PR Special Events Project

Setta Aikaterini

ID: 130873

CN 3423

Word Count: 2.984

Dr. Hristodoulakis Ilias

Fall Semester, 2014

“Darius Carpets – Winter Exhibition 2014”

Table of Contents

Situation Analysis pages 1-2

Main Body pages 3-9

Evaluation page 10

References page 11

Situation Analysis

My client, the carpet company “Darius Carpets”, which is located at Kifissias,

near President Hotel, has as a main philosophy to have the finest quality of Persian

carpets. The owner of the store, Persian himself, knows everything about the carpet

market and wants to provide his customers with carpets of the highest quality. He

was, also, the first to bring official Persian carpets in Greece and he still holds on to

the 80% of the imports. As a company, their main goal is to import and sell classic

carpet pieces, which may already exist for about a hundred years, but remain in a

perfect condition and can decorate any home or interior place by offering a

diachronic vibe.

Τhe company organizes every year a Winter Carpet Collection in November.

This year I am the one organizing this event and what my client wants is to let his

customers know that he is back in business again after the summer and off course to

present the new carpets. More specifically, the store stays open all year with the

exception that in the summer months it is only used for maintenance reasons, as

customers can leave their carpets in order to be cleaned and stored until fall time.

Therefore, November is the best time for the company to drag once again the

attention and present to their loyal customers the new products and off course meet

up in order to celebrate the whole Persian culture concept, which in fact is the most

important aspect of the event.

Moving on to some more details, the event is going to take place on 29 th of

November and it is entitled as: “Darius Carpets – Winter Exhibition 2014”. Firstly, as

far as the target group is concerned, my client is interested to maintain his basic and

loyal customers and if it is possible to attract some potential new clients as well.

However, in that case it is wise to underline the fact that the specific carpet industry

is an expensive one and knowing about the economic crisis, it is difficult to have high

expectations. Also, my client works closely with the Persian embassy and the National

Organization of Promoting Persian Carpets in Greece, so he is also targeting some

people of high importance, that are invited to support the whole Persian community

and embrace their culture.

What my client asks for is a high prestige exhibition and not a retail bazaar. He

understands thoroughly that the carpet industry that he is in is a high class and very

expensive one and knowing about the economic downturn that our country is going

through, it is difficult to address to the average Greek families.

When it comes to the theme of the event, my client wants a Persian carpet

exhibition, that will start in the morning and it will end at night with an open, high-

class gathering. His main goal is to attract in the early hours the customers, in order

for them to see and buy the new carpets and due to the end of the exhibition, people

from the embassy and National Persian Carpet Organization will gather and find the

chance to talk with each other accompanied by food and drinks.

The research I conducted in order to gather all of the important information in

order to organize the right event for my client is by case studies. As I said before this

kind of events are taking place every year, the same time and for the same purpose.

So, I had the chance to study some of the previous events and understand thoroughly

the philosophy of my client and off course what exactly he is looking for.

SWOT Analysis

In order to move on with organizing of the actual event, there is also one

more step of research. In order to gather all the possible known strengths and

weaknesses, as well as the potential opportunities and threats, I researched in the

company’s past to see what their previous exhibitions were like and what exactly

does my client wants. What I found out is that we have a good name in the market

and logical prices, but we do not have a respectful public relations background. The

company does not use a lot the social media or other internet sources, which is

something that we have to change now. (for SWOT Analysis see Appendix, pg. 21 )

Main Body

Brainstorming and Mind Mapping

Beginning to organize the event, the first and most important thing that concerns

us is the what. The event will take place on November 29th at Electra Palace Hotel, in

Plaka. The specific hotel is chosen because of the place that is in and the general

image. The main reason (why) we organize the event is to increase awareness of the

company and promote this year’s, since they have renewed their products. Also,

since it is a double meaning event, another reason for organizing it, is for my client to

enhance his relationship with the Persian Embassy offering a high prestige gathering

in the context of their culture and his business all in the same time.

Moving on, in this year’s exhibition my client decided that he wanted to have a

clear linkage with his tradition and culture, so we are going to include an educative

factor as well. This will be a video presentation which will be replaying during the

whole day, referring generally to the Persian history and off course the carpet history,

(when did they start making carpets?, how did it become a part of their tradition?,

materials that are made off? etc.). Also, during a specific time the P.R. executive from

the Persian embassy is going to give an informative talk about the general culture,

traditions and some problems they face, due to the fact that there is currently a war

in Iran. The attendants, on the other hand, are going to be loyal customers (which are

going to receive an invitation), but they are welcome to bring their friends, family or

any other person who would be interested. (for Mind Mapping see Appendix, pg. 24).

