| NEWS 10.20.09 1:38 PM |
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Poll Results: Planners Find Facebook a Useful Distraction
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If your boss catches you using Facebook during the day, 80 percent of you can use work as your excuse. That's because only 20 percent of the participants in last week's poll say they haven't tried using the Web site to promote an event. Of the overwhelming number of Facebook users in the bunch, 70 percent have set up an event page, while only 10 percent have paid to advertise an event.
We're taking an early assessment of holiday parties for this week's poll (located on the left column of the home page), so let us know what your company has planned.
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Facebook, Holiday Parties |
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| NEWS 08.12.09 11:41 AM |
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In the News: Low-Key Event Sponsorships Thrive, Victoria's Secret Show Returns to New York
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Corporate Sponsors Take Subtle Approach: Sponsorships are still present at major events, but some companies are going to extreme lengths to ensure people don't notice. Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley, for example, all had a presence at the 2009 U.S. Open golf tournament, but instead of branding tables, shirts, and tents with their logos, each of the banks slipped by under the radar. The banks paid $750,000 between them just on tables at a hospitality center off the 18th green, but declined any sort of signage. Many professionals suggest that this is indicative of the new importance of perception over actual spending. [NYT]
Victoria's Secret Show Heads Back East: After three years in other markets, the annual Victoria's Secret fashion show will return to New York this fall. No official date or venue have been selected, but the event is typically held in November and its most recent New York show was at the 69th Regiment Armory. The event will once again be broadcast several weeks later on CBS. [NYM]
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Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Victoria’s Secret, Twitter, Facebook |
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| NEWS 07.29.09 2:32 PM |
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In the News: Evite Losing Event Edge, Ben Stein Wants More Meetings
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MySpace Events Platform Surpasses Evite: Things aren't so hot these days for former social networking Web site of choice MySpace, but one arena the News Corp. property is succeeding in is online invitations. Traffic reports show that the MySpace events platform has beat out Evite for the first time, with a reported 700,000 invitations sent out every day compared to Evite's 600,000. That doesn't mean MySpace is No. 1, though. Facebook doesn't publish exact figures for its events feature, but it did recently say that the site houses 2.5 million new events per month. [TechCrunch]
Ben Stein Misses Meetings: The American Spectator published an op-ed by former Nixon staffer, media personality, and renaissance man Ben Stein this week, in which he chides the federal government for trying to put the kibosh on business meetings. To add weight to his argument, Stein suggests that meetings of Congress and the Supreme Court are on the same level as business meetings and that eliminating events would do nothing but prolong the recession. Choice line: "Meetings and business travel did not cause this recession." [American Spectator]
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Myspace, Evite, Facebook, Ben Stein, Procter & Gamble, Swiffer, EA, San Diego Comic-Con |
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| EVENT INTELLIGENCE 05.01.09 9:30 AM |
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How Two Recent Events Used Social Networking Sites to Woo Attendees
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These days event pros are using social media sites like Facebook and Twitter for a lot more than posting status updates about their weekend plans. More and more planners are utilizing social media sites to promote their events and reach new audiences. (Speaking of Twitter—and aren't we all lately?—BizBash's news tweet is here.) Here are two examples.
“We created a character called Buybarella, designed by our fashion illustrator Danielle Meder, to promote Buy Design this year,” said Kelly Carmichael, event manager for Windfall Clothing Service, which hosted a space-themed fund-raiser at the Fermenting Cellar in mid-April. “Twitter was something new to Windfall and Buy Design and it was really beneficial.” The character, inspired by the Jane Fonda movie Barbarella, tweeted about ticket giveaways and details about the event, including hints about the menu and ideas about where to shop for an outfit to wear to the benefit.
