Brand activation is the process of interacting with customers through various touchpoints to influence their purchase decision in favor of a specific brand. It deals with emotions and experiences through interactive engagement to make the brand more human. As the most human aspect of promotional marketing, brand activation is one of the most effective marketing tools. It focuses on creating unique and desirable human experiences for customers beyond just promoting product benefits. If one enjoys selling and guaranteeing memorable customer experiences, then brand activation is a suitable career path in the marketing field.

1. What is Brand Activation and why will I consider it for my career?
A presentation to De La Salle University - Manila

2. Why choose Brand Activation
as a career path?
1. Why choose marketing?
The opportunity to change people for the better through
commerce. Look at Steve Jobs and Apple.
2. Why choose Brand Activation?
The most human aspect of the promotional mix:
• deals with emotions and experiences
• open to interaction (vs. top-down), makes the brand human
• one of the most effective marketing tools

3. “Steve Jobs does not sell computers; he sells an experience. The same holds
true for his presentations that are meant to inform, educate, and entertain.
An Apple presentation has all the elements of a great theatrical production—a
great script, heroes and villains, stage props, breathtaking visuals, and one
moment that makes the price of admission well worth it.”
Carmine Gallo
Uncovering Steve Jobs' Presentation Secrets

4. Why choose Brand Activation
as a career path?
Because if you like selling, you don’t only need to
promise a product benefit. You also have to guarantee
and deliver a unique desirable human experience. And
experience is the realm of Brand Activation in the
Marketing Mix.

5. Event Marketing?
Brand Activation?
Event Management?

6. Many people call Brand Activations as “Events” while thinking of the
following different activities:
1. Event Marketing 2. Event-driven Marketing 3. Engagement Marketing
The conduct of The use of events as the Also called “Event
marketing to promote an primary promotional Marketing, is a marketing
event, where the event tool to support the strategy that directly
itself is the business- marketing of a product engages consumers and
generator. encourages participation
in the evolution of a
brand.
Ex. Promoting a concert Ex. Tobacco Ex. FB Hackathon
companies using
events to promote
their brands
The only universally used term is Brand Activation used by advertising
agencies all over the world.

7. Definition
According to OgilvyAction, Brand Activation is the process of interacting
with the customer through different touchpoints to shape or aid his/her
purchase decision favorable to a specific brand. They call this interaction
as the creation of purchase behavior.

8. Definition
Momentum WW: Brand Activation is the creation of ideas and brand
engagement with consumers through the seamless interplay of
experiences in both the physical and the digital space, which in so
doing, inspire action and loyalty.

9. Roles by Impact
Alice Conway, CSEP, Stratford University
International Special Events Society
Sociological Economical
• Touch roots of society • Support marketing strategies
• Trends provide window on humanity • Bolster Sales
• Impact cultural trends • Increase travel and tourism
• Speed evolvement of ideas • Create trends
• Increase socialization of humans • Impact regional growth
• Shape perceptions
• Finance growth
Event
Impacts
Political Educational
• Change perceptions • Broaden scope of understanding
• Provide opportunity to compare • Emotionally educate
• Showcase differences • Inspire further exploration
• Lend support to causes • Reflect different perspectives
• Offer view of different perspectives • Encourage creativity
• Offer hope of change

10. Brand Activation
My definition based on a decade of study and practice
Brand Activations is a part of the IMC mix that creates
interaction and live experiences between the Brand and
its customers, in the delivery of a marketing
strategy, which leads to business results.
Event Management on the other hand is the application
of Project Management throughout the Event
Management Process.