Theme / Concept Development

The theme of the event is going to have a Persian atmosphere and décor. The

color that is going to “rule” is the burgundy, since all of the carpets have this color

and it is a significant one. The venue will be full of tiles with carpets and also, there

will be some carpets hanging on the walls. Since our main goal is to promote our

carpets and in our case they are also “masterpieces”, we need to keep it simple with

the rest of the décor. Also, a buffet will be available with some teas and sweets and

later on a dinner buffet will be offered.

Photo from last

year’s

exhibition.

Venue Selection

The venue that is selected is the Ballroom I in Electra Palace, Plaka. It is a central

hotel, easy for everyone to find and well known for some years now. Also, the venue

offers a high prestige vibe which fits perfectly to our theme. Also, the room offers us

a presentation space, which we need for the video and the speech. (see Appendix,

pg.1-2)

Ballroom I, Electra Palace Hotel.

Time Selection

The time that is selected is 29th of November, 2014. It is a Saturday that most

of the people are free, relaxed and willing to communicate and have some fun. Also,

it is during hours when anyone can take a walk, enjoy some food and beverages and

enrich their morning. As far as the dinner buffet is concerned, we wanted to find a

day that the ambassadors and the other important persons will be free and relaxed,

not rushing after work.

Planning Process

In this stage, we need to create a critical path model. Since all of the necessary

information has been gathered, it is time to plan the preparation of the event. Every

decision we have made is now needed to be planned within days, hours and cost. (for

Critical Path Analysis, see Appendix, pg. 3-4)

During the Planning process we are trying to use everything we can to have a

harmonical background and nettle the five senses. Starting off with the food and

beverages, we tried to pass forward the Persian vibe, including cultural influenced

menus. For the exhibition part, since only a small amount of the attendants are going

to be Persians, we did not want to include very special flavors, so we made a more

safe choice. However, for the gathering part of the event most of the people are

going to be Persians and are used to heavy aromas and tastes, so the menu is going

to be a more significant one. Moving on with the smell, we are incorporating rose

water, to give a relaxing scent to the room. Also, it is important to maintain the air

clean inside the venue, since people are going to continuously come and go.

At last the visual parts are going to be the posters and the brochures that will

remind to the attendants the brand name and the reason why they are here. Off

course the video and the images in the background are going to help and give a

harmonized effect. The last sense, which is touch, is going to be enhanced by the

carpets, which will be decorating the room and everyone can touch them and feel the

uniqueness of the product. Also, the table cloths are an important factor, since they

will also be giving a general image and they are going to have a silky touch.

Table Cloth’s Material. Rose Water.

Finance Philosophy

The financial philosophy for this event is to be a profit oriented one. The basic

idea is to break even in the day of the event and gradually see the raise of the sales.

Our budget is limited in 3.000 €, and the 2.210 € are organization fees. However,

because it is a high prestige carpet exhibition and we live during an economic crisis,

we cannot expect having many sales the day of the event. In order to cover a part of

the expenses, we are going to charge 5 € per adult (the children may enter for free).

By this way we are covering a 40% of the expenses and we rely, as well, on a few

sales that every year are made by the Persian embassy. The goal of my client is to

raise sales after the event from 10% to 20%.

It is understood that the carpets are expensive especially in times like these, so

we have decided to have a discount on last year’s machine-made products, as well as

a free of charge shipping for those who will purchase carpets during the exhibition.

Also, we decided to “host” a speech triggering people who are interested in carpets

or generally in historical subjects, to learn more and also, take a look at our products

and maybe pay a visit to our store later on. (for Budget, see Appendix, pg. 10-11 ).

Legal Issues

In order to be legally covered by any means we decided to sign contracts and

make clear every part of the event. We have a contract with the venue, which is

Electra Palace Hotel, for using the space and the projector. We also, have a contract

with the caterer which includes the catering of the sweets and teas, as well as the

dinner buffet with the wines and foods. Also, the contract covers the use of four

waiters (two for the exhibition, two for the dinner) and the tables, tableware and

tablecloths. Additionally, we have a volunteer admission for the person who will be in

charge of the registration and pay fees, since she is a family member and will not

have a salary. At last, we have a contract with the photographer, which includes

keeping the rights of the pictures, his salary and final elaboration of the photos. (for

Contracts, see Appendix, pg. 12-19).

