ROLE OF EVENTS IN

BRANDING
 The emergence of New
Media in Branding
Why choose new media over good,
old advertising?
Changes in the Media and
Communication Industry:
Wide variety of products and services-consumer
spoilt for choice
Advances in technology-innovative products and
methods
Media proliferation
Consumers clued in to the latest trends-demand
and expect more from a brand
Market clutter-both in choices of products and
channels for promotion
Cutting through the clutter:
Consumers filter out advertising messages
which do not interest them
Marketers need innovative ways to attract
potential customers
Advertising alone not enough to grab
eyeballs
Need for unique ways of promoting your
product to get attention and hold it too.
The IMC Approach:
Integrated Marketing Communication
(IMC)-Using multiple media to reach target
audiences
Coordination and integration of all
marketing communication tools and
sources into a seamless program
Maximizes the impact on consumers and
brings strength to the brand
Tools of IMC-New Media and
branding:
Apart from conventional means like print
and broadcast, emerging alternatives,
termed new media- internet, events and
mobile phones
Excellent means of branding due to:
Sheer impact
Usability
Amount of scope for innovation
 Events
Why are they popular?
How are they different?
Rising popularity of Events:
Events by corporates, business houses and
governments on the rise
Huge budgets allocated for the same in
advertising and marketing plans of the firm.
Rise in the number of specialized event
management companies across the globe
Demand for professionals in the field
 Why Events?
The need for shift from
one-way to two-way
communication
The touch-feel experience:
direct communication, thus
lending credibility and
loyalty towards the brand
Linking the tangible
(product) with the
intangible (experience)
Create emotion-fun,
amazement; thus an
intimate form of branding
Extending the brand
personality: this is how the
brand looks and feels like
Differentiating yourself
from your competitor:
each event is unique
Unique, magical, unforgettable
 Why Events?
Building strong customer Generates huge news value
relationships: Great Public and publicity
Relations and long lasting
networks Aid in brand positioning,
brand recall, and image
Capturing large markets, rectification
impacting a huge number at
one go Some events, also generate
revenue (trade fair)
Instantaneous feedback-
helps in building further
strategies
Huge crowd pullers: Reach out
 Why Events?
Cost effective: cheaper compared to
conventional forms

Reach directly to the target audience

More specified returns
High on impact and visibility of the
brand
Deconstructing Events
The power of live, experiential
marketing
Events: Below the
Line:
BTL uses less conventional methods and
exploits the new media to promote
products, services
Its more about touch n feel
Cheaper than conventional methods
Events and Experiential Marketing:
Experiential Marketing is the latest
marketing technique
It helps to target the problem of media
segmentation and proliferation
It communicates with the media savvy
customer
Events and Experiential Marketing:
Its about creating experiences that people
will remember and associate with the brand
for a long time to come.
And Events are all about creating
experiences
Environment is controlled to suit the needs
of product and the brand
Events and Experiential Marketing:
Live events help you to interact directly with
your consumer
They help you prove the truth behind the
claim
They break barriers of negative
perceptions: consumer can see, touch, feel
for himself and decide
 Choices of Events
Different events and which ones to
choose?
Need for different kinds of events:
Your event has to scream out what your brand is
What is the purpose:
launching a new product
increasing a product trial
repositioning your brand
building consumer relationships with the company name.
A PR activity; damage control
Primarily to increase sales
Your need will determine the kind of event you
choose
Need for different kinds of events:
Depending on your choice of events, you
can now:
Sponsor events, or
organize your own events
Either ways, the basic need is the same:
brand recognition and brand recall
Need for different kinds of events:
Some examples:
Entertainment events-music shows, celebrity
launches etc are great crowd pullers
Shopping festivals build brand images and
generate revenue as well.
For alcohol and tobacco companies, they are the
prime source of advertising; For example:
Kingfisher launches, Manikchand Filmfare
Awards
Need for different kinds of events:
Televised events are coming up in a big way:
example: Indian Idol, Nach Baliye, Antakshri etc
They are a great means of brand building on two
counts:
They promote the channel
They are also a means of promotions for the companies
sponsoring the event on television
Example: We remember Antakshri as Close-Up Antakshri
They also generate huge revenue for both the
channel and the sponsors, especially network
providers through SMS-voting
 Choices! Choices! Choices1
World fun and theme parks Workshops and Presentations Televised events

