Maximising Event Sponsorship At World Retail Congress
Cheil Worldwide asks Velvet to capitalise on investment at major trade show by profiling key speaker
Introduction
When Cheil Worldwide sponsored a speaking platform at one of its key trade shows, World Retail Congress, the Cheil UK team turned to retained agency Velvet to provide a strategy to maximise editorial opportunities. The hook was a speaking slot on a panel discussion with a selection of CEO’s from high profile retail brands, delivered by Simon Hathaway, Cheil’s president of shopper marketing and retail operations.
The Challenge
As with all major industry events and trade shows, the main challenge is to find and articulate a clear voice when your competitors – and other players – are all attempting to do the same thing. Having a strong, high profile speaker with a compelling message, as Cheil does, helps stack the odds in your favour.
The Solution
Velvet conducted research to indentify all the opportunities available to best leverage and support Simon Hathaway’s speaker slot, submitting a comprehensive plan to Cheil UK to present to the parent company in Korea.
The Approach
Velvet recommended using Simon’s involvement in the event to secure relevant thought leadership articles and interviews, positioning him as the go-to voice on innovation in retail.
Velvet consultant Bhavna Mistry attended the show, delivering copy from the floor to the UK press and attending meetings with key journalists that had been scheduled both before and during the event.
The Results
Simon Hathaway’s blog on the ubiquity of the phrase ‘omnichannel’ was published in the online version ofRetailWeek and in print as part of the magazine’s main WRC feature. In addition, Cheil’s Emart ‘Flying Store’ campaign was included in an analysis piece on six key global innovations at WRC and a regular blog slot for Simon Hathaway in 2014 was secured.
Other coverage appeared in key tier 1 trade titles including Drapers, Internet Retailing and The Grocer’s fiercely-contested ‘Third Party’ opinion piece slot.
Before the event, media meetings were set up with Global Retail News, LS:N Global and Reuters, while at WRC face-to-face interviews were held with The Guardian, WGSN and Retail Week with Cheil also hosting a CNBC journalist at its table at the awards dinner. Other speaking slots, including one for Retail Week Live, have been forthcoming, and requests for comment and opinion pieces are being received on an on-going basis.