Risk Assessment

Our event is a carpet exhibition so the main risk for us is the destruction of a

product. As it is open for many people and some may come along with their children,

there is a chance that something might get ruined. However, we have insurance for

all of our expensive and rare products. Also, in order to protect from any permanent

damage the foods and beverages we have decided to offer during the exhibition are

easy to clean up and difficult to spill.

Another risk we are taking by raising a fee is losing some of the attendants. It is

important to remember that the event is taking place in the middle of an economic

crisis and the company offers a luxury product. So, besides our loyal customers that

attend every year the exhibition and buy carpets, there are also other people that

may not even want to pay the registration fee and take a look at a full carpet

presentation. (for Risk Analysis and Evaluation, see Appendix, pg. 8-9)

Needs Assessment and Analysis

In order to see if the event is a feasible one we need to evaluate whether the

financial, human and political resources are verified. As far as the budget is

concerned, our main limit is 2.500 euros, which includes the invitation, the catering,

renting the venue and buying some symbolic presents for the attendees. The video

and the speech are going to be funded by the embassy, so we don’t need to include

those. (for Critical Path Analysis, see Appendix, pg.3-4 ).

Gap Analysis

In order to have a successful event with the less unpredictable situations, it is

important to have a gap analysis. Since the specific casual carpet exhibition, does not

have too many event elements and we have created a much analyzed critical path

model, most of the possible gaps have been predicted.

Communication Strategy

Our main goal is to promote this event with as simple and effective way as we

can. Since “Darius Carpets” is a company with high prestige and also offers a luxury

product, we should be able to have a promotion that will be mostly referring to the

upper economic status. Also, we are going to underline the three basic factors of our

carpets, which are the history, quality and value. It is important to promote the

added value of the products as they are handmade silk or woolen carpets that many

of them were made even a century ago.

Firstly, our promotion strategy is to connect with all social and online media

as we can. It is important to use a medium that is free of charge and very effective,

like social media, the company’s website and city calendar’s. Moreover, we are going

to send some press kits, simply made, to underline the need of simplicity in times like

these and invite over some reporters from magazines referring to carpets.

Moving on, another important factor for the communication strategy of the

event is the price element. As I said before, we have to be down to earth and

compromise with the general economic climate. Off course we are going to address

mostly to high economic classes but because carpets is such an important thing to

the decoration of the house and the practical factor, we are willing to have some

discounts to several machine made pieces, as well as free of charge home delivery.

In terms of public relation, it is essential to earn good critiques from the

attendees if we want for this event to be more successful the next year. What we are

trying to do is to gradually build a confident and trustful relationship between my

client, “Darius Carpets” and his clients. So, we chose to entangle the Persian embassy

and the National Organization of Promoting Persian Carpets in Greece, in order to

show our support and our diversity from any other company. Also, the place of the

event is a very important aspect, since it is in the centre of Athens, in a very high

prestige area and also, an easy accessible one with transportation. It is important to

say that because the exhibition takes part on a Saturday, Plaka is a perfect place to

host the event. People will come to take a walk, have a look in our exhibition and

later on choose to drink a coffee or eat lunch near the historical Plaka. (for

Communication strategy details, see Appendix, pg. 22-23).

Proposed Evaluation

The type of the event is an exhibition, which automatically predisposes

people that they are going to spend some money. However, it is understandable that

the carpet market can be quite expensive and due to the fact that we are going

through an economic crisis, we are not going to base our evaluation on economic

outcomes. The main goal of the event is to create bonds between potential

customers and the owner and offer to attendants a fun and educational day.

Our main evaluation method is going to be a pre and a post event survey. We

need to find out whether we are in a good place and if there is something that we

have to change, such as price, service or anything else. By that way we will also be

able to see if our event needs any change to be more successful or cover a potential

gap that might be created through the survey. Afterwards, through e-mail (from the

registration list), we are going to do a second, post event survey to see whether our

exhibition and brand was pleasing enough.

Despite the survey, our main goal should be to continuously check on our

guests during the event and see whether they are having a good time or there is a

major mistake that needs to be fixed quickly before ruining the whole event. It is

important to have a complete interaction with the attendants, without becoming

burdensome.

References

Darvish Tabar, Darius. (2014, October 15). Personal Interview.

Dr. Joe Goldblatt. (2010). “Special Events: A New Generation and the Next Frontier”.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.