Third Year in the Running: Decibel Event Management Has Been Selected As One of the Busiest Meeting and Event Planners in Greater D.C.
We strive to put our best foot forward for every event, from start to finish. So, when we’re recognized not one, not two, but three years in a row by the Washington Business Journal, we’re grateful to know our efforts have paid off. Being selected as one of the “Busiest Meeting and Event Planners in Greater D.C.” indicates trust from our clients and a job, or many jobs, well done.
This could not have been possible without our tireless team of designers, producers, creators, heavy lifters, tech whizzes, and peers, all of whom put in the hours, the effort, and the creativity needed to consistently exceed expectations with every event they handle.
Decibel has managed virtual, hybrid and in-person events throughout the year. We have strived to do our part to keep the events industry alive during these difficult times by taking all the necessary health precautions in addition to launching an upcycling program. We have also brought our experience with hybrid and fully virtual events to our clients, helping them adapt to new technologies and new ways of community building.
Of course, competition is necessary to push the creative boundaries of these events and raise the bar higher each year. We want to extend our congratulations to some of our fellow nominees this year, including Linder Global Events, Hargrove LLC, RJ Whyte Event Production, and J Street Group LLC, all of whom are innovators in the field.
2021 has been a year of learning and developing new strategies to meet a changing industry and a changing world. As we look down the rapidly unfolding path of digital and virtual technologies, we hope only to increase the standard of our own work and inspire others in the field to do the same. We are so grateful for this opportunity and look forward to staying busy for years to come!
For more information about how we stay so busy, visit www.decibelmanagement.com.
Old School Has Class: Thoughts on the Relevance of Mobile Marketing Campaigns
BRAND ACTIVATIONS & MARKETING
With communications boundaries toppling around the world, there is a growing sense that in-person marketing techniques are going the way of the newspaper, a relic of an age where trade agreements weren t hammered out online. And while we re all about early and agile adoption of new techniques, on this point, we beg to disagree. Mobile media marketing could easily be seen as quaint and out-of-touch as 53-foot semi trailers trundle around the nation. But these road shows offer advantages that tap to the very heart of marketing success.
No matter how many ads we see on television or online about a product that tickles our fancy, a chance to try something out hands-on will never go out of style. Personal attention sells and a mobile road show can help create a valuable relationship with customers.
The Chrysler Road Show: Nothing beats hands-on. Image from Automotive Fleet
People don t often talk to each other about advertisements they see online and why should they? They re inundated with them every day. A food truck giving away free cookies, on the other hand, like the one we built for Ketchum and DoubleTree by Hilton, is not as forgettable. A mobile media road show isn t an advertisement, it s a happening a spontaneous mini-event, a break in monotony, a bright spot in someone s day. And when people participate in interesting events, they think about them and they talk about them. And in a world where most marketers are turning to the digiverse to the exclusion of all else, in-person interactions may actually have become more valuable for their rarity.
Last year, General Electric s Lighting Revolution Tour took to the road to give designers, distributors, architects, contractors, facility maintenance, and utility executives a first-hand experience of GE s latest innovations in lighting technology. Not the sexiest subject matter, perhaps, but at every one of 57 stops, its truck deployed a 600-foot-square awning covering all of the company s latest lighting solutions. You can t get that kind of customer interaction online.
What you could get online and this is where technology plays a critical role was mobile road tour tracking information and scheduling. A mobile road show s success does not just depend on rocking up in a pretty truck. Much of the pre-planning involved in event management still applies. E-mail campaigns, social media announcements going out 3-8 weeks in advance and online truck tracking via microblog are a must.
Decibel Management has concepted, designed and overseen more than a few mobile media campaigns. Give us a call: we ll handle the rest.
Romney Campaign Event- Mooresville, NC
COMPANY NEWS, LIVE EVENTS
We just wrapped up a great event at the NASCAR Technical Institute in Mooresville, NC. What we didn t know at the time was that we would get the opportunity to have the full ticket on stage.
Once Ryan was introduced the day of setup, we knew to expect a big crowd. After the fire marshall shut down the main event, we worked to get everyone into an overflow event area outside. The first photo below was the line to get into the overflow, and the following shows the candidates making remarks to the crowd
Custom Trade Show Booth Install
Custom Trade Show Booth Install
Just wrapped up a custom trade show booth install at Hilton Worldwide for the DoubleTree by Hilton brand team. Check out the photos below and in dB gallery for some behind the scenes looks at the build!
Thanks to the team at Gensler for the design and concepts, as well as DoubleTree for the creative space. We loved working on this project. Hope everyone enjoys the cookies!
Music Video: Shot on iPhone 4
EVERYTHING ELSE
Read a great article today that highlights the video capability of the iPhone 4. While I am still waiting for the iPhone to be released on Verizon, I can certainly enjoy these great music videos.
All shot entirely on the iPhone. The video above is Cascades by Flakjakt. It will also be in my iPod shortly. Head over to Mashable for the full article and additional videos.
Expect the best, prepare for the worst: bulletproofing your event
EVENT INDUSTRY
Every event organizer knows that feeling: You ve made the last phone call, you ve ticked off the last item on the checklist, you ve made sure that ambitious trade show booth will actually fit in a 10 10 square and you ve done it all while bringing your event in under budget. Now all that s left is to sit back and watch everything run itself.