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RELATED TOPICS
Social Networking, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Interior Design Show, Windfall Clothing Service |
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| Q & A 04.02.09 10:00 AM |
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Virginia Gold Cup's Katie Snyder Adds Sponsor Categories for New Revenue Streams
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 | Virginia Gold Cup races at Great Meadow in the Plains
Photo: © Isabel J. Kurek |
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FROM WASHINGTON
The race never stops for Katie Snyder, director of development for the Virginia Gold Cup Association. Based in Warrenton, Virginia, Snyder and her full-time staff of four produce the Old Dominion’s largest twice-yearly horse race, with the leading purses for timber racing (jumping fences) in the country. The two race days in spring and fall draw a total of more than 85,000 fans to the 175-acre Great Meadow equestrian facility and event venue in the town of The Plains for one of the biggest social and sporting events in the D.C. area.
Before taking the Gold Cup reins in summer 2007, Snyder was the associate director of corporate development for the Sundance Institute in Los Angeles and also practiced law. Her efforts at Gold Cup have added new corporate-sponsorship opportunities, such as a Chairman's Box and JumboTrons, to an already action-packed day at the races. In addition to the ever-popular Jack Russell terrier races (sponsored by the Virginia Lottery) and tailgate competition (sponsored by Goodstone Inn and Estate), there are now nearly 25 sponsored programs and activities. We spoke to Snyder as she nailed down details for the upcoming Virginia Gold Cup race May 2.
When do you start planning for Gold Cup?
We start about 18 months out. This year will be the 84th running for the spring races, and our major vendors for tents, equipment, and catering have multiyear contracts to receive the best pricing. But so far this year we are seeing an 8 to 10 percent decline in ticket sales from 2008. Still, our attendance is very diverse, from young socialites to college alumni to business groups, as well as neighborhood families and friends. These groups annually book tailgate spots or buy the higher-end tickets on Members Hill for the spring tradition of seeing and being seen.
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Virginia Gold Cup Association, Sundance Institute, Facebook, Twitter, Virginia Lottery, Goodstone Inn & Estate, Fidelity Investments, Airbus Industries, Booz Allen Hamilton |
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| EVENT REPORT 03.23.09 11:02 AM |
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Paramount Promotes I Love You, Man With Beer and Nose-Hair Clippers
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 | Signage showcased the stars of I Love You, Man
Photo: BizBash |
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FROM CHICAGO
Paramount Pictures' new film I Love You, Man opened in cities across the country on Friday. To promote the movie on the eve of its debut, Paramount declared March 19 "National Man Date Day," and staged advance screenings and after-parties in markets from Washington to Atlanta.
In Chicago, after a screening of the film at Webster's Place Theatre, approximately 300 locals kept the night going at Sheffield's, where a gag-filled after-party played off the movie's cheeky male-bonding theme. To produce the event, Paramount Pictures's marketing team tapped the local branch of Terry Hines and Associates, a company that specializes in advertising and promotion for movie houses. Janet Golen, a senior publicist at Terry Hines, oversaw planning efforts.
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Paramount Pictures, I Love You Man, Terry Hines and Associates, Facebook, RedEye |
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| Q & A 10.16.08 9:00 AM |
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Cathy Brown Is Planning Halloween Events in Three Cities and Bracing for the Next Administration
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 | Cathy Brown
Photo: Courtesy of Children Affected by AIDS Foundation |
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Cathy Brown has spent more than 10 years as president of Children Affected by AIDS Foundation (CAAF), and for her, October always seems to be particularly busy. From her base in Los Angeles, Brown oversees the foundation's annual Dream Halloween event, a production-heavy affair that brings family activities set in a Trick or Treat village to three American cities. This year, the event comes to Chicago's Windy City Fieldhouse on October 18, New York's Roseland Ballroom the next day, and Barker Hangar in Los Angeles on October 25. The event is expected to draw 1,200, 700, and 2,200 guests, respectively.
Along with planning the three-city event, Brown spent the past year facilitating a surrounding campaign, which launched October 1. The campaign aims to raise funds and awareness for CAAF and features everything from specially designed Dream Halloween costumes to an interactive e-card available on the CAAF Web site and a promotional video starring Jamie Lee Curtis. We recently spoke with Brown about these efforts, building relationships with corporate sponsors, and working at a nonprofit in the current economy.
Give us some background on Dream Halloween.
