Immersive Events
With a history of more than 20 years in events, we love to observe the trends that change the face of the industry each year, and apply them practically as part of our own continual growth as a company. Large-scale events once followed a structured and predictable format, but our job as event producers in today’s climate is to challenge that format. With an increasing demand from clients for dynamism and innovation, we’re here to break the mould and re-shape events to move with (and ahead of) the times.
As a general rule of thumb, the more fun we have designing and orchestrating an event, the more we know our client and their guests will enjoy attending it. Creativity is key, and in today’s world it’s all about immersion and interaction. Events within events are hot on everyone’s lips, the goal being to send guests away with so much to talk about, that they find it hard to pinpoint their highlight - and having the endorsement or attendance of a celebrity certainly helps with the post-event Twitter chatter. This is a style of event production that works especially well for product launches, as demonstrated by fashion and beauty powerhouses Teen Vogue, L’Oréal and Lancôme. Today we show you how these three brands got it just right.
The key to incorporating a variety of impressive elements into your immersive event without blowing your budget is to attract well-known sponsors whose brands complement the product or cause you are promoting. In this case, at a pop up Teen Vogue event in which the magazine created an interactive, experiential version of the magazine, sponsor BlackBerry provided free wifi whilst showcasing their latest devices.
From free wifi, social media interaction at your event is born. Gone are the days when a Facebook check in or a Twitter mention will suffice; now guests and delegates want to be seduced with selfie stations, gif booths and dedicated hashtags. Video plays an increasingly important role in modern marketing, and with features such as My Story and Facebook Live now trending across social media, the facility for guests to instantly upload live footage is paramount.
Anything which can be customised is generally met with enthusiasm. Inviting guests to be “hands on” during the event is one of the most effective ways of ensuring they engage with your message, and remember it long after the event ends. People love to roll their sleeves up in the name of fun and aren’t usually afraid to get their hands dirty, so don’t hesitate to incorporate some arts and crafts into your DIY stations.
We loved how Lancôme integrated real ingredients from their new skincare line into the display, to engage and educate guests during the product launch. This served to not only make the testing station stand out, but to highlight the natural components of Lancôme’s products - something that matters more and more to consumers as they move away from chemical-heavy beauty, into plant-based, paraben-free products.
Q&A sessions with key figures are a strong way of conveying transparency, showing that you’re not just selling a concept, but you’re also listening in return; a gesture always appreciated by clients and customers, particularly if they are considering investing in your product, or instructing your services. Carve out a space at your event which can be used for informal interaction between guests and experts, and ensure you assign at least one representative from your brand to help facilitate this exchange of information.
Brain breaks are also important, particularly if your event is info-heavy. When you’ve put so much effort into grabbing the attention of your attendees, you don’t want to lose it through overloading their senses.
Making space for break-out areas where guests can relax also gives them a chance to dive into their luxury goody bags and check out the freebies that your brand and any associated sponsors have provided. This is your prime opportunity to send your message home with your target market. All-out branding and shameless plugging in this scenario are perfectly acceptable, just don’t forget to add some elements of pampering too.
Realistically, guests are often drawn to attending events for the promise of free booze and tasty canapés, especially after a long day at work. So make it worth their while: invest in the best like Lancôme did, and deliver excellence across the board. The better fed and watered they are, the more likely they are to fully engage in the other components of the evening.
L’Oréal’s savvy marketing team knew that their event was the perfect opportunity to reinforce their brand’s famous slogan - “Because you’re worth it” - and they engaged guests with a giant graffiti wall on which they were encouraged to write why they’re worth it. Appealing to a typically female demographic, this was a highly intelligent move on the brand’s part; they know women respond well to anything that positively supports them and affirms their individual beauty. By raising women’s self esteem in this way, they are also likely to have raised their sales figures, thus ensuring the event was a success and a worthwhile investment of time and money.
