MOBILE EVENTS
 I've just been asked to create
a road-show program for my company, and my first assignment is to buy a mobile-marketing vehicle to support our efforts. What questions do I need to ask internally, and what else should I consider to make sure
we get the vehicle we need?
 Whether you're buying a tractor-trailer, a gooseneck trailer, or even a branded van, it's easy to get bogged down in the seemingly endless options. After all, in addition to your own marketing-related variables, including everything from the activities
that will take place in the vehicle to the marketing messages you'll display on the exterior, there are myriad vehicle options from which to choose. For example, do you want a tractor-trailer or a hitch-based trailer, bump outs or a straight 53-foot option,
hospitality services inside the vehicle as opposed to separate tented structures outside, seating within the trailer versus fold-down exterior stages, etc.?
While the variables may seem a bit overwhelming, a successful purchasing
process requires a thorough investigation of your own needs, starting with the following five questions. Once you've answered each of them, you will have fleshed out both the purpose of your tour and its basic requirements. With these in hand, your mobile-marketing firm should be able to help you select a vehicle to suit your needs.
 Why does your company need a mobile-marketing vehicle? First, determine why your company wants to launch a mobile-marketing tour. What executive directives are driving this tour, and how will the mobile-marketing vehicle contribute to the company's bottom line?
For example, do you want to cultivate prospects by exposing key buyers to your new product? Do you want to provide existing VIP customers with ample time to speak with your company execs? Are you bringing your products to a small, specific audience of buyers that doesn't typically attend trade shows? Or perhaps you just want to launch a new product by distributing as many samples as possible at fairs and festivals.
No matter what your reasons for launching a mobile-marketing program, the key is to clearly identify them - and better yet, to set specific objectives for your tour and develop tools and processes for measuring them. Without clearly defined expectations that stakeholders can agree to, you've set a course to nowhere, and wasted time and money are dead ahead.
What will take place in and around the vehicle? Next, mentally map out the desired attendee experience from beginning to end. For example, will
attendees sample products, view
demonstrations, or watch demo videos? Will they have lengthy conversations with sales representatives, attend scheduled meetings/presentations, or interact with peers? Do you plan to display actual products, or will they be represented via models, electronic mediums, audiovisual presentations,
etc.? Will you offer attendees refreshments, and if so, will they be served inside the vehicle or somewhere around its exterior?
Along these same lines, make a list of the major areas you need to house within or around the vehicle, along with any specific requirements for each. For example, do you need a lounge, theater, presentation area, kitchen, storage space, etc.? And might you need chairs, sofas, AV equipment, product-display kiosks, etc.? What about equipment such as monitors and lead-capture systems, or even comfort items such as Internet stations and restrooms?
Mapping out the attendee experience and listing the required areas and equipment will help you determine the amount of floor space required (also see below) - and ultimately the size and type of vehicle you need.
How many attendees do you
expect, and how much floor space will you need? How many days will the vehicle remain in one location, and how many people do you hope to funnel through the vehicle each day? How many people do you expect the vehicle to house at any specific time?
Hosting five to 10 people for 30 minutes each requires an entirely different setup than if you plan to run 100 people an hour past your sample vehicle for a free scoop of ice cream. So before you request an RFP, generate a guesstimate as to the volume of people that'll pass through your mobile experience on any given day.
In terms of the floor space required, your mobile-marketing agency should be able to provide some guidance and averages based on your answers to the first three questions. This way, you can start to rule in (or out) vehicle options based on total square footage available within them. For example, if you're going to need 350 square feet of floor space, a hitch-based trailer is probably out of the running.
Which types of venues will the vehicle visit? Will your mobile exhibit visit your customers' corporate headquarters in large cities, or will it hit two-person offices in tiny towns? Do you plan to use it at fairs and festivals, strictly at B2B companies, or both? Will
you park it on concrete or grass? Might it sometimes be used within a convention center in place of an exhibit? Are there any environmental, city, state, or U.S. regulations regarding the locales or venues you plan to visit that might impact your marketing vehicle and strategy?
Parking a van at a state fair is a completely different animal than
positioning a 53-foot tractor-trailer in
Times Square. Each location has
its pros and cons, regarding space limitations, regulations, permits, restroom capabilities, Americans With Disabilities Act guidelines, accessibility
to electrical, water, and Internet services, and even pre- and post-event maneuverability and highway access.
So compile a list of the potential locales - and perhaps even the specific venues - where you plan to use the vehicle. If necessary, your mobile-marketing vendor can even investigate some of these variables to help make your purchasing decisions a little bit easier.
How will the vehicle's exterior contribute to your goals? While attendees are likely most concerned with what's going on inside the mobile-marketing vehicle, don't overlook its exterior capabilities. Not only is the vehicle's exterior a giant messaging opportunity both during the event and any time it's on the road, but
the physical space surrounding the vehicle can be used for endless activities and events.
For example, maybe you'd like to create a traffic-building activity directly outside of your tractor-trailer to attract consumers. Or maybe you want to set up some tented structures to act as on-site meeting rooms. Given the location of your event, you might need to use the surrounding space to park guests' cars, or maybe there will be so much pedestrian traffic that you'll need some kind of stanchion system to separate your attendees from passersby.
The point is, when you're considering the goals and parameters of your road-show program, don't forget to consider the role of both the exterior surface of the vehicle as well as the space surrounding it.
So before you ask, "Which vehicle should I purchase?" ask yourself these five basic questions. Then, armed with your answers, sit down with your mobile-marketing agency to determine which vehicle can best meet these needs and objectives.
- Ben Olson, director of business development, CGS Premier Inc., New Berlin, WI
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