using customised partitions and display fixtures, with lighting effects and image visuals adding life, space and energy to the overall presentation to deliver the modern, sporty and progressive look BMW were looking for. In the launch arena, the sports stadium became a ballroom with round-table seating to meet the banqueting requirements. To extend this effect, white drapes were used as a wall to shield the view of the seating terraces. The launch gambit centred on motorised elevator platform for one of the cars, descending from above to ground level, accompanied by multimedia projections, live video broadcast, pyrotechnics, lighting and sound effects. To quote the attending VVIP, Wow! I didn t recognise the place! 5

2 Event Studies: SP Setia, Duta Tropika launch Taking it from the edge. For some clients, their event venue happens to also be their work-place, especially for a property developer. In this case we were launching SP Setia s new Duta Tropika development; a range of premium properties. As you can see above, three days before the launch, the venue is still under construction as we begin our installation and setup. Client construction teams are still completing the outer shells and roofing while the interior specialists are decorating and furnishing the interiors. Outside, landscaping and tiling is still underway, and the access roads and parking tarmac being laid. As their turn-key event manager, our greatest challenge here was lack of space. While catering for 400 invited guests with a round-table western menu, weather protection canopies (monsoon season) had to avoid obscuring sight of the show-homes. The launch arena adjoined the show-homes, so we could not install a giant marquee, which would be the normal solution here. Furthermore, the arena landscape was newly laid and would not adequately support tables, chairs and people. Given these challenges, we incorporated multiple space-saving solutions into our design and planning proposal. We constructed a floating stage in the pool, thus saving considerable space. For weather protection we deployed modular marquees with integral platforms as ground support for catering needs. As a central artistic feature to synergise with the product style and its presentation, we designed and constructed a narrow dancing fountain. Rather than using conventional projection screens which would have used considerable space, we used the showhomes as our projection screen for our multiple lighting and visual effects to deliver significant impact and differentiation to the venue. In fact, we combined the dancing fountain, projection visual effects and music into programmed water and light show as part of the evening s entertainment. 6

3 Event Studies: Standard Chartered Bank, new HQ Launch Delivering the big impact. After more than nine years as their turn-key event manager for high-profile and protocol-focused events for SCB Malaysia, they asked us to launch Menara SCB, their new Malaysian HQ. Attended by Malaysia s newly appointed Prime Minister, Deputy Finance Minister and the entire SCB Group Board of Directors, this would be SCB Malaysia s most important event since 1875 when it became Malaysia s first bank. The event programme would consist of multiple supporting events at a variety of venues. We were also tasked with producing and directing SCB s corporate video to commemorate the launch and 150 years of history. For the grand opening and launch, we were to conceptualise and design an icon that would be memorable and reflect the SCB brand. This launch would also be used to present SCB s newest brand-messaging campaign for Malaysia. As with many such events, the launch arena would represent some of the greatest planning and design challenges. Aside from four large support pillars restricting guest lines-of-sight, lobby access would have to remain unrestricted for existing tenants. With a morning launch scheduled, the south and north facing glass walls would produce substantial light interference to any special effects we might propose. Our arena solutions incorporated the new brand messaging into brand pillars which also supported a set of four customised motorised projection screens which we used to hide the Icon. Along with plasma TV s we used these screens to show the new SCB Corporate video and the graphic morphing of previous HQ s. We also designed and constructed a purpose-built light-stage using green and blue lighting as part of their branding convergence. For the launch Icon, we designed and fabricated SCB s Trust-Mark into a three-dimensional rotating sculpture, which artistically communicated the many strengths, directions and dimensions of the Bank. We applied a chrome finish to enhance its modern look while acting as a laser mirror to build a splash effect during the launch gambit. We should mention that at first glance, this sculpture might look relatively easy to fabricate. However, because the angle of rotation between the arms changes continuously through the vertical axis, it took eleven prototypes to perfect this 8 foot high sculpture! 7

