Mistakes, Missteps and Management

Things do not always go as planned. When organising an opportunity to promote a new event at a University Campus I was responsible for many things and along the way mistakes were made. I selecting a date and time to coincide with maximum student presence on campus by researching other university events and different common free times around Perth I eventually made a booking at a university that I felt would be the best time to campaign and reach out to a desired demographic of students aged 18-24.

However there were complications along the way, changes to what the company proposed to do with the space along with different power supply necessities caused some confusion and constant changes to the event. I chose to focus on some of the basic requirements that would work with or without power, this meant making sure we had enough flyers for the day, branded shirts, staff and sticking logo stickers on hundreds of condoms that were to be handed out on the day.

When the day of the event came, we had several things go wrong from sick promotional staff to absent equipment. Throughout the lead up to the event the constant changes had caused mixed messages and confusion leading to several complications on the day. I was thankful I had made sure to have the basic equipment with me even if it had taken extra time to pick up from the offices the day before.  Whilst attempting to contact set up crew and chase up promised equipment like tables and popcorn machines I managed to co-ordinate the promotional staff and get them suited up in branded shirts and handing out flyers and condoms. I made sure to encourage them to take pictures and videos to be uploaded via the brands snapchat channel as one of our goals for the day was to create content that could be posted across social media in the following weeks.

These challenges taught me the importance of having a clear goal and mission in mind. Making sure all participants know what is to be expected of them and what is going to happen on the day. I learnt a great deal from the experience of attempting to facilitate a confused event and valuable lessons that I will remember when planning and running events in the future.

Another day another valuable experience during my internship.

Ash

Event Planning and Taste Testing

The opportunity to view presentations from various beverage companies as they pitch their products for various events is exciting and very fun. Seeing what new products are coming on the market, how their pair new beverages with different promotions from taste testers to venue decorations and signage or social media promotion codes is very interesting as different markets will respond to different methods or communication and encouragement.

Whilst a singular representative may pitch for several drinks for a singular venue or event the different beverages will all come with different promotion angles.  Beverages that need to replace a common standard of a bar will often be provided in greater numbers so many can be given away as samples on popular nights this method is particularly popular with competition for the standard light beer in most bars which is cascade premium light. By offering samples of products patrons are encouraged to try something new and to not simply name the first light beer or non-full strength option they think of if this is their preference or they are driving.

Beverages targeted at a younger market are often promoted through social media with competitions or passwords posted on social media that can then be entered in house once a drink is purchased or an image with the new beverage is posted and tagged with the suitable hashtag. These images then spread awareness of new drinks and act as promotional images for a product. The upside of this kind of promotion is that friends of entrants will see images and fee like the product recommendation is coming from a reliable and trusted source.

Company representatives present sales histories and market research based off of various taste tests and promotions in other markets in order to sway businesses into featuring new drinks at bars and events. The best aspect of these presentations is often the taste-testing portion in which small samples of new drinks are provided for potential clientele to experience and judge on appropriateness for their venue or event.

Ash

My love for organised chaos.

Coming in to the last week of my internship at Mills Wilson, I have had the chance to take part in a lot different activities and have learnt so many tips and tricks about PR and the industry in general. Looking back on my time, it was hard to choose a favourite aspect of my experience to write about.  

I enjoyed developing my writing skills and having the opportunity to write for different clients. I enjoyed seeing all the theory I had learnt through Uni be put in to practice. I enjoyed seeing a ‘real life’ consultancy operating in all its glory. 

There was however, one PR activity that interested me the most – event planning.  

I have always loved organising – everything – and event planning is all about organising. Perhaps I would feel a little differently if I wasn’t just helping out on the sidelines as everyone tells me it is one of the more stressful aspects of PR, but it really appealed to me. 

During the time I have spent at Mills Wilson, they have been organising a large event for one of their major clients. 

The event is to celebrate the opening of a new shopping precinct. It will be a community event that will be held in the shopping precinct just a few weeks after the new stores open their doors to the public for the first time. The event will have live entertainment, rock climbing, tack-less train, cooking demonstrations from Anna Gare (Junior Masterchef Judge), face painting, balloon twisting, bouncy castles, stalls and more. 

The event is expected to attract around 2000 people, so it has taken a lot of work and organising in order to make happen. Watching the amount of effort and planning that goes in to an event like this made me appreciate every event I had ever been to. 

There are so many aspects that I had never considered before – letters to residents,  ensuring suppliers have all necessary information and insurance, council guidelines,  informing emergency services, traffic management and the list goes on! You have to think about every little possibility and actively account for it.

I had the opportunity to play a part in the organising of the event by drafting media material to promote the event, constructing supplier files, drafting letters to residents and emergency services, updating supplier databases, and more. 

All the aspects that go in to event planning and all the things that must be considered really is enough to send your head spinning - but for some insane reason, I loved it. 

Overall, my time at Mills Wilson has been more beneficial than I had ever thought. In the beginning I wasn’t sure what I would get out of the experience but I have definitely taken away some valuable skills and advice that I will carry with me in the future. It has given me a clearer view of where I want to go with my career after Uni and I know that consultancy is definitely on that list!