Hotel Ibis - Event marketing strategy

The hotel that I have chosen to represent is Ibis Hotel. I chose this hotel as Ibis Hotel has previously hosted a Singapore Arts Festival 2012 event that showed the hotel’s flexibility when it comes to hosting events. Furthermore, it is a budget hotel, which means that the use of the hotel would not cost as much as higher-end hotels.

Ibis Hotel Novena hosted a very unique event that was an eye-opener to many. It was called the “Ciudades Paralelas (Parallel cities) Hotel – Hotel Maids” and it was part of the Singapore Arts Festival 2012, that took place between 18 May and 2 June. Visitors will visit 5 different hotel rooms in Ibis Hotel Novena, each room will have a projector which each shows the real life of different housekeeping staff from all over the world.

The hotel participated very enthusiastically. They decorated their rooms in different themes according to what is being screened in the projector. For example, one room had a beach theme and was filled with sand, bottles of beer and even children toys. That room portrayed the life of a male housekeeper and his family. 

Furthermore, there were writings on the windows and mirrors which told the story of the housekeeper. On top of that, visitors were also treated to a mini guided tour around the hotel by the male housekeeper himself.

Popular bloggers, such as Alvinology, have also been invited to publicize this event. I find that this is a clever idea as the readers of his blog are mostly adults, who may be interested in this event and gain a different perspective of life through this event.  

Description and review of Korea Festival 2012

The event I have chosen is the 5^th annual Korea Festival 2012 that ran between 3^rd October and mid-November 2012.

I feel that this Korea Festival is a successful one as it manages to highlight and strengthen the warm and friendly relations between Singaporeans and Koreans, which is what Oh Joon, the Korean ambassador to Singapore hopes to achieve. I visited the Korea Street Fair on a Thursday and Saturday afternoon (8^th and 10^th November) and it was, expectedly, more crowded on Saturday. 

During the Korea Street Fair, there were many Koreans who came. We actually managed to interact briefly with some of them while they were playing the dart game with us at the booth selling Korean apples. Through this brief interaction, it was apparent that Koreans and Singaporeans indeed have friendly relationships as both parties bothered to smile at each other even though we were complete strangers. The Korean staff were also friendly to me even though we are from different countries.

Moreover, the human traffic was really high on both days. This just shows the popularity of the Korea Festival and how the Korean culture is a big part of Singapore.

Korea Festival 2011 focuses more on tradition, arts and culture. On the other hand, Korea Festival 2012 focuses on sports and culture, which are appealing to Singaporeans. I feel that this year’s Korea Festival is much more interesting and engaging than last year’s. For example, there is a famous Korean theatre act – “FLYing”, and a program where visitors can design your own ceramic, “A Teardrop”. 

Product

It includes the Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style” that took place at I12 Katong between 5th and 11th November 2012. Other events are the Korean Flounder Festival; A Teardrop: Ceramics Artworks Fundraising Charity event, Korean Film Festival and much more.

The activities held fulfills the objectives of Korea Festival 2012 to improve relations between Koreans and Singaporeans as both parties get to know each other better as they participated in this festival.

The programs for Korea Festival 2011 and 2012 are more or less similar. It both include the arts, food, film festivals and also features K-pop acts. However, what is included in these programs vary and this attracted a different crowd.

Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style”

This event is a place for visitors to bond with their friends and family while taking a look at the booths and what they have to offer, such as games. It is also where visitors can learn more about Korea, its language and culture. This can be done through the activities like the Goldenbell Challenge and the Korean Language Speech Contest.

There were also a variety of activities to suit everyone's needs, such as dance performances, cooking lessons and Korean drum performances.

After speaking with the organizer, she mentioned that they aimed to target residents for this event since they held it in a residential area. I feel that these programs lined up cater very much to the target markets’ needs – which are related to their lifestyle. Residents usually visit shopping malls with their friends or family and thus, their needs are most likely to bond and find out more about the Korean culture.

A Teardrop: Ceramics Artworks Fundraising Charity event

This is one of the events in the Korea Festival 2012 that features arts and it is different from such events conducted last year. This is a hands-on activity, whereby visitors have the opportunity to paint on ceramics prior to the charity event. These ceramics may be displayed or be on sale during the actual event. This is very different from last year’s as there were not events fully dedicated to hands-on activities.

Place

Both year's programs are also held in similar places – such as shopping malls (I12 Katong and Square 2), Todai Restaurant and also the CBD areas. There are not much changes as compared to last year. 

It has pros and cons of holding the programs in similar places. The pros is that visitors who have visited the places before may be enticed to go back because of its convenience or they like the ambience there. Also, by holding the various events in different places, there are different crowds for each day. The cons is that some repeat visitors will not want to visit the same place again as they may assume that the programs are the same. Hence, I feel that the pros outweigh the cons and it is a good idea to hold the programs at the same places as last year’s.

Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style”The place is where the Korea Street Fair was held at - I12 Katong, which is somewhere in the east. The previous year’s similar event, Korea Street Food Fair, was held in the north at Square 2. This means that they are able to reach people all over Singapore.

