Assignment 1 - Weekly Planning Report PDF

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PUB30001: Event Management Assignment 1: Weekly Planning Report - Week 2 to 5

Week 2 Word Count: 403 words

What is your overarching goal for the Hybrid Toyota Launch event?

According to Wilson (2004, p. 150), an event success relies on clearly defined goals and objectives. A clear and defined goal will facilitate the event planning process and ensure consistent, honest and transparent information are disseminate to its stakeholders and public audiences (Mellersh 2019, 19 Mar).

In the case of Toyota Hybrid Cruiser launch, the overarching goal of this event is to introduce, educate and inform the target audiences of the new Toyota Hybrid Cruiser emphasising that the product is designed and built specifically for Australia market using advanced hybrid technology with sustainability in mind. It also aims to create a unique and positive brand experiences by allowing audiences to test-drive the product.

List three (3) key objectives (using SMART methodology) for the Toyota Hybrid Launch Event.

The first objective is to create increase brand awareness of the new Toyota Hybrid among existing and potential Toyota costumers, aged 25 years old and above, who are in the family lifecycle stages with the most disposable income, in Australia by at least 70% through different IMC plans by mid2020. Direct mails, press releases, print advertisements and social media marketing are some of the marketing campaign tools that can be used to create and increase awareness and pique the interests of target audiences prior to event launch.

The second objective is to increase brand acceptance by demonstrating and showcasing the benefits and unique features of the product that will eventually lead to purchase decision. Using video demonstrations and product pre-testing during the event will ensure the positive elements of the hybrid model are retained in consumers’ minds. Engaging key opinion leaders or car experts to provide testimonials of the various product’s unique features and benefits will increase brand relevance and reduce purchase uncertainty and risk among potential buyers. The objective is to have

at least 60% of the attendees spreading positive word-of-mouth to potential Toyota’s users within the first 6 months post-launch.

The last objective is to ensure all attendees enjoyed the event and take away a positive brand and product image post-event. The purpose is to ensure target audience’s journey goes from liking the brand to being interested and finally making a purchase decision. The availability of experienced and trained technical sales people will help to educate and answer to any questions or concerns a potential buyer might have. Contests and sweepstakes can be used during the event to enhance target audiences’ participations. The objective is to increase the sales of Toyota Hybrid model by 15% over the next 18 months.

Reference List

Wilson, J 2004, Special events: defining goals, planning and measuring success, The Bottom Line , Vol. 17 Issue. 4, pp. 150-151.

Week 3 Word Count: 305 words

Explain what a work-breakdown structure (WBS) is, and why it is an important part to planning an event.

Work-breakdown structure (WBS) is a key project deliverable that is used by the project team to organise the work into a manageable and specific levels or stages known as work packages (Jung & Woo 2004, p. 616 - 617) that contributes to keeping the project on track and meeting the overall project goals.

WBS is an important part of an event planning as it ensure that all level of work follows the scope of work outlined. By breaking down complicated work into a collection of smaller, independent and manageable tasks, resources and costs associated can be effectively assigned and project risks can be controlled (Mansuy 1991, p. 15). Each team will have better understanding of their team’s responsibilities, expected deliverables deadline and its contribution to overall project goal (Zecheru & Olaru 2016, p. 67). Changes or uncertainties, such as delays, over budget or responsibility ambiguity, are therefore minimised.

State what is meant by key hurdle (milestone) tasks.

Key milestone tasks refer to a significant marker or a specific activity in the planning schedule. Each milestone has no duration but are inter-related to the activities in the planning schedule. It is a way for the project team to observe and monitor the progress of the project (Chua & Godinot 2006, p. 74). Milestone also serve as proof for explaining and reporting the status of a project. Example of key milestones can be high priority tasks such as project approval sign-off or deliverables such as confirming third-party supplier.

Define a type of program or software that helps with organising WBS.

WBS can be created using several programs or software with the most commonly being Gantt Chart software (Codi 2019, 26 March). The advancement of cloud-based technologies has enabled sharing and collaborating of project planning. Online Gantt chart software has become increasingly popular as it is relatively cheaper to install and can support multiple users to work on the same project plan at the same time. Reference List: Chua, DK & Godinot, M 2006, Use of a WBS Matrix to Improve Interface Management in Projects, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, Vol. 132, Issue. 1, pp. 67-79.

Jung, YS & Woo, SK 2004, Flexible work breakdown structure for integrated cost and schedule control, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, Vol. 130, Issue. 5, pp. 616-625.

