Report On Singapore Biennale Event

Singapore Biennale

Introduction
The objectives of this report is to evaluate on the effective use of the various marketing mix components for the Singapore Biennale event, and also to discuss about the tourism roles and economic value of this event being held in Singapore. Research for this report is based on personal experience from participation of the event, and also research from trusted source on the internet.

Background
The Singapore Biennale is a contemporary art biennale that is held in Singapore. It all started back in 2006 when the first Biennale was held in Singapore. It was organized by the National Art Councils of Singapore, and it achieved an overwhelming response with the fact that the event attracted 883,000 visitors from Singapore and travelers from all over the world. In addition, the website had shown an astounding statistics of 1 million views and unique visitors everyday. This year, Fumio Nanjo, who is the director of the Moi Art Museum, has been appointed to take up the role of the artistic director for the Singapore Biennale 2008. Together with Joselina Cruz – who has a Masteral Studies in Art History at the University of the Philippines and holds an MA in Curating and Commissioning Contemporary Art from the Royal College of Art (RCA), London, UK- and Matthew NGUI – who is a visual artist working in the areas of installation, video, performance and site-specific works for the events in Berlin, Bordeaux, Copenhagen, Graz, Hong Kong, London, Manila and Vienna. He participated in the Sao Paulo (1996), Venice (2001) and Gwanju Biennales (2002) and the tenth Documenta in 1997- as the curatorial team for this event. This year, the event is held at locations that are of walking distance from each other, namely the City Hall, South Beach Development, the Marina Bay area near the Singapore Flyer, Raffles Shopping Centre, Central Promontory Site, and the Esplanade Bridge. The event is held from 11 September to 16 November (2008) and it will feature the artworks of 50 renowned local and international artists.

Marketing Mix

Product
The main product of this event is its unique art exhibition in the form of drawings, photographs, theatre, and 3 dimensional art works. The product is so unique that it cannot be found in many parts of the world. This means that the product itself is a pulling factor for people from all over the world to come to this event. The art lovers who seek inspiration will come and experience the authentic art works that have been done from artists all over the world. In addition, there is also a guide book given to visitors of the events. The book consists of various useful information of the event, and background information of the art works. This allows visitors to have better understanding of the artwork as they have a guide for reference. My personal suggestions is that perhaps various type of art work ranging from drawings to sculptures could be sold to visitors and part of the money goes to the charity. This not only serves as an additional source of revenue, it also encourages people to buy and appreciate art when they know they can also help the needy in doing so.

Place
The place that this event is being held is located at City hall, South Beach, the Marina Bay area near the Singapore Flyer, Suntec City, Raffles City Shopping Centre, Esplanade Bridge and Central Promontory Site. This is a really smart move in terms of marketing Singapore as a tourism destination. Travelers who come for the Biennale, not only will they be able to see the amazing art works, they are also able to catch a glimpse of the historic building of Singapore such as the the City Hall and South Beach. In addition they can also have a glimpse of the newly build attraction the Singapore Flyer. They can also get to experience shopping in Singapore as one of the venues is located at a shopping centre. This is a smart move by the event organizers as it will be killing two birds in one stone when these travelers are able to see the art works of the Biennale and also be introduced to some tourism destinations of Singapore. Hence when they return to their own country, they would advertise Singapore to their families and friends about the beautiful environment that Singapore has. This would then create more potential travelers to Singapore and would generate more GDP for us eventually. I feel that the place that the organizers have selected is perfect for such an event. The ambience and atmosphere goes in hand with the type of event that is held.

Partnerships
Due to the large scale of this event, there are 45 alliances that are sponsoring and partnering for this event. The government supporters are namely the Land Transport Authority, Preservations of Monuments Board, Singapore Land Authority and the Singapore Tourism Board. When the government plays a role in this event, it creates a very positive image about the event. Travelers will have faith in the event that it will be an enjoyable experience for them. This is because events that are being backed up by a government typically would not be one that will give a negative experience for its visitors.
There are also some other large companies taking up the role as the main sponsors. Some of these large companies are Urban Redevelopment Authority, City Development limited, Marina Bay, World Dubai, and Jet Airways. All the aspects of the events from catering, transportation to logistics are available. Hence, contributing to the overall success of this event.

Promotion
This event is advertised extensively in magazines and websites. One of the magazines that this event is advertised on is the Asian Contemporary Art and Culture. Art lovers who read this magazine would know about the event and thus there will be more potential travelers to Singapore. The next important medium of advertisement would be the Internet. The event is advertised on the Singapore Tourism Board website, as well as their own website of this event. Potential travelers who wish to know more about this event can visit the website for a glimpse of what they will be expecting to experience when they come for the event. Hence, these potential travelers would eventually become an actual traveler to Singapore. However, promotional strategy in terms of early bird pricing, or bulk pricing is lacking. Thus, I suggest that the company can actually promote the events by having discounts such as early bird discount, 30% off Singapore Flyer ride for first 50 customers to patronize the Singapore Flyer site for the Singapore Biennale.

Programming
Due to the fact that this is an experiential component, I will discuss more on my personal experience. I would rate the programming aspect a 6 out of 10. There is a lot of unique artwork, theatre artworks, and 3 dimensional art works that this event provides (will be shared in appendices). The main activity of this event is to walk around the site and explore on your own. There are some really unique theatre programs such as the burning room of artworks and very unique art works made of raw canvas, and carved wood. The kids biennale was also a unique program for the visitors. There are some really unique drawing from kids that makes me wonder what is the picture depicting. It can really open up one's imagination. However, there are very few interactive for visitors to have a hands-on experience. It is all self exploration of the place, and there is no planned program except for looking at the art works for pleasure of the eye. Although the programming aspect might be lacking but I feel that if does not really have a big impact for an event like this because other travelers might feel that it is better this way so that they can go and view the works that they like instead of being restricted to a planned program schedule. The unique product of this event would definitely outweigh the lack of programming. Another point to comment on is the "marrying" of the physical location with the exhibition of the art works. Visitors can view the unique architecture of the building as well as the unique art pieces of the artists. One way to really improve the overall programming is to allow the visitors to have some hands on experience. For example, there could be short drawing lessons or paper art lessons for the visitors. There could also be a talk from famous people in the art and culture industry. This programs will really brighten up the whole event as people can play a part in it instead of only looking at other people’s art work.



