At the BMF Music Lounge during Coachella, sponsor Tide gave guests all the elements needed to take a selfie and easily share it. In a poolside suite at Palm Springs's Ingleside Inn, the brand decked out a mirror with floral appliques as well as the appropriate hashtag #TidePlus.
During the holidays, fashion brand Ted Baker used the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe to encourage selfies that promoted the brand. At the Ted Baker Fifth Avenue store in New York, Kin Design created a 20- by 20-foot aluminum sculpture to serve as a modern twist on mistletoe, and guests shared kiss pics on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtag #KissTed. With the help of a specially designed app, photos then fed two 90-inch monitors inside the store’s front windows for passing shoppers to see. On Christmas Eve, the brand selected one participant to receive a free four-night stay for two at the St. Regis Hotel in Abu Dhabi.
OtterBox gave out its new Symmetry Series phone case to guests at the Kari Feinstein Style Lounge at Coachella. But the free stuff came with a not-so-gentle reminder to help proliferate the brand’s message on social media: A dedicated mirrored “selfie station" allowed guests to share their snaps (with their phones clearly pictured, of course) using the appropriate hashtags.
Not all selfies are spontaneous; offering a reward can incentivize guests to take and post them. The New York International Auto Show gave out free tickets to opening night to the first 100 people who posted a selfie with a show poster, found in New York's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
On June 24, Saveur hosted its Summer BBQ at the Boat Basin Cafe in New York. Previewing some highlights of the annual culinary affair, the event had a staircase decked with words such as "cocktails," "sweets," and "music."
At a Toronto event hosted by fashion brand Bustle in 2009, organizers lit the stairs leading to the upper patio of Ultra in pink and screened an avant-garde video on the wall halfway up the staircase.
Carasco Photography hosted “Brides, Bubbles, and Bliss” at the Bridgeport Art Center in Chicago in 2013. The event had "bubbles" in its title for a reason. Not only were there plenty of Veuve Clicquot champagne bars in the Skyline Loft, but there was also an illuminated bar in the venue's spacious elevators. Guests sipped on flutes of the sparkly drink on their way up to the event.
At a Museum of Contemporary Art benefit in Chicago in 2009, guests entered the arty party through the museum's loading dock. The space was covered with bubble wrap, which guests were encouraged to jump on and pop.
One of the twists at Smirnoff's 2001 Twistotica product launch event in New York was that the men's and women's restrooms were switched. So the planning team at EventQuest put flowers in the urinals of the new women's bathroom.
The opening-night party took place at the 90,000-square-foot Cinespace film studio on Chicago's West Side. When guests entered, they were greeted with giant blue-and-red letters that spelled out: "How Do You Chicago?"
Hanging letters and signs served to divide the space and add a sense of intimacy throughout. Event Creative also used different hues of light to warm up the sprawling space.
Event Creative staged four lounge areas that had custom furniture, bars, decor, and floral arrangements. One area, topped with leafy chandeliers and decked with hurricane candles, had the outdoor look of the Lincoln Park Zoo.
Large screens showcased video-mapped footage of the Chicago lakefront. Beneath the screens, an elevated area with its own bar was known as the "Lakefront Lounge."
A custom-built bar anchored a room at the back of the space. The room also had farm tables for guests to sit at and stations offering snacks from 30 local restaurants.
Some 20 Event Creative staffers worked to together to create a custom "El" train that circulated one room on a set of handcrafted tracks. Video mapping projected images local Chicago attractions onto two 20-foot-long railcars.
Blue Plate Catering provided snacks—including chicken and waffles—for the 5,500 guests. Fun fact: One staffer for the company wore a pedometer, which indicated that she logged 9.5 miles working that evening.
The closing-night party took place at the Museum of Science and Industry and had a "Pure Energy Chicago" theme. In the rotunda, an area known as "Southside Soul" offered snacks such as mac-and-greens croquettes, pulled chicken sliders, and braised short ribs. Clean white shelves displayed the snacks.
In the area inspired by Chicago's arty neighborhood Pilsen, Sodexo's salmon ceviche was served in clear paint cans. To invoke the area's strong Mexican influence, there were also empanadas, warm churros, and pineapple margaritas. Salsa dancers and a mariachi band performed.
In the Pilsen area, Kehoe Designs set up a glowing bar backed with colorful lights.
Kehoe used Indian-theme decor in a section inspired by Chicago's Devon Avenue. Food in the area included chicken-tandoori lollipops, rosewater macarons, and curried-pea-and-potato samosas. Entertainment included henna hand painting and Bollywood-style dancers performing to Indian pop music.
Chicago native Jennifer Hudson sang on a central stage. Her set included a performance of the Dreamgirls song that won her an Oscar, "And I am Telling You I'm Not Going." Before Hudson came out, local band Lynne Jordan and the Shivers entertained the crowd.
