Hispanic Event Marketing - Finding the best Hispanic events

How to find the best Hispanic Events

Before you begin searching for events find out the market you are targeting, the budget available, and deadlines. Once you have chosen a city, find out if there is a specific date the event(s) need to be executed. It is also important for you to know the budget available for Hispanic Event Marketing. After the budget is assigned, find out how long do you have until you spend the complete budget. If you have a year available to spend your budget, there will be plenty of events to pick from. If your budget and time are both limited then it will be harder to find a great event, but not impossible.

Once you have assigned a city, begin by getting a list of local Hispanic radio and TV stations. Call those stations and find a sales representative that is willing to give you a list of events for their station. Stations create their own events and join other events as well. Sometimes stations have the ability to bring outside brands as co-sponsors into events they are joining. Stations will offer a list of events for the year, making it easier for you to pick.

Other ways to find great Hispanic events is through the Internet. Place a web search for events in the city of your choice. In your search, you will probably find the large events. Some websites give you a list of events available for the year. The lists of events found on these websites usually include brief information on the event, but enough to motivate you to contact the event organizers. Information such as event name, event location, number of people attending, event features, organizers contact information and event website is what you will find in these sites. Event sites give you some information, but never price. Your next step will be to contact the event organizers, so that they can send you a list of participation possibilities and prices.

When reviewing event proposals take into consideration who is the event organizers, what kind of event is it, attendance, admission fee, media partners, list of sponsors and if the event has been done previous years. Choose events wisely and consider what kind of exposure the brand you are promoting needs.

Hispanic Event Marketing - Large Events

Hispanic Event Marketing – Larger Events

One of the significant differences between a small event and a large event is the number of people attending the event. If we really want to see BIG Hispanic festivals, lets look at Fiesta Broadway and Calle Ocho. According to (www.fiestabroadway.la) Fiesta Broadway’s official website, they are the largest Cinco de Mayo celebration in the world, the largest Hispanic event in the largest Hispanic market and during their festival in Los Angeles, CA they open doors to about 500,000 people. 36 sq. blocks of Downtown Los Angeles is used for this festival. According to (www.carnavalmiami.com/calle8) the official website for the Calle Ocho Festival, they open 23 blocks from 4^th Avenue to 27^th Avenue on S.W. 8 Street. They are considered the largest party in the Hispanic Market and during their festival in Little Havana (Miami), FL they expect about 1 million people from all over the world to attend this event. Wouldn’t you want your brand in the hands of approximately 500,000 to 1,000,000 people attending these events?

Thousands and thousands of Hispanics are willing to attend these events rain or shine. These future consumers might be at the event to see their favorite singer perform, to eat good food, to take a walk or even to see the crowds. They never considered that at the end of the day, they would find themselves standing in a line waiting to get samples from a booth. Every brand has an opportunity to get exposure one-way or another in large Hispanic events.

There are different kinds of sponsorship packages available in large events such as: super sites, stages, pavilions and booths. The participation level that is picked depends on the budget the brand might have available. Each sponsorship level is priced differently. Remember large events that have a high attendance, more media exposure and are more popular will require a higher participation fee. What is your Hispanic Event Marketing budget?

To determine your brands participation level here are a few points. Bigger companies with a higher Hispanic Event Marketing budget will opt to do a super site, a stage or a pavilion. For the most part media groups tend to like stages and super sites, it is easy for them to find artist that can perform on their stage. Logos, banners and other branding can be placed on stage to promote the brands. Brand mentions is another incentives a brand can receive on stage. Companies with multi-brands and large equipments choose pavilions. Some pavilions tend to have large inflatable, branded decoration, a character greeting consumers and sampling. These pavilions usually give consumers a branded bag at the entrance and allow them to make line as they receive small samples of each brand. Brands with large equipment such as vehicles might choose to have a pavilion during an event. Vehicle companies choose pavilions because consumers can be close to and even get into the car. On the other hand, brands with a low Hispanic Event Marketing budget will choose to participate with only a 10x10 or 10x20 booth. Some exposure is better than nothing. Being in a booth can be beneficial; there are fun things that can be done to attract consumers. For Example, you can play a game such as wheel of fortune and have the consumers win prizes. In the booth, you can sample product, give out premiums or flyers and even have the consumers enter a raffle. Being creative to attract consumers is the key to a successful brand exposure in an event booth.

Consider that participating in both a small-scale event and in a large event is a good idea. Both types of participation could benefit your brand. Always think of your budget when deciding about your options. Consider that there will be additional cost incurred for the execution of the events.

Hispanic Event Marketing - Small Events

Small Hispanic Events

Why not let a brand get community exposure through local Hispanic events? Event Marketing is a great opportunity for brands to be presented to the Hispanic consumers. It is not the same to see a product on TV or on a newspaper than to actually have the product in your hand. As a consumer, wouldn’t you like to see, touch, taste, hear and/or smell this new product? Event Marketing allows a product to get that kind of exposure. Radio, newspaper, and TV are all excellent avenues of advertisement, but event marketing cannot be left behind as a mean of advertisement.

