PPB February 2021

Educational Programs Silver Winner Distributor: Concepts & Associates, Inc. Type Of Client: Delivery service Target Audience : 1,000 shoppers Primary Objective: Shoppers gathered from across the country in Birmingham, Alabama, over two days to meet, network and share their ideas and best practices while also hearing from the client’s leadership team. Bringing everyone together was exciting and instrumental in story sharing, whether on a panel, over lunch or in focus groups. Building off this excitement, the client announced major updates to its app and goals to improve the shopper experience. Total Cost: More than $100,000 with $16,000 spent on promotional products, including t-shirts, pens and journals. Strategy And Execution: The client wanted to hold a universal meeting open to every shopper and exclusive to their customers, where people could come together to share stories and best practices, hear from leadership and discuss their goals. With tens of thousands of shoppers around the country the challenge was set: how to entice shoppers to come to company headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama? The distributor used social media, email and a website to encourage shoppers to sign up and shared details about the upcoming program. An event theme and logo were developed and the enrollment offered a goody bag to be given at the event. This did two things: It got people excited to attend while helping determine the right amount of space, food, drinks, staff and merchandise. The city was on full display with two of its finest venues used for events. The program was kicked off the night before by welcoming attendees to The Haven—a space filled with dancing, food, activities and the chatter of shoppers meeting for the first time. The second day started with breakfast/registration at the historic Alabama Theatre where the goodie bags were distributed. The commemorative t-shirt was a hit, as were the notepad and pen. The CEO shared the future of the company and the shopper app update was released. Efficiencies were discussed, executives answered questions and shopper stories were heard. Results: The buzz continued to grow as attendees wore the t-shirts given at the event. It was such a success that three more events are planned in different locations around the country. Gold Winner Distributor: Jungle Jane Promotions Type Of Client: Financial lending institution Target Audience : 90 hourly and salaried employees Primary Objective: To broaden and enhance the perspectives of staff; increase understanding of program offerings and operations; and increase staff engagement and market share. To motivate staff to attend and participate in all four training sessions. Total Cost: $15,473 Strategy And Execution: A custom logo was created for this program and used on a specially-selected, branded gift that could only be obtained by attending the training sessions. The selection of the gifts was based on the season for that session. A separate VIP gift was selected to generate positive discussions and enhance participation. Each attendee would receive a gift as well as a chance to earn the VIP item. The VIP item was given to the person, voted on by the participants, who contributed the most to that meeting. A winner would also be randomly drawn for a grand prize given at the end of the program. Participants entered their name into the drawing for each event they attended. Different promotional products were selected for the gift levels at each of four events. These included a t-shirt and waterproof 48-can cooler; a lunch cooler with divided dishes, a reusable water bottle and silverware, and an executive wooden barbeque set; a golf shoe caddy and a collapsible chair with a footrest; and a vacuum-insulated tumbler and a pair of Bluetooth headphones. Results: The goal of 30 people in attendance at each session was surpassed by more than 50 percent. The client was hoping to have 50 percent of staff attend but 70 percent attended. On top of the large attendance, sales increased by 20 percent. Management was so pleased with how well the program went that they doubled the budget for 2020. Pyramid Awards: Client Programs | FEATURE | FEBRUARY 2021 | 25