The atmosphere of the event was great as it was held when there were Christmas decorations, thus helping to brighten up the atmosphere. There was enough space to walk around. The decorations and signboards were all very colorful and attractive, portraying the friendliness and hospitality of the Korean culture. During the cooking lessons, there were chairs available for participants to sit. This portrays the thoughtfulness of the Korean organizers.  I feel that the comfortable and attractive environment allows visitors to enjoy themselves as I certainly have. 

Price

Most of the activities lined up are free-of-charge and anyone can attend it, such as the Korea Street Festival and “A Teardrop”, which is a charity fundraising event. Probably the only time that visitors need to spend money is if they want to purchase any goods like rice wine or kimchi. However, the prices of these products are even lower as compared to retail prices.

Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style”

The low prices and free admission have definitely contributed to the success of the event. One example would be the free Rooftop Movie Screening on Saturday night (10^th November) which featured famous Korean movies like “I Am”. This has definitely attracted many teenagers who are fans of this movie, thus contributing to the human traffic and success of the event. The free cooking demonstration on the 11^th has also managed to attract the older generation.

Overall, the low prices at the Korean Street Fair have attracted both the young and elderly and this adds to the success of the event.

SMTOWN Live World Tour III
This program costs the most, with prices of tickets ranging from $168 to $268.  This event is a major event which features many K-pop artistes. Fans of these groups both share the same interest - the groups themselves. Through K-pop, Korean and Singaporeans fans and the K-pop groups are all able to connect and strengthen the relationship. It definitely helps to fulfill the objective of improving relations between Koreans and Singaporeans. 

Promotion

Facebook is one of their promotional and advertising tools for both years. The Korea Embassy of Singapore uses their Facebook account to connect to visitors by posting photos, giving updates about the event and also by answering their enquiries in an efficient manner. The reason for using Facebook is because it is a free social networking site that connects people from all across the world and it is proven to be useful. 

Another promotional tool is actually The Business Times. The launch of the Korea Festival 2012 was posted in the newspapers and this has definitely created more business opportunities for them. For example, the newspaper reports are able to give the Korea Festival 2012 publicity. This may attract future partners who wish to collaborate with Korea Festival 2013 if this year’s event is successful.

After talking to one of the staff at the Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style”, I found out that the products sold are cheaper than retail prices, making it a very attractive offer for people to come and buy. 

People

Workers
The workers from Korea Tourism Organization were mostly Koreans and they helped to sell the products and also facilitated the photography voting competition.

I had a good experience with the staff who were maintaining the booths at the Korea Street Fair "Singapore Style". An example would be the lady promoting the rice wine. She was very insightful and knowledgeable about the products and I was intrigued by her explanation of the rice wine. Another example would be the friendly staff who facilitated the dart-throwing game to win Korea’s famous Yeongju apples. Although there were many people queuing up to play the game, I felt that they handled the busy situation very well and in a professional manner by letting those in the queue sample the apples and never rushing those who are playing the game.

Hosts & Guests

The hosts were same for both years – Korea Embassy of Singapore.

Most guests for the Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style” are residents staying around the Katong vicinity. There were both elderly and teenagers due to the programs lined up. By catering to both elderly and teenagers, the event is able to get higher footfall.

I feel that Korea Festival 2011 attracted more contemporary Korean cultural lovers, due to the type of events hosted. Apart from the Korean Pop Night which features K-pop artists, the other events are more on the cultural side, such as the contemporary art exhibitions. The Korea Festival 2012 attracted more teenagers and those interested in K-pop and Korean celebrities. The launch of Korea Festival 2012, the movie screening at I12 Katong and the Film Festival all feature famous Korean celebrities.

However, one contest in last year’s Festival have attracted many young booming talents, which is not held this year. The TvN Asia’s Kpop Star Hunt will feature 2 of the Singaporean songsters that will join winners from other Asian countries in Seoul to compete for a place in a new K-pop line up. Many teenagers joined this competition.

Performers

As mentioned in 5.2, most of the performers in 2011’s Korea Festivals are more traditional and cultural, such as the screening of Barefoot Gibong. The performers this year are more hip and more modern, such as the Hiphop duo that performed at the Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style”. 

Programming

The whole festival lasted for about 2 months and I feel that this length of time is perfect. The various events are spread out comfortably and there is seldom overlapping. For example, the Korean Flounder Festival was held between 5^th to 18^th October while the Korean Food Fair @ Cold Storage was held on 24^th October. 

Both events cater to the same target market – Korean food fans. By placing them on separate dates ensures that the fans are able to visit both events, leading to higher total footfall.

Although there have been cooking lessons previously, this year’s is different as it features different types of food. The Korea Festival 2011’s main feature is Kimchi while Korea Festival 2012’s main feature is Flounder.

Café Camano is a new brand in Singapore’s coffee market and it being the top 1% coffee, many people will surely be enticed to visit the event to take a look at the coffee products.

By bringing in many different and unique programs, the Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style” is able to reach the demand of the visitors, ranging from coffee lovers to K-pop fans.

