Venue management, live entertainment and event strategy company ASM Global has appointed Alex Merchán as executive vice-president of marketing as part of a plan to substantially increase the company’s programs for its portfolio of facilities across the world.
Merchán joins ASM having served as executive vice-president of Live Nation Entertainment from June 2017, specifically for its clubs and theatres division.
Previous to his tenure at Live Nation, Merchán spent 10 years at Hard Rock International, latterly as senior director of global marketing and sales from 2013 to June 2017, establishing the strategic direction for 175 venues in 74 countries, representing a billion-dollar business overseeing both sales and marketing in that capacity.
In Merchán’s new role, he will be responsible for all marketing, data analytics, digital, creative and communications efforts for ASM worldwide, overseeing strategic development across company divisions, supporting all marketing and sales efforts across global partnerships, customer experience, data analytics, revenue growth, new venue partners, food and beverage, content, and programming.
ASM said Merchán has been instrumental in the execution and implementation of its recently announced strategic partnership with Qualtrics. ASM Global this month entered into a partnership with the Utah-based tech business management firm to create new fan experiences at live events as venues adapt to a post-pandemic environment.
As part of the deal, ASM will leverage Qualtrics in the creation of a proprietary system to listen to fan feedback and work to create experiences that reflect the changing habits of spectators.
Merchán will evolve the core marketing strategies and develop the marketing team to drive growth across company divisions and further expand the portfolio such as recent openings in Coca Cola Music Hall (San Juan, Puerto Rico), Capital One Hall (Tysons, Virginia) and Tacoma Theater (Tacoma, Washington), all now part of the ASM portfolio.
ASM president and CEO, Ron Bension, said: “There are tremendous opportunities for us to bring substantially increased value to our clients through strategic marketing initiatives. Alex is uniquely qualified to harness the power of the world’s largest live-event marketing platform to drive sales, revenues and awareness to our partner venues around the globe.”
Merchán added: “ASM’s multichannel digital platform leverages a global footprint and rich live-event data to create and power impactful marketing campaigns, drive guest engagement and grow ticket sales.
“Our global scope and expertise, technology infrastructure, and strategic partners provide an exciting foundation to leverage on the ground marketing activation with a robust integrated digital network and deliver engaged audiences across all our stadiums, arenas, convention centres and theatres.
“No one in the live entertainment business can match – among many things – our ability to deliver and market to a captive global audience through cutting-edge technology, creative partnerships, and a well-researched and charted guest experience.”
