Community, Sporting, and Art Events - Essay Example

Running Head: PORTFOLIO OF FESTIVALS AND EVENTS Portfolio of Festivals and Events In Harvard Style By Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 Introduction to each Event 4 1. Community Event: OSGi Alliance Community Event 4 2. Sporting Event: NBA All Star Game 6 3. Art Event: Sheer Splendor in Singapore 9 Comparison According to Sponsor 11 References 14 Executive Summary Event organizers' financial requirements are often funded by organizations which hopes to be benefit from the added marketing benefits such as an enhanced image and higher publicity which, in turn, is provided by the activity. This report looks at three different events: OSGi Alliance Community Event aimed at the business community; NBA All Star Game which reaches a diverse audience; and ARTSingapore geared at attracting art lovers who are at the same time high net worth individuals. This paper concludes that contrary to the typical notion that only sponsors receive marketing benefits, events are also promoted through their various sponsors. Introduction to each Event 1. Community Event: OSGi Alliance Community Event According to its website, OSGi is "a worldwide consortium of technology innovators that advances a proven and mature process to assure interoperability of applications and services based on its component integration platform" (OSGi: About Us 2007). Among the members of its member are renowned business organizations like Nokia, Sprint, IBM, and Makewave and ProSyst. With its quest in providing specification, reference implementations, test suites, and certification to foster a valuable cross-industry ecosystem, it conducts a four day community event which it refers to as OSGi Alliance Community Event. This four day event highlights the technology of the organization and the services that it offers. It is especially targeted to developers and business decision makers who will "gain valuable and actionable information and instruction" (OSGi Alliance Community Event 2007). OSGi prepares the event for the benefit of a company which also capitalizes on technology for survival and success. Members and non-members alike are invited to join this In the current year, this community event is hosted by Siemens and is conducted from June 26-28. The event is described as "value-packed" because it features lightning talks, business practices, and business patterns. Having members which are in the forefront of technological advancements it also provides keynotes from thought and industry leaders. Enhancing this event are the presentations by OSGi Alliance CTO BJ Hargrave and Evangelist Peter Kriens (OSGi Alliance Community Event 2007). In order to include all the essential functional departments in a business organization, the community event requires three participants from member companies. The first day which is June 26 becomes a Marketing Committee Meeting while June 27 and 28 are Members Only and Expert Group Meetings, respectively (OSGi Alliance Community Event 2007). In order to join the event, participants are required to fee registration fees according to their status in relation to OGSi: non-members pay 500; associate members pay 450; while full members pay 400. It should be noted that the aforementioned fees will cover only the materials and activities and are exclusive of accommodation fees. This year's event is conducted in Munich (OSGi Alliance Community Event 2007). 2. Sporting Event: All Star NBA Game Widely regarded one of the greatest gathering of basketball stars that are playing the current game, the players selected to represent the Eastern and Western conferences via votes of the public and the NBA coaches have to prove themselves worthy of their selection in this game. As the highlight of the NBA All-Star Week, basketball points scored in this game are normally fast and furious, with lots of slam dunks and creative plays for the excitement of the fans being made by the players. In this game, the players themselves develop their patented shots, like vicious dunks which were nearly improbable to deny due to the fact that the players' bodies were placed between the hoop and their arms, and also due to the fact that the were tall. During the entire history of the NBA All-Star game no conference has dominated, nor any player has swept every individual and team accolades available. The NBA All-Star game MVP is awarded for the best player of the game, although not necessarily the top scorer of the game. After a series of long, eventful years of the existence of the NBA All-Star game, NBA fans until now still have high expectation in this mid-season extravaganza of basketball (Hubbard, 2000). On the offensive aspect of the game, all the players simply cannot be denied anywhere in the court, whether underneath the basket or shooting from long range. While some of the players did not have the bulky and muscular frame that most centers today have, they did possess agility and versatility that is rare of a big man until now. Players devise their own shots that would be very difficult for their opponents to defend. In this game, there is almost a .600 shot precision that actually validates the high-scoring result, transforming the NBA All-Star game as one of the most exciting display of shooting accuracy, and a proof that NBA players can also deliver under immense pressure. And because the players do not have so much plays to run, they were allowed to be mobile enough to be part of a deadly fast break. Also, because of the physical fitness of these NBA players, most of them are left to be playing without much rest for most of the game. So in respect, the MVP is most likely the player who spent the most time in the court and produced excellent statistics. While shooting free throws was considered a weakness among NBA players during the regular season, the NBA All-Star game is an exception to this, as the players has shot an estimated of almost 80 percent so far (Martin, 1999). On the defensive aspect of this basketball game, the NBA players still manage to bear relentless existences while in the game. It is important to remember that the NBA players here are perennial members of the NBA's top defensive players. Their excellent ball denying capabilities also made them hard nuts to crack. And as some of the players participating here are also members of championship teams, they possess and exemplify classical teamwork. The team that possessed these types of players normally led their conference to victory. Coaches also have a very active role in the NBA All-Star game, as they are allowed to practice their widely regarded unbending coaching philosophies which have transformed them as some of the longest tenured coaches in the NBA. After the NBA All-Star game, the participating players turn over their attentions to the media for some interviews and short chatting with the fans. At this point, the tired and energy-drenched NBA players are still very much hooked to the game, as they try to recall their fun and exciting moments while playing the game. Based on the huge impacts and legacies that every NBA All-Star game leaves among its fans, it is always assumed that every NBA All-Star game would be filled with nothing but fun and excitement. 