11. Briefing
Why
Who (demog and psych)
When
Where
What’s the budget
What are the KPIs
Evaluation
Review KPIs Design
Review Production Marketing Challenge
Event Marketing Message
Management
Process
Planning
Choosing your suppliers
Coordination Setting your timetable
Creating your detailed budget
Status meetings
Getting of permits
Pre-production
Emergency preparation
Production of materials

12. When to use Brand Activations?
When you want Customer Engagement and when you’re open to
interact with your customer, to achieve any of the following :
a. Communicate and demonstrate a brand proposition to start
trial or continue loyalty
b. Induce trial
c. Aid in direct purchase
d. Generation leads
e. Build/Strengthen affinity
f. Create Digital Content

13. Roles
Brand Proposition Communication and Proposition
To communicate a specific feature of a
brand or to demonstrate a claim, many
brands create experiences that highlight
this specific feature.
For example, when Stolichnaya Vodka
was being introduced in the local
market versus popular Absolut, it
dressed up bars in Russian-inspired
décor to drive its authentic Russian
heritage proposition.

14. Roles
Brand Proposition Communication and Proposition
Pixlink Bloggers and Press Launch
Objective:
Introduce Pixlink to bloggers and to the press and
highlight it’s being a Mobile 2.0 product, with
indirect comparison to Smart’s My Sandbox.
Challenge:
Highlight the collaborative and user-generation
features of Pixlink to drive 2.0 positioning.
Activation Idea:
Digital photo installation at the Manila
Contemporary Art Gallery with lunch at the Cibo
Commissary.
The launch is about celebrating the amateur web
photo uploader who, in his own
perspective, captures images of beauty – just as in

16. Roles
Brand Proposition Communication and Proposition
Modu Bloggers and Press Launch
Objective:
Launch Modu Phone and highlight its
interchangeable skins.
Challenge:
The proposition of Modu Phone lies in its
interchangeable skins. Launch should then
highlight the skins rather than the basic
features of the phone.
Activation Idea:
Positioning Modu as a Lifestyle phone, the
launch was conceptualized as an event
worthy of a lifestyle column / blog coverage.
A private trunk show was held at Paul Smith
for the bloggers and press after having
dinner at posh Felix restaurant.

18. Roles
Brand Proposition Communication and Proposition
There are many tools that brands use to demonstrate a
brand proposition on ground. Most used are:
1. Theatrics
2. Venue dress-up
3. Themed events
4. Sports sponsorship (demonstration of speed)
5. Concert sponsorships
6. Event sponsorships

19. Roles
Inducing Trial
One of the most common Brand
Activation executions in the Philippines
is Product Trial or Product Testing.
The most common is wet sampling in
markets or supermarkets where
promodisers give out bite-sized pieces
of food items or small portions of
beverages for customers to taste.
However, some resort to more creative
ways to induce trial. For
example, Globe Prepaid gave away free
boat tickets to subscribers going to
Boracay when they try a free service on
their phones.

20. Roles
Aiding Direct Purchase
Some brands require more hardworking
Activations that directly generate sales.
This kind of activations is executed to
augment the Sales team’s mainstream
selling activities.
In the same activations, Globe
Prepaid, gave away beach-relevant
freebies such as free massage, fans or
frisbees to its subscribers who register
to their latest promos.

21. Roles
Generating leads
For more upscale products such as
cars, real estate, postpaid phone plans
and bank products, brands create free
events where prospective customers
are invited.
SMDC for example created triathlon
event in its Pico de Loro beach enclave
to scour for prospective condominium
buyers. The event, while catering to the
interest of its market, also highlighted
the development’s key benefits relevant
to the buyers.

22. Roles
Building or Strengthening affinity
For brands that are closely identified with a
certain attitude or lifestyle, they create or
sponsor events that strengthen the affinity
of their brand with these mindsets and
images.
Other brands on the other hand would
sponsor or create events to tie their brand
to the mindset of the event. Sponsorship
of a surfing event, for example, of non-
surfing brand brings the brand to the
imagery of excitement surfing brings to
mind.
However, for Billabong, surfing events
solidify its hold on the sport.

23. Roles
Digital Content
The latest development of Brand
Activations in the Philippines is the
emergence of on-ground events and
activities to become content online, meant
to be shared on social networks, to
propagate a brand message.
In this example, food retailer Jollibee, used
a flash mob execution at the SM Mall of
Asia to introduce its new YumBurger
variant. Digital sharing amplifies the brand
experience to replicate the effect of the
activation from on-ground to online.

