SKO Turned Into a Content Machine

The truth about B2B events.

Would you spend months and possibly millions to organize an event and not give it proper coverage afterward? No? And yet, this is the case of most Sales Kick-Off events.

But what if we told you it doesn't have to be that way? And actually, your SKO event can be a great opportunity to create high-level content for your marketing campaigns for the entire year?

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Why do SKOs so rarely get proper coverage outside of an organization?

Well, despite all the work and resources put into their SKOs, companies often view those events as purely internal, focused on their own employees. Most of the content coming out of those events is generic, usually summarizing the event post factum.

We’re talking about things like:

• Some photos of the SKO logo, especially if it happens in a "cool" venue,
• Some photos from the stage, mostly praising the leadership and the executives.
• Showing off networking and parties or gadgets gifted to the employees

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This kind of content has a relatively short "shelf-life" and can be shared only during or just after the event. It does not have any potential for prolonged messaging.

It fails to engage their clients, their industry analysts, and their partners. Kinda sucks for events you spend millions of dollars on, if you ask me. 😎

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Our take on SKOs

But with all of the most important people in the company gathering in one place and time... SKO content should do sooooo much more.

All of the company's C-suite would be right there, in one place, accessible to everyone. How often does that happen?

We wanted to create content that would be relevant for a long time. Filmed in one place and then used to engage their audience in campaigns, websites, or events throughout the year.

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Where did we want to take Trend Micro?

We proposed we would make them the first company to purposefully use their SKO as an external celebration of their brand:

• Build up overall awareness of their brand and strengthen the messaging of their company as a cybersecurity and thought leader
• Promote their executive team, sales leaders, and their top salespeople
• Tease their upcoming products and features
• Demonstrate how Trenders express their pride in working for the brand
• Build a lasting repository of leadership content for future digital campaigns and events

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What were the content types we planned?

• The SKO Opening Video - setting the stage for the whole event
• The SKO Talk Show - in-depth interviews
• Stage highlights - reel format summaries form the main stage
• People & Culture - videos focused on the people
• Daily Summary - kinda self-explanatory
• Photobook - an interactive keepsake for participants

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In all, that's close to 80 pieces of video content for a 3-day event!!!

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The SKO Opening Video

An opening video is a crucial part of the event as it's the first official content attendees usually see, so it's an excellent opportunity to say something memorable... and get them in the mood.

This is especially crucial at Sales Kick-Offs, as you’ve got close to 2000 attendees, and you need them on the same page fast.

The video we created was designed to fit the tech setup of the conference and was played across three screens simultanously. Based on the audience's reaction - we feel like we did a good job with it!

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SKO Talk Show

A multicamera interview studio smack in the middle of SKO. It would be similar to a post-game interview, but here, it was supposed to host a post-presentation interview.

These interviews would be posted in full on YouTube and Trend website and then cut again into watchable social media snippets.

We envisioned a respected industry journalist interviewing Trend executives, leaders, partners, and other guests. They were able to guide the conversation toward what the broader industry audience would be interested in, so the Talk Show was not just an internal fluff piece.

Although that small element wasn't implemented, we produced hours of high-quality, expert content relevant to industry analysts, partners, and end users. These videos were used as long-form content (podcasts) on the Trend Micro website, YouTube, LinkedIn, or even on future events.

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Stage highlights

As the name implies, we created 15-20-second snippets of the most important parts of a presentation. They were ready rather quickly after the keynote.

The idea was to prolong the viewers' interaction with the stage presentations and promote the speakers and the core message. These highlights were presented throughout the venue and on social media.

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People & Culture

This was a broad spectrum of content intended much more for... fun.

We have prepared videos and photo slideshows of Trenders in various situations. They were shown reacting to stage presentations, meeting their old company friends, having fun partying and networking, or showing off all the new brand swag they got.

As it turned out, this was the bulk of the content produced.