Furthermore, two key segments that sparked off the Korea Festival 2012 were the performance by Skarf and the Korean Film Festival. These two segments were important as they featured famous Korean stars like Skarf and Han Ga-In. Many fans of the Korean music and movie visited the events to support their favorite stars. The Korea Embassy of Singapore have successfully managed to meet the rising demands of Korean fans and as such, they were able to attract a good amount of people, leading to the success of the event.

Packaging

The event also features a brand of coffee known as Café Camano, which is the world’s top 1% coffee. It was began distribution in Singapore in early November 2012 by a Korean company known as Namuhgroup, making it a new-comer in Singapore’s coffee market. By having them at the event, it will be a win-win situation as both parties gain more publicity through each other’s reputation. 

The intermediaries used for Korea Festival 2012 were Shaw House for the Film Festival, Cold Storage for the Korea Food Fair and Sistic for SMTOWN Live Tour III an FLYing.

Partnership

The main stakeholders of Korea Festival 2012 were: The Embassy of the Republic of Korea, Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, Korea Tourism Organization and Singapore Korean International School. The main reason for partnering with these organizations is because they all related strongly to the Korean culture and have contributed largely to the success of the event.

The Embassy of the Republic of Korea is the main organizer of the whole Korea Festival 2012. The Korea Tourism Organization also helped to promote Korea Festival 2012. Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation plays an important part in the supply of the food products during the event and also ensuring the cheapest rates. Another stakeholder is I12 Katong, which provided the venue for Korea Street Fair “Singapore Style”. Without this crucial partnerships, Korea Festival  2012 would definitely be less successful.

They have also partnership with Studio De S, which is a school that provides professional and engaging dance instructors. Through this partnership, they are able to bring in performers for the Music Concert on 10^th November 2012, which in turn attracted audiences and increased footfall.

Todai Restaurant has been a constant partner of Korea Festival for 2 years. It is beneficial for both parties to be in a long-term partnership as this will give publicity to both parties. Also, partnering with Todai Restaurant for many years will also ensure cheaper rates and more benefits in the long-run. 

Most of the partners this year are more prestigious and unique than last year’s. For example, St. Regis Hotel and Gallery Enough. Gallery Enough is a newly established art gallery. People may be interested in viewing this art gallery and may thus attend the “A Teardrop” event.

Korea Festival 2012 has managed to obtain sponsorship from many established companies that are related to the Korean culture or Korea itself. Examples would be Korean Air and LG. As these companies are Korean companies, being sponsored by them will further enhance Korea Festival 2012’s image as being authentically Korean and as supporting the Korean culture.

Proposed events to collaborate with my hotel - Hotel Ibis

One recommendation would be to invite the famous cast of Running Man, over to Ibis Hotel to film one episode of the famous South Korean variety show “Running Man”. Running Man is a very famous international variety show and if the festival organizer is able to bring them over, it would definitely give Ibis Hotel good publicity as its interior is being filmed and shown to the rest of the world. The Running Man game held in Ibis Hotel may feature famous Singaporean artistes, such as famous youtube star Dee Kosh, host Pornsark or famous DJs. By featuring Singapore artistes, we are able to strengthen the relationship of Korean and Singaporeans, which is what Oh Joon, the ambassador of Republic of Korea, hopes to achieve.

Another recommendation would be to hold a Room Design competition. The room will consist of the existing furniture. However, contestants would have to design the room using different materials provided. The theme of the room should be “Korean culture”. Contestants will have to do their own research about the Korean culture, thus giving them indepth knowledge about Korea. The best decorated rooms will walk away with attractive prizes sponsored by our partners. 

Appendix

References

Abigail, P. (May 15, 2012) How sponsorship deals benefit large companies. Retrieved 20 November 2012 from http://www.businessrevieweurope.eu/marketing/mobile-marketing/how-sponsorship-deals-benefit-large-companies

Alvin. (May 31, 2012) Ciudades Paralelas Hotel – Hotel Maids. Retrieved 19 November 2012 from http://blog.omy.sg/alvinology/2012/05/31/singapore-arts-festival-2012-ciudades-paralelas-parallel-cities-hotel-%E2%80%93-hotel-maids/  

Ashley (October 6, 2011) Korea Festival 2011 in Singapore. Retrieved 20 November 2012 from http://x-clusive.sg/2011/10/06/korea-festival-2011-in-singapore/

Café Camano. (n.d.) About Camano Island Coffee. Retrieved 19 November 2012 from http://cafecamano.com/content.php?CategoryID=41

Korean Association Singapore. (n.d.) Embassay of Korea. Retrieved 20 November 2012 from http://www.koreansingapore.org/cgi/board/bbs/board.php?bo_table=notice_list&wr_id=301

The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Singapore. (2012) Korea Festival 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2012 from http://www.boomkorea.net/kf2012/KF2012.pdf

Pictures

Overall view of the event

A booth selling K-pop cds

(Left) A booth selling Camano Island Coffee. (Right) I am happy to be at the Korea Street Fair "Singapore Style"! 

A photo with the organizer, Boyi