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Entering The Car Lot
APPENDICES  Car stunt  Bike Stunt  Tattoo My Ride  MEDIACORP   Balloon Marketing  Prodct Marketing  Water bottle marketing    Children's products  EVIDENCE I WAS THERE  Various Sponsors     Freebies   Packaging    Celebrities  balloon by FABULOUS Event Leaflet EUNICE Left The Car Lot at Tuesday, November 25, 2008 *** Monday, November 24, 2008
 Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008 In order to obtain a clear understanding of marketing mixes at events, I have decided to attend an event known as Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008 for my Field Trip report. I would like to see for myself how these marketing efforts will come to contribute to the success of the event. It is also important for me, as a business student relevant to the tourism industry, to understand how the event will in turn lead to affect both the Singapore tourism industry and Singapore's economy. I have also collected several brochures, read the online website and personally talked to some of the staff at the event to better understand it. The Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008 is a one day motor event held on Sunday, 23rd November 2008 at the National Stadium Carpark G, co-organized by both Mocca and Full Throttle. The event is held to better promote the sales of motor vehicles through highlights such as performances of bike and car stunts. The event gathered several private motor companies as they compete for attention with attractive promotions. As it was held on a Sunday, the event drew large crowds containing families, youths such as myself and a fairly larger number of men than women despite the heavy rain in the late afternoon. The event began as early as 10am and lasted till 8pm. Throughout the day, there were several ongoing activities K1 Karting and free car styling also known as ' Tattooing My Ride' for 6 lucky owners who drive down to the event. Whether Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008 was a success or not, the determinant is definitely not due to the number of cars sold at the event, or the frequency it was featured over the internet and media sources, but due to the marketing strategies the organizers might have employed to promote the event. My report will now first bring you through a run of the marketing mix to understand and evaluate the success of the event, and then discuss the impacts the event has on Singapore's economy and tourism. The Marketing Mix: 8'P's Place Although located near the heart of the city in Kallang, National Stadium, apart from taking taxis and driving down to the event itself, getting there was inconvenient. Though there was the free servicing of a shuttle bus ride, it was far from useful as the shuttle bus would arrive only once each hour. Therefore, there was the need for majority of the crowd to get to the event by public transport such as the bus 11 which comes only at 20 minutes intervals. Moreover, the bus stops a distance away from the designated car park G. The negligence of the management caused those visitors to walk the unsheltered distance to the event. At the event, there were long rows of white tents sheltering only the cars and the promoters. It was as though the visitors were not as important as the cars and the promoters themselves. As mentioned, the visitors were not taken care of by the tents, thus, when it rained in the afternoon, majority of the crowd rushed to the nearby shopping mall which was later overcrowded. The rows of white tents however, seemed to serve a hidden purpose. It was to differentiate and separate the cars from the different companies. Despite the many negativities i have provided on the choice of their location, i would like to give them credit for one factor that could have led them to choose this location. The area the event was held in was huge. It was large enough to encompass several rows of tents and cars, large enough for a performance of bike and car stunts, and large enough for the huge crowd. However, it would be better preferred if the tents were of vibrant colours such as red or orange other than white itself as the colour white failed to show the vitality and sexiness the event had claimed over their marketing. Promotion Promotion is crucial for the successful marketing of every event. Promotions have the power to draw crowds different from companies' usual pool of target market as promotions usually offers lower prices and attractive deals that attracts a larger scope of market. For the Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008, the successful marketing was through the strategic usage of the sole media corporation in Singapore, Mediacorp. The event was promoted on television Channel 5, radio stations Class 95 and Perfect 10, magazines like 8 days, i-weekly and FHM. With the useful assistance of the media, the event organizers had celebrities such as Christopher Lee marketing their event for them. The attention scope is once again widened by the use of clever strategies like celebrities promotion, to draw celebrities fan bases into awareness of the event. Also, as the main target market of their event is likely to be males, they used men magazines like FHM and car magazines like HOT STUFF and RIDES to draw the target market. Over the internet, the event drew attention with the help of Mocca's website. Not only that, a video of the event was posted on Youtube, which draws several people to watch the video and be aware of the upcoming event that