Mansuy, J 1993, Work Breakdown Structure: A Simple Tool for Complex Jobs, Cost Engineering, vol. 33, Iss. 12, pp. 15-18.

Zecheru, V & Olaru, BG 2016, Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) in Project Management, Review of International Comparative Management, Vol. 17, Issue. 1, pp. 61-69.

Week 4 Word Count: 366 words

What are some of the cost-saving measures you could use to reduce expenditure for the Toyota Launch event? Justify your reasoning.

Some of the cost-saving measures to reduce Toyota launch event includes: 1. Build a realistic event budget that allow rooms for flexibility. Using historical budget figures from similar past events will help the team to establish a realistic budget baseline to work on before finalising the estimated cost as the project progress. 2. Negotiate best price with supplier. It is important for the team to obtain multiple quotes from different suppliers in order to choose one that provide the best value for money. Federation Square is a highly sought venue for all sort of events; therefore, it comes with a higher price tag and is less flexible in pricing. While the event hire cost might be fixed, we could negotiate other details such as lower food and beverages cost or inclusion of additional items at no cost. 3. Alternative source of income prior to the event. Given that the launch event is held in Melbourne CBD, we can partner with several hotel providers around Federation Square providing preferential rates to the booking attendees which will help to generate extra revenue from the commission earned (Bong 2019, 31 March). In addition to that, by allowing other companies, whose products or services compliment the event, the opportunity to advertise their brand such as through flyer insertion in the goodie bags, logo placement on the printed materials or main screen, will also help to supplement some revenue prior to the event (Bong 2019, 31 March). 4. Recruit event volunteers to save on manpower cost. Seeking volunteers from educational institutions offering hospitality courses will help in reducing the labour costs incurred while at the same time provide valuable real-life working experiences to the volunteers (Bong 2019, 31 March).

Once you have assembled a list of possible roles and staff numbers (including volunteers and contractors), what would be the next HR consideration for staffing. Some of the HR considerations for event staffing is to ensure the availability of accurate job description for each of the role, budget is allocated for the resources required, advertised, shortlist, interview and selection of right candidate. In addition to that, HR will need to conduct trainings to all event staff especially in the Occupational and Health Safety training, ensure adequate number of staffs are allocated to fulfil the task required, and finally to manage performance and remunerations of all event staff. Week 5 Word Count: 333 words

Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) is important for the success of the Toyota event. Revisit the key objectives stated in Week 2 planning report and list three key messages you would have to guide IMC for the event. Explain why you have chosen these messages.

Key messages are essential to marketing campaigns and it is crucial that they are consistent with the event and aligned with overall objectives of the company (Ludwick 2019, 8 Apr).

Key message 1: Pioneer of self-charging hybrid technology. Since 1997, Toyota has been at the forefront of Hybrid technology aiming to continuously deliver high standard in hybrid vehicles sector (Toyota 2019). All communication tools should focus on the self-charging technology of Hybrid Cruiser. This which will help to build positive brand and product awareness and associating the car unique features in consumer’s mind. It is important to stress the point of difference between Toyota Hybrid Cruiser and other electric vehicles that it does not need any external recharging which is inherently inconvenient for some potential users.

Key message 2: Increase performance, reduce emission. The new Toyota hybrid cruiser offers unique product features that should be emphasised in the promotional activities. Their sustainability mission focusing on creating innovations that contribute to society without compromising environment quality (Toyota 2019) should be key driving message to their target audiences. Continuous commitment to global responsibility by reducing carbon footprints and emphasising that during the pre- and post-launch marketing campaign activities will further enhance their brand image to potential buyer who are environmental-conscious.

Key message 3: Technology designed for Australian Designed specifically for all different kind of Australian road condition, this value of Toyota hybrid cruiser must be able to be delivered to their target audience in a simple and strong message that Australian drivers can drive anywhere they want with this car. Having an Australian ambassador to represent the brand will enhance the brand relevance to the target market. The added advantage of fuel-saving capability and the partnership with Caltex should be frequently advertised to remind target audiences that long-term benefits of money saving from using the Hybrid Cruiser. A test-drive event with the presence of expert sales person to educate and address questions arise will create positive user experience and generate favourable word-of-mouth within the target market. Reference Lists:

Toyota 2019, 2018 Sustainability Report, [online], viewed 7 Apr 2019, .

Toyota 2019, The Future is Now, [online], viewed 8 Apr 2019, < https://www.toyota.com.au/hybrid>....