'Greater China Roadshow'
The Greater China Roadshow was hosted by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) in partnership with the China Britain Business Council (CBBC), Business Link and East of England International. The roadshow aimed to help SMEs conduct business in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The campaign sought to attract a minimum of 50 bookings for the event and had only 40 working days to do so over a period that spanned Christmas and the New Year.
Bearing in mind the limited budget, timescale and target audience, Itineris decided that branded personalised emails would be the most effective medium. UKTI supplied the email addresses of contacts who had opted-in to discovering more about establishing international connections. An event microsite was created so that contacts could indicate their wish to attend and select seminars. Visitors responding to personalised email campaigns had their details pre-filled on the registration forms, while casual visitors were still able to complete a blank form. Only a certain number of people could attend each seminar depending on the room size and the site managed the restrictions automatically.
When the attendance limit was reached, a message appeared to that effect on the seminar-listing page and the visitor was invited to select another seminar. A teaser email to establish interest was followed by two further emails inviting registration. UKTI then decided to increase numbers so a longer email was sent to all those on the original list who had not registered for further information. The last email of the campaign gave the option of downloading the speakers’ presentations in return for completing a short questionnaire about the event. While the event was still fresh in people’s minds, the microsite was amended to capture the contact information of those who might be interested in similar events in the future.
Chris Cotton, manager at CBBC, says, “We were impressed at the speed, efficiency and responsiveness with which Itineris addressed any issues relating to the preevent marketing and booking administration for the event.” Permission based email marketing combined with a branded online booking microsite enabled results to be measured in realtime. The campaign was evolved accordingly and over 126 people booked for the event, more than doubling the target, despite the short timescale and limited budget.