EVALUATION OF THE EFFECTIVE USE OF MARKETING MIX

Product

Singapore Biennale 2008 has tapped into several types of marketing mix. One of them would be ‘product’.

One example of the product would be the art displays which were put up in the exhibition places. Building from the theme 'Wonder', artists over the world have came up with different perceptions with the word 'Wonder' and thus produced unique art pieces based on their unique interpretation.

Hair Salon

I'm Not Expensive 2008

One of the art pieces, Hair Salon, by Erlich Leandro, is an installation which is devised so that when you look into the 'mirrors' in the wall, it appears as if a different room is reflected by that mirror. However, in actual fact, it is an identical mirrored room that has been created symmetrically behind the mirror. This art piece wants to raise an interesting question reality and illusion. Another art piece which also taps into illusion and movement is I'm Not Expensive 2008, by Lee yong Deok. This art piece shows an indented car. When viewed in reality, it seems that the car is moving together as we moved. This enabled viewers to wonder if the movement is real. However, in actual fact, it is due to illusion which makes us think that the car is moving. Through these interesting art pieces, it attracts many art lovers to the event from over the world. During my field trip, I have seen several foreigners walking around the exhibition centers, examining the art works as well as understand the artists' unique interpretation of 'Wonder'. With a theme which carries an element of mystery, and an event which already has a good reputation beforehand, this attracts many people visiting this event.

Not only are these art pieces created by famous artists over the world, some were created by our young generation, who were given a chance to tap into their artistic talent. These works were displayed in one of the City Hall exhibition corner, named Kids Biennale. Kids Biennale is another highlight of this event as kids were invited to have their artworks to be put up for display. This would thus attract both children and parents to visit this exhibition to view these art pieces.

Besides these art pieces, another product would be the volunteers stationed at the different art sites. Through their knowledgeable guidance, they were there to answer one’s queries and thus able to enhance the experience of the visitors of Singapore Biennale.

Another product which was used in this event was the guide book, which was given out during the purchase of tickets at the counter. This book provides information of all the art pieces which were displayed in the various venues. I feel that this guide book is very useful in promoting the event itself as visitors would be able to understand the exhibits better,and thus able to enjoy themselves during the visit.

Overall, I feel that Singapore Biennale organization team has been successful in this area as the products fulfill what potential visitors would want, need, and are willing to pay for.

Place

Being located in various iconic landmarks in Singapore such as City hall, South Beach Development, Singapore Flyer, the event is able to attract foreign visitors' attention and attend this event. These venues are in the heart of Singapore and are of walking distance. Furthermore, most venues are highly accessible as public transport like the Mass Rapid Transit and buses were available. However, while finding one of the venues, South Beach Development, we faced some difficulty in trying to locate it as it is not prominent. Their solution for this problem was to put up signage in order to lead people to the location, which I felt, was very useful for visitors who are foreign to Singapore.

In addition, some art pieces were designed on the exterior of the exhibition centers. For example, an art piece was exhibited on the wall of the South Beach Development. As the art piece is facing the road, when people drive past, this would arouse curiosity in people in wanting to know what is this event is about. Art lovers who saw this art piece would know about this event and they might be interested to take part in this event.

One of the art pieces was being exhibited at the Esplanade Bridge. The Esplanade, being a renowned Singapore’s performing arts venue, which features local and international performers, would attract many art lovers, whether locals or foreigners, to visit the Esplanade. Thus, an exhibit displayed near Esplanade would draw their attention towards this event, and thus attracting them to join this event as well.

As there were several locations for this event, the organizer might want to engage a shuttle bus service to cater to all the visitors. This, in one hand, would assist people who were not familiar with Singapore to go around visiting these exhibition centers. On the other hand, it would facilitate visitors to travel to the different locations easily and enable them to be hassle-free.

Partnerships

Another component of the marketing mix would be partnerships. Singapore Biennale 2008 has partnered with a numerous renowned companies like passion card, Singapore Tourism Board (STB), and the Singapore Flyer, etc.