24. When to use Brand Activations
Brand Activations Results
• Promotion • Trial • Sales
• Demonstration • Leads • Return Sales
• Sampling • Affinity
• Themed events • Loyalty
• Sponsorships

25. Why is there demand for
experiential marketing?
Because of a change in attitude:
On the consumers’ end
On the marketer’s end

27. Why is there demand for
experiential marketing?
Because TV has become lip service.
To promise a benefit, customers have to experience it.
Paid Advertisement Brand Activation
• Top-Down Communication • Direct Communication
• Story-telling in 30s • Story-telling w/ full sensorial
experience
• More efficient for reach and
frequency • Immediate lead to trial and purchase
• Wide geographical scope • Specific geo-cultural experience

28. Are Events just a passing trend?
The world is shaped by events.
As long as experiences create powerful
memories that shape mindsets, Brand
Activations will always retain its role and
relevance in the marketing mix.

29. SI SO MO
“In a world of increasing media fragmentation, it is becoming harder
for brands to make emotional connections with people. They need to
bust through with sisomo: sight, sound, and motion. Through our
screens: on our mobiles, on our computers, in our televisions, and
over the streets, we connect with one another, have relationships,
and fall in love: with brands and with each other. To connect with
consumers in the 21st Century, Lovemarks (brands) must embrace this
new reality, and become a part of the sisomo world.”
Kevin Roberts, Worldwide CEO
Saatchi & Saatchi

30. The Future
The Future of Brand Activations
My take on Brand Activations’ evolution
Brand Activations will
1. Always be connected online for sharing of
experiences
2. Become more intimate
3. Become more direct
4. Become more human
Is dictated by attitudinal changes we go through as a
society.

31. More connected
Events will always be connected online via social media, empowered
by mobile internet or WiFied fixed lines.

32. More intimate
Not replacing big venue, big crowd events, but more intimate events
will become common as brands converse more with consumers (e.g.
Starbucks Dialogues, Globe Labs innovators forum).

33. More direct
Expect continuous on-ground activation from brands, but with better
consumer experience through UX.

34. More human
Events will be extension of the digital space. And vice versa, are
increasingly becoming a platform for digital content (e.g. TED Talks).

35. Geo-political / Socio-cultural
Impacts and Considerations
Sociological Economical
• Touch roots of society • Support marketing strategies
• Trends provide window on humanity • Bolster Sales
• Impact cultural trends • Increase travel and tourism
• Speed evolvement of ideas • Create trends
• Increase socialization of humans • Impact regional growth
Religious Differences • Shape perceptions
• Finance growth
Social Norms
Etiquette Event
Impacts
Political Educational
• Change perceptions • Broaden scope of understanding
• Provide opportunity to compare • Emotionally educate
• Showcase differences • Inspire further exploration
• Lend support to causes • Reflect different perspectives
• Offer view of different perspectives • Encourage creativity
Political Alliances • Offer hope of change Language Choice
Security Preparation Perspectives

36. Geo-political / Socio-cultural
Impacts and Considerations
Other impacts
• Logistics and time
• Logistics and cost
• Permits

37. Event Evaluation
1. Review Results
• Business objectives
• Foot Traffic
• Engagement KPIs
• Amplification
2. Bash results vs. KPI’s
3. Learning and recommendations

38. Wanted: Events Manager
Left Brain Right Brain
• Budget management • Imaginative
• Time management • People skills
• Risk calculation • Forward thinking
• Marketing strategy • Communications
• Culturally-aware
Values
• Openness
Bonus
• Fairness
• Literary skills
• Discipline
• Visual communication
• Decision-making
• Patience

39. Are you sure?
Do you really want to become an Activations person?
Being an Brand Activations Manager means you work, and work
late, while others celebrate, get entertained, have fun, at your
event. It means being on top of and being responsible for
everything that’s happening on-ground. It means doing the menial
work nobody can’t or won’t do.
Also means being crazy
And having fun while working.

40. Brand
Activations
Manager
If you want to create
experiences that are
remembered, whether for
commercial or social
purposes, Brand Activations
might just be for you.

41. Thank you.