BizBash's 10 Most Innovative Meetings 2022 is sponsored by Quest Events, MyClearText, AccessLOOP, and GTHER.
The basics: After hosting a virtual event the year before, plus-size clothing brand Lane Bryant’s annual conference returned in person on Aug. 15, 2022, at the Hilton Easton in Columbus, Ohio. Drawing almost 200 attendees, the gathering had a “Live Your Incredible” theme executed by experiential marketing company Redstory.
“Through the whole conference, we spent a lot of time and research understanding the feedback from the customers’ perspective, and really learning what they valued,” explained Michael Farrell, Redstory's president and founder. “One of the things that was really unique about this conference is that the whole thing was communicated through the eyes of the consumer, instead of through the eyes of the leadership team."
He continued, "It was really about, ’This is what the customer needs, and if we make sure that customer lives her incredible, then our store associates will live their incredible, and the outcome will be incredible for everyone—and the revenue follows.” 
The event introduced Lane Bryant employees to the new "Live Your Incredible" brand message. “One of the things that was really unique about this conference is that the whole thing was communicated through the eyes of the consumer, instead of through the eyes of the leadership team," said Michael Farrell, Redstory's president and founder.Photo: Courtesy of Redstory
A personal connection: In an effort to make store associates feel more of a connection to the brand and the customers they serve, the team took a unique approach to the fall product line's reveal. The conference marked the first time most store leaders would be seeing the new line—so Redstory asked real employees to model the clothing.
The goal? To help employees lead by example and really put themselves in customers’ shoes.
“Using the store associates as the models meant they could understand what was important, from the look, feel, and color, to what made the customer feel bold, sensational, beautiful, empowered, seen, and heard,” said Farrell. “A lot of the feedback the brand gets is that its customers have never enjoyed shopping because they have a difficult time finding fashion that makes them feel sexy and beautiful. But those store associates are really able to help those customers by creating a human connection." 
Real Lane Bryant employees modeled the brand's fall clothing line.Photo: Courtesy of Redstory
Customer stories: Another unique aspect of this event was located in the lobby outside of the general session, where Redstory built Lane Bryant's custom MiCircle activation, an immersive video encounter. Inside the experience, attendees heard true stories from real Lane Bryant customers.
“We had a series of video conversations where the customer was telling the associate about the impact they have,” said Farrell, noting that Redstory has utilized the MiCircle activation at a variety of other conferences and nonprofit events.
The activation was set up just past the registration station, meaning that at the very start of the event, associates were immediately able to directly learn the impact they had on customers—thereby setting the tone for the rest of the day. “We had tears, we had laughter—there was such an emotional connection for those store associates to look at a life-sized LED screen and see a customer say, ‘I never felt seen and heard until I was in your store.’”
In turn, the guests walked away feeling renewed in their purpose, valued by customers and the Lane Bryant team, and, hopefully, ready to go back out and provide unique, tailored experiences for everyone who walks through their doors, explained Farrell. “So again, it was just another example of how we really tied the consumer experience and message back to the store associates and their brand objectives for 2023.” 
The event also featured general sessions, breakout sessions, and an awards dinner (pictured).Photo: Courtesy of Redstory
Hybrid components: Store associates who couldn’t join in person were also invited to participate via Webex (formerly Socio) platform. The branded event app and its associated social media wall could be accessed during and after the event.
“What’s been really great is that we’re seeing store associates go back and watch the video content and the MiCircle videos," Farrell said. "The app has a post-event life, which then proves the ROI back to the brand. Having a hybrid component is really a non-negotiable at this point.”
Lessons learned: To Farrell, the success of the conference proved the power of harnessing human connection and emotions. “As much as it's about money, it’s also about, ‘Do you value the work that you do? Are you making an impact in the communities that you serve or you sell to?’" he said. "And if you say yes to those, you're gonna have a return on life and the money is going to follow. It’s like the Lane Bryant process—if they do the right thing for the customer, that money is going to follow.”
Learn more about our sponsors:
Quest Events is a go-to event rental partner for industry professionals based in North America. With locations across the U.S. and service capabilities in Canada, look no further for effective and efficient pipe and drape services, as well as scenic, decor, and furnishing solutions across the AV, hospitality, corporate, wedding, and exhibition industries.
MyClearText elevates events no matter the format with high-quality human captioning in real-time. Thanks to the team’s 50-plus years of technical expertise, MyClearText captions are produced at the speed of up to 300 words per minute, delivered at 99% accuracy contextually and grammatically.
AccessLOOP is a leader in adding accessibility features to all livestreamed and virtual events (think: human captioning, live sign language, translations in more than 100 languages, and more). It’s a simple workflow—the browser-based software links to your source stream and stream destinations, loops in your preferred providers, and allows you to set your on-screen layout.
GTHER is a next-gen event experience platform that’s designed to evolve with the ever-changing industry by bringing virtual event functionalities into one place. Referred to as “the Swiss army knife of virtual experience platforms,” GTHER allows its users to chat, livestream, stream real-time content, host networking sessions, create a custom-branded space, and so much more.
