Archive for the ‘Experiential – Event Management’ Category

Beyond Traditional and Yahoo! Headline Internet Week for Second Year

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June 9th, 2012

For the second consecutive year, Beyond Traditional was handpicked by Yahoo! to launch a new brand at the world’s largest tech event–Internet Week New York. BT lead Yahoo! in digital domination and to become the most influential and innovative exhibitor of the event.

This year’s event was held in the heart of NYC’s chic SoHo neighborhood – over the course of the week, thousands of industry leading artists, designers, journalists, bloggers and techies converged to check out and share what’s awe-inspiring and avant-garde in the digital sector.

The BT team, in charge of all design and event management – from concept to execution, transformed Yahoo!’s event space into a hip lounge area where event-goers were invited to learn about Yahoo!-related content, interact with Yahoo! media and even pose for a custom photo, (which was set into a template made to appear as the front page of Yahoo!) to commemorate the event.

“[Beyond Traditional] was amazing,” Yahoo! Senior Manager of Event Marketing Dana Ching said. “[We] loved that [they] kept upping the bar each day.”

A video wall served as the key focal point of the experience – a custom-animated video drew in visitors and demonstrated the capabilities of Yahoo! Genome to target audiences and boost digital marketing potential and ROI.

To view more photos of Yahoo! at Internet Week New York, visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/yahooadvertising.



The Jack Burger Truck is at the CMA Music Festival!

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June 8th, 2012

The Jack Burger Truck

The BT team is in Fan Alley at the CMA Music Festival–at only two days into the event, The Jack Burger Truck is drawing huge crowds of country music fans, lining up to get their hands on a Jumbo Jack®!



Beyond Traditional at Internet Week New York!

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May 16th, 2012

A few members of the Beyond Traditional team are out for the week to help Yahoo! make a big impression at this year’s Internet Week New York.

At only a couple of days into the event, being held in the heart of NYC’s chic SoHo neighborhood at the 82 Mercer Conference Center, Yahoo! has turned heads and has already risen to become one of the most popular exhibitors of the Week.

Beyond Traditional, in charge of all design–from concept to execution, transformed Yahoo!’s event space into a hip lounge area where event goers were invited to hang out, watch Yahoo!-related content, interact with Yahoo! media and even pose for a custom photo to commemorate the event.

Video walls and pentagonal pillars, featuring touch-screens synced with web apps, separated the event space and broadcasted sizzle reels, interactive experiences, video content and live media from Yahoo! Finance, News, Sports, Screen and Entertainment to Internet Week attendees.

In front of a behemoth purple depiction of the New York City skyline, guests put on their best socialite impressions and posed for a photo–once taken, the photo was instantly uploaded and fit into one of five tabloid-themed frames that users could choose from to customize their souvenirs.

In addition to crowds of techies, Yahoo! lounge visitors have also included the NYC mayor and resident multi-billionaire, Michael Bloomberg.

Check in soon for more information and photos from the event!



Beyond Traditional & Qdoba Launch Interactive Photo Booth

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April 16th, 2012

At the Seattle Mariners home opener, the team from Beyond Traditional celebrated its third year of partnership with Qdoba Seattle by taking this year’s Summer Sampling Tour to the next level.

Three months ago, Qdoba Seattle came to Beyond Traditional with a challenge–how can we expand upon our event footprint outside of the allure of a free food truck?

We put our heads together and the answer came easily–what’s more nostalgic, fun and social than a photo booth? What could top the instant gratification of a photo print out and the unique takeaway of a custom keepsake?

We quickly got to work and, in a matter of days, we designed and built the interactive photo booth in-house, equipped it with a touch screen monitor and linked the system with WiFi technology so that photos were instantly uploaded, emailed directly to participants and printed on-site for fans to take home and post on their refrigerators.

Over the course of two and a half hours, over 1,000 samples of Qdoba’s hot and savory chips and Queso were passed out and 130 fans climbed into the Qdoba photo booth to “flavor-ize” themselves and show us their best “cheesy,” “spicy” and “sweet” faces.

To view more photos from the game visit www.qdobacruiser.com–the campaign’s online hub, also built and designed by Beyond Traditional.



Best and Worst Super Bowl Experiential Promotions

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February 29th, 2012


We Stood Up and Spilled Our Popcorn For….

Bud Light Hotel

Honestly, what’s not to love about a Bud Light hotel takeover?

This year, Budweiser owned Super Bowl Village with an advertising arsenal of branded, outdoor lounges, ‘super’ secret pop-up bars and brought out the heavy marketing machinery by transforming the Hampton Inn in downtown Indy into the ultra-glam, VIP Bud Light Hotel, open to football fans in-the-know and wielding the right passes.

Everything inside and outside of the hotel (from canopies and welcome mats to complimentary pens, pillow mints and shampoo bottles) was rebranded to fit the Bud Light ‘glam’ theme.

During Super Bowl Week, the Bud Light Hotel served as an incomparable venue for the event’s hottest parties–including the Playboy Party, the Madden Party and a special performance by 50 Cent.

Budweiser continues to be an inspiration for us to push boundaries and never view any idea as over-the-top or off-limits.

Paul Mitchell Pop-Up Barber Shop

At the Maxim Gotham City Party (super hero-themed) on Feb. 4, the hair product brand Paul Mitchell brought a touch of refinery to Super Bowl week with its pop-up barber shop that offered guests free hair touch-ups and consultations. In acknowledgement of the party’s theme, Paul Mitchell remembered to include ‘super’ models and ‘super’ stylists to participate in the promotion.

We Politely Clapped For…

Heineken

Heineken also sponsored the Maxim Gotham City Party, and its tactics were less than innovative. A branded bar was set up in the space and brand ambassadors circled the venue passing out ice-cold beverages to guests.

While the party itself offered excellent exposure, we would have liked to see Heineken push the envelope, or if nothing else offer guests a takeaway, aside from a free beer that would eventually end up in a recycling bin. Even something as small as a branded beer cozy would have been something for attendees to take home and forever associate the Heineken brand with one of the best parties they had ever attended.

We Are Throwing A Flag On…

NFL Projections in Super Bowl Village

Following the visually mind-blowing halftime performance and the week of 3D-centric, experiential parties and campaigns, we were less-than-impressed by the NFL’s use of projectors to brand the sides of buildings, and a giant XLVI, in downtown Indianapolis.

We believe the NFL left a champion opportunity unrealized– it had the arena to take something as tried and true as a building projection and make it functional, interactive and awe-inspiring.

By piggybacking off the 3D projection trend (now widely recognized after the NYC Saks building Christmas projection and the Chevrolet Sonic 3D claw game promotion) the NFL could have taken its building projections a step further by adding in a digital clock counting down to the Super Bowl or even taking advantage of the space by projecting players’ images running the football across the downtown Indianapolis skyline.

While the NFL’s projections were photo worthy (see below), they lacked that ‘wow’ factor and over-the-top showiness the Super Bowl is infamous for. Perhaps the NFL was anxious about upstaging its advertisers, but at the end of the day…it’s the NFL’s stage, isn’t it?