Whether it’s a group of editors riding to and from a product launch or a sales team headed out of town for a meeting, travel time is part of the experience, for better or worse. Here are ways to entertain or inform people, or just pass the time.
Educating passengers about their destination is a popular and useful touch. “When we’re transporting a group of employees to the airport for an incentive trip to another country, we hold brief language classes that teach 12 basic phrases they can use in the country they’re traveling to. Some buses have video capabilities so you can show instructional videos; most have overhead audio so you can use language tapes; or you can bring an instructor on board,” says Dominic Phillips, president and executive director of Dominic Phillips Event Marketing in San Francisco. “Leaning a language together helps employees get over a sense of initial awkwardness and serves as an icebreaker—they can test out their new phrases on each other.”
On a similar note, Ronnie Davis, managing director of Great Performances in New York, uses videos in place of a tour guide. “We work with an outside agency to create a video that gives them information about where they are heading. We have done it for groups going to Ellis Island, West Point, and other historic locations,” he says. “The city is cracking down on alcohol on buses, so it’s not easy to do that anymore. This entertains everyone and is not a liability.”
Games can work for certain types of groups, especially among passengers who might not know each other. “Guests can play a customized bingo game for fun prizes or a unique opportunity at the venue they’re heading to,” suggests Sarah Schnell, senior program manager of Total Event Resources in Chicago. “You can customize the bingo board by changing the word or the numbers in the boxes to something more unique to the attendees, such as a corporate logo or a product’s major buzzwords. Have an M.C. or host facilitate the game from the front of the bus, and the employees can play either alone or in teams with their seatmates.”
Bringing entertainers on the bus can make a long trip more enjoyable. “For our corporate and nonprofit clients, we’ve hired fortune-tellers, mentalists, and one time we worked with a contortionist,” says Lynda Webster, founder and chairman of the Webster Group in Washington. Other options include hand or neck massages by staff from a local spa, stand-up comedians, or trivia hosts.
To raise brand awareness during the 2008 Society for Human Resource Management conference in Chicago, Verified Person, a Memphis-based background screening company, shuttled attendees to the event from their hotels on a charter bus instead of purchasing a booth at the show. “We rented a luxury bus from Chicago Trolley & Double Decker Co. and wrapped it with our brand’s logo,” says Camille Gamble, vice president of marketing at Verified Person. “To create a conversation piece, we hired Erik Estrada to ride along on the bus with us. He autographed our marketing materials, offered passengers cold beverages, and presented a video about our company. For not very much more than having a booth at the show, we created a much bigger presence and grew our brand awareness at the same time.”