People
The people involved in this event are the audiences like me, and the staffs helping out at the event. My first moment of truth is at the time where I am at the lobby or front office of the event. The quality of service was excellent. The staffs who were selling the tickets were very polite. One of them even showed me the way up personally like an usher, and told me about the must see and good to see of the event. There were also other staffs positioned all around the place to assist their visitors and also to ensure the safety of the art works. I feel that somehow some life is missing in the event. The whole event can be made better by having various artists talking about their art work at the event. Hence there could be a sharing session between the visitors and the famous artists. This not only improves on the programming aspects, it also brings life to the place.

Packaging and Distribution
For this event, there was only 1 way of distribution, which is through a retail ticket booth located at City Hall and South Beach Development. This is a disadvantage for the event as people only had 1 method of purchasing these tickets. Perhaps the event company could partner with a travel agency, and have them to promote this event to the tourists, and also allow the agency to sell the tickets of the event. This way, more travelers would know about this event and there would also be more potential return customers who are interested in this event. They should also have an online ticket sales feature on their website so that people can book mass tickets online for group tour purpose.
The events packaging were in corporation with the Singapore Flyer, McDonalds and the Passion card. Visitors who present their S$10 Singapore Biennale ticket at the Singapore Flyer, would just simply need to top up S$21 instead of the original S$29.50 for an adult admission ticket to the Singapore Flyer. Passion Card holders would also enjoy a 30% discount off admission tickets to the Singapore Biennale plus a free short guide. Furthermore, customers who purchase a Mccafe meal can enjoy 20% discount off admission tickets and a free short guide. This is a strategic move to promote Singapore as a tourism destination. It actually motivates the visitors to try out our Singapore Flyer since they can have a discount for the tickets. In my opinion, perhaps the events company could package their product with more companies in the tourism industry, such as the night safari, Singapore zoological gardens and Jurong Bird Park etc.

Price
There are free admission and paid admission for this event. Exhibition at the Central Promontory Site, Raffles Shopping Centre and the Esplanade Bridge is free. This is to promote the awareness of the events as people typically enjoy having free stuff, thus will be attracted to see what is it like in a Singapore Biennale event. Visitors who have interest in the event can then continue to other paid sites to enjoy the art and culture of the event. The admission fee at City Hall is S$10 for a single entry. The price cannot be too expensive as it will discourage people from going to the event. In addition, there is also a 50% concession for all students, senior citizens above age 60 and all children above age 3. However, there is no complimentary short guide for concession tickets. Guide can still be purchased for $6 at the ticketing booth. For the Singapore Flyer site, the event company used the bundling strategy to market the event. The adult package cost S$31 and it includes 1 admission ticket to the Singapore Flyer, 1 admission ticket to the Singapore Biennale and 1 short guide. The child ticket and Senior Citizens ticket cost S$25.65 and S$28.60 respectively, and they include the same entitlements as the adult package. The bundling strategy used with the Singapore flyer was a good strategic move as the 2 different attractions can help to promote each other. I.e. visitors to the event will be encouraged to try the Singapore Flyer, and visitors to Singapore Flyer will be encouraged to participate in the Singapore Biennale event. One way to further improvise the bundling strategy is to come up with more bundles with other product, and they can be non-compulsory. This way, visitors have a wider choice of bundles they can choose from, which they think will be value for money.

Tourism Roles and Economic Value
A unique art and culture event like this would definitely attract art lovers from all over the world to participate in this event. Tourism arrival is directly affected by the ability to attract tourists to the Singapore Biennale. With more tourist arrival, the money that this tourist spend in Singapore on accommodation, food and beverage, admission tickets, transportation and other recreational and leisure activities, it positively affects our Gross Domestic Product. It also creates more employment opportunities for our locals as manpower is needed to cater to the needs of these tourists. With more locals being employed, again our GDP is positively affected. In addition tourist who come to this event can get a glimpse of other attractions like the Singapore Flyer and other historic buildings. There will be a chance of return trip and advertising of Singapore to the tourists’ friends and families back at their homeland. The number of people coming to Singapore will eventually increase, and there will be more employment opportunities and more GDP for us. The cycle will continue until it reaches its stagnation stage, which is still a long way to go.

Conclusion
In a nutshell, the best use of marketing mix was in the Product, Place, Partnership and Pricing. However the aspects of Programming, Packaging and distribution, People and Promotion could be improved on. This success of this event is heavily dependent on the first 4’Ps stated above. A unique product that is exhibited serve as the pull factor for visitors to the event. The uniqueness of the place creates the right atmosphere for the event and serves as a pull factor as well. Partnering with the right companies makes this event a success as everything that is needed from location to transportation is provided for. In addition with the government authorities’ support, the event could be held on a large scale for a longer period. The attractive pricing of the event also made it possible for more people to be able to afford to visit the event. Fortunately, the effective use of these 4’Ps outweighs the lack of the Programming, Packaging, People and Promotion.

Art Theatre


Book In Water


Burning Room Of Art (lower down volume)


Old School Arcade in a creative way


PS. All video is taken by the author Teo Kar Chuan. Please do not copy.