Fusion's Synergy invitation suite costs $387 for 50 sets, a price that includes custom envelopes printed with a return address and guests' addresses, as well as access to the company's easyinvite.com services.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
Audience Metrix designs custom event measurement programs for company such as SAP, which is currently hosting Sapphire Now and SAP TechEd in Madrid, Spain.
Photo: Wolfram Scheible
Google used an EventO site for its Solve for X forum in February.
Photo: Courtesy of TBA Global
Planana
Planners using Planana create rewards for attendees, such as a registration discount for sharing the event on LinkedIn, and brands can sponsor those rewards.
Photo: Courtesy of Planana
SponsorHub
On SponsorHub, listings can include a description of the event, speaker information, sponsorship levels, and a score that the system creates by analyzing social media reach and other analytics.
Photo: Courtesy of SponsorHub
Sponsorist
Each listing on Sponsorist is live for 90 days. Companies and individuals can search for sponsorship opportunities in categories such as tech events, sports, charities, and art events.
Photo: Courtesy of Sponsorist
SponsorPark
SponsorPark allows brands to search for opportunities for free. They can also save search criteria, and the system will send an alert when new matching opportunities arise.
Photo: Courtesy of SponsorPark
SponsorPitch
The SponsorPitch Index lets sponsorship sellers search for brands based on location, category, sponsorship spending patterns, and more.
Photo: Courtesy of SponsorPitch
Xylobands in action at a Coldplay concert.
Photo: Courtesy of Xylobands
In the U.S. and Canada, TLC Creative provides Xylobands for events.
Photo: Courtesy of Xylobands
Kojami C.E.O. and founder Randall Olade was among the new participants in this year's PlannerTech. Following a 45-minute presentation, attendees could chat with company reps about their new tech products.
Photo: Rose Chevalier/BizBash
John Chen is the C.E.O. of Geoteaming and the author of the new book 50 Digital Teambuilding Games.
Photo: Courtesy of John Chen
During tech-driven Go Game scavenger hunts, participants use smartphones to download clues and missions for their teams.
Photo: Courtesy of Go Game
Production crews at Sapphire Now worked from three broadcast studios on the show floor to share content online and with audiences at 18 satellite locations around the world.
Photo: Jamie Windan/SAP AG
SAP’s 2011 Sapphire Now conference in Orlando created a networking lounge on the show floor where attendees could view the keynote addresses on 18- by 60-foot screens while getting work done.
Photo: Randy Belice/SAP AG
Illustration: Joey Bouchard/BizBash
Illustration: Joey Bouchard for BizBash
Staffers used iPads to check in guests at Travel & Leisure’s 2010 World’s Best Awards in New York in July.
Photo: Sylvain Gaboury/Travel & Leisure
During New York Advertising Week's five-day run, AOL set up its activation in the Liberty Theater. The promotion was tied to the company's new campaign and was designed to directly engage attendees on a personal level.
Photo: Courtesy of AOL
The virtual interactive concierge, affectionately referred to as Vic, debuted at New York's Advertising Week. The digitally rendered avatar was displayed on an 80-inch plasma screen, where it interacted with attendees by answering questions.
Photo: Courtesy of AOL
Vic also interacted with attendees online, answering questions via Twitter.
Photo: Courtesy of AOL
Thierry's Catering served a variety of small bites, such as vegetable summer rolls with sweet and sour dipping sauce.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
The Frank Gehry-designed New World Center provided a striking backdrop for the party on the plaza.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
Taylor Creative provided lounge seating for guests.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
White high-top tables and chairs blended with the white architectural features of the building.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
Flower Bazaar created simple centerpieces of green hydrangea, allium, white mini calla lilies, and queen lace.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
Siinc Agency hired models to greet guests at the reception desk.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
EventStar created two 16- by 20-foot clear vinyl canopies that could shield the cars from inclement weather without blocking views of the building.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
Siinc Agency created projections of the Audi A7 inside the New World Center and also offered tours of the building to event guests.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
Audi displayed three of the new A7 models and one R8 at the party.
Photo: Oriol Tarridas / Oriol Tarridas Photography
Marc Ecko introduced the fall/winter 2010 digital campaign for his Cut & Sew line, advertising that will run in magazines like GQ and Complex and on blogs such as Gawker, Jezebel, and the Huffington Post, with prompts to visit a dedicated Web site.
Photo: Bryan Bedder/WireImage
Inside the gallery Ecko, his marketing team, and McCrown Productions highlighted the campaign through lounge vignettes and projections of the recent runway show. The computer station was positioned in the center of the room.
Photo: Bryan Bedder/WireImage
White tables held eight computers set up for guests to play with the augmented reality technology.
Photo: Bryan Bedder/WireImage
Using Webcams attached to the computers, guests played with glyphs (symbols embedded with a tracking code) to interact with the campaign's multimedia concept.
Photo: Bryan Bedder/WireImage
The production team surrounded backlit images of the new ads with vintage-style furniture that complemented the photographs.
Photo: Bryan Bedder/WireImage
Eight mannequins wore clothing from the Cut & Sew line's fall/winter collection as well as the contemporary menswear brand's best-sellers.
Photo: Bryan Bedder/WireImage
Center stage at the press preview was an Iron Man suit, a prop from the Jon Favreau-directed movies. Attendees were allowed to view the piece up close, but security prevented anyone from touching it.
Photo: Zack Seckler
As a tie-in to the partnership with Marvel Studios, LG Electronics brought in Russell Bobbitt (right), the prop master for Iron Man and Iron Man 2, as well as several props from the film.
Photo: Zack Seckler
Bobbitt also presented the 3-D prototype of the Flutter phone, winner of the Prop Master's Choice award.
Photo: Zack Seckler
Another component of the partnership with Marvel and Iron Man 2 was a limited edition Iron Man comic book, which will also be given as a gift with purchase to LG consumers. LG Electronics field product trainer Brian Scollo (far right), used the promotional cartoon to show off the LG Ally's capabilities.
Photo: Zack Seckler
The comic book showed how the augmented-reality technology works, including the Iron Man online game.
Photo: Zack Seckler
Sprint's C.T.I.A. event had a modern look in yellow and white.
Photo: Mattmayfield.com
Modern, oversize furniture from Fresh Wata gave Sprint's event a streamlined look.
Photo: Mattmayfield.com
Samsung launched the new Galaxy S at C.T.I.A. with a 98-foot-long screen.
Photo: Oscar Einzig Photography
A real person interacted with props and imagery on a screen at Samsung's event.
Photo: Oscar Einzig Photography
A car prop served as part of the brand's seamless multimedia presentation.
Photo: Oscar Einzig Photography
Photo: Sara Jaye Weiss
Perhaps the Pope is a Psy fan?
Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage
Eco-Friendly Water Stations
TEDActive guests scooped up logo water bottles upon their arrival (or any time throughout the conference) that served as giveaways, as well as a way to stay hydrated without the use of disposable plastic bottles. Hydration stations let guests fill up easily and as often as they liked.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Beanbag Seating
Multiple venues around the property for simulcast viewing included an array of seating groups, including more traditional chairs and desks and armchairs—and even beanbags.
Photo: Kris KrĂĽg
TED Beds
Don't find beanbags quite comfy enough? The main simulcast venue, the theater, also had several bed-style lounging groups complete with TVs overhead for cozy viewing of the TED Talks.
Photo: Kris KrĂĽg
Interactive Picnic
A picnic lunch Wednesday offered picnic baskets for groups of seven—so each person had to meet six new folks with whom to chat and chow.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Flag-Making Station
The Sovereign Nation of You station encouraged attendees to make representational flags for creative expression during meeting breaks.
Photo: Kris KrĂĽg
TED's Dogs
Adding to the easygoing vibe were dogs, which were allowed on the property and at the event; attendees with furry friends could bring them along.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Visually Interesting—Yet Spare—Staging
The main stage backdrop got an appealing but spare look from wooden pallets—visually interesting, but not enough to distract from the high-level conference content.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Paper Punk Art Wall
Meant to offer attendees a low barrier to entry for creative expression, Paper Punk offered a station where attendees could use prefab templates to create small art pieces—think origami meets Lego—and affix them to an evolving wall.
Photo: Kris KrĂĽg
Inspiring Environments
In a thoughtful use of the environment surrounding the sprawling host hotel, individual seating groups invited attendees to gather and collaborate in cleverly arranged settings that themselves served to inspire.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Casual Dress Code (Really Casual)
To encourage folks to really engage with the content while being themselves, the TEDActive dress code was casual. Anything goes. So there were jeans, yes, but also plenty of flip-flops, shorts, and hoodies.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
TEDActive Projects
The TEDActive projects engaged attendees in brainstorming various ideas—and moving them forward through the course of the event.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Large-Scale Name Badges
TEDActive means to connect attendees whenever possible—and oversize name badges made it easy to identify new folks.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
Branded Floor Tiles
Talk about a fully immersive experience: The conference took over some of the venue's Spanish tiles for its own brand messaging. The special tiles also served to guide attendees' path along the walkways to the various event venues on the sprawling property.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
Hit & Run Screen Printing
Guests were encouraged to bring their own T-shirts, totes—whatever—and Hit & Run customized them live according to guests' own personal TEDActive experience with a range of designs.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Bike and Scooter Rental
Meant to keep attendees fit and moving, one station offered scooter and bike rental available any time.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
Coffee and Snacks
Coffee and snacks are pretty typical at conferences, but TEDActive's offerings included coffee brewed in small batches by skilled baristas and snacks like roasted seaweed and organic dark chocolate peanut butter cups, available any time of day.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Lincoln House of Design
Sponsor Lincoln decked out one of the property's casitas with a space that was subtly branded and also offered guests a chance to walk through a series of functional art pieces on exhibit.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
TEDx Wall
TEDx planners from around the world expressed themselves on an interactive chalkboard wall.
Photo: Marla Aufmuth
Game Stations
For a little collaboration in the get-to-know-you spirit, game stations dotted the event space.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
Unusual Activities
Ever heard of flying a kite as a meeting-break option? TEDActive made one available for the taking, offering it adjacent to a casual seating cluster in the event's main outdoor space, known as the quad.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
1. Put Them Where Guests Snap Pics
If your event has an oversize prop, eye-catching decor piece, or some other feature guests are likely to want to photograph, that element is a smart place for a hashtag—and it's bound to make its way online throughout the night. For instance, a Los Angeles event for British Airways and Variety saw hashtags splashed in the front windshields of traditional British black cars. Similarly, Diesel printed the hashtag for its Reboot campaign last September on large-scale installations in New York's Union Square.
Photo: Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for Variety
3. Add Them to Activities
When events offer beauty and grooming treatments, guests are likely to feel compelled to share their post-experience transformation, whether it's a new hair look or a fresh manicure. At HBO's Luxury Lounge during the Emmys in Los Angeles, mats under mani stations encouraged social snaps for guests receiving Marc Jacobs Beauty manicures. And at Herbal Essences lounge at BMF's Hard Rock Hotel party during Lollapalooza in Chicago, hashtags on nearby signage encouraged guests to post beauty shots.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
4. Use Them to Encourage Interaction
Hashtags that encourage interaction on site through gamification or another kind of activity are sure to facilitate broad interaction online as well. At Target's Feed U.S.A. event, menus encouraged guests to interact and mingle with tablemates through social media prompts on menus.
Photo: Nilaya Sabnis
6. Put Them Where Guests Are Likely to Linger
Hashtags get noticed in places where guests spend much of their time on event day—and where they have physical space and incentive to hang out. Certainly, a photo activation is a compelling incentive: Evian's photo activation at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival in Miami put a hashtag right above the action, where it was sure to make its way online.
Photo: Elizabeth Renfrow for BizBash
7. Offer Rewards for Using Them
Turning tweeting into a competition drives major social media engagement—not to mention huge buzz at the event. During Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim, prompts directed guests to use a tweet-operated Polaroid vending machine at the Ocean Drive Sun Covered Pool Party.
Photo: Tracy Block for BizBash
9. Make Them Public—In a Big Way
Sure, promoting hashtags within the boundaries of an event can get guests interacting. But put them outside the event's official walls and you're more likely to capture a bigger crowd. At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, a 3-D projection of tweets using the official event hashtag appeared on a 35- by 65-foot billboard. The digital activation, created by Incredible Machines, ran at night, while during the day the billboard showed a static image of the hashtag printed on canvas. Similarly, AOL placed its hashtag on a giant billboard outside the venue of its upfront event during Advertising Week in New York.
Photo: Courtesy of Twitter
10. Supply the Technology
Every guest is likely carrying a smartphone in his or her pocket. But making social sharing as easy for guests as possible can only further encourage the behavior—so try printing hashtags right alongside displays of smartphones or other devices. At Samsung's tent at the Life Is Beautiful festival in Las Vegas, attendees ordered free frozen yogurt and designed T-shirts from devices at stations emblazoned with the activation's hashtag.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
11. Make It Edible
Putting hashtags on food isn't just a tasty idea—it's Instagram bait to boot. An event invitation to the Time Warner Cable Studios pop-up in New York before the Super Bowl came with a hashtag printed right on top of a cake.
Photo: Carolyn Curtis/BizBash
12. Make Them Selfie-Friendly
It's no secret that guests want to photograph themselves—and their friends—for their social media profiles. So if you put your message right in their field of view, you'll capture their attention—and social media impressions. At Prive Salon in Los Angeles for the Colgate Optic White beauty bar ahead of the Golden Globes, handles and hashtags decked mirrors.
Photo: Alesandra Dubin/BizBash
1. Write It on the Wall
A simple way to draw attention to an official hashtag is to place a call to action on a wall. Promotions like Wired magazine's pop-up, which took place in New York last November, used wall decals to encourage consumers to promote the store while on-site.
Photo: Jika González/BizBash
2. Put It on Signage
Signage is a more prominent way to direct guests to the designated hashtag, a strategy employed by last year's Sweetgreen festival in Maryland. The resulting tweets were broadcast on the large screens placed around the stage.
Photo: WanderingHat
3. Make It Larger Than Life
Increasingly common at events is the use of large video screens to display Twitter chatter. For the "Shops at Target" launch in New York on May 1, the producers took advantage of the IAC Building's 120-foot-long video wall to magnify posts marked with #TheShopsatTgt.
Photo: Nilaya Sabnis
4. Provide a Memento
Services like Instaprint are popping up at many affairs, proving popular with guests as a tangible record of their active social media use. At a fashion show held by USA Network in New York, even the wall the machines were mounted on sported the hashtag, motivating curious attendees to snap a photo and post it via Instagram.
Photo: David X Prutting/BFAnyc.com
5. Make Staffers Wear It
Staffers are a common sight at events, and some event producers have put hashtags on the outfits worn by greeters, caterwaiters, or even hosts. In February, the South Beach Wine & Food Festival advertised its official Twitter phrase on the T-shirts worn by participating chefs like Rocco DiSpirito.
Photo: Elizabeth Renfrow for BizBash
6. Add It to the Red Carpet
The arrival areas of events involving celebrity guests tend to draw large crowds. To turn that to their advantage, the planners behind USA Network's upfront in New York placed a large canvas emblazoned with the official hashtag high above the carpet where passersby could see it.
Photo: Brian Brooks/MB Productions
7. Place It at Entry Points
Just as common as a red carpet are the rope-and-stanchion barricades that denote an entrance or V.I.P. area. Among the ways the Art Gallery of Ontario displayed the hashtag for its annual Massive Party fund-raiser on April 19, was the use of small signs placed atop stanchions.
Photo: Emma McIntyre for BizBash
8. Mark It on Tickets
The colorful plastic and paper wristbands used at concerts, festivals, and other big events can be customized to show a designated hashtag. To encourage guests at its Party in the Garden fund-raiser to upload photos via Instagram, the Museum of Modern Art in New York handed out entry bracelets printed with the hashtag #PitG2012.
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
9. Include It in Printed Materials
Invitations and programs serve as physical reminders of an event's basic info—the date, time, location, and even dress code. An additional step would be to add the hashtag to such materials, which is what the Shorty Awards did in New York on March 26.
Photo: Rose Chevalier/BizBash
10. Put It Onstage
When the stage—or runway—is a central element of an event, a backdrop can call attention to something in a big way. The producers of USA Network's fashion presentation in New York on June 12 utilized the 60-foot-long LED video wall that served as the main decorative element of the catwalk to display its hashtag as well as the premiere date of show Suits.
Photo: Anna Sekula/BizBash
11. Make It the Focal Point
Not every event has a stage, but any eye-catching area can be a smart spot to place a hashtag. That was the case with the June 5 release party for the Project X Xtended Cut DVD in Los Angeles. Produced by the Visionary Group, the backyard-bash-style affair for Warner Brothers and Break Media included an 18- by 10-foot pool, which had a banner marked with the event name and hashtag sitting at the bottom.
Photo: Mark Davis
12. Print It on Functional Items
A more subtle approach is to use the hashtag on the cocktail napkins. The organizers of Travel & Leisure's first Social Media in Travel & Tourism Awards (the Smittys) in New York on June 7 made sure attendees saw the hashtag when grabbing a bite from a passing waiter or when taking a cocktail from the bar.
Photo: Anna Sekula/BizBash
13. Use It as Decor
Similarly simple was the approach taken for the August 2011 press preview of Betsey Johnson's fragrance Too Too. The planners incorporated the event hashtag and the designer's official Twitter handle into the overall event design by placing the call to action in frames.
Photo: Anna Sekula/BizBash
14. Turn It Into an Activity
A playful, original idea created by the planners behind Travel & Leisure's Social Media in Travel & Tourism Awards replaced entrance bracelets with sweatbands and invited guests to embellish them with quirky pins, one of which displayed the hashtag.
Photo: Anna Sekula/BizBash
15. Put It Where Guests Gather
Bars are almost always the most crowded areas of an event, and in addition to displaying the affair's signature cocktails, drink menus can be marked with a hashtag.
Photo: Anna Sekula/BizBash
Illustration: Carolyn Curtis/BizBash
Movie director Michael Bay appeared flustered and then walked off the stage at a Samsung promotional event at C.E.S. just minutes into his talk. Later he explained the exit in his blog, writing, "I got so excited to talk, that I skipped over the Exec V.P.’s intro line and then the teleprompter got lost. Then the prompter went up and down—then I walked off. I guess live shows aren’t my thing."
Video Still: Courtesy of Mashable
Peninsula Chicago's 10th Anniversary Party
The dress code for the Peninsula Chicago's 10th anniversary party, held in 2011, may well have been “prerecession chic.” The sprawling soiree, which occupied the lobby level, bar, two restaurants, ballroom, and terrace, and included elements such as flowing champagne, caviar bars, ice sculptures, and a ratio of one server to every four guests, harked back to economically flush times.
Photo: Dan Rest
Photo: Dan Rest
Photo: Nadia Chaudhury/BizBash
This year's Super Bowl halftime show kicked off with pyrotechnics, putting headliner Beyoncé on stage with a giant flaming silhouette of herself. One producer-reviewer called the opening sequence "epic TV."
Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images
9. Bar Verde
Bar Verde at Nordstrom is available for event booking at the Grove. It offers indoor and outdoor dining options with views, plus a farm-to-table concept with a focus on local and seasonal ingredients as well as a full bar. Nordstrom at the Grove is the second store to feature the new Bar Verde restaurant concept.
Photo: Courtesy of Bar Verde
Photo: Courtesy of CNTV