Hah, just kidding.
In event management, despite the best planning, changes, mishaps, and the unavoidable sometimes happen, and they seem to invariably happen two minutes before showtime, and just as crew is donning their headsets. Maybe the hotel freezer broke and the desserts have melted, maybe the toilets back up, or an unintended power issue arises and the fuse blows right before the main networking session. You can t predict every problem, but we believe an event planner isn t just paid to create an event, we re paid to make the event as stress-free as possible for the client, and that includes becoming an expert in putting out fires. In an industry where excuses don t fly, we ve found these tips useful when bulletproofing our events.
Build it into the budget Set aside a chunk of your operating budget to give you some room to maneuver, and make sure that uh-oh money is sitting there until the event has wrapped. Happily, it s rare you ll need to use it, but when you do need to buy 800 mini chocolate pies at the last minute, it s a lifesaver.
Beef up your black book Have multiple suppliers ready to meet each of your needs. Most of us repeatedly work with a series of vendors we like and can trust to get the job done, but they have their uh-oh moments as well, and if you ve got good contacts or a backup on speed dial, it s that much more likely that you can save the day and work the magic your clients expect from you.
Know who does what Make sure you ve been introduced to all they key people. Who s the contact for the building maintenance crew? Who can you contact during the event in case you need sign-off on a decision?
Create swift lines of communication Make sure you can get in touch with every member of your staff quickly and efficiently so your team can respond to problems before they get out of hand.
Have a solid starting plan In live events, these situations happen. They happen on every event. Have the strongest plan you can for what you know. Having this in place allows you the time and ability to handle the new pieces that come your way.
Silver Anvil
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY
The Cookie CAREavan tour for DoubleTree by Hilton was awarded the Silver Anvil Award from PRSA! Congrats to the incredible team that worked on the project.
As anyone who has worked with us knows, we love producing events and mobile media tours here at Decibel, and it is great to work with such an outstanding team. Ketchum Public Relations, Digital Royalty, Gensler, OMD, and all of the partners made it a great tour. We were thrilled to be along for the ride!
The Cookie CAREavan tour won the Silver Anvil Award from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), in the category of Marketing Consumer Services Travel/Tourism. The tour also won a PRSA Award of Excellence in the category of Events and Observances, 7 days or more (business services). This is the third Silver Anvil for David Sonntag as a producer and the first for Decibel Management.
Mashable s Innovative Mobile Media Marketing Campaigns
UNCATEGORIZED
As many of you know, we have been on the road and around the Nation this summer with the DoubleTree by Hilton Cookie CAREavan. While there has been amazing PR along the way, this article was a great treat! Our Mobile Media Road Tour made Mashable s top 5 Innovative Food Truck Social Media Marketing Campaigns. As a bonus we came in at the top spot. As with any tour, it takes a village. Congrats to DoubleTree by Hilton, Ketchum Public Relations and Digital Royalty for the great work! You can check out some awesome tour photos from the road in our gallery!
National Small Business Week
COMPANY NEWS
Decibel Management was selected as the event producer for the 2011 National Small Business Week meetings and events in Washington, DC.
They will be at the Mandarin Oriental from May 16 20, 2011. We will have updates as the work progresses and when we have registration up and running. This is a great conference for small businesses and I highly recommend attending.
Great Trade Show Booth Designs: Unique Visuals and Interesting Interactions
TRADE SHOW
An edgy and original trade show booth design helps to capture the eye, despite being situated among dozens of others all aiming to do the same. And of course, after you ve attracted attention, a unique interaction helps you keep it.
Here are 5 examples that stand out for their eye-catching visuals, great brand identity, and fun factor.
Malaysia
It s always a good idea to put your brand logo front and center. For Malaysia, that s the Petronas Towers. At the IMEX Frankfurt 2013 Travel Exhibition, the Malaysian tourism bureau backed up its great social media presence with a trade show booth that included hands-on arts and crafts and an opportunity to pretend to bargain with hawkers beneath a huge replica of the iconic towers.
Bitsy s Brainfood
Health food stores may be good for you but they aren t exactly kid-centric. Bitsy s Brainfood, an American chain that markets healthy snacks for kids hits its stride right away. Its color scheme, the toys, its choice of activities, the lettering will make kids pay attention while parents listen to the sales spiel.
NRG Energy
Large corporations often rest on their laurels, throw up humdrum booths with little thought of event management and rely on their brand name alone. NRG Energy s booth proves this is nonsense. This booth engages customers directly into the company s core mission, how to produce renewable energy. Plus the Human NRG wheel just looks like a ton of fun.
Inada Chairs
Inada knows how people often feel at conferences and trade shows: bored, tired, footsore or all three. By providing their chairs for the relaxation of executives, they hit their target audiences just as they re most in need of Inada s product. The booth design is nothing spectacular but it doesn t need to be, the product and goodwill interaction speaks for itself.
Newsweek
The epitome of brand recognition, this Newsweek booth is the cherry on the cake. At first glance, outside the neon 3D lettering, it may not look like much, but the casual observer will pick out some lovely touches. The red phone that harkens back to a more dangerous era, the selection of glossy magazine covers from across the decades, the so-uncool-it s-cool metallic chair all this perfectly encapsulates Newsweek s brand identity and even engenders a sense of nostalgic attachment to the brand.