Radio stations, TV stations and even agencies are joining event-organizing companies and creating events. These groups understand the importance of event marketing and are creating more and more events. There are many local small and large events such as festivals, concerts, family fairs, and health fairs available in almost every city or town.

Many times radio stations create small local events to promote themselves and other products. Radio stations use their announcers to promote and encourage listeners to attend the upcoming event. Events with 500 to 10,000 people attending could be considered small events. Small events will have a stage and some booths available for brands that would like to promote themselves in a smaller scale. These event organizers will bring many local artists and maybe one well-known artist to perform. The price to participate in these small events is less and more negotiable than the big events.

Between the last weekend of April and first weekend of May, many local radio stations organize Cinco de Mayo celebrations in their hometowns. If your brand is targeting

Hispanics (specifically Mexicans), this is the kind of event to target. Most of the times, small event organizers are willing to accommodate a small budget, in contrast to the bigger events that have a set participation fee. Proposals sent from radio stations are usually very attractive with many options to pick from. Platinum, Gold, Silver and even Bronze could be some of the options. Each option in the proposal includes a list of added benefits the brand will receive such as: 10x10 booth, table, electricity if needed, live mentions during the event, a number of radio spots, and logo inclusion in (flyers, posters, TV spots and/or newspaper ads.) Every proposal could be modified to fit the budget of each brand. Proposals sent by the small event organizers can range from as low as $500 to as high as $20,000. Price depends on the exposure the brand would like. Keep in mind that this price will not include the cost of event execution or even the cost of production in case you have to produce radio spots or ads.

Hispanic Event Marketing Part 1: Preparation to participate in a Hispanic Event

Preparations to participate in a Hispanic Event

Once you choose a Hispanic event to participate in, the correct preparation is essential. Before you begin to organize the execution of the event, make sure that there is a formal proposal approved by both the event organizer and the brand(s) being promoted. Proposals from the event organizer should include everything offered in the package being purchased. For example, if for the execution of the event you need a tent, two tables, four chairs and electricity and the event organizer promised to provide it, the written proposal should include all of these items. Never assume the event organizer will give you anything, always have confirmation in a written format. Last minute surprises when executing an event can become frustrating and can ruin a perfect opportunity to showcase a brand.

Organizing the execution of the event is very important. An event has many small details that are important for a successful execution. Make sure the person representing the brand or Brand Manager is involved. Inform them of the ideas you have to make this marketing event creative, fun, and ready to target the Hispanic consumers. For the most part, the Brand Manager will agree with the ideas that are bound to call the attention of the targeted consumers. Getting the Brand Manager involved is important, since they approve the budget.

Begin by preparing a list of materials needed. If all materials needed are available, the event will be executed smoothly. Once there is confirmation that the materials are available and accessible, prepare an orientation as a guide to the event executing team. The orientation should include the following:

· Location of the event, organization time and execution time of the event

· Personnel and duties

· Preparation before the event

· Execution the day of the event

· Inventory and conclusion

Hispanic Event Marketing Part 2: Orientation - Introduction

Orientation – Introduction

As mentioned before, the orientation should be a guide to the Hispanic Event Marketing Brand Ambassadors executing the event. Begin by introducing the event by name and city. Let the event execution team know the date and time of the event. Include Location (provide a physical address if available.) Under location, specify booth set up location. Every event organizer assigns a number per booth in both outdoor and indoor events. Make sure you receive a map of the venue and confirm your booth number and location. In case of an emergency, the team should have the organizers phone number and contact information. Give your execution team an estimated number of people that will attend. They might be expecting an event with 1,000 people and once the event starts, they noticed more than 100,000 people attending. Have the team prepared by selecting the right amount of brand Ambassadors for the event. Imagine if you only assign 3 brand ambassadors for a 6-hour outdoor event with approximately 100,000 people in attendance. If the team is not prepared for all this work, the promotion will not be as successful. Include setup and breakdown time in the orientation. In the package received from the organizers, there should be a set of instructions, which includes setup time before the event and breakdown time after the event. Depending on the size of the events, organizers give you at least 4 to 6 hours for setup, if not more. Coordinate the arrival of the setup team according to the difficulty of the preparations. The team might have to setup a tent, tables, chairs, banners, product, giveaways and decoration such as balloon arches. When assigning an arrival time for setup, keep in mind that setting up everything takes a lot of time. Use time wisely, the promotion must start on time.

Example:

Event: Festival Cinco de Mayo, Columbia, South Carolina

Date of Event: May 6, 2007

Location: Carolina Coliseum – 701 Assembly Street (attached find a detailed map of the event)

Booth: # 210

Time of the Event: 12 Noon - 6 PM

Attendance: approximately 20,000 people

Preparation Time:

Sunday, May 6^th between 7:00 AM and 11:00 AM (Festival begins at 12 Noon)

Event Organizer: Mauricio Gonzalez (_ _ _) _ _ _- _ _ _ _

In case of any inconvenience, while setting up the booth please contact Mauricio. After everything is downloaded from the truck, Mauricio will instruct the team where to park.

