The story begins in the first year with a smash hit! To play into the existing branding and bird character, Spitball turned their beloved “Ike” into The King of Talent Acquisition. It was such a huge success that Spitball developed a branded theme around the show, its location and the latest software release each year – from Vegas to Space to Racing.

Since the benefit of trade shows is to get hands-on, we wanted to go beyond a flat character and create something even more dramatic and tangible. Spitball worked with iCIMS to develop a unique room-drop that created excitement before the event to drive people to their booth. When show attendees checked into their hotel room, they were greeted by a branded care package and the centerpiece was an adorable plush Ike.

The client loved this little plush so much, it conjured up much bigger ideas. So big it became a full-size mascot that roamed the trade show floor, snapped a few Instagram pics and created a spectacle at the event to drum up visibility for iCIMS.

The success from these shows inspired smaller-scale event marketing with lunch-and-learns and local efforts, which also leveraged the power of Ike, to drive sales and customer loyalty.