McConnells Gives Away £1,000 of Marketing Expertise
To remind companies that cutting back on marketing during a recession can be counter productive, we decided to give away £1,000 of marketing expertise in a business card raffle.
The draw, which took place at Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber’s Enterprising Women Anniversary Lunch, was designed to encourage business leaders to invest in more cost-effective creative solutions rather than slashing budgets altogether. Robert Eley, managing director McConnells, explains:
“We understand that businesses need to cut costs, but if your profile’s too low people may think you’ve gone out of business. So we decided to stage the raffle to encourage businesses to consider other tactics such as on-line advertising, Bluetooth and PR. And with 100 female entrepreneurs attending the event, it was the perfect place to do it.
The £1,000 of marketing expertise was won by Carrie-Louise Darby, sales manager of the Dakota Hotel, Bar and Grill on Sherwood Business Park. The hotel plans to use the £1,000 to trial new Bluetooth casting technology. This will allow it to broadcast rich messages, such as video, photos or songs, about its promotions to anyone who passes the transmitter and has a Bluetooth enabled mobile phone. It has also asked McConnells to rewrite and distribute a press release on its behalf.
“We are delighted to have won first prize in McConnells’ business card draw. This is a very exciting time for the Dakota Hotel as we are now under new management and winning the £1,000 gives us the opportunity to try out new techniques such as the Bluetooth casting,” said Carrie-Louise.
The second prize of £100 of Clarins products was won by Dianne McCutcheon regional appeals manager for the Teenage Cancer Trust. The Trust provides a support network for teenagers with cancer and raises funds to build specialist teenage cancer units. Based in Sutton In Ashfield, Dianne attends a wide range of networking events in a bid to obtain corporate support for the Trust – so, she told McConnells, is more used to presenting raffle prizes than receiving them.
Sughra Khaliq managing director of Ameerah received third prize of a giant Easter egg. Ameerah, which is based at the Rosehill Business Centre in Derby, designs and manufacturers a wide range of stylish and flattering uniforms, as well as offering a bespoke design service. The company has taken the beauty and spa industries by storm and as a result, is now launching into the healthcare and private sectors.
In addition to staging the raffle, McConnells also provided goody bags for the Ladies Lunch event. The bags included vouchers for £100 worth of marketing expertise from McConnells; Ragdale Hall spa; Masa restaurant; and to ‘create your own perfume’ at new on-line store www.MyParfuem.com. Other gifts included bath bombs and pens from Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire Chamber.
