Three Stages and Strategies of Event Promotion

The promotion of an event can be broadly divided into three stages: pre-event hype, during-event publicity, and post-event impact coverage. The execution period of a regular event is usually not too long. During the event, some routine media coverage may be attracted due to the event's theme, influence, and scale. However, if left unmanaged and unguided, such coverage tends to be superficial, falling into the category of general news, occupying a short TV segment or a corner of a newspaper page. Such publicity is fleeting and soon forgotten.

Therefore, to achieve the desired effect of the event, promotion is essential. Event promotion is essentially about creating hype for the event. Creating hype is like rolling a round boulder down a thousand-foot mountain; when the moment comes, a slight push sends the boulder crashing down with unstoppable force. Hence, skilled warriors seek advantage from the situation, not from individuals, and can choose the right people to leverage the momentum. Outstanding military strategists know how to use and create momentum. With 400,000 troops, they claim a million, marching forward in full force, intimidating the enemy into surrender without a fight. A single show of force can outweigh thousands of troops. The same applies to event marketing: only by creating hype can an event gain significant influence. Once influence is achieved, the enterprise's event can occupy media space and time for free.

Depending on the enterprise's positioning of the event's influence, various promotional channels must be coordinated. Different positioning involves different channels. If the enterprise wants to concentrate efforts on building influence within a region, local print media and television/radio are crucial forces that must be leveraged for their discourse power. In principle, the key to communication is speed and effectiveness. Of course, the fastest way to spread is through online media, whose pervasive power will become even more evident in the future.

The main forms of event promotion are as follows, often used in combination during promotional campaigns: 1. Press conferences: The event establishes information interaction with the media through press releases. The event also needs to establish a spokesperson system. 2. Special features: Special features are a collection of event information. This can be achieved by launching an official event website, setting up special features on major portals, or publishing event magazines. 3. Roadshows: Roadshows are also an important form of promotion. The vote-gathering concerts of "Super Girl" are a good example, not only serving a promotional effect but also achieving interaction with fans. 4. Advertising: Any event needs to invest in some advertising to expand its influence and let more people know about it. Advertising includes TV ads, outdoor ads, DM flyers, print materials, and print media ads. The successful application of event promotion strategies depends on the scale of public participation.

One point to emphasize here is that enterprises should break free from conventional advertising constraints and be determined to advertise around the event. In this regard, Mengniu is definitely a role model worth learning from. During its sponsorship of "Super Girl," Mengniu was not satisfied with simple naming rights but spent additional huge sums on various DM flyers, print materials, and media ads related to the event. After successfully sponsoring China's space program, it also invested a large portion of its advertising budget into related "space quality" publicity. During events like the lunar exploration project and Tiangong-1, intensive advertising directly enhanced the brand's impression in consumers' minds.

By advertising around the event, the advertising and the event complement each other, expanding from the "point" of the event to the "surface" of advertising, thus combining point and surface to produce a 1+1>2 effect. The organic coordination of advertising and the event allows the event to accumulate more attention and also enables advertising to achieve the best promotional effect.

One noteworthy point is that the timing of event promotion should be chosen appropriately, in line with the public's temporal psychological patterns. Generally, special events promoting corporate image, brand image, or product image should be scheduled during holidays, festivals, or peak consumption periods for the product. During holidays and festivals, the public has leisure time to participate in activities and also has a strong desire for entertainment and relaxation. This increases the likelihood of more public participation. Holding related events during peak consumption periods, such as a beer culture festival in summer, can further attract public consumption desires and expand the consumer base.