Sesame Street Event
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, LIVE EVENTS
Just finished a great event for CL Productions and Sesame Street in Washington DC. Follow the link for some fun photos. We were thrilled to help out Chris and the entire CL Production team onsite for the load in and show. Decibel was onsite to help facilitate the computer and iPad demos, as well as call the show. Thanks to Abby Cadabby and Gordon for the photos!
Glass Packaging Institute 2013 Spring Meeting
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, LIVE EVENTS
We just wrapped up the Glass Packaging Institute s (GPI) Spring Meeting in Washington, DC.
The meetings last week were held at the Law Offices of Morgan, Lewis, & Bockius. Not only do they have fantastic conference and meeting facilities, but also one of the best views of Washington, DC. They are located on Pennsylvania Avenue just blocks from some of the most famous Washington DC landmarks.
At registration Tuesday morning the members and guests received their name badges as well as a custom Moleskine notebook as the take home gift for this meeting. Registration for the members, guests, and staff are one of our roles for the GPI meetings.
Meeting topics this week ranged from Government Affairs to Member meetings as well as Congressional Office Visits on Capitol Hill for some of the GPI Members. Branded handouts and printed packets as well as the organization of agendas and other meeting documents were also handled by the Decibel team.
The members experienced the beautiful view on the 13th floor Rooftop Terrace at the Member s Reception on Wednesday night. The members were able to enjoy hors d oeuvres while they took in everything Washington DC had to offer.
Decibel Management executed many other aspects of this meeting including hotel accommodations at the St. Regis for the members and visiting guests, online and onsite registration, and all banquet and catering needs for the various meetings and reception.
Decibel Online Event Registration
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, EVERYTHING ELSE, LIVE EVENTS, TIPS & TRICKS
Over the past few months, we have been hard at work on our new custom online registration system, and wanted to share a quick behind the scenes photo of our IA process flow. For the past few years, we have been using our current online registration system for a number of clients and it has absolutely served us well on some very unique and intense registration scenarios. As we began to build a new site for one of our clients, we decided it was time to also build a more functional and user friendly system. We decided for the new version it was time to start from the ground up. This involved intensive planning with our design and development team, as well as heavy IA work and prototyping.
IA (Information Architecture) has been a major focus for the new registration system. Our goal is to make a very intricate and complex system as user friendly and simple as possible. The more time we spend planning and developing the IA, the easier it will be to navigate an intensely complex registration function. We have also included a very unique and inventive process for buying a companion ticket to the process. This may just be the best feature that we are including.
Once we complete the development and testing and it is ready for launch, we will post additional information with more in-depth details. We are looking forward to using this for our upcoming events in 2012. Stay tuned for more info!
Exhibitor 2013
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, TRADE SHOW
We had the opportunity to travel to the Exhibitor 2013 show this year, and it did not disappoint. This is a trade show and conference for trade show and conference builders and planners. Many of the manufacturers bring their best new concepts and technologies for display, and we were able to spend quality time with some of the best of the best. It was also great to see the show growing again this year- with a host of new exhibitors, and some that have come back from a few years away. Below, we have included some of our favorites.
Here is what Exhibitor Magazine has to say about their trade show floor at the 2013 Exhibitor Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada:
EXHIBITOR2013 s New Product Showcase delivers the industry s largest collection of new trade show and corporate event products and services making their public debut. The spotlight is on innovation as exhibitors vie for the coveted Buyer s Choice Awards selected from the field of New Product Showcase entries.
AVFX is a staging and technology vendor out of Boston. They built out a video wall with NEC monitors that looked great, but the tech that made it stand out was the control surface. This was a clear touchscreen monitor in front of the display wall. When you stepped in front of the controller, it frosted over and allowed a user to select a video for playback on the wall. Very cool execution.
Armodilo
We have been using and building in iPad kiosks on our tours and mobile media activations for years now. We have used Bounce Pad, and have quite an affinity for Lilitab, but Armodilo was able to capture our attention. The product is quite simple- something easier said than done. We can utilize various tablets in the same enclosure, and it is a very simple and quick setup. We are excited about getting in our test units and if all goes well, folding them into our new tours moving forward.
