| EVENT INTELLIGENCE 08.03.09 8:00 AM |
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Marketers Share Insights on Successful Event Partnerships
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 | HBO and Virgin Atlantic's Entourage Air
Photo: AP Photo/Virgin America, Bob Riha Jr |
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Playing well with others hasn’t been strictly enforced since kindergarten, but companies looking to maintain or increase the impact of their events could do well to pay heed to that notion. Brand partnerships for events, campaigns, or long-term initiatives can produce more desirable results than tackling a project solo in any economy, but these days—when people are asked to do more for less—pooling resources can help marketers get more for their buck.
But before you jump into bed with another brand, make sure to confirm you and your partner are looking for the same thing. Six months of trying phone conferences and constant concessions may not be worth a few dollars saved or a mention in Us Weekly. To get an idea how successful pairings come together, we talked to marketers who recently teamed up to share production responsibilities and generate more media impressions, higher attendance, or stronger buzz than each probably would have on their own. The bottom line: They’re all open to doing it again.
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RELATED TOPICS
HBO, Virgin Atlantic, Entourage, The Fader, Levi's, Belvedere Vodka, Bustle Clothing, Consumer Electronics Show, iLounge |
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| EVENT REPORT 04.20.09 3:33 PM |
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Marketers Consider Coachella Too Important to Skip in Lean Times
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 | T-Mobile's late-night hangar party
Photo: Polk Imaging/FilmMagic |
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FROM LOS ANGELES
Ask any marketer with a presence at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and he’ll tell you that the opportunity to promote in the desert during the festival weekend is unmissable and nonnegotiable—even in a downturn. Chalk it up to the sheer concentration of well-connected and enthusiastic music industry folks, fans, and friends captive in the middle of the desert, or to the extreme temperatures and terrain, or to the totally immersive quality of the whole thing—but the attendant brands felt they couldn't afford to be left out, even if this year's economic climate made sponsorship participation and overall budget dollars tougher to wrangle. The festival kicked off on Friday and wrapped Sunday night in Indio.
“This year was really difficult. Sponsors are putting each event under a microscope, and they want to make sure it’s the right type of event for the right R.O.I.,” said Andreas Herr, publisher of Anthem magazine, whose desert party has developed a reputation as the most authentically hedonistic and bacchanalian of the weekend. “But the reason it’s so important for us is that it’s all about contributing to the lifestyle that we cover inside of the magazine. So many people look forward to this event throughout the year. At a time like this, it’s really important to give our fans and our readers something to really look forward to. That one weekend when you can really escape reality and go out there and have fun. It’s our biggest event that we do throughout the year, and we have a lot of fun doing it.”
This year, Anthem’s signature event included a Saturday pool party at a sprawling five-acre ranch property with a three-acre lake. (Herr characterized it this way: “The rough theme is '70s porno ranch meets disco. Does that even make sense? It makes sense to me.”)
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RELATED TOPICS
Coachella, T-Mobile, Anthem Magazine, Levi's, Ray-Ban, Urb Magazine, Filter, Vitaminwater, Goodlife.com, Going Green |
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| EVENT REPORT 03.23.09 3:46 PM |
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Levi's and The Fader Team Up for Massive South by Southwest Performance Series
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FROM AUSTIN, TEXAS There was no finer example of South by Southwest’s knack for remaining seemingly recession-proof this year than the Levi’s/Fader Fort. A cross between a heavily sponsored Woodstock and a post-apocalyptic hipster commune, the joint venture between the denim maker and the magazine earned some of the festival’s biggest buzz, due to its elaborate setup and poorly guarded secret cameo by Kanye West.
Organized by The Fader marketing division Cornerstone Promotion—and produced by Lacy Maxwell Productions—the fort took over an entire field, sandwiched between a warehouse and defunct railroad tracks. Sheets of old metal and plywood haphazardly erected around the perimeter kept details of the playground secret from the long lines waiting for free admission, letting only the sound of artists like Little Boots, Peter Bjorn & John, and Jadakiss slip through the cracks.
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Levi's, The Fader, Ray-Ban, South by Southwest |
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| EVENT REPORT 04.28.08 4:02 PM |
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New Slate of Coachella Party Hosts Increases Nighttime Offerings
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 | Anthem magazine's Coachella pool party
Photo: BizBash |
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FROM INDIO, CALIF. Since the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which wrapped yesterday after a three-day run at the Empire Polo Field in Indio, dependably reinvents itself every year, it's perhaps not a surprise that the brands that host piggybacking parties in the desert also change and evolve.
DKNY Jeans, which set up a multiday pool party at a luxury home last year, sat out this year's go round, as did Hugo Boss. "It's just hard to find the right house very close to the fields," said Hugo Boss Fashions' New York-based vice president of marketing and PR, Katja Douedari, who oversaw Boss's event series in 2007. "Loved the Mod Resort last year, but it's a long drive. And if you can't do it right, then better not do it all." (Nevertheless, Douedari made the trip out to the desert for some non-work-related fun.)
So what brands did have the strongest presence in 2008?
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RELATED TOPICS
Coachella, GQ, Anthem Magazine, Gap, Etnies, T-Mobile, Sidekick, Condé Nast, Heineken, Newcastle, Belvedere Vodka, The Fader, Boost Mobile, Le Sportsac, Levi's, Wet n Wild, Adidas, Jeremy Scott |
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