4 Event Studies: CitiGroup Private Bank, Regional conference Mixing business with pleasure. Some of our international clients use their regional conferences as a platform for team-strengthening and brainstorming. Having selected Kuala Lumpur as city host, CPB s event programme included a welcome seminar, three days of conference, three social functions and a fun-based teambuilding challenge. Our mandate as their Turn-key event manager was to assess venue capabilities; coordinate hotel support facilities and transportation logistics; and plan, design and execute their event programme. While the Hyatt Saujana was initially selected, the venue had to be switched to the Palace of Golden Horses due to date changes. CPB s contingent of nearly 400 would fill all but four of the hotel s entire room capacity. However, our greatest challenge would not be room availability or coordinating international delegate arrivals. It would lie in managing the event programme around external events already confirmed at the hotel by other clients. The ballroom would be occupied by wedding functions on two of the three nights, and an afternoon garden wedding reception would restrict access to the hotel grounds during the teambuilding challenge. Our approach to planning, design and construction had therefore to include in logistical solutions. Both wedding functions agreed to reduce their ballroom usage to 2/3rds so our staging could be fixed in the remaining third. The first night function became a KL tour and dinner at KL Tower. For the second night we provided a Kampung Night featuring our cultural dance troupe at the nearby MINES resort, even though they only had capacity for 225. We expanded the restaurant capacity using a ground-leveling support system and a customised stage platform with canopies. For the third night event we provided a Retro Night Dinner with a 60ft long stage and ultra-violet décor and effects. For their fun-based teambuilding activity, we divided the delegates into twelve teams and designed a series of land and water challenges such as boat building, a material hunt, physical endurance, fear-factors and mental quizzes. Teams would need to split up in order to complete all the challenges, with CitiPoints earned for each challenge completed to determine the winning team. 8

5 Event Studies: Standard Chartered Bank, My Dream Account Securing sales during events. Most of our clients face the same problem: how to generate immediate sales during their event. In theory, most events should be able to do this. In practice; few product sales are delivered during an event or promotion, which might explain why most event projects focus on branding and awareness. Fortunately, Evention has the expertise and experience to deliver a unique soft-selling event platform to secure immediate sales and generate post-event prospects. SCB asked us to propose a launch event concept for their new savings product My Dream Account. Given that their two main competitors would also be launching a similar product around the same time, they needed a platform that would act as a springboard for branch staff to drive sales; with the ultimate goal of leading the market in this product segment. Since SCB s product marketing would focus upon parents saving for their children s future, our concept proposal centred on attracting and engaging children with highly interactive activities and decorations. Rather than a single launch-event, we proposed a national roadshow roll-out using shopping malls as the interactive forum, thus bringing the product and SCB staff to-the-public. To round off our proposal, we incorporated leadgenerating tools and soft-selling mechanisms that would make it easier for staff to sell product. Our concept and roll-out proposal did though require a substantial departure from SCB s longstanding marketing and sales methodology in Malaysia. To limit this leap of faith risk and the size of event investment, the MDA Roadshow would be rolled-out as a six venue pilot : Kota Kinabalu, Kuching, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Johor Bahru and Klang. Aside from delivering, operating and managing each venue event, Evention also provided guidance on soft-selling practices and tactics to SCB staff as they interacted with the public (to avoid employing selling styles and tactics more commonly associated with credit-card-promotions). SCB s leap of faith was spectacularly proven justified when immediate sales from just the first venue exceeded SCB expectations more than 10 fold. In fact, we estimate that the returns (ROEI) just from this single venue more than exceeded the entire roadshow event investment! By the end of the roadshow, Evention s soft-selling platform has delivered immediate sales and generated leads that have produced an ROEI of thousands of percent. 9

6 Event Studies: Product promotion and display Shouting silently. While launch and conference events represent the more exciting aspect of our work and client support, our group also involves itself in the daily life of client product marketing and promotion projects. In all cases, design work has to synthesise the product with the branding and presentation styles of each client. Design and construction processes also need to be practical and cost effective. Factors such as portability and budget constraints are a significant consideration when approaching a solution to the needs of a client. After-all, if the required display units are for a road-show, construction methods and the materials used will need to be more robust because of transportation and repeated installation. Whereas for a single one-use promotion, materials can be lighter and design more delicate. Since consumers often need to have personal interaction and involvement with a product before making a buying decision, design often needs to balance consumer accessibility with display volumes. A frequent solution here is to expand the design vertically, but this does have an impact upon construction costs. However, given that promotional space is usually expensive anyway, this vertical approach does offer a good balance between cost, utility and product breadth. An approach by some clients that is becoming more popular and effective is to combine product exhibitions with a social event. While this does add the cost of catering to the promotional campaign, the available product display and interaction arena is substantially increased by sectioning the ballroom. Additionally, the attention of attending guests (consumers) is captured and retained for a much longer duration than is feasible in a shop or mall. This attention can also be controlled and directed to the extent that sales volume ROI is often much higher than conventional alternatives. Clients also use this approach as a means for developing customer relationships for generating repeat sales. 10

7 Event Studies: Special effects and Automations Having the right effect. Delivering a memorable experience to your guests to enhance your message and impact can make a big difference. With our wide range of special effects, your impact can be as big as you need and want, particularly when we combine multiple special effects. Lightening bolt Combination effects Laser and light effects Laser ceiling Water screen projection Laser grid Multi-colour fountains Light effect layering Laser launch Laser logo Video and laser Environmental light effects Combination light show Laser effect dance Pyrotechnics 11