WE DIRECT MARKETERS HAVE LONG BEEN CONCERNED about the ever-increasing crowd of offers competing for consumers’ dollars. And not without reason.

In mid-December the U.S. Postal Service had this statement on its Web site:

When Visa signs on as an event sponsor, it goes all out.

It is currently in relationships with the Olympic Games, the National Football League, NASCAR, the Triple Crown, Disney and Broadway. Activation is typically fully integrated with an event marketing component often playing a key role.

In the NASCAR sponsorship, for example, Visa traveled to racetracks across the country with a “high-end” RV showing off its luxurious accommodations including a hot tub and plasma screen TV. As the RV toured, consumers learned that they could win the right to spend the weekend at the races living in the RV just by using their Visa cards. The RV was set up in a prime location on the infield and the winners also got pit access, meetings with the drivers, a pace car ride with Rusty Wallace or Kurt Busch and finish-line tickets. The tour was supported by national TV ads and Visa plans to do the same during the coming NASCAR season as part of the Daytona 500 next month and may roll out the program for the entire series of races.

For the credit card marketer, its own research has shown that sponsorships, along with the added marketing components that ignite consumer interest and usage, garner a checkered flag every time.

“We have seen significant lifts, literally across the board, for those folks that are aware of our sponsorship properties versus those who are not aware,” says Michael O’Hara Lynch, senior VP-events and sponsorship marketing for Visa.

U.S. marketers spent an estimated $152 billion on event marketing in 2003, up about 15% from 2002. Another $9.8 billion was earmarked for sponsorships, jumping 6.2% from the prior year. And last year, the average budget for event marketing rose to $901,935, up from $827,911 in 2003, according to PROMO’s 2004 Event Marketing Study. (See Chart)

The study also found that 47% of respondents employ event sponsorships, while 37.8% host events. Events are largely planned by in-house management (52.4%), with 39.6% reporting a combined effort between the brand and its agency.

One brand and agency combo proved a big success last year for Fisher-Price, which launched an integrated marketing program to reach Latino parents of preschoolers in three key markets: Houston, Los Angeles and Chicago. The campaign, handled by Market Vision, an independent Hispanic marketing agency affiliate of CoActive Marketing Group, Inc., promoted Fisher-Price toys via numerous channels from TV to radio to the first-time use of neighborhood billboards. It leveraged Fisher-Price’s successful “Play. Laugh. Grow” campaign created by Y&R Advertising. But a major component of the campaign was the 60-foot by 60-foot “playgrounds” set up at festivals for children — six months to six years — and their parents to play with all kinds of Fisher-Price toys. The areas featured five different play stations and a special photo area. Parents were also given information on the toys and a checklist of which toys to buy for Christmas. The stations launched in Chicago over the summer and ended last month in Los Angeles.

“We wanted to get very personal with the Latina mom, and in order to become part of her life and have her be interested in our brand, we felt that we had to be in the community as well,” says Brenda Andolina, senior marketing manager, brand development, Fisher Price, East Aurora, NY. “When people have the chance to experience your brand hands-on, you’ve made a big step forward.”

All three survey respondent categories (brands, event agencies and integrated agencies) dedicated an average $1.1 million to events. Out of their overall budgets, 61% of respondents earmarked between 1% and 25% for events, 19% dedicated 26% to 50% and 7.3% set aside 50% or more.

Ever more emphasis is being placed on return on investment. Brands want that bang for their buck and they want the stats to prove it.

“There is continued pressure on making sure that every dollar spent is spent against something that’s going to deliver results,” says Laura Shuler, president-U.S., Jack Morton Worldwide, a New York-based experiential agency.

And more pressure is being put on agencies to produce the right demographic at events and to capture consumer data that can then be handed off to the brands for follow-through. The survey found that 50.6% felt that counting heads at events was the top ROI measurement, followed by register sales per event days (46.3%), Internet hits (34.8%) and the number of samples or coupons distributed (29.9%). (See Chart)

“There isn’t a silver bullet like there is in advertising, which is controversial,” Shuler says. “There are so many ways to measure in this medium. If you really want to get to the true ROI, it’s both the agency and the client working in tandem for those kinds of metrics.”

Staffing these events can be a challenge. “One missed step in terms of someone’s attitude or a remark made or someone walking in dressed inappropriately and the whole thing’s blown,” Shuler says. “There’s a lot of risk there.”

And that is likely why the number of respondents pulling field staff from an internal database jumped to 53% last year from 41% in 2003. Those hired through an agency stayed about the same at about 33%. As for training, 33% said the brand provides in-person training; 32% have agency staff train in person; 25% use a combination of agency and brand personnel to train; 13% use the Internet or a CD; and 18% do not provide any training.

