THE GLEN IN-CENTRE ACTIVATION

THURSDAY & FRIDAY 4PM-7PM & SATURDAY & SUNDAY 10AM-1PM

The main hub of the“Self Help Elf” campaign took place at The Glen Shopping Centre, across 4 days. Providing an opportunity for both Instagrammable moments and foot-fall/purchase power.

A Wrapping Station that offered free wrapping to anyone that had spent over $30 in-Centre provided a wonderful opportunity to engage with customers, allowing the Self Help Elves to “make it better” by taking one job off their list! It also ensured an opportunity for a longer dwell-time at the activation, with positive feedback from all involved.

Another Elf conducted the “The Christmas Pack Match!” quiz to find which Darrell Lea pack might suit that hard-to-buy-for friend or family member. A third Elf was able to roam, interact, play games, challenge customers to sing a song or dance for a sample and generally spread the word of Darrell Lea

MELBOURNE CBD ACTIVATION

THURSDAY 5/12 – SUNDAY 8/12

Simultaneously in Melbourne CBD, the “Self Help Elves” were bringing delight and joy to workers and shoppers, giving out samples, canvassing large numbers and carolling with Christmas Cheer wherever they roamed.

3 of the 5 Elves were seasoned performers, with choreographed numbers that included dancing and singing crowd-pleasing carols. The other 2 Elves handed out samples and brought cheer with their smiles and season’s greetings.

They moved from the Christmas-themed atrium of Crown Casino to the bustling Goldsborough Village for Thursday and Friday into the busy heart of the CBD for Saturday and Sunday.

RESEARCH AND PROCESS

THE VIDCON CREATORS

As part of responding to the brief provided by Visit Victoria, we had to undertake extensive research into each invited Creator that would be at the event, including their audience demographic. These Creators were guests invited by VIDCON to present at the conference and were from all over the world. They were selected based on their level of engagement, followers and focus. There was a large representation of a lifestyle, animation, LGBT and fashion blogs.

We had to present an event that included activations that spoke to these Creators and would encourage them to organically share with their audience, as opposed to pressured, obligatory acknowledgement. As all of the Creators were either YouTube or TikTok based, the activations had to be interactive, engaging and translate visually and acoustically via video. We watch hours of content from the Creators to ascertain what was connecting with their subscribers, what themes were being represented and what was encouraging discussion and interaction.

MELBOURNE

When we were developing the Creative Concept and Program, we knew we needed to include elements of Melbourne that were contemporary and not-oversaturated in the media. The Creators would want to show their audiences new content – content is king!

We used our knowledge of cultural offerings in Melbourne and existing network to identify a unique art installation that would speak to the city’s artistic reputation. Everything had to be a once-off or a ”first” in order to generate that organic content that the Creators search for. We identified and curated a programme that spoke to the uniqueness and the demographics of our Creators, but ensuring new practices or cutting edge offerings were included.

In 2018, the theme for the conference had revolved around the concept of a drum beat uniting the conference. As part of their brief, L’Oreal requested that the original concept of a drum beat be “put on steriods” for the 2019 Conference. We love being challenged to bringing innovation and creativity to a project, so went away and worked hard on an ideation that brought the drumbeat concept into 2019 with a fresh view.

Ulimately, we played on the theme “The Beat Goes On”

The beat of a drum. The heartbeat of an organisation. A rhythmic constant that provides the foundation for life and creation. This was “The Beat Goes On” – elevating the concept of the CPD team being the heartbeat of L’Oreal and taking the drum beat to another level. Surprising and thought-provoking throughout the conference, this set the scene for learning and collaborating with friends and colleagues across the 3 days of conference.

The heartbeat of L’Oreal was brought to life in a wave of colour and motion, celebrating a universal connection at the 2019 CPD Conference at the RACV Resort in Torquay.

DUX Kitchen was an exclusive one-night-only bespoke ‘pop up’ restaurant at Rokeby Studios in Collingwood, created with Celebrity Chef Adam D’Sylva as the face of Luv A Duck. 30 social media influencers & 10 competition winners dined on an 8-course duck degustation with sponsored The Rising Chardonnay & Pinot Noir, and Plumm glassware.