Brandstand
Brandstand debuted their new, all in one, digital signage. It is very clean and simple, needing just a flash drive to show movies or graphics on a loop. There are limited features and options, but a great price point. These are brand new items in their portfolio, and we look forward to evaluating them in earnest when we have the chance.
GES
GES let their case studies speak for themselves, as they built out an all white booth and environment for Exhibitor. What really got our attention was a small, simple, but very cool graphic technique. QR codes seem to be everywhere these days, but they took it a step further and created a design around the QR code itself. Simple, but a great technique to incorporate.
Czarnowski
We have come to expect great, creative activations from Czarnowski on the exhibit floor, and this year did not disappoint. Their main tech showcase was a photo/light booth. Built in the middle of their exhibit, their guests entered the booth and a photo was taken, then you had 15 seconds to make a light-design as the aperture remained open capturing the movement of the light sticks. Great tech, great execution and a great end product. This is a rentable solution as well, so look for it out on the road.
Blue Telescope
It is always a treat to get to experience what Blue Telescope brings to Exhibitor. Their interaction started pre-show with a great online interaction where you build out your personalized digital flower. From there, the tech and story continued on the show floor, and included a section of questions about the individual attendee. They also displayed graphics and motion sensors with the Microsoft Kinect interface. At the end, we received a flower to plant to close the entire loop. Always fun to see their new activations.
Elements Exhibits
We have to give it to Elements for a great fully immersive experience on the floor. They featured ice sculptures and themes throughout the booth, but topped it off by working with Icebar to include an onsite walk in freezer, ice, and a bar built into their booth.
Panphonics
In many build outs, booths, and mobile activations we are asked about directional audio. Many times we use audio cones, speaker placement and volume control to accomplish the task at hand. It was great to see the solutions from Panphonics. They developed a square and very, very thin directional speaker for these applications.
National Book Festival Team
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, LIVE EVENTS, TIPS & TRICKS
We just want to share a few photos of the great team we had onsite for the National Book Festival. We couldn t pull off an event of this size without a stellar team.
2013 The Special Event Chicago, IL
BACKSTAGE, COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, LIVE EVENTS, TIPS & TRICKS, TRADE SHOW
Do you remember that feeling when you were a kid and your parents let you walk through the toy section of a store? The pure joy and excitment of the latest and greatest thing? That is exactly how it felt to walk through The Special Event in Chicago a few weeks ago.
The Special Event is one of the largest trade shows and conferences for event professionals. Vendors bring their A-Game to show the industry what they are capable of. Thousands from around the country and world come together to see the best of the best in our industry.
The trade show floor had a little bit of everything. Different types of lighting to cater to any event, linens of every fabric, software for anything from layouts to registration, and much more in between.
We found quite a few potential vendors within the trade show and look forward to working with them in the future. Here are a few pictures from the tradeshow floor.
The conference portion was both interesting and informative. We learned a lot about the trends and issues in the event industry and are excited to bring the knowledge back to our clients.
We were also able to attend one of the extra events during the show. The ballroom was setup by some of the best vendors in the industry to resemble an upscale reception. Some of the best aspects included the ice DJ Booth by Nadeau s Ice Sculptures, the live music from the Becca Kaufman Orchestra, and modern furniture from Cort Event Furnishings and AFR Event Furnishings.
The Special Event was a great experience that every event professional should have at some point in their career. We learned a ton and met a lot of great people. Cannot wait until 2014 when the conference will be held in Nashville, TN at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel & Convention Center.
National Book Festival Power and Rigging Day
COMPANY NEWS, EVENT INDUSTRY, LIVE EVENTS, TIPS & TRICKS
Today we started both signage rigging and power for the 2011 National Book Festival. The day started with rain that moved through, but luckily didn t slow the crews down too much.
As you can see from the photos, this is where we start to see the signage and branding come to life. We will continue the power and AC basics as well as the signage throughout the week.
Decibel vs. Snowstorm at the H agen-Dazs Concept Shop Launch: Decibel Wins
COMPANY NEWS
January 24th was already a gutsy date to launch an ice cream shop. Throw in a surprise blizzard, and you get an event management challenge. Hey, winter storm Lola? CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. Check out the video after the jump.
H agen-Dazs Concept Shop Launch from Decibel Management on Vimeo.