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Daily Summaries

The daily summaries were minute-long films that culminated the entire event day. Ready for breakfast the next day, the videos captured the best moments from the previous day, filled with laughter, emotions, fun, and the celebration of Trend Micro, all wrapped up in an energetic video.

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Post event content

In addition to the above, we have also delivered post-SKO content, which was created during the event but delivered later.

One of those was an interactive photobook.

It is an excellent way to preserve memories and serves as a splendid documentation of the event. Such a beautifully crafted keepsake adds a touch of class to the entire event and provides a delightful departure from sharing photos via a cloud folder.

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What media channels did we utilize?

SKO TV

Much more than just a dozen screens around the venue, the SKO TV was a method of strengthening key messages and showcasing Trenders being... Trenders. Everything 24/7 without waiting for the next day's summary video.

A big chunk of the content displayed was the same as the social media content, however, in larger quantities. As it was internal only, we could use images and messages we couldn't broadcast on social media channels. All of the content was created with being watched without sound in mind.

Streamed from our command and control room, we maintained a varied and interesting playlist... including updated schedules 🙂

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Social media

The social media content was hand picked from all the things that were being shown through SKO TV. For the ease and speed of editing, both channels were using vertical video formats. A selection of interesting stage highlights promoting the speakers and the brand, the fun People & Culture content, as well as daily summary videos, covering the entirety of the event day, from the first presentation at 9 a.m., to the start of the midnight party.

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How did we pull it off?

To make this all work, we have planned for and executed over 70 pieces of video content. 90% of the content had to be delivered "almost live", that is within 2-3 hours - both for internal distribution, as well as official external social media channels.

It took a global team of creators working around the clock to pull this off. Apart from the video and photo crews, we had a robust procedure for delivering so much content in just three days.

• We utilized two "run and gun" camera operators to cover the events on the stage, on the sidelines, and in the audience - they were everywhere at once!
• A three-person team at the multi-camera studio produced over two dozen of back-to-back interviews and leadership promos
• Two photographers delivered at least 50 images every hour
• Our on-site team of editors was supplemented by two editors in Poland, in order to ensure that content from the evening parties would be ready for publication in the morning

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All this creative and editing capacity was fully utilized to deliver timely and high-quality content.

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So... how did we do overall?

We think it was splendid.

The content we created was actively and eagerly shared by both the Trend Micro leadership, as well as their employees. Some particular pieces of content were shared dozens, or even hundreds of times. Throughout the three-day event, Trend Micro's global LinkedIn page published 10 posts that generated hundreds of interactions, each.

The total reactions across all Trend Micro pages and executives' profiles exceeded 5000!

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So how can YOU do this, too?

• You will need to underscore the significance of the SKO as an event. To do this, you have to shift its perception from it being "just an internal event" to "a brand-building opportunity". An SKO is a rare occasion each year when the entire leadership team gathers in one place, creating an atmosphere full of excitement, with many communication campaigns reaching their peak during the SKO. Use that to your advantage!
• You have to bring your team on-board with a clearly defined strategy and KPIs. Be bold with content formats. The SKOs are less formal, so feel free to have fun and experiment with something innovative and inspiring.
• Videos should be your main focus, but do not underestimate the power of high-quality photography. People enjoy sharing images of themselves, so remember to consider the audience at the venue and provide a way for them to engage with the content.
• It all can be overwhelming, so start small and early... However, if you want an actual content creating machine, firing on all pistons like we have shown above, you should be ready to hire an external team to set up a media production hub.

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Ready to give your SKO the coverage it truly deserves?

Transform your Sales Kick-Off (SKO) event into a content goldmine that tackles key pain points and drives event success year-round. Black Rabbit took Trend Micro’s SKO and turned it into a strategic content hub, capturing high-value moments to nurture hot leads, boost engagement, and keep attendees paying attention well beyond the event. This approach not only addresses audience pain points but also creates a lasting asset for ongoing brand visibility and marketing success.

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Start a project with Black Rabbit. We can help with the whole thing. Strategy. Creative. Production. Let's talk!