The ‘twist’. A surprise reveal at the conclusion of the night that their meals were prepared by 8 amateur cooks, proving anyone can cook with duck!

INSTALLATION
Playing on the concept of surprise and original team design, guests were delighted by an overhead installation using 500 red Luv a Duck trays.

SELFIE NEON WALL
A custom Luv a Duck red neon heart and branded black & gold duck wall created the perfect backdrop for influencers to take their selfie photos and upload to social media platforms

DUCK SCRABBLE
A fishbowl with 20 key words were provided to guests to encourage them to get creative with their dishes and photo opportunities.

DUCKISMS
This was a play on words created for the bathrooms – strategically placed on the mirrors the duck/food quotes were fun and playful, even the bathroom was a social media worthy experience!

GIFT BAGS
Lasting impact with Luv a Duck products, accompanying ingredients, recipe cards, Plumm glassware and a bottle The Rising wine were gifted to each attendee at the conclusion of the event

A legion of Simply Energy brand ambassadors and adorable mascots engaged the crowd as they wandered the 4-day footy festival at the MCG – encouraging fans to challenge themselves to show and share their passion for their team in the Scream-A-Meter. When fans entered the Scream-A-Meter they were given the feeling that they were stepping onto the field of the MCG, surrounded by the visual of a cheering crowd and grass beneath their feet, fans quickly felt it was their time to shine. With 5 seconds to record their very own video, fans were challenged to cheer, scream or yell as loud as they could, and the built-in decibel reader displayed how loud they were – the record was set at huge 127 decibels!

Footy fans then received a take home video, sent directly to their phone and ready to share with their online social community, family and friends. In addition to the on-site Scream-A-Meter that saw footy fans queueing for their chance to beat the record and claim their glorious victory (and a hilarious video to share), a selection of fans had their chance to prove their passion on the main stage. A portable Scream-A-Meter was created, and fans were selected to take part in the Scream-A-Meter competition live on stage! Broadcast live on the giant screens across the festival and supported by the adorable Simply Energy mascots, fans screamed their way to be the winner live on stage, with the loudest receiving 2 movie tickets.

ENGAGE created an interactive, immersive, fun and culturally significant ‘Allianz Deepavali’ inspired video and photo experience. Attendees were invited to capture their very own ‘Allianz Deepavali’ branded video, creating a memorable and sharable experience. Festival attendees filmed their ‘Allianz Deepavali’ video on a custom designed backdrop and shared their memory with their online community on Instagram and Facebook. Attendees simply entered their mobile number or email address for instant delivery to their phone to share via their preferred social media platform.

To further enhance the experience and make it even more memorable, participants were also given a branded ‘Allianz Deepavali’ take-away photo. As an added incentive, attendees were invited to share their video on social media with their followers, friends and family for their chance to win a $1,000 Visa Card! To be eligible to win the $1000 Visa card, attendees shared their video via Instagram using the hash tag #LightUpDiwaliWithAllianz

In addition to the beautiful Deepavali inspired photo booth background, the marquee space was also Deepavali themed, enhancing the cultural experience of the activation and the festival. Upon entering the marquee attendees were immersed in a vibrant and colourful setting, with the team embracing the culture and festival with their very own henna designs.

Fostering Connections has been promoting Foster Care through traditional channels for some time with limited success. At ENGAGE, as one of Australia’s best experiential agencies, we pride ourselves on delivering meaningful activations with measurable outcomes that provide our clients with valuable data and insights to support their future marketing campaigns and strategies.

