The Mayor’s Thames Festival

I was brought in to lead the team at the Festival with one clearly-defined objective; to increase brand awareness and public face by developing Social Media strategies, as well as general marketing of the event. There was just one twist; we were already at site capacity, so it wasn’t to be a straight ‘selling’ campaign.

I made myself the face and voice of the Festival across all social media and digital comms, pushing creative and engaging digital content year-round, encouraging follower interaction and fostering a real sense of community amongst the public, sharing stories and points of mutual interest.

The social platforms had previously been used for short periods only, to disseminate event information in the run-up to the Festival. By shifting focus to stories of more general London and arts interest I achieved improved engagement levels - and substantial growth in followers as a measurable result.

Facebook: 4000% increase / Twitter: +695% / e-shot subscribers: +273% (all April ‘10 - Oct ‘12).

The Festival marketing deliverables included an OOH advertising campaign incorporating collateral across bus, train and port networks, as well as a 64pp Festival listings document.

Here’s a packet we placed with ITV’s flagship news programme ‘London Tonight’ on the week of the 2012 festival: