SmartHunts are iPad-based activities offered by Best TeamBuilding. Teams perform challenges, solve clues, and answer trivia questions, which can all be customized for the group. Participants also capture video and photos throughout the activities that can be shown at the conclusion of the event and shared through social media. SmartHunts feature two-way messaging so teams are connected with the hunt coordinator, who can track players using GPS and download photos and scoring. Themes include Amazing Chase, Mission Possible, Da Vinci Code, and an Event Kick-Off SmartHunt for conferences. Each hunt takes about three hours.
TeamBonding offers five “Smartphone Scaventures,” in which players use the company’s mobile app to search for items, complete tasks, and snap photos. Teams earn points based on activities completed and the quality of photos. Hosts can create a mission list from a bank of more than 100 options—such as asking participants to play “human limbo”—or they can design their own activities. Teams can compete against one another from multiple locations, whether in different cities or different countries. Each hunt takes about three hours to complete.
Go Game uses smartphones to guide players through a series of challenges. Teams of as many as 10 players are sent on a course to solve puzzles and complete tasks within a game zone, which could be a few city blocks or a convention center. Players complete missions by submitting digital photos and text answers through the phones. Examples include a National Mall game in Washington that asks players to locate specific buildings and answer questions about memorials. Go Game also provides costumed actors that interact with participants throughout the hunt. The game ends with a presentation of the photos and videos, which the host also receives on a USB drive.
Wise Guys Events offers “Clockwise,” a cell phone scavenger hunt played with QR codes. Teams of as many as 10 players race against the clock to discover and decode 12 QR codes hidden within the game zone, usually a few city blocks. The codes may be located on a bike parked on a city street or on matchbooks players receive after giving a password to a bartender. When players scan the QR code, they get a password worth points at the end of the game and also instructions on how to complete an optional challenge for bonus points. Each hunt takes about four hours.
GooseChase is a D.I.Y. scavenger hunt platform. Hosts can choose from options in the “mission bank” or create one from scratch. Each mission has a set point value and can have images and links attached to it. Participants submit photos through the app as proof of completing each mission, which could include convincing a stranger to demonstrate a favorite yoga pose. Organizers can monitor the activity through the “Hunt HQ” on the GooseChase Web site and award points based on the submitted photos.
SCANVenger hunts are played using QR codes that can be placed throughout a venue, in an exhibit hall, or among a few city blocks. Players scan the codes and answer questions to earn points. Questions can be customized, for example, to quiz players about content learned at the event. Participants can also view the leaderboard on their devices, adding to the competition. SCANVenger also offers an interactive game wall—an 8- by 10-foot display of 30 QR codes—for hosts that want to offer a game without a physical hunt.
Wildly Different offers a hunt known as “Recess Anyone?” as well as custom hunts based on a client’s theme. Signs with riddles are placed throughout the hunt area. Teams or individuals use their smartphones to scan a QR code on the signs that leads them to a Web site with additional clues to answer the question. Hosts can determine how to set up the hunt: as a break between education sessions, a networking tool during a reception to encourage interaction, or as a way to get people moving around a trade show by placing clues in exhibitors’ booths.
American Outback’s “Wild Goose Chase” scavenger hunt sends players on missions that vary from wacky—like kissing a lobster—to customized to match the event’s theme, location, or objectives. Teams access the missions using the company’s app, and the list can be completed in any order. The hunt can be played in a few hours or over several days during a conference. Players can view a leaderboard in the app to increase competition.
Stray Boots offers trivia-based walking tours of popular meeting destinations around the country, including Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Miami, and Las Vegas. Players use their cell phones to complete challenges, solve riddles, and take photos, and they earn points along the way. Each activity includes interesting facts about the destination. Tours can be played via the Stray Boots app, text message, or on a mobile browser. For multiple teams, the game can be arranged so teams experience the same tour but take different routes.
At this year’s E3, Disney Interactive showcased Disney Infinity 3.0 Edition, the latest in the hybrid toy-game series. Attendees passed into the booth through a custom-built illuminated entryway known as the Disney Infinity Figure Arch, which displayed all of the figures that have ever been released.
In an exhibit area known as Disney Infinity: An Art Story, the team curated concept artwork and production samples from across the Disney Infinity franchise.
Cocktail Academy served cocktails and mocktails at a bar backed with flowers and the words "Honestly Refreshing," a tasteful nod to the party's host.
At the Avalon Palm Springs hotel property, PopSugar and ShopStyle placed chic white logos across the existing hedging, which was visible from the street.
Visible directly from the main walkways of the fair, the Grand Seiko wing of the two-block pavilion was constructed from black stones and featured a seemingly motorized schematic display of falling digital book pages that were, in fact, strung along twine for an enhanced experience while perusing the brand literature.
Fairchild Fashion Media's Kristen Wildman worked with XA to create the modern design of the WWD C.E.O. Summit inside the Plaza in New York in 2013. A color scheme of bright yellow against white was used throughout, including in the registration desk, giving the decor a clean, uniform look.
At the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's annual ball in 2013, the theme of "Saturday Night Blues" influenced the decor at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The check-in area reflected the theme with statement decor pieces including hanging saxophones and crystal orbs.
Shiraz Events designed the registration desk at the FN C.E.O. Summit in Miami Beach in 2013. The bold blue and yellow table featured a grid behind it featuring the summit logo, and it held flowers and candy jars with white treats.
In the new networking area at Sapphire Now in June in Orlando, guests could choose from seating options such as wooden pallets, leather cubes, and cadrboard cubes, which were strong enough to sit on but light and easy to move.
For the Toronto launch party for Cadillac's 2014 ELC electric car, guests could sip a futuristic drink: a cocktail with the car's logo stenciled atop in silver edible dust.
Users entered the Bose Southbooth, covered in mirrors and disco balls, and chose a single song to add to the official Spotify SXSW playlist.
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Quartz encourages its sponsors to bring unusual and engaging activations to its events. One example was a fully functional mini planetarium from Qualcomm.
At Social Media Week London in September, shipping crates became “Skypepods.” Each unit was equipped with Microsoft products and enabled with Skype so attendees could get work done or chat with colleagues online.
Pallet chairs from Dublin company This Is What We Do were one of the seating options in the Media Village at Web Summit in November 2014.
On Web Summit’s Pitch stages—site of the event’s start-up competitions—organizers used upcycled chairs made from chipboard.
At C2 Montréal in May, organizers used custom furniture pieces that were designed to facilitate conversations. Overall there were fewer chairs than people to encourage mingling.
TEDxKalamata hosted its event in Greece’s ancient Theatre of Messini, taking advantage of the amphitheater’s unique atmosphere and seating.
At Cisco Live in San Francisco in May, attendees reclined on beanbag gaming chairs in the halls of the Moscone Center to watch keynotes, do work, and take breaks. Organizers said they chose this style chair as an "edgier but still functional" alternative to traditional beanbags.
Guests had two options for lunch at Cisco Live: they could sit outside in the Yerba Buena Gardens on Cisco-branded blankets or at round tables, or they could eat inside the Moscone Center where organizers used picnic tables and Astroturf to create a park-like feel.