The activation was designed around four key elements:

• An ‘always on’ innovative Augmented Reality experience for tenants to immerse themselves in with short 30 second videos highlighting the positive experiences of being a Foster Carer.  People were able to experience the videos in their own time and at their own pace.
• A series of engaging and influential panel discussions with a variety of different foster carers, adults who had once been fostered children, different foster care agencies and other associated people.  This created an opportunity for people to interact and learn more about what is involved in becoming a Foster Carer.
• A large custom-built mosaic wall with 500 interactive photo tiles that once completed at the end of the activation, presented a lasting message for all to consider, ‘Open your Heart, Open your Home’. Each photo tile had an image of current Foster Carers highlighting the diversity and demographics of Foster Careers.
• Brand Ambassadors were on hand to engage with people, start the conversations through all the above touchpoints and provide further information as real-time feedback and insights

CoM’s ‘Get Moving’ campaign was seeking to motivate urban professionals to adopt healthy, sustainable lifestyles by walking and cycling in and around Melbourne. Their audience and objective became the muse for our activation design. What interests them? How do they want to be informed? What experiences will connect the target audience to the campaign? A first-up interest for us was locating and securing four CBD locations that provided adequate quantities of the target audience. Owing to a strong existing relationship with a client deeply ensconced in the urban property/culture industry, we were able to create a win-win situation: CoM had the perfect home for their four activations, ripe with the urban professionals they sought, and our existing client had original, engaging content to offer to its tenants.

Next up was the task of designing an activation mechanic that provided a relevant reward to the target in exchange for their personal contact data. Along with CoM providing in-campaign rewards such as Rebel vouchers and Fit Bits— perfectly suited to their audience — our experienced event marketing agency knew that in order to deliver database growth the activation also needed an on-site reward. Healthy bodies need fuel, hence our decision to use delicious fresh bircher muesli topped with Nudie yoghurt and a mint garnish to attract people (a), and (b), reward them for providing their email address. Despite some warm weather at one of the four activations that might not have endeared some people to a dairy treat, the bircher reward presented beautifully on an organically styled food station and was for the most-part hugely popular. The snack-sized portions were perfect for people on the go and enabled us to produce samples in quick succession.

The process for gathering personal data also had to suit the style of the audience. As commercially-savvy professionals, they were likely to be disinclined to hand over their phones, even to a well-presented staffer, to install an app (needed to record ‘Get Moving’ points). There was also the time sensitivity of contact – lunchtimes only offer a certain window for interacting with anything. Hence our recommendation to CoM to gather email addresses rather than app downloads onsite, facilitated through a team of informed staff, armed with a specially-developed digital platform provided by the City of Melbourne specifically for their campaign.

Our final major consideration was for the overall presentation of the activation – not only ensuring it met our execution standards, but what is actually happening at the activation to align it with ‘Get Moving’ and create a connection in the mind of the audience. The answer for our event designer was linked to the healthy lifestyle proposed by the campaign. The branded ping pong table did not see much down time for the three days it was onsite, whilst the branded digital map station that allowed people to easily calculate their best walking route to and from work, was also popular and a great conversation starter. These two engaging activities were situated alongside the beautifully styled bircher station as well as a cute bike-n-cart, which also tied in nicely with the healthy lifestyle theme.

No matter where you are, or why you are there, urban street events need to be original and provide enough interaction to ensure people have a good time, share a good time and walk away happy and pleasantly surprised. To achieve a consummate experience, there needs to be layers of activity that work well together. The EcoWorld event, aptly (without a letter to spare!) named the ‘SY Spring Festival by Yarra One’, was designed with a particular look and feel that allowed the event designer to create perfect synergies between contributing elements.

First and foremost, the ‘urban oasis’ aesthetic was ideal for the season and inner-city location. By using a soft, tropical colour palate through décor, activation and even live art pieces (more about that later), the mood of the entire space was set confidently and necessarily in the face of the city dankness that surrounded it. Even the abundant plant life was chosen for its large-leaf variety, and hung as well as grounded to provide a complete visual range. It should be noted at this point that this event took place in a carpark adjacent to a disused warehouse, adding yet another layer of synergism to the event, in that the ground level of the new building will become an indoor, multi-purpose community space called ‘The Atrium’.

Entertainment content at this event was also selected based on its brightness and shareability. The DJ might these days be considered ‘old skool’, but the hedonistic, upbeat tunes were exactly what the space demanded. Fun games of ping pong on brightly decaled tables and spectator-driven giant Jenga challenges were completely frivolous, but perfect for sharing with new or old friends in the urban oasis.

