At the North American International Auto Show, held January 12 to 25 in Detroit, experiential marketing agency George P. Johnson used R.F.I.D. and iBeacons to create an interactive experience for Nissan that guests controlled on their smartphones. Using geolocation, the system provided information about specific vehicles as guests moved close to them. They could also play games and download marketing materials. “Literally as you are going around, the experience you are having is 100 percent unique to you,” said John Capano, senior vice president for strategy and planning for George P. Johnson. “And we could make adjustments in real time. If we had a car that was not getting enough attention, we could change the call to action, change the signage.” Capano said the activation provided extensive data that showed high dwell times and engagement.
More than 18,000 people attended the Cisco Global Sales Experience meeting last August in Las Vegas. Experiential marketing agency George P. Johnson used beacons to gather real-time data on attendee movement in both the MGM Grand Garden Arena and in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, the location of breakout sessions. By monitoring capacities via cameras in each breakout room, organizers could optimize seating and also adjust the schedule to accommodate demand on site.
For the Cisco Global Sales Experience meeting last August, buses used to move people between the MGM Grand Garden Arena and the Mandalay Bay Convention Center had sensors that reported the vehicles’ speeds and locations, so organizers could instantly dispatch more buses as needed. Attendees could also see the data feeds from the buses on a touch-screen dashboard.
Lightwave’s biometric wristbands have been used at events hosted by Pepsi and Google, where DJs used the real-time data to adjust music selection to affect the crowd’s energy. The wristbands have four sensors: an accelerometer to measure the wearer’s movement, both within a space and individually (for example to track whether people are dancing); a microphone to detect decibel levels; a gauge to measure both body and ambient room temperature; and a sensor to detect skin conductance response, which can sense sweat and can indicate physiological and psychological arousal.
The event had 400 feet of floor-to-ceiling projections that featured desert scenery and time-lapse content. Tashman handled audiovisual production.
ESPN also returned to host a large-scale Super Bowl bash on January 30 at WestWorld of Scottsdale. Lauren Robinson, ESPN's associate director of sport management, worked with 11-time event producer Tony Schubert of Event Eleven to produce and design the event. The party was meant to conjure a "hip desert retreat" and was decked with mid-century furniture, planters holding cacti, floating staircases, and shadowboxes showcasing sporty images. Other vendors involved in transforming the center into a party-ready space included Felix Lighting, Sound Image, Accurate Staging, Zac Hartog Events, Primo XL, and V Squared Labs; Hired Gun Publicity & Consulting handled publicity.
Other sponsors' names—including Coors Light, Curve Sport, and Omnia Nightclub by Hakkasan Group—appeared on a desert-inspired step-and-repeat that had a sandy tan carpet in lieu of a red one.
Shirtless male models were stamped with temporary glow-in-the-dark tattoos that bore the event's hashtag: #HubStudioOpen.
Guests created their own terrariums using succulents, moss, and twigs for a D.I.Y. take on the living elements trend.
To mark the launch of a collaboration between Mindy Weiss and Wedding Paper Divas on a new collection, the well-known social event planner and the social stationer hosted an intimate, feminine luncheon at Los Angeles's new Lombardi House on February 25. Guests created their own terrariums using succulents, moss, and twigs for a D.I.Y. take on the trend of incorporating living elements into wedding decor.
Guests could also create their own bags of custom potpourri.
Guests could also create personalized holiday canvas prints at the festive event.