Breakdown: A the end of the event, after 6:00 PM

Choosing the right personnel for executing an event is very important. Make sure to be very descriptive on the duties each person from the event executing team will have. Begin by including the number of supervisors or coordinators you will need that day. One supervisor should be sufficient for an event. You might want to have two supervisors taking turns throughout the day, in case the event is too long and too crowded. Think about the activities that will be done in your booth. Let’s assume that you will have product sampling, playing a game such as wheel of fortune, giving away premiums, and a raffle. If these are going to be the activities in the booth, then you need at least 4 people not including the supervisor(s). Keep in mind the number of people attending the event reflects the number of workers you might need. You could position 1 or 2 people giving out samples, 1 person coordinating the wheel of fortune game, 1 person keeping order in the lines and the other person can give out premiums. After coordinating what each person will do, use this section of the orientation to coordinate what each person should wear. When deciding on a uniform keep in mind that outside events could get very hot and humid. Try not to have the promoters wear dark colors, since they seem to attract more heat. For Example, if you are promoting a new fruit punch drink, have the promoters wear assorted color t-shirts (red, orange, yellow, lime green) and khaki pants. If there is a branded uniform available such as t-shirts and hats have them wear it. Be specific on what they can and cannot wear.

Hispanic Event Marketing Part 3: Orientation - Inventory and Conclusion

Inventory and Conclusion

As the orientation is being prepared you can find out what materials will be needed for executing the event. Prepare an inventory list with all the materials that will make your brand receive the exposure they are looking for. In the list include item name, significant characteristics and include quantities needed. Decorations, premiums, product and miscellaneous items will be included in the list. If the items on the list are stored in other locations or are being shipped, indicate this on list. There are always small items that do not seem important enough to go on the list. Even small items such as pens, nails, stapler, tape, paper and markers should be included in your inventory.

Inventory

· 1 branded tent

· 1 wheel of fortune

· 3 Racks de display: all flavors

· Decoración:

- Banners: 4 displaying all the flavors

- Balloons: 2 bags of each color (red, green, yellow & orange)

- 4 tableclothes

· 10,000 – 4 oz. transparent disposable cups

· 2 Ice barrels

· 2 Coolers

· 4 large trash cans (to be purchased)

· 1 Helium tank (to be rented)

· t-shirts for event executing team – 2 Red, 2 Orange, 2 Yellow & 2 Green.

· 2 inflatables (each box will include a generator – being shipped from L.A.)

· 8 sand bags

· Raffle box

· Pens/Markers

· Raffle entries

· Premiums

- Balloons

Strawberry 100

Orange 100

Lime 100

Lemon 100

(this are ideal for decorations and to giveaway to kids)

- pens

Red 150

Yellow 150

Orange 150

Green 150

- Plastic Cups 9oz

Red 50

Yellow 50

Orange 50

Green 50

- Key Chains

Red 75

Yellow 75

Orange 75

Green 75

- T-shirts

Red 150

Yellow 150

Orange 150

Green 150

Producto Inventory

Product will be used for displays, for sampling and to giveaway as premiums in the wheel of fortune.

30 cases of Strawberry (2 Ltrs.)

30 cases of Orange (2 Ltrs.)

30 cases of Lime (2 Ltrs.)

30 cases of Lemon (2 Ltrs.)

* Each case contains 8 bottles of 2 liters

Conclude a successful event with a show and tell presentation. The best way to present the event is through photos. The decoration of the booth, the crowds at the event, the fun and creative games can all be viewed through the lens of a camera. Have your event executing team take plenty photos. After the event is executed, prepare a final report for the Brand Manager that will include photos.

Before the promotion - Insurance

Insurance

As a company that hires Brand Ambassadors, it is important to know that commercial Liability Insurance is necessary for your business. As an owner of a business, you need to protect your business as well as your own personal assets. Commercial Liability is a business liability insurance that will protect your business against any financial loss resulting from lawsuits due to injuries caused to others by a fault of the business owner or other employees.

Hispanic Business owners as well as others need to be insured in order to guard their business, home and any other asset that might be affected by a claim. The size of the company and the number of employees does not matter; it is your duty to protect yourself.

Research several Insurance companies for price and reliability. Once you find a trustworthy company, get information from the agent. An agent can help you determine what you need to include in your insurance policy. For example, if you have your employees driving a company vehicle, you might consider an automotive liability. Make sure you are specific about the needs of your company. When doing your policy include the right number of people that work in the company, the kind of work they do and make sure to explain the kind of coverage you are seeking. Your insurance should cover at least one million dollars in case of a claim. Take your time and research insurance companies, but don’t leave your company uninsured.