Halloween is the second largest retail holiday, and it's a time of fun and celebration for both children and adults. Fifteen years ago, CAAF decided to capitalize on this and celebrate Halloween in a fashion that would also enable us to raise funds. This last year, we have expanded the event into a full-blown campaign that involves corporate partners, a Halloween e-card, and a text-message campaign.
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Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, Toys R Us, Mattel, American Airlines, Nickelodeon, Resnick Automotive Group, MySpace, Facebook, Disney, Jamie Lee Curtis, James Gandolfini, Melina Kanakaredes |
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| EVENT REPORT 10.06.08 11:54 AM |
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Celebrity DJ Prompts Last-Minute Changes to Microsoft Launch
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 | Celebrity DJ Samantha Ronson
Photo: Courtesy of Leigh Tynan |
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An appearance by celebrity DJ Samantha Ronson—recently confirmed to be Lindsay Lohan's girlfriend—at the Microsoft Advertising launch Thursday at Kultura generated such an overwhelming response from guests that organizers had to switch up their plans for the night just a few days prior to the event. “We had to basically reevaluate the whole evening,” said Trish Knox of TK Events Inc., who worked with the company to plan the launch.
“Initially it was going to be a dinner for 80 to 100 guests,” said Knox, noting that close to 200 guests confirmed their attendance. “We thought we’d just turn it into a stand-up cocktail reception.” Kultura removed its dining tables and chairs to make room for the crowd, and Knox brought in furnishings from Contemporary Furniture Rentals to create a lounge. She also placed plasma televisions on each of the three floors to ensure all guests could view the announcements and speeches about Microsoft’s new advertising network, DRIVEpm. (Microsoft is also the exclusive provider of display advertising on Facebook.)
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Microsoft Advertising Canada, DRIVEpm, Facebook, Samantha Ronson |
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| EVENT REPORT 08.11.08 10:56 AM |
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Samsung Has Guests Interacting With Technology at Instinct Phone Launch
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 | Glowing cubes and promotional cards at the Samsung Instinct launch.
Photo: Courtesy of Froghammer.com |
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Cell phones have gone through flip and slide phases, but touch is the most evident PDA trend of the moment. Following the Canadian launches of the LG Touch Phone and the Apple iPhone, Samsung introduced its new Instinct model at a party for 100 at the West Queen West bar the Social Thursday night.
Leading up to the phone's launch in stores Friday (with Bell as a service provider), Samsung's campaign started building buzz in July with a guerilla marketing stunt featuring silent street protesters wearing shirts that said "Ignore the hype. Trust your Instinct." They also created a number of profiles on sites like Twitter and Flickr, and launched a YouTube video (more on that here). "We know that social networking is top of mind for the demographic that this phone really appeals to," said Jo Allan, marketing manager in Samsung Canada's wireless terminals division. "The ability to speak to our customers through certain social networking sites was part of our integrated marketing campaign."
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RELATED TOPICS
Building Buzz With Online Videos, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Samsung, Bell, Sprint |
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| EVENT INTELLIGENCE 06.05.08 9:30 AM |
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How to Fix MTV's VMAs
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 | Britney Spears at the 2007 VMAs
Photo: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images |
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Since the MTV Video Music Awards debuted in 1984—with Madonna writhing in a wedding dress—they have become a highlight of the network’s programming, providing some iconic performances and an end-of-summer gauge of the pop-culture barometer. The VMAs attracted as many as 12 million viewers as recently as 2002, its largest audience ever.
But ratings have mostly fallen each year since, down to a low of fewer than six million viewers in 2006, despite efforts to juice the excitement level by moving the proceedings from their traditional home in New York to Miami in 2004 and 2005. (The show has also made eight stops in Los Angeles over the years.) Last year’s stint in Las Vegas, with its highly buzzed-about performance by a dazed-looking Britney Spears, brought ratings up slightly, to seven million, but news coverage and online commentary focused on production misfires, awkward pacing, and underwhelming performances.
So how can the VMAs redeem themselves? We asked a group of busy planners and industry insiders (some of whom have worked with the network in the past) for their suggestions.
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MTV, MTV Video Music Awards, MySpace, Facebook, Oscars, Mariah Carey, Madonna, Saturday Night Live, Britney Spears |
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