How Sumo Eleven navigates the ever-changing events industry

 This post is sponsored by Sumo Eleven.

The force has certainly been awakened within homegrown events marketing agency Sumo Eleven. In a short span of three years, Sumo Eleven has expanded its business with new clients and projects, and won multiple local and regional awards with innovative campaigns.

The agency’s achievements can be attributed to the synergy and collective experience of its four founders from various backgrounds – concept and creative, events and exhibition, digital marketing, entertainment and talent management, activations and automative – together with a team of 17 amazing and unique individuals.

In an online interview, A+M gets an insight into the agency’s approach to events marketing, recent campaigns they are proud of and how the agency navigates the ever-changing industry.

A+M: What is Sumo Eleven’s outlook for the events marketing scene in Malaysia?

We believe there is a continued demand for events marketing. In a world where most communication takes place in the digital space, there is an even greater appetite for authentic content and genuine connections.

Content is at the heart of all events. To create a stand-out event, it has to have relevant content that resonates with the attendees, while still communicating the brand’s message and achieving the client’s goals. Consumers today are overwhelmed with information so they seek authenticity in content, especially those which are thought-provoking, intelligent and funny; and they prefer it when a brand tells them a story.

We believe in creating experiences, not just events. An event is an occasion to bring the connection from the digital platform to the real-life world – to create a genuine connection with consumers in order for them to have a memorable experience of the brand.

A+M: Tell us about Sumo Eleven’s work which reflects the current trends.

For Chivas Regal – which was awarded gold and bronze at MARKies Awards Malaysia 2018 – we observed there was a dearth of quality live events so we disrupted the clubbing scene by introducing a new entertainment genre – Electronic Theatrical Music (ETM) – theatre on steroids. A first-of-its-kind in Asia, the “Chivas Collab: ETM” was an experiential extravaganza combining electronic dance music + theatre – coupled with high octane audio and stimulating visual effects – brought alive by a diverse range of artists.

For Mercedes-Benz – a finalist at MARKies Awards Malaysia 2018 – we tapped into Millennials’ desires for real stories and unique experiences which respected their journey to adulthood by involving them in a movement: urban hunting. Our three-step approach: ignited conversations with “Grow Up Your Way” stories by four new generation KOLs; revved up the excitement with the “Urban Hunting x Grow Up Festival” to present them with the “key to adulthood” – the new limited edition facelift GLA car; and put them in the driver’s seat with the “Urban Hunting x Ultra Star Drive” to experience the performance of the car and luxurious lifestyle of the brand.

For Martell NCF, we worked hand-in-hand with the trade to surround the whole drinking experience. We created “Martell Light Up Assets” – new drinking rituals (“Martell Ice-Pool”) and new on-site experiences (“Martell NCF Invasion Parties”, “Martell Copper Mapping Imagery”). We also created several “firsts”: A first-of-its-kind in the region, Martell transformed a dilapidated shipping dockyard into a high-energy dance club for one night. Another first in Malaysia was the “Martell Light Up Trucks”, a see-through truck with a DJ spinning high-energy music streamed on Facebook Live driven around major entertainment hotspots. We are proud to say this campaign won four awards in 2017.

A+M: How does Sumo Eleven conquer the challenges in the industry?

Our ethos is to “Always go the extra mile”. We strive to not just do what we are supposed to do and stop there, but to take one more step above the benchmark in order to make a difference and leave a memorable experience of us with our clients and consumers.

In our highly competitive industry, we ensure sustainability through building relationships with brands. We believe in being a strong brand guardian. We need to have an in-depth understanding of clients to conceptualise ideas and strategies which are aligned to their brand direction and fulfil their campaign objectives.

Hence, we always go the extra mile to achieve whatever is best for the brand and not just for the client. So let our force awaken your brand!