More agencies and brands are building internal databases of field staff. Jack Morton Worldwide has, for the last 24 months, been investing in its own proprietary databases and field staffing capabilities. “You only have to get burned once or twice,” Schuler says. “We learned that we had to have more quality control.”

Some 38% of respondents paid their employees hourly (that’s up from 32% in 2003); 22% paid a fixed fee per event day (versus 31%); and 19% paid a fixed fee per event (30% in 2003). Employees working in the Northeast made out the best when it came to pay, earning an average $18.74 per hour. Employees in the Midwest were paid the lowest at $14.29 per hour. However, they are all doing better than 2003, when respondents reported paying employees an average $12 per hour. (See Chart)

When asked about the importance of advance methods to build event attendance, overall direct mail rose to the top followed by guerilla marketing, in-store promotions, local radio, local FSIs and local TV. (See Chart 4) Interestingly, brands and agencies didn’t agree. Brands felt that direct mail was tops while integrated marketing and event agencies both identified in-store promotion as the leading way to generate attendance. (In-store tied with guerilla marketing for event shops.)

In Visa’s sponsorship of the Olympic Games, more than 60 million direct mail pieces spoke directly to the banks’ involvement with the Games. Statement inserts or direct mail pieces reached cardholders. Some pieces drove acquisition (sign up for a Michael Phelps Visa card), while others drove usage (use your card and win a trip to the Games). Still others drove retention or activation. One component targeted employees with an incentive dangling a trip to the Athens Games for employees.

“The 30-second spot, which has been the traditional means of communicating to consumers, is being challenged by the number of alternative options to reach these passionate consumers,” Visa’s Lynch says. “And event and sponsorship marketing lends themselves directly as tools to tie into those consumers in an environment where they are comfortable with receiving the messages to promote your products and services.”

Scenic View

Last year’s roster included some blockbuster events — many of which featured brands prominently. In 2004, we had the SuperBowl (yes, McDonald’s has recovered nicely from the role its spokes-idol Justin Timberlake played in the most notorious costume change in recent show biz history); the Athens Olympics (although sponsors Xerox and Coca-Cola focused more on the athletes, and found fun ways to watch — rather than attend — the risk-laden Games); and even the U.S. presidential election (Ben & Jerry’s rocked the vote via store and campus scenes; no comment on how Bush’s Beans or Heinz Ketchup fared). Research from our exclusive survey on event marketing shows events remain a compelling component in the experiential marketing mix. Yes, ROI metrics and risk management remain challenges, but producers are getting progressively smarter at maximizing “on-scene” value for brands and consumers.

When Visa signs on as an event sponsor, it goes all out.

It is currently in relationships with the Olympic Games, the National Football League, NASCAR, the Triple Crown, Disney and Broadway. Activation is typically fully integrated with an event marketing component often playing a key role.

In the NASCAR sponsorship, for example, Visa traveled to racetracks across the country with a “high-end” RV showing off its luxurious accommodations including a hot tub and plasma screen TV. As the RV toured, consumers learned that they could win the right to spend the weekend at the races living in the RV just by using their Visa cards. The RV was set up in a prime location on the infield and the winners also got pit access, meetings with the drivers, a pace car ride with Rusty Wallace or Kurt Busch and finish-line tickets. The tour was supported by national TV ads and Visa plans to do the same during the coming NASCAR season as part of the Daytona 500 next month and may roll out the program for the entire series of races.

For the credit card marketer, its own research has shown that sponsorships, along with the added marketing components that ignite consumer interest and usage, garner a checkered flag every time.

“We have seen significant lifts, literally across the board, for those folks that are aware of our sponsorship properties versus those who are not aware,” says Michael O’Hara Lynch, senior VP-events and sponsorship marketing for Visa.

U.S. marketers spent an estimated $152 billion on event marketing in 2003, up about 15% from 2002. Another $9.8 billion was earmarked for sponsorships, jumping 6.2% from the prior year. And last year, the average budget for event marketing rose to $901,935, up from $827,911 in 2003, according to PROMO’s 2004 Event Marketing Study. (See Chart)

The study also found that 47% of respondents employ event sponsorships, while 37.8% host events. Events are largely planned by in-house management (52.4%), with 39.6% reporting a combined effort between the brand and its agency.

One brand and agency combo proved a big success last year for Fisher-Price, which launched an integrated marketing program to reach Latino parents of preschoolers in three key markets: Houston, Los Angeles and Chicago. The campaign, handled by Market Vision, an independent Hispanic marketing agency affiliate of CoActive Marketing Group, Inc., promoted Fisher-Price toys via numerous channels from TV to radio to the first-time use of neighborhood billboards. It leveraged Fisher-Price’s successful “Play. Laugh. Grow” campaign created by Y&R Advertising. But a major component of the campaign was the 60-foot by 60-foot “playgrounds” set up at festivals for children — six months to six years — and their parents to play with all kinds of Fisher-Price toys. The areas featured five different play stations and a special photo area. Parents were also given information on the toys and a checklist of which toys to buy for Christmas. The stations launched in Chicago over the summer and ended last month in Los Angeles.