might be of interest to them. They had cleverly manipulated the respective websites to their advantage. Thus, marketing it successfully. At the event, several companies used clever tools in aiding their promotions. As it was also a family event, the presence of children could not be denied. The use of balloons were therefore manipulated into marketing tools as they carried different brand names, all in different shades of the rainbow. Also, as the event was a motor event, most vehicles at the event have huge stickers carrying different brand names pasted all over the front. People As mentioned previously in the paragraph covering Promotion, the use of celebrities are a clever manipulation by the organizers. With celebrities, not only are more people aware of the event, but also the place and event would be livened up as celebrities usually command much attention from their audiences. Visitors would be awed and honoured be the presence of such guests and are thus livened up. Apart from the use of celebrities, the different motor companies have also employed the use of several 'sexy' ladies in skimpy outfits, mostly at the prime of their youth, to be their promoters. These ladies usually serve more of a photo-taking purpose rather than promoting. That is apart from the fact that huge brand names spread across their chests. For events as such, the use of these female promoters is understandable as seemingly the market appears to think that these ladies fit the idea of fast cars, and thus, using that idea of the market, motor car events tend to infuse these female promoters with their cars' promotions. Moreover, as their target market is mainly the males, the use of these female promoters would probably draw their market in. However, despite the clever manipulation and employment of most of the staff, the management overlooked the cleanliness of the visitors. As more and more of the visitors filed in, it was obvious that the cleanliness of the place was poorly attended to. The floor was litter infested yet, to my surprise, none of the management took notice of the problem. The shortage of staff to take care of the cleanliness was unforgivable as the poor cleanliness exposed again the negligence of the management to take care of how visitors might feel upon such a sight. Product As the name of the event would have given away, the product of the event is undoubtedly the motor vehicles. They are arranged however, not under the brands of the manufacturers, but instead of the private companies that are selling them. Therefore, they come in hordes at from time to time and the vehicles seen varied and had no signs of consistency unless the whole row of white tent was under one company itself. Bike and car stunts were part of the highlights of the event, these demonstrations displayed not just the good skills of the drivers, but also the promotion of the motor vehicles and their tyres and such. Due to nearly half the market being families, there were booths that were set up for children. Those booths sold toy cars in which the children can ride around. It is commendable as the companies have not failed to remember the possible presence of children at events as such. Aside from the motor vehicles, there were also motor vehicles parts sold there marketed at low prices. These smaller items are usually packaged together and sold at a much lower price or the price of one. I will cover this again later in the paragraph under packaging. The event also gave freebies away, these freebies are usually relevant to the event itself. such as the Full Throttle Kit which was given only to the first 100 visitors of the event. These freebies serve not only as a souvenir of the event, a marketing tool for the various brands, but also as a promotion tool to draw visitors to come in early. However, the event organizer failed to take care of the interest of female visitors at the event as there was nothing particularly interesting or specially for the female visitors. Packaging Packaging is crucial for the sales of products that are not as marketable and hot-selling as main products. As this event is a free entry event, the packagings are limited but not nonexistent at all. Mentioned above, the packaging items are usually the smaller items such as the tyres and the tyres' rims both packaged together at the price of one, or packaged with a bundle of other small items to provide a seemingly good offer. Partnerships In most events, not only this, partnerships are common and usually vital to events. This is because most events might not be able to take up the whole event themselves, as with the aid of partnerships, there would undoubtedly be more benefits. In this event, the obvious benefits of a partnership with Mediacorp is significantly crucial. It is such that the event gets promoted via media and in turn at the event, Mediacorp was again recognized as one of the significant partners. This event was also in partnership with Kallang Leisure Park, Singapore Sports Council, Gen Concept, Singapore Motor Sports Association, and Osim. The event organizers could have partnered with a tourism board for more foreigners to be aware of the event, making it more globalised and marketed further away from home. This would in turn improve Singapore's tourism arrival, more events to take place here, and the influx of foreign exchange. Programming The effective planning of programmes at an event is crucial as it is highly important to keep the guest interested and entertained lest they lose interest and turn