By partnering with passion card, Singapore Biennale 2008 would promote the signing up of passion card to the public. In return, if passion card holders were to purchase the Singapore Biennale 2008's tickets, they would be entitled to a thirty percent discount of the original price ten dollars. This in turn, would become a package and attracts people to sign up for passion cards and also allow Singapore Biennale to receive a better response from people who are price sensitive. Although the price would be lowered, the response for the event would be improved.

Another partner of this event would be the Singapore Tourism Board (STB). The STB's website would be one of the commonly accessed website by tourists who are planning to visit Singapore, or are already at Singapore for information regarding the events happening in Singapore. In addition, even locals who want to know more about the events in Singapore would also view their website for information as STB links most of the major events happening in Singapore. Thus, by partnering with STB, this event is able to gain a higher level of awareness locally and globally.

The other event partner of Singapore Biennale would be the Singapore Flyer. Visitors who bought the tickets to Singapore Biennale 2008 were entitled to a discount when they visit the Singapore Flyer.

I feel that by partnering with organizations such as Singapore Flyer is a good opportunity to promote this event. As Singapore Flyer is one of the Asia most visible iconic visitor attractions by being the highest Ferris wheel in Asia, many visitors who visit Singapore would want to experience the ride on the Flyer. Thus, by collaborating with this popular attraction, it would allow the visitors to know more about Singapore Biennale 2008 and might take part in the event as they would need to pay a lesser entry fee to both Singapore Flyer and Singapore Biennale 2008.

Promotion

One of the ways to attract the attention of the visitors is through promotion of the events through several ways. In this event, it is being promoted through using physical objects and in the virtual world.

Brochures were printed out and distributed to several places. One of the places is the Raffles Hotel Concierge. Visitors who pass by the Raffles Hotel Concierge at Raffles City Shopping Center would be able gain knowledge of this event. During my field trip, I have seen a few visitors referring to the brochures to locate the venues of the exhibition centers. I feel that brochures are powerful tools of promoting an event. Although brochures normally come printed only on two pages, it provides a summary of the event, highlights of some exhibits, and useful information like the map of the event, which is sufficient to give the visitors a rough guide of what to expect and thus capturing their interest. 

Wall Advertisement

Banners outside City Hall

Wall advertisements and banners were also used as one of the promotion tools. At several shopping malls located at town area, for example Raffles City Shopping center, big advertisements were put up on the pillars. Shoppers who shop in these shopping centers would chance upon the advertisements. These advertisements were able to capture my attention to further read on the contents of the advertisement. Furthermore, five big banners were put up in front of the City Hall exhibition center. Passerby would notice the banners when they pass by, thus creating a higher level of awareness to the public.

Besides having tangible advertisements of this event, the organization team has set up an official website and all the information about the event was provided on the Internet [www.singaporebiennale.org and http://www.singaporebiennale.org/blog/]. Through E-marketing, people from all parts of the world would be able to gain information of this event. I feel that E-marketing is good way of getting your audiences to gain awareness of a product, as people who stay indoors would be able to get hold of the details of the event.

Although Singapore Biennale 2008 has done quite an extensive promotion, I felt that there are still quite a number of people who have not heard of this event. In the course of research, I have asked people around me if they knew about this event. However, it has shown that the result of the promotion strategies which the organization has used is not enough, as many still did not know about this event. One way to create more awareness is to advertise through the powerful media, television. As almost everyone has a television at home, advertising during the commercial breaks would be able to reach out to people who does not go to town areas or surf the net.

Programming

In an event, being able to provide different products to different groups is essential in fulfilling their needs and wants.

Kids' Biennale

In order to reach out to the children, NAC has come up with Kids’ Biennale, one of the highlights of Singapore Biennale 2008, which aims to inspire, instill and engage children by enabling them to participate in a series of programs like art workshops, competition and activities. Several primary schools were also invited to attend this event and students were exposed to arts which were done by the young generation. This, in turn, might inspire them and allow them to create interest in arts.

This year, NAC has put up a few programs, including Education and Outreach and Encounters, to target the younger generation and encouraging them to develop a passion for art.

Furthermore, to meet the needs and wants of art lovers, a collaborated program with arts institutions, Parallel Events, presents them a calendar of diverse events together with Singapore Biennale.