When Decibel partnered with Ketchum PR to organize and promote the launch of H agen-Dazs new concept store in Bronxville, New York, no one could have predicted a 6- to 8-inch snowfall the night before the event. Thing is, though, these things happen, and trite but true the best tool you can have in this industry is a get- er-done attitude.
With the outdoor weather putting a cramp in our ice cream giveaway tent setup, we fell back on Plan B, bringing the activities indoors. In need of additional space, the team made a few quick calls, and the owner of Pete s Tavern & Restaurant, immediately next door, graciously granted us use of the space. Great turnout.
The shop itself is a working example of H agen-Dazs new in-store experience, and the company plans to open 12 new stores this year all based along the same lines. The new design features digital menu boards, leather eat-in booths, a tasting station, and a dessert theater counter, where customers can watch employees craft fancy frozen treats.
Many thanks to the quick-thinking souls that made this event a success, and congratulations to H agen-Dazs on their shiny new location.
Merry Christmas to All from Decibel Management: Our End-of-Year Roundup
COMPANY NEWS
Christmas already? Good heavens. This year has flown by, as all years do, and as we see the new year rounding the bend, we d like to take a moment to look back and salute the last 12 months. We ve been working on a showreel of our top moments of 2014, which we re super excited about posting, but in the meantime, a quick roundup of Decibel s 2014 highlights.
A look at some of our 2014 projects
We took on quite a few repeat clients this year, honing events that we ve managed for the last few years running, plus a couple of new projects and challenges. Not for the first time, Decibel Management tackled the annual National Book Festival, sponsored by the Library of Congress on the National Mall. This event sees hundreds of thousands of visitors annually and is a truly gratifying undertaking. Come on, who doesn t like watching people get excited about reading? It s a joy.
We also stepped back in for the annual National Small Business Week sponsored by the SBA, the Glass Packaging Institutes annual meetings, the DoubleTree by Hilton CookieCare Mobile Tour, and additionally several unique events for nationally-recognized brands (H&R Block, Clorox) with our friends at PR powerhouses Ketchum and FleishmanHillard.
Some of our other projects have included the T. Rowe Price National Sales Meeting, some trade show work for ACell, and more forays into political event management with the Republican Attorney General Association.
A shoutout to friends and vendors
It takes a huge team to pull off large-scale events, and everyone s gotta be on the ball. We feel extremely lucky to be partnered up with some of the most on-it folks in the biz, companies that we trust to back us up in creating some killer events. We particularly want to give some love to the folks who keep bringing the skills year after year. That list includes:
- EventEQ
- M1 Interactive
- CGS Premier
- GES
- Optima GFX
- Greenroom Communications
- Polaris Logistics
- Nomadic Display
- Olympic Case
- Design Foundry
- Legacy Scenic
- Matrix Display
- Access Passes
No really, Merry Christmas
It sounds like a platitude, but platitudes are platitudes for a reason: looking back on this year, we re grateful. We re grateful that we know so many incredible, interesting and capable people; grateful for the opportunity to work in a field that never fails to fascinate us and keep us on our toes, grateful for all of our terrific clients and friends.
We wish you all an incredibly fulfilling 2015, a year that is full to the brim with new experiences, huge successes, and of course, lots of love. We hope you re spending the season surrounded by loved ones and lots of cheer. From everyone at Decibel Management, Merry Christmas and the happiest of New Years.
Oooh, Kudos! Decibel Wins Silver at Event Tech Awards
COMPANY NEWS
Shweet! This just in: Decibel and our partners took home the silver for Best Audience Interaction for the Get Your Billion Back America campaign.
Decibel partnered up with Ketchum Public Relations and M1 Interactive to create an experiential kiosk aimed at educating about potential money lost when personal taxes are done improperly. Event Marketer, who hosts the awards, explains best:
The kiosk, which Lively describes as part-ATM machine and part-video/photo booth, is located within a 20-foot by 20-foot activation at high-traffic locations. Participants take a two-minute quiz on an interactive touch screen, answering multiple-choice questions about the campaign and what they would do with a billion dollars, then the machine spits out $10 bills, which represents their piece of the billion. The kiosk also takes their photo or a video with the cash, which they receive via email. On-site brand ambassadors answer questions about H&R Block and schedule tax preparation appointments.
Here s a little glimpse of the campaign:
Check out the Event Marketer site for all 2014 Event Tech Award winners.