away. At Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008, there were few events planned, plans include the Car and Bike Stunts which were the main highlights, the 'Tattoo My Ride' makeover, the Celebrities appearances and some lucky draws. On visiting the site, I had drawn up a conclusion, the place was too big for any one main stage. This conclusion is further strengthened by the fact that the rows of tents made the place impossible to have a center stage. However, this is no reason to excuse from the lack of activities planned for visitors. As an event that lasts 10 hours, the activities mapped out are limited and most of which, are non-engaging. The failure to come up with programmes is turning visitors away, which results in the loss of business opportunities. In order to infuse family fun amidst the event, they could have introduced games such as bumper cars. Price Last but not least, pricing is also an essential element in the success of an event. Despite the free admission to the event, I was not entirely happy. I did not feel special or welcomed at the entrance at all. The litter infested place only ascertained me that I was at a flea market. Only on seeing the cars in their almost-full glory, can I bring myself back to reality. Without the price of Certificate of Entitlement (COE), the prices of the cars looked fairly cheap. A Porsche seemed like a mere secondhand good to me when the low price hung over it. However, at the other end, some vehicles are placed at their original prices. The inconsistency in their presentations confused the visitors. Yet, from this mistake on the part of the companies, one can conclude that the pricing of a product should be appropriate as it can alter the impression the consumer have of the product. Tourism Role of Event Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008 to me was not an impressive event that could play up to the high stakes of a tourism event. In order to incorporate tourism into the event, the event must have 5 factors namely; place marketing, tourist attraction, image maker, catalyst and animator. Place Marketing As the event was a one day event, it was hardly able to improve the quality of life. Maybe yes, through the purchase of motor vehicles, people can now travel from one place to another within a shorter frame of time. However, referring back to the event, the sales of the motor vehicles there, was obviously not impressive enough. Instead of portraying a good image of Kallang National Stadium, the event exposed most of the faults the place held. Even with the abundance of space the event had, played it to their disadvantage by their few programmes. Though the event had local residents visiting, and allowed investors to create business opportunities, it was unlikely that those were huge investments that can benefit the economy. Tourist Attraction The event was hardly a tourist attraction. Through the duration at the carnival I had seen only a couple of foreigners. The event could not have changed the demand of motor vehicles through tourism marketing, nor could they have lengthened the foreigners' stay in Singapore as this event was more of a local event, not marketed for tourism. Image Maker The event however did create a pretty facade of Singapore's hope in car racing. They conjured up an image possible to believe in. The demonstrations further enhanced their point. Catalyst The event did not create an upgrade of the local facilities nor did it support other attractions. However, the event did stimulate more business and trade amongst the same trade industry. The competitors are now more well aware of each other and the strengths and weaknesses. The event might however, act as a catalyst for Singapore's economy to improve. Animator The event will attract more visitors in the near future. A quick online research on the forums will bring you to conversations where people are looking forward to the next motor event held by the same organizers. This encourages repeat visits and might likely increase sales for the respective companies that took part in the event. This event increased the number of jobs created, as more promoters are needed. Conclusion Personally I have come to the conclusion that Full Throttle MocCarnival 2008 is a local event that is not meant to undertake tourism roles. This event however has displayed the marketing mix in a strange blend. They have made use of some strategies wisely and have failed others badly sucha s locations and programming. Overall, the event can make vast improvements. Their negligence in caring for their visitors would be the main factor should their event be a failure. The organizers can look into a more careful and fair concoction of each of the marketing strategies employed instead of focusing just on particulars like promotions through media only even though this is a crucial component as well. In a nutshell, there are rooms for improvements, and this is a useful experience that i will come to employ in the near future. I look forward to going to better and bigger events that are more headed towards the tourism direction and understand much more that can be done in marketing and themselves as an event with tourism roles. Done By: Wong Xiu Ying Eunice Admin No. 0702995B Labels: Field Trip Report EUNICE Left The Car Lot at Monday, November 24, 2008 *** Sunday, November 9, 2008 Reasons for EXPERIENCEunice:
Before i forget, HELLO! :D Labels: my first blog entry. EUNICE Left The Car Lot at Sunday, November 09, 2008 *** |
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