3. Art Event: Sheer Splendor in Singapore Sheer Splendor in Singapore is the theme of the ARTSingapore-The Contemporary Asian Art Fair. This event has culminated in 2000 and has gained recognition as the only major art fair in Southeast Asia (About ARTSingapore 2007). This event has been the main venue to appreciate contemporary art and museum quality pieces from various artists in Asia. Every year, this event draws huge number of participants because of the various opportunities that it offers: "ARTSingapore is the platform where gallery owners, collectors, artists, and art aficionados gather to forge business alliance, acquire new contemporary artworks, share ideas, and exchange information" (About ARTSingapore 2007). It should be noted that this art event is much sought after because it sets the direction that art will more likely to follow in the future years. ARTSingapore is organized by ARTREACH Pte Ltd and strongly supported by Art Galleries Association in Singapore. The creation of this art event is geared to "promote a professional art gallery trade with ethical practice and create awareness of the role and responsibilities of reputable art dealers" (About ARTSingapore 2007). The art event is aimed at the elite class including businessmen, architects, designers, and regional art connoisseurs mostly from Asia and other parts of the world (About ARTSingapore 2007). Perhaps the most important participants in this art event are the exhibitors who seize the opportunity to promote their collection of artworks for the event. ARTSingapore's website provides full information on how they can part in the event including the submission of application form and other exhibitors' services (About ARTSingapore 2007). This year, ARTSingapore will be held on October 5 to 8 at Suntec City Singapore. In order to attend the fair, an entrance ticket of Singaporean $10 will be charged per entry. Visitors also have the option of paying Singaporean $20 for an unlimited entry during the four-day-period. Trade visitors get free access upon registration while ARTSingapore is also free for children under age of 16 (About ARTSingapore 2007). Comparison Subject Theme: Sponsors In the promotion of different events, the help and financial support of a sponsor is often sought by the organizer. The relationship between sponsor and recipient is always deemed to be mutually beneficial. In the part of the event organizer, the sponsor becomes the provider of much needed financing for capital, materials, and other expenses. On the other hand, the sponsor finds it attractive to shell out funds as the event becomes a marketing tool that enhances its image and enables it to reach a wider audience. The OSGi Alliance Community Event, the NBA All-Star Game, and the ARTSingapore have their own sets of sponsor including business organizations and government institutions. It should be noted that not a single sponsor funds any two of the activities mentioned. In the discussion below, it will be emphasized that the sponsors' choice of an event to fund is strongly dependent on the target market of the event. It also becomes apparent that in terms of being a marketing tool, there is reciprocity between the sponsor and the event. The typical notion that only the sponsor benefits in terms of marketing is ruled out. OSGi identifies the sponsor of its business community events namely IBM, MakeWave, Nokia, and Siemens. It should be noted that these business organizations are very much established in their respective fields. Nokia, for one is recognized as the world's largest supplier of mobile phone while IBM is a leader in information technology. A common ground of the sponsors of the OSGi Community Event is their involvement in technological development. Their sponsorship to the aforementioned event can be seen as strategic because they are members of the Alliance. It also enables them to reach the market of OSGi which are business organizations in the technology sector that can serve as their potential partners and markets. On the other hand, OSGi capitalizes on the strengths of these large business organizations to promote their events. Smaller companies are often attracted to attend to conferences which are supported by more prominent ones because of their high hopes of acquiring significant knowledge and skill from them that they can use in their own operations. The NBA All-Star has the most sponsor which are in distinctively diverse industries. Upscale shoemakers like Nike, Adidas, and And1 supports the game alongside America's leading fastfood chain McDonalds. The game also benefits from the sponsorship of sports drinks Gatorade, soft drink Sprite, and the household appliance manufacturer Haier. It should be noted that the diversity of the event's sponsors is warranted by the equal diversity of its market. Almost everyone in America regardless of skin color, gender, and social status is hooked to this sporting game. The sponsors like Nike and Adidas market their products by having the players wear their products which appeals to customers who are either big fans of the players or who want to belong on the reference group. All of the sponsors gain significant exposure because of the reach of the sporting event and its publicity in different media. In terms of marketing, NBA All Star Game also reaches its market using its sponsors as a marketing medium. For example, Gatorade places the logo of the sporting event on its labels and naming itself as the official sports drink of the NBA. Thus, consumers of Gatorade who hasn't heard of NBA before are being informed of the event through this drink. ARTSingapore names Fortis as its presenting sponsor and Uniquely Singapore, Singapore Tatler, National Arts Council, Axa, Marina Mandarin, Bloomberg Television, Global Specialised Services Pte Ltd, and Clarke Quay as its supporters. It should be noted that all of the above organizations and institutions cater to the upper segment of the world society. For one, Fortis offers banking services to high net worth individuals, Bloomberg Television is and Clarke Quay is an entertainment precinct. These companies chose to sponsor ARTSingapore because of the event's ability to draw attention of their target market. Business organizations like Fortis, Axa, and Clarke Quay are all seeking business transactions with the visitors of the art event specially the businessmen. Aside from providing exposure to its intended market, ARTREACH Pte Ltd is also reaching a wider market through its exposures. For instance, Uniquely Singapore which is the government's tourism arm promotes ARTSingapore to foreign visitors in various countries. References About ARTSingapore 2007), Retrieved 23 August 2007, from http://www.artsingapore.net/about_artsingapore.html Hubbard, J, 2000. The Official NBA Basketball Encyclopedia. Doubleday; 3rd edition Martin, C, 1999. Official NBA Trivia: The Ultimate Team-by-Team Challenge for Hoop Fans. Harper Paperbacks OSGi: About Us 2007, Retrieved 23 August 2007, from http://www.osgi.org/about/index.aspsection=1 OSGi Allince Community Event 2007, Retrieved 24 August 2007, from http://www.osgi.org/news_events/2007_06_communities/overview.asp Read More