I feel that NAC has achieved it goals of encouraging the discussion of contemporary art both locally and globally.

People

An important component of the marketing mix would be the people who organize and people who attend the event. The interaction which occurs between the guests, the setting, the staff and guides of the event would constitute a large part of the event experience.

At the first point of contact as a visitor was with the staff at the ticketing counter. They were friendly and hospitable and were glad to answer our queries. I feel that the staffs were helpful and this shapes a positive first impression.

In addition, guiding services were available for visitors who need a guide to explain the art pieces to them. As art pieces would be meaningless without knowing what is the work is trying to express. Thus, by having a guide throughout the walk would enhance the understanding and learning experience for the visitors.

However, the event guides were limited. Only a few of them were seen guiding groups during my visit. Thus, I would suggest that the organizers should put in place more guides around to lead the people, which would form a positive perception for the visitors. Therefore, when Singapore Biennale is held in the subsequent years, these satisfied visitors would come back for return visits.

In order to solve the problem of shortages of guides around the exhibition centers, the organizer has stationed a few event guides in some rooms in order to clearly explain the art pieces to the visitors when they need help. Hence, I feel that although the event has limitations when it comes to allocate of manpower, they have tried to deploy their manpower in order to suit the needs of the visitors. However, some guides who were stationed at some stations were sitting at a corner and reading books and were not attentive to the visitors. I feel that they should be trained to interact with visitors in order to enhance their experience.

Packaging & Distribution

One way to ensure a higher success rate of the event is to have a good network of distribution, so that the sales of tickets can reach out to more people.

For Singapore Biennale 2008, the organization team has worked with a few art communities to promote this event. Through joint marketing with these communities, Singapore Biennale would help promote their communities, as well as having these communities to help promote Singapore Biennale. In this way, the network of distribution would be expanded.

Admission tickets were only sold at the entrance of City Hall and South Beach Development exhibition centers. Thus, I feel that the team should open up more booths selling tickets especially at locations near the other exhibits to attract passerby to purchasing the tickets.

An example of packaging is the collaboration between Singapore Flyer and Singapore Biennale. With an admission ticket for Singapore Biennale, visitors would be allow to go on a ride in the Singapore Flyer with an additional top up of $21. Visitors might find the package worthwhile as a trip on the Singapore Flyer would cost $29.50 originally. By purchasing this package which is $31 in total, they would be able to save $8.50. Thus, both Singapore Flyer and Singapore Biennale would be able to benefit from this package deal and both ticket sales would increase.

Price

One of the determinants which would affect the number of people attending the event would be price. If price has been set high, only people with high spending power would be able to pay for the admission fees. This would result in the losing of potential visitors with lower spending power.

An admission fee of ten dollars has been set for this event. In addition, senior citizens and students, who have a lower spending power than working adults, would be able to enjoy a fifty percent discount off the original price. Since the admission fees is at an affordable and reasonable for the mass public, people with low spending power and have interest in art would be able to join this event. Thus, by pricing lowly, the opportunity cost of attending the event would be lower, and this could also lower the visitors' sensitivity towards the price. I feel that this is a good pricing strategy used as almost everyone would have the ability to afford the admission fees and are able to enjoy themselves in this event, instead of only catering to the minor group of art lovers with high spending power.

Another price of this event is the cost of travelling to the exhibition centers. As these centers were located in the heart of Singapore, these places were highly accessible as there are several buses and train services which could bring the visitors to these places. Travelling using public transport would greatly cut down their cost of travelling as they are affordable.

 

 

Singapore Biennale has employed the use of marketing mix in order to attain their goal which is enabling Singapore to continue to contribute in significant ways to the making, presenting and discussion of contemporary art in the region and beyond, and creates value for the visitors.

According to ChannelNewsAsia.com, it states that this event has received an outstanding response from the public with 505,200 visitors, which exceeds their original target of half a million. This indicates that they have been successful in marketing their event to a large extent.

However, as compared to Singapore Biennale 2006, the response was 883,000 visitors which way exceeds this year’s Biennale. Thus, the organization should re-evaluate their marketing mix and find ways to improve in order to ensure the success of the third edition of Singapore Biennale.