Image of Outdoor Festival

Selecting the Best Production Vendor for Your Outdoor Festivals

If you’re throwing outdoor festivals, then choosing the right production vendor is the single biggest decision you’ll make towards the success of your event.  Take a look below to see a few tips on finding the right production vendor for staging rental, audio rental, and lighting rental for your outdoor festival!

Step One: Start early and plan ahead when choosing a production company

Whether it’s a college block party, a ‘City Of’, or a State Fair, having the right company for your stage and roof system, audio rental, lighting rental and generator rental can make or break outdoor festivals.  Most importantly, you need someone that you can build a relationship with – someone that you trust will do what they say they are going to do.

Building a relationship takes time.  Begin looking for your vendors well in advance of your show.  Have your details in place when you are interviewing vendors – overhead layouts of your venue, band riders and event dates and times are key to helping your production company provide an accurate quote for your event.  In addition, most production companies like to see at least a three month advance contact before the date of your show and never less than one month.  Frantically calling production vendors a week before the event date is not a way to build trust!

Interview the production company, get multiple bids and check references

Outdoor Festivals Load Bearing Rooftop

Outdoor festivals are arguably the most difficult type of event there is for a production company.  Tight set changes, multiple bands and crowd control issues are compounded by weather, temporary power and permitting requirements.  Your production company for your outdoor festival should be part of the solution, not an additional headache that you have to deal with.

Therefore, you need to make sure they companies your are interviewing know what they are talking about!  Conduct interviews with sales staff and project leads – a reputable company will be thrilled with the opportunity to meet with you and see the venue.  Be prepared to get multiple bids and check them for the gear you need.  Your production company should be open to discussion on the bid and the equipment listed in your quote.

Finally, check references!  The production company should own the majority of the equipment they are bringing to your show.  Avoid ‘show brokers’ – they typically cause more trouble than they are worth and their references will reflect this.  Ask about their safety records.  Don’t hesitate to ask all companies bidding on your event about the reputations of their competitors.  Production is a very small industry, and we’ve all worked together at one time or the other.  A company that is reviled across the industry is bad news.

Hopefully this blog has been informative for our event planner clients! For more information on In Depth Events and our event production capabilities, please Ask Us a Question today. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you on your event!


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Experiences In Live Event Marketing:Verizon FIOS FEST!

FIOS FEST Rolls out across the US

As a live event marketing professional, I’ve been honored to be a part of some amazing live event marketing campaigns. When Verizon began to enable FIOS in the major US markets, I was selected to be a part the live event marketing group for one the largest fiber-optic roll outs of the new millennium. At the time, FIOS was a new entity, and our job was introducing it to folks that weren’t familiar with all it’s intricacies. This was a live event campaign across the country hitting all the major cities in states such as New York, Florida, Texas and California. We created a campaign that encompassed all key elements to execute a flawless marketing campaign. We named it FIOS FESTS. The following were elements that we implemented to ensure the best outcome possible for the client.

How we did it – by the numbers!

1. Pre-promote. Letting the local consumer base know where, when, what, and why in fun, creative ways to motivate consumers and drive interest for the live marketing event. For FIOS, we would set up in front of local businesses and speak to consumers one on one and offer fun incentives for their time. We also incorporated music by offering free music downloads from our site. For this campaign, pre-promotion was a key target for creating a great, well attended event.

2. Location. Finding a centralized location was another key factor in the overall execution of the FIOS events. With the FIOS FEST, we needed a football field-sized area that would hold several 20 foot x 20 foot tents, a fully loaded event stage and a footprint for vendors. Permits and approvals had to be obtained well in advance to avoid any last minute snafus that might have arisen. The idea was to make the event as accessible to as many of the locals as possible without having them make a major trek from end of the city to the other.

3. Production. For the FIOS FEST, and for every other event I’ve been a part of, the final and most critical element is incorporating the right production equipment. This will enhance and make sure your event comes across as professional endeavor and not some thrown together, last minute after thought. The stage is the focal point of any live event as it features the entertainment and contests going on throughout the day. For FIOS FEST, we used a SAM 550 mobile stage at each of our locations. This StageLine SAM550 model is the flagship of the StageLine fleet with a deck size of 50 feet x 38 feet and a load bearing rooftop capable of supporting 44,000 lbs. With flown Line Array, state of the art lighting, and (of course) FIOS banners, it made an impressive centerpiece to the FIOS FEST.

From FIOS to Production Experience, Inc.

