Special Feature - Evolution PR

Special Feature In any event…

Over the past couple of years, in-person events, from pop-up shops and launch parties to festival appearances and organised play, have made a major comeback. Offering an unrivalled way to connect with consumers and drive engagement, more and more toy companies are setting aside marketing budget for their own activations – but there are many factors to take into account in order to maximise spend. Here, Michele and Ellie Bates, owner/directors at Evolution PR, offer their take on the sector, look at some case studies and shares their expert advice on how to get events right.

Michele Bates: Post-covid, during which there was a total hiatus on events, in-person activations have returned with a vengeance – to the point where you could almost call 2024 The Year of the Event.

There are myriad reasons why toy companies would (and should) consider holding an event to launch or showcase a product range. That said, there are fundamental questions that need to be asked and answered before embarking down that road.

• What do you want to achieve?

• Why are you holding an event to do it?

• Where does this activity sit within your marketing budget?

• What’s the likelihood of you realising a return on your investment?

Any event has to wash its face and the days of the one-day press launch are therefore limited. When you weigh up cost versus ROI, most companies need to find ways to reach the end consumer that transcend a single activation.

Pop-up stores, for example, give companies the opportunity to hold a one-day press event, then remain open to consumers for several days/weeks afterwards so people can visit, shop and create their own social media content. They’re also great for garnering real-time, real-world feedback from consumers. Depending on the venue, pop-ups are one of the most financially viable launch options and you’ll usually have plenty of locations to choose from in your target area. There’s a lot more time to prepare the venue and get everything ready using your own team, which mitigates the need to hire specialist contractors to rig and de-rig in a matter of hours on the day (often at great expense).

Ellie Bates: Events that serve up a captive consumer audience and high footfall are also well worth a look. Family-friendly festivals such as Gloworm allow brands to place their products in front of people who are there specifically to have fun with their children. These people are highly receptive to engaging with toy and game brands as part of a positive and happy experience. In a shopping centre, by comparison, your consumer may not be there for fun with the kids; they may be in a rush, trying to find new boots for their daughter’s school football tournament. So, on the face of it, while the footfall in a shopping centre might be high, the mindset of the consumers there might not align with your event goals.

Our advice is also to ensure that as part of your planning, give some thought to whether your event lends itself to content creation. If you can, hire a videographer and get permission to produce on-camera, scripted or unscripted content for dissemination where you see fit. At pop-ups, influencers can be booked to arrive at staggered times, giving your team extra time with them and ensuring they can create their own content without feeling rushed or that they’re competing with others. Influencers don’t always need to be paid to attend, and they always have the option to turn down an appearance if they feel a brand doesn’t resonate with them or their audience. It’s advisable to start off by searching for influencers whose content and communication style will complement the range being advertised. Check their feeds and ask if content based on your brand will fit in well - the integrity of your brand is paramount.

MB: Of course, whatever route you choose to go down, make sure your event investment complements, rather than cannibalises, your campaign spend for the whole year - don’t put all your eggs in one basket by pouring everything into one event. If your marketing budget is very limited, it might be prudent not to hold an event at all. There’s a real balancing act when it comes to creating an event as cost effectively as possible without it looking cheap, and sometimes spend is better off elsewhere. There will always be other years in which you can revisit events, when budget allows.

Here, Ellie and Michele share a selection of some of the events that Evolution PR has helped its clients host this year, demonstrating the variety companies can consider:

• March – MegaCon (Character Options and Simba Smoby Toys UK/Jada)

MegaCon and Comic Con tend to be quite Kidult focused events with high footfall. They’re a great opportunity to get your product in front of the type of consumer that may not see it in an ordinary high street toy store or gift shop. In March, we took Character Options’ LankyBox, Aphmau and Moriah Elizabeth collectible brands to MegaCon, which for many would have been the first time they'd seen these types of kawaii toy brands and Moriah Elizabeth toys in person.

Jada, from Simba Smoby, is no stranger to this event either and this, alongside Comic Con, has become a regular event in the company’s calendar.

• May – London Comic Con (Just Play)

In line with US activations, we took Just Play’s Disney Doorables to Comic Con. The stand was constantly packed, and all the products sold out. We ran a spin the wheel competition during the show, giving visitors the chance to win toys and other fun prizes. This created some real theatre; passers-by were stopping and watching people spin the wheel, and then joining the queue for a go themselves. We saw lots of people filming the game too, which generated some great organic social media coverage. This was so successful we will be repeated the activation in October.

• August - Cotton Candykins three-day pop-up experience (Basic Fun!)

This was one of three pop-up shop gallery events we held this year. For this event, we took over J/M Gallery on Portabello Road, creating a fantasy, candy-themed store complete with a candyfloss maker, candyfloss tree photo point and a Cotton Candykins alley of fairground games such as spin the wheel, hook a flamingo and hoopla. The pop-up kicked off with a huge influencer UGC drive for the brand with a guest list of over 200 in the first two days, then stayed open for the following two days to welcome huge numbers of consumers.

Other pop-ups were held for Smooshzees (Character Options) and Decora Girls (John Adams), all of which benefitted from great influencer and consumer support.

• August – Gloworm Festival (Simba Smoby Toys UK and Magicbox)

The Smoby Play Zone returned to this festival for the third year this year, inviting families and kids to experience its playhouses, slides and AquaPlay sets. It was enormous fun and provided an opportunity for festivalgoers to really let their hair down and discover all the benefits of Simba Smoby’s leading outdoor toy brands. For many parents, Gloworm is their first experience of AquaPlay, so this year we also gave them the option to buy and take away their own toys.

A dedicated SuperThings area was also created at Gloworm 2024 for Magicbox. Alongside blind bag sampling, each visitor received a SuperThings Legends comic book and had the opportunity to meet and greet costume character Neon Blast. More than 10,000 samples were given out to kids over the two-day event. This is a great way to spark a love of a new range and kickstart new collections.

• September – Disney Doorables Adoorbs Disney Store Private Event (Just Play)

This was a closed event, during which we invited influencers to create their own content during a curated Disney Store ‘shopping’ experience for the brand-new Adoorbs range. As they made their way round the store, which provided plenty of brilliant photo opportunities, they could fill their Adoorbs shopping bag with gifts to take home.

• October – Ghosts and Fireworks Simbrix event at Eureka! Children’s Museum (Character Options)

Taking place over October half term, visitors to the museum were greeted by an impressive Simbrix backdrop and were able to take part in hands-on crafting workshops, during which they created their own seasonally-themed Simbrix fireworks display or ghost figure. This location, at this time of year, naturally experiences high footfall and we also invited a selection of influencers to come and create their own content.

MB: As someone who is very involved in events, my best advice is that each event must be right for the brand and budget. Don’t make the mistake of blowing your money on a type of marketing that isn’t going to work for you, just because another company is doing so.

EB: Being very selective (and also inventive ) when it comes to events avoids the risk of consumer and/or influencer fatigue. Especially on weekends, there can be events that clash, and there are only so many people can attend (and only so many weekends in a month). We all want events to offer something tangible and exciting, that feels new and engaging and creates memories for years to come. If there are too many – if events become par for the course with every new launch – they’ll become just more background noise in what is already a fragmented and complex marketing landscape. We might be an events agency, but we will steer companies away from them if we think that’s best.

That said, we’re proud of our track record in staging successful events and helping our clients’ brands reach consumers in new ways. We’re a behind the scenes partner for events, using our expertise, team and inhouse designers and equipment to help toy companies set up and run activations that offer great value to consumers and clients alike. In the years to come, we want to see events continue to run thoughtfully, where it makes sense, and when ROI is assured.

That’s our desired version of events.