Events Are Like Tinder Dates…
By Gavin Lawrence
Some people will never go to one, some attend occasionally and others notch up so many that they lose count.
People share stories with their friends that are generally good or bad experiences. The mediocre ones are rarely spoken about and when they are, the person listening to them is nodding politely wondering why their coffee is taking so long.
