Insight: Somerset House and the Tribe & Trusted survey

Somerset House styles itself as ‘The Home of Cultural Innovators”. It is an iceberg of a venue, a big bit you can see, and a huge network that isn’t so ‘on show’. The bit you can see is a London landmark, glittering with historical opulence. On the surface it looks quite exclusive. The bit you can’t see is a charity that supports, incubates and develops inclusivity, diversity, creativity, opportunity.

It is a beguiling mix, where artists and entrepreneurs meet, and it is also a location that attracts 2.4 million visitors annually.

In November I went to Somerset House to a breakfast preview of Tribe & Trusted: brand activations looking to drive a deeper connection and lasting loyalty.  Tribe & Trusted is a research paper that dives into some of the immersive justifications of brand activations. The event itself was an intriguing occasion, a chance to see Somerset House during its ice rink season whilst meeting and chatting with a number of brand experience agencies and some brands inside some of the experiential spaces that Somerset House uses for the activations it plays host to. Whilst attending, I also had the chance to meet Luci Sorrell, Head of Sales, Commercial Events at Somerset House.

The breakfast event

Tribe & Trusted: brand activations looking to drive a deeper connection and lasting loyalty was launched at a breakfast event which was attended by over 100 industry leaders. As part of the event, Somerset House hosted a thought-provoking panel discussion featuring senior marketeers who shared their thoughts on the design and future directive of live experiences and activations.

The panellists:

Liz Arber-Debaere, PR Manager UK & Ireland at Swatch Group (back right)
After working in menswear textiles after graduating (BA and MDS) in textiles, Liz started in PR at Ella Dror PR and The Lobby, PR fashion agency for 7 years as PR Manager and head of media looking after contemporary brands as Ashley Williams, Roberta Einer and Astrid Andersen. Liz has been working for Swatch Group with the brand, Rado, for just under 2 years, and is now PR Manager for Swatch and Flik Flak.

Ebony Atakorah, Creative Director at Studio Dream (front right)
With a decade of experience in luxury, fashion, and creative industries, Ebony has worked with influential brands and co-founded Studio Dream and Palais Beauty. Her diverse expertise and ability to bring creatives together make her a force to be reckoned with. Passionate about creating meaningful work, Ebony thrives under pressure and enjoys bringing brands to life.

Fernanda Graeff, Director at Mission (middle)
Fernanda Graeff is a seasoned Communications professional with over 25 years of experience (and then she stopped counting!) She has worked extensively with business strategy across various agencies and clients, spanning advertising, experiential and PR. This includes serving as Managing Director of her own agency for almost a decade. Having recently marked 4 years in London, she currently holds the position of New Business Director at Mission, a leading culture, communications, and experiential agency. 
 
Jessica MacGillivray, Client Director at Event Concept (front left)
Jessica MacGillivray is the Client Director at Event Concept, a creative brand activation and event production agency. Jess is an experiential marketing professional with a remarkable track record of successfully executing brand campaigns over the last 15 years. With a passion for creating immersive experiences for globally renowned brands around the world, including include Xbox, PlayStation, Twitter, Heineken, adidas, and Google, she has spearheaded numerous innovative campaigns that have captivated audiences and driven substantial brand growth.

 
Keziah Wildsmith, Director at Heaps + Stacks (back left)
Keziah is the founder of new generation, multi-discipline creative design studio Heaps + Stacks. Taking you from concept to delivery, the team creates culture-smart brand experiences that bring joy to you and your audience. From events, to photoshoots, to activations and packaging– they work with brands to produce experiences that are playfully chic and perfectly timed.

About: Tribe & Trusted

The research was carried out using qualitative research from communications agency Triggerfish. It was consequently published in December. The study set out to interrogate what brands and creative agencies are looking to achieve from an activation, and what the biggest drivers for attendance are in a world where consumers are bombarded with digital ads from brands. 

The survey’s 90+ respondents are recognised leaders in brand activations – from creative and field marketing agencies to corporate brands across sectors including retail, gaming and fashion.

Highlights of the insight paper include:

• Organisations are prioritising face-to-face marketing and live experiences in order to widen their outreach, and to develop a deeper understanding of how their customers behave and interact with their brand.
• The economy and uneasy consumer outlook is being mitigated by brands who seek to amplify deeper and more enduring customer relationships. Consumers also value authentic experiences and the opportunity to build a relationship with a brand they can trust.
• How we interact with each other has changed in recent years with social media exacerbating this shift. Today’s guest wants to be part of a dynamic and exclusive experience with a likeminded tribe of consumers, drawn by shared values and outlooks.
• Sustainability and diversity are key considerations across the board. This reinforces the point that loyalty is established through shared outlooks, values, transparency, and trust. The focus is just as much on the purpose behind a brand as the product itself.