My experience with the FIOS FEST campaign, as well as several other live event marketing promotions, has made me a valuable addition in my current position as Live Event Marketing Manager at Production Experience, Inc. The main keys as listed above are my steps to executing a flawless event anywhere from a few hundred, to thousands of participants. As always, “Go big or go home”! Your target consumers are worth it and they deserve the best in execution with the right production pieces at the core.

Hopefully this blog has been informative for our event planner clients! For more information on In Depth Events and our event production capabilities, please Ask Us a Question today. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you on your event!


Live Event Marketing at Cowboys Stadium

Tips and Tricks for Stepping Up in the Live Event Marketing Game

In the business of live event marketing, the key is reaching the most people as effectively as possible. Live events continue to evolve each year, incorporating more and more social media elements along with keeping the things that worked in the past. How can you step up your event game and have the greatest impact on the consumer?

Size DOES matter in live events!

Footprint size and location of said footprint is a great place to start. Size does matter in this instance. If you can be outside you really get more visibility and foot traffic than an indoor space. Don’t be afraid to spend a little more on a larger sized section. The extra investment always pays off with increased overall numbers and interactions.

Impressions, Interactions and Interactives

Location goes hand in hand with your footprint. Where do you need to set up to give your team the best opportunity to make the most impressions? Normally, if you’re just going for impressions; you should secure a spot near one of the entrances or exits. However, if you need interactions this may backfire on you as consumers are usually rushing in or rushing out – making it more difficult to engage your key demographic. I would suggest somewhere in the thick of the event at a corner where there is plenty of foot traffic coming from all directions.

The next element to step up your event game would be your interactives. Consumers love sweepstakes and an opportunity to win no matter what the prize. Make it a trip, shopping spree or even cold hard cash. Anything that drives the consumer to your footprint and initiates conversation with the promotional professional.

Bring the A Game with technology

Once the consumer is captivated by the scope of your footprint and giveaway; now is your chance to impress with technology. Take your product or service to the next level with techno enhancement. LED walls, professional sound, lighting and staging are all tools to bring foot traffic, and ultimately, close the deal. Be ready for the all the accolades to come pouring in from your live event marketing attendees – and from your end client!

Oh…and don’t forget to have fun. This always creates a more welcoming environment for consumers when they see your team enjoying the moment.

Hopefully this blog has been informative for our event planner clients! For more information on In Depth Events and our event production capabilities, please Ask Us a Question today. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you on your event!


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Choosing the Right Marketing Campaign Production Vendor

 

How important is the marketing campaign production vendor? A touring marketing campaign can be made or broken depending on the choices the marketing firm makes in the planning and during the entire run of the campaign.   In today’s live event and experiential touring campaigns, production rental is a huge part of the event.  Choosing the right vendor for audio, lighting, video and staging rentals can make (or break) your activation.  The number one key element for a smooth running program is having the right production support.

Production elements such as sound system needs, LED Video Walls and décor lighting – can make or break your touring campaign.  You are literally moving a footprint from one side of the country to the other with pitfalls waiting for you at every turn.  It sounds daunting, doesn’t it?   Why would any sane person even attempt this Barnum and Bailey circus?

Get the attention your brand deserves – engage the consumer!

Simply put – it’s the most effective way to communicate a brand to the consumer.  Live event marketing allows a company to communicate directly to the consumer in a one on one dialogue.  This has far more impact than a radio ad, print ad or billboard.  Consumers want to feel special and unique – not just a number in an overpopulated society trying to step over each other to get noticed.  To get this attention, you’ve got to have a marketing campaign production vendor providing the technical requirements that make a live event possible.  None of this could be possible without the right production support.

In Depth Events to the rescue!  With over 10 years of experience as a marketing campaign production vendor, we know how to get the circus from point A to point B in the most effective and efficient way possible while having your campaign stand out from the crowd.  You have enough to worry about.  Leave the logistics to In Depth Events and sit back and enjoy the show while clients rave about how well the campaign is running.  Staging, lighting, audio and promo vehicles are just a few elements we do best.  You can’t have a successful campaign when you can’t communicate to your target audience.  They need to be able to hear, see and experience the brand in a seamless fashion so they walk away with an experience they’ll remember for a lifetime. Get the right production support and take your marketing campaign to the next level.

Hopefully this blog has been informative for our event planner clients! For more information on In Depth Events and our event production capabilities, please Ask Us a Question today. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you on your event!