“We wanted to get very personal with the Latina mom, and in order to become part of her life and have her be interested in our brand, we felt that we had to be in the community as well,” says Brenda Andolina, senior marketing manager, brand development, Fisher Price, East Aurora, NY. “When people have the chance to experience your brand hands-on, you’ve made a big step forward.”

All three survey respondent categories (brands, event agencies and integrated agencies) dedicated an average $1.1 million to events. Out of their overall budgets, 61% of respondents earmarked between 1% and 25% for events, 19% dedicated 26% to 50% and 7.3% set aside 50% or more.

Ever more emphasis is being placed on return on investment. Brands want that bang for their buck and they want the stats to prove it.

“There is continued pressure on making sure that every dollar spent is spent against something that’s going to deliver results,” says Laura Shuler, president-U.S., Jack Morton Worldwide, a New York-based experiential agency.

And more pressure is being put on agencies to produce the right demographic at events and to capture consumer data that can then be handed off to the brands for follow-through. The survey found that 50.6% felt that counting heads at events was the top ROI measurement, followed by register sales per event days (46.3%), Internet hits (34.8%) and the number of samples or coupons distributed (29.9%). (See Chart)

“There isn’t a silver bullet like there is in advertising, which is controversial,” Shuler says. “There are so many ways to measure in this medium. If you really want to get to the true ROI, it’s both the agency and the client working in tandem for those kinds of metrics.”

Staffing these events can be a challenge. “One missed step in terms of someone’s attitude or a remark made or someone walking in dressed inappropriately and the whole thing’s blown,” Shuler says. “There’s a lot of risk there.”

And that is likely why the number of respondents pulling field staff from an internal database jumped to 53% last year from 41% in 2003. Those hired through an agency stayed about the same at about 33%. As for training, 33% said the brand provides in-person training; 32% have agency staff train in person; 25% use a combination of agency and brand personnel to train; 13% use the Internet or a CD; and 18% do not provide any training.

More agencies and brands are building internal databases of field staff. Jack Morton Worldwide has, for the last 24 months, been investing in its own proprietary databases and field staffing capabilities. “You only have to get burned once or twice,” Schuler says. “We learned that we had to have more quality control.”

Some 38% of respondents paid their employees hourly (that’s up from 32% in 2003); 22% paid a fixed fee per event day (versus 31%); and 19% paid a fixed fee per event (30% in 2003). Employees working in the Northeast made out the best when it came to pay, earning an average $18.74 per hour. Employees in the Midwest were paid the lowest at $14.29 per hour. However, they are all doing better than 2003, when respondents reported paying employees an average $12 per hour. (See Chart)

When asked about the importance of advance methods to build event attendance, overall direct mail rose to the top followed by guerilla marketing, in-store promotions, local radio, local FSIs and local TV. (See Chart 4) Interestingly, brands and agencies didn’t agree. Brands felt that direct mail was tops while integrated marketing and event agencies both identified in-store promotion as the leading way to generate attendance. (In-store tied with guerilla marketing for event shops.)

In Visa’s sponsorship of the Olympic Games, more than 60 million direct mail pieces spoke directly to the banks’ involvement with the Games. Statement inserts or direct mail pieces reached cardholders. Some pieces drove acquisition (sign up for a Michael Phelps Visa card), while others drove usage (use your card and win a trip to the Games). Still others drove retention or activation. One component targeted employees with an incentive dangling a trip to the Athens Games for employees.

“The 30-second spot, which has been the traditional means of communicating to consumers, is being challenged by the number of alternative options to reach these passionate consumers,” Visa’s Lynch says. “And event and sponsorship marketing lends themselves directly as tools to tie into those consumers in an environment where they are comfortable with receiving the messages to promote your products and services.”

Scenic View

Last year’s roster included some blockbuster events — many of which featured brands prominently. In 2004, we had the SuperBowl (yes, McDonald’s has recovered nicely from the role its spokes-idol Justin Timberlake played in the most notorious costume change in recent show biz history); the Athens Olympics (although sponsors Xerox and Coca-Cola focused more on the athletes, and found fun ways to watch — rather than attend — the risk-laden Games); and even the U.S. presidential election (Ben & Jerry’s rocked the vote via store and campus scenes; no comment on how Bush’s Beans or Heinz Ketchup fared). Research from our exclusive survey on event marketing shows events remain a compelling component in the experiential marketing mix. Yes, ROI metrics and risk management remain challenges, but producers are getting progressively smarter at maximizing “on-scene” value for brands and consumers.