Luci Sorrell comments: “Our central location and heritage as a residency for the arts has led us to position ourselves as the Home of Cultural Innovators. As our brand awareness has grown so too has the interest we’ve received from brands and agencies who want to work with us to further elevate their brand. As such we recently sought the thoughts and opinions of brands, creative agencies and attendees so that we could interrogate today’s motivations behind brand activations and what consumers now expect.

“Brand engagement and creating an authentic connection with consumers is paramount and desired by both brands and attendees alike. In a changing world, consumers want to build an emotional connection with a brand which demonstrates similar values and outlooks, as well as having an authentic purpose. As a by-product of this, brands are able to build a tribe of likeminded consumers who also value this connection.”

Tribe & Trusted – My Analysis

This interesting survey of 90+ industry professionals was very much focussed on immersive events and activations of the type that Somerset House hosts from the heart of London.

Participants represented a wide range of sectors and a work-in-London 25-44 year old age bracket and I think it is useful to understand that context when drawing on the findings.

Outcomes

The survey asked this audience ‘what outcomes do you want to achieve from your activation? The results for this are presented from the perspective of both Corporate Brand and Creative Agency delivering results that show the age-old disparity between agency and brand with brands putting the stronger emphasis on sales and customer reach and agencies leaning towards loyalty and connection. Of course, both sets are typically looking for a ‘deeper connection with the brand’ as a desirable outcome and you would hope that those that did not choose this option merely chose other outcomes as a core focus event priority.

Nevertheless, the question of ROI vs ROE is raised here, and it also did so with the panel.

In my view joined-up accountability is the underlying challenge here. At FMBE we have seen a far greater trend towards sales being presented as a desirable part of an immersive experience with brand fans and converts often seeking an opportunity to buy at the end of the experience – very much like the shop at the end of the museum tour.  

We have seen immersive experiences popping up that replicate the ambitions of experiential retail.

ROI and ROE are, if not the same thing, becoming more seamless.

The survey then progresses to a very interesting point, where it discusses trust, and this is reinforced by high percentages of respondents who use IRL activations to build Trust.

And this is certainly a key role and an underappreciated one when it comes to immersive events. One of the key issues facing both online brands and digital marketers is the overwhelming amount of noise and deception that is presented in the digital space. Real life events give brands solidity. In 2024 we can expect more online fashion brands to need to pop up with real life experiences both to build trust and engage with audiences. IRL a two-way conversation about brand perception is possible.

The Producer’s multi-award winning FML store for Not On The High Street is a great example of this.

I would say that I am typical of many occasional online shoppers. If I get a rare well targeted ad pitched at me on social media from a brand I don’t know, I will search for the product on Amazon if I haven’t established trust with the company direct. The company would much rather I went to them directly of course.

Similarly, the Trust outcome plays to the strengths of Somerset House. This event space comes with the solidity of history alongside its cultural and charitable status. It is a great choice for delivering style+trust, leading to experiences that meet the expectations of that golden word of the moment – authenticity.

The survey chose Mission’s work with Hennessey to illustrate this outcome and it was a well-chosen example as the activation was launched as part of the Somerset House exhibition Get Up Stand Up Now, a celebration of Black creativity. Hennessy is a brand that is keenly focussed on staying culturally relevant – a brand once synonymous with racing is now engaged with sponsorship properties such as the NBA.

Of course, trust isn’t so much of a priority for existing brand users. As the survey says, existing users want to feel valued as a customer.

Knowing your attendees is key here. Don’t present a discounted brand switch opportunity to a room full of advocates, or if you do, make sure there is a reward for customer loyalty too.

Those are my main take outs from the survey. The full paper can be downloaded from this page.

Somerset House: My Impressions

I really enjoyed going to Somerset House for the breakfast. The space we were in allowed was a great canvas and the breakfast, using the superb caterers from the in-house roster Social Pantry, and using Event Concepts for production was on point.

I was intrigued enough by the rooms we were in to seek out a case study/ interview – so ‘watch’ this space for a look at the colour and mood matching journey that was created there by The Department for Omega.

The case studies in the paper and the events brochure for Somerset House are closely related. The venue has chosen to keep its own survey close to home.

Whilst that might be seen as a little introspective, the positive side of that is that you get to appreciate the full flexibility of Somerset House. From projections onto the building front to flag raising stunts on its domed roof, Somerset House is prepared to embrace all types of brand experience. Case studies from Event Concept/ Uniqlo, Netflix/ Studio Dream and Reg&Co/ Instax show how readily Somerset House adds extra layers of connection to pop ups that might have had less meaningful connections placed elsewhere.

Again, I was struck by the Reg&Co case study, especially as that agency is located in Somerset House and works closely with the venue through the year. An interview with agency CEO Karen Morris follows next week.

There are 262 days of free exhibitions there annually to potentially share audience with.

Above all there is the sign off for the Home of Cultural Innovators. The venue supports various programmes that make it something of a creativity hive. Hosting events at Somerset House also helps support these programmes, so the is a CSR implication as well as a potential cultural exchange to embrace.