Artist Ellen Porteus is known for her quirky, wallpaper style illustrations, and with various collaborators across the weekend completed a wall mural that of course spoke directly to the aesthetic of the event. Banana-sized pieces of colourful chalk were laid about the place, beckoning other, yet less Instagram-worthy, “artists”, to take part in the shared creative outpouring. The result of these scribbles in no way mirrored the professional contribution of another artist on hand: fashion illustrator Sarah Darby, who provided personalised portraits to those happy to be drawn rather than draw. A truly local flavour was added with a selection of pop-up designer market stalls offering artisan-made jewellery, soaps and scarves. By providing springboards for interactivity and creativity, the construct of the space was alive and personalised. It seemed to evolve as each brush stroke was placed upon the wall or new group of kids tried their luck at Jenga.

Food provided guests with yet another chance to create their own experience, this time by the range of cuisines and servings on offer. For those looking for a sweet treat or coffee break, Melbourne icon St Gerrys was deep frying delicious Greek donuts and Coe&Coe was providing the caffeine. Lunch was served hot and soulful from Gumbo’s New Orlean’s kitchen or Nem Nem Vietnamese. Things kicked into overdrive on the second Sunday of the two-weekend event when food was provided for free, giving EcoWorld every chance of creating positive good will be appealing to the stomach of locals!

Activating events in public spaces puts a particular emphasis on maximising unique environmental opportunities. Of course, all branded and sponsorship activations we work on maximise opportunities in order to deliver results, however, with outdoor public events, the experience must be so strong and speak in such a clear, common language that it delivers impact to passers-by almost immediately and to those completely unfamiliar with the brand. In the case of Daffodil Day, the elements we had at our disposal were the official Daffodil Day hashtag, the personal connection a lot of people (unfortunately) have with cancer and the bright golden amber that is synonymous with the daffodil. We had four days and a city full of people to mobilise these elements and create a captivating community engagement event.

Federation Square in Melbourne is a wide, open space that sits adjacent to the city’s busiest train station. It also acts as a thoroughfare for thousands of CBD workers every day, in the heart of the ‘gloomy’ city. In order to maximise these opportunities, we immediately saw sense in following a ‘big and bright’ creative direction – oversized installations, bright yellow tones and activations that required physical involvement. In terms of scale, the ‘Hashtag Wall’ made the biggest impression – standing a considerable 3m tall by 6m wide and beckoning passers-by with its fun selfie props and flower pot edging. What eventuated was a clear indication that the client was dedicated to new and socially-based method of communication, which delivered a pleasing increase in usage of the official hashtag and purely online ‘Daffodil Dedications’.

The ‘Message Wall’ greeted visitors at the busiest end of Federation Square. With its heart-felt greetings and reflections from those who have been touched by cancer, it immediately created a personal connection that drove engagement and inspired reflection. The popularity of the ‘Message Wall’ was beyond expectation and provided the client with ideas to explore for future iterations of Daffodil Day.

Sitting directly in line-of-sight to the masses passing through the activation space was the ‘Growing Wall’ – another interactive experience – however this time the magic developed over the four days of the campaign as visitors continued to attach a fresh daffodil to the latticing. The ‘Growing Wall’ provided visitors with something to be involved with immediately and personally, as well as for the duration of the activation, even as an observer. It tapped into the Cancer Councils philosophies around unity and sharing in the fight against cancer, and for this reason was one of the most talked about elements of the activation.

As an experiential agency, we understand that activation often needs to meet more than just one objective and speak to more than just one audience. Whilst the interactive ‘Walls’ at this year’s Daffodil Day activation at Federation Square attracted a new audience via personalised content, there remained a solid base of people who wanted to show their support, as they always have done, by simply making a donation or purchasing a piece of branded merchandise. Critical to this objective was making the entire space function effectively for the different audiences and yet provide moments of interaction between hash-taggers, traditional supporters and Daffodil Day volunteers. By understanding traffic flows, site lines and optimal adjacencies, our event designer created a space that delivered a positive and memorable experience for all stakeholders.

Event Produced by Alive Engage in association with Alive Events Agency.