Digital Promotion

• Events enrich Always On campaigns, they do not define them
• Events are a good reason to increase investment in Always On campaigns (create and launch new campaigns and/or increase ad spend)
• Events are lead generation campaigns
• Events are active elements of brand awareness and brand loyalty campaigns
• Events are PR tools
• Events are sales prospecting tools
• Events are governed by data privacy regulations, like the GDPR

• We do not promote events because events promote themselves
• We do not add event and booth locations to existing ads because we do not water down our value proposition with event information
• We do not limit campaigns to event dates because our audience is always on
• We do not exhaust all our resources on events because we have important work to do using other channels and tools throughout the year

Group critical events are a limited selection of events that are uniquely aligned with Group initiatives. They are large scale events which reach multiple segments and industries and tend to attract top-level attention from business, investment, government and PR stakeholders. 

• Team: The Group Communications Brand team will take the lead on organization and promotion, with a team of B2B Marcom specialists providing support
• Primary message 1: Group strategy
• Primary message 2: Our strategic solutions for the market(s)

This is the primary category for events. They are selected by the Market and B2B Marcom team during budget planning based on the marketing strategy, communication plan and available budget. 

• Team: The B2B Marcom specialist for the market will organize and promote the event
• Primary message: Our strategic solutions for the market

These are tactical events which are outside the scope of the B2B Marcom communication plan but are still defined as essential by the business. 

• Team: The GBU business team will organize and promote the event
• Primary message: Our brands and chemistry solutions active in the market

Promotion needs to be planned according to specific strategic needs and in line with clear objectives. Specifically, the campaign manager can choose to run digital promotion activities with a limited scope (countries and target audience). It is important to attach each promotion activity to the corresponding mother campaign (see Platforms for SFDC and Pardot set up).  In addition, it is important to take into account whether the GBU(s) concerned are new to the event or not well-renowned (at least in terms of attendance) for generating prospects and leads.

Each event may combine specific elements corresponding with the multi-channel approach adopted. This document aims to provide a common approach that will enable us to leverage the potential of digital, not only to support the promotion of events but to ensure that they also contribute to lead generation within the campaign they are part of.

Consider the event as part of the main multi-channel promotion campaign. This implies that the messaging should be in line with that of the main promotion campaign and that a lead tracking system should be included in the SFDC campaign structure. Depending on the importance of the event, you could consider using the event itself for specific product launches or presentations (e.g. live presentations, live webinars, etc.). In this case, the usage of social media for local/regional paid promotion, together with an organic social media content calendar, can help increase interest and attention for live event(s).

Designing a complete digital promotion campaign involves content creation and alignment of the platforms that we are considering using (from social media, to advertising and CRM). Each promotion campaign has to be considered as a specific project and needs to involve the web and digital team - who must be advised in advance - in order to schedule realistic and feasible deadlines.

The lead tracking function needs to be managed by SFDC. This implies that all support tools used (webpage forms, fast track forms, mass upload, always on campaigns) have to converge within a specific campaign created in SFDC. Please note that we do not track customers and opportunities associated with campaigns (i.e. meetings with customers are not counted in a campaign).

Collect numbers relating to visitors, total leads and quality leads. These numbers will be used to calculate the ROI of the event itself and its contribution to the main campaign.

All promotion, updates and information shared by mass mailers needs to be compliant with the GDPR. This is valid at all levels, from a thank you email sent after an event to a webinar promotion or an update on upcoming events.