Musical Extravaganzas Theme Road Shows Mall promotions

Shopping Festivals Sports Events Political events
Theme Parties
Expeditions Celebrity Events Seminars and conferences
Fairs and Festivals
Pride Occasion Events Exhibitions
Celebrations Award nights
Food festivals Outdoor events
Employee Days
Televised events Product launches and re-launches
Corporate Board Meets
Fashion shows Incentive Meets Etc etc
Case Studies: Realizing
Impact
Dubai Shopping Festival
Idea Cellular Events
Dubai Shopping Festival
(DSF)
The Event:
DSF is a 45-day long extravaganza shopping and
entertainment extravaganza that takes place in
Dubai.
First initiated on February 15, 1996 by the Dubai
government
DSF is a shoppers paradise with more than 2,300
retail outlets participating in the festival.
The Dubai Creek, Night Souq and Global Village
are some of the most popular hangouts in Dubai
during the celebrations besides numerous
shopping malls and bazaars.
The Event:
Initially planned to revitalize and promote retail
trade in Dubai but has gradually blossomed into
one of the most eagerly anticipated events in the
international travel circuit, and has since been
promoted as a tourist attraction.
During the Festival, shops offer deep discounts on
their merchandise, daily car raffles are drawn, and
fireworks light Dubais night sky.
Tourists from all around the world are lured not
only for Dubai's tax free shopping, but also for all
of the events that take place during the festival.
The Impact:
Dubai Shopping Festival made the world aware of
a city called Dubai.
It was segregated into many major attractions all
with one purpose, to have as many ways of
entertaining the guests to the city
Dubai Shopping Festival is an example apart on
how a nation can enhance ten folds its beauty and
strength by being warm and loving to the guests
who set foot on its soil.
Dubai Shopping Festival plays a vital role in
Dubai's tourism industry.
The Impact in Figures:
Yearly Visitor's Information:
Going back for the beginning of DSF, the event attracted
at its first cycle in 1996, 1.6 million visitors during 43 days.
This number reaches the same total in the next cycle in
no more than 31 days.
While in 1998, the number of visitor's increases to be 2.2
in the same period,
and in 1999, the event attracted 2.4 million visitors in 28
days.
The Impact in Figures:
The fifth cycle witnesses a high growth in its
visitors, which ends at 25 million visitors during
31-days only and 2.55 visitors in 2001.
In 2002, the number increase to reach 2.68 in 31
festival days.
DSF 2003 attracted the largest number of visitors
- it was the best among others since it recorded
the highest number: 2.92 million visitors in no
more than 32 days.
The Impact in Figures:

Source: http://www.dubaishoppingfestival.com/dsf/dsf-growth.htm
The Impact in Figures:
Cost per Year:
The average cost in the first festival cycle at 1996 was
DHS 2.5 Billion and DHS 2.79 at 1997.
At the third cycle in 1998, the cost was DHS 3.81 Billion,
and in 1999 the cost close at DHS 4.15 billion.
While at 2000 the cost surge to DHS 4.31.
At the last three years, the average cost ranges between
4.50 at 2001, 4.60 at 2002, 5.12 at 2003DSF 2005 had
3.3 million visitors with six per cent increase while
spending crossed Dh6.67 billion mark registering a 15 per
cent increase, says an independent study.
The Impact in Figures:

Source: http://www.dubaishoppingfestival.com/dsf/dsf-growth.htm
The Impact in Figures:
DSF 2005 has registered a total visitor participation of a
record 3.3 million people and an overall expenditure of
6.67 billion registering an increase of six per cent and 15
per cent respectively.
Ten long years and the popularity of the Dubai Shopping
Festival has been rising sky high.
The latest figures coming out of an independent study
commissioned by the DSF office is a clear indication that
the Dubai Shopping Festival, which is a brand icon in its
own right, is truly a world-class event which is fast
growing with every passing year.
Conclusion:
The study shows that the success of the DSF has been
growing because it was recently revamped as a family and
entertainment experience rather than a purely shopping
fiesta.
Whilst shopping remained the main focal theme of DSF, the
family experience complemented the shopping aspects.
The above case study makes the impact of the event clear.
Holding this event has not only improved the tourism
potential of the country, but also increased visibility and built
the Dubai brand for the world to see.
Cellular Network
The Event(s):
Idea cellular is one of the major cellular
network service providers in the country.
Their aim, through strategic media planning
and buying, is to create year round impact.
The main communication medium for the
Idea brand is televised events, through
which they seek strategic Idea brand
coverage in various formats.
The Event(s):
The main branding is done by sponsorship of
televised or live events
Idea organizes and sponsors a number of events,
of all kinds and magnitude
Their main branding is through sponsorship of
events, or holding events
Other media are mainly used to reinforce the
image that has been created by the events.
The Event(s):
Some of the most popular events that Idea has held or
sponsored are:
Idea Brand Equity Quiz:
Idea has tied up with the Largest Brand Property in the
Corporate Segment in India i.e. The Brand Equity Quiz. As a
special Innovation, Idea shall be hosting the Idea Brand Equity
Quiz on Mobile soon.
This is thus not only a means of branding, but also a means of
revenue generation through SMS quizzes and contests.
Idea Sa Re Ga Ma:
Idea recently launched Idea Sa Re Ga Ma on Zee Marathi. Its
a show which has popular actors from Marathi films, stage &
television actors performing and eyeing for the title.
The Event(s):
Idea Life Ban Jaaye:
A show on celebrities on Sony Entertainment Television.
Its a show which is not only a countdown show of the
top films and movies but also involves celebrities chat.
In every show you will also have a call -in on an Idea
number, where you can speak to your favorite star on
the set.
Another example of brand building alongside revenue
generation.
The IIFA (International Indian Film Academy) awards at
Dubai, held in 2007, were another grand event that was
sponsored by Idea. Because of the nature of the event,
it brought the brand a lot of visibility.
The Event(s):
The Second Annual IDEA ROCKS INDIA '06 concert
with Sunidhi Chauhan in 25 Cities: "IDEA ROCKS INDIA
is an annual calendar event created by Idea Cellular
with the intent to engage each and every one of our
customers on a platform that celebrates Bollywood and
Music.
Youthful in perspective, IDEA ROCKS INDIA delivers
well on the Value Added Services and Below the Line
platforms creating excitement wherever the tour travels.
These are just some of the events in the previous year.
IDEA has a strategy through which it sponsors and
organizes a number of events throughout the year
The Impact:
All these events have been huge success, and
there is no denying that.
We all remember Sa Re Ga Ma as Idea Sa Re Ga
Ma. And the event Idea Rocks India is a great
brand property that Idea has created.
All of these events have increased visibility, sales
and the brand value of the brand Idea.
They have helped it to differentiate itself in the
cluttered and competitive market.
The Impact in Figures:
Idea Cellular continues to be among Indias fastest growing
cellular service companies, with its revenues rising by 83
percent to touch Rs 1,100 crore in FY 200203, from Rs 600
crore in the previous year.
Its subscriber base grew by 58 percent to touch 1,280,441
from 808,676 in FY 200102.
The biggest contribution came from the lucrative Delhi circle,
which added 132,417 subscribers to Ideas kitty.
The growth was also fuelled by the deployment of new
services like GPRS. After that it has grown even further,
though the latest figures are not available.
The Impact in Figures:
Another feather in the IDEA cap is the GSM
Association Award for Bill Flash, it won recently.
This international award makes Idea the first
Indian cellular operator to win an award on this
prestigious platform.
According to the Brand Track Index Study (which
is a marketing consultant engaged by Idea to
evaluate their brand ) the brand is perceived as
reliable/trustworthy and one that offers cheaper
and good promotional offers.
Conclusion:
IDEA, through the various events it
organizes throughout the year,
accomplishes several aims:
The events aid brand recall
They have boosted sales
They have resulted in great visibility for the brand
Events are the New Media:
From the above discussions, its clear that events
are a great new means of branding your product.
They are an excellent means of communicating
with your customer and connecting with them at a
more intimate level.
There are a variety of events that provide a great
scope for brand building, repositioning or
launching in a new market.
Careful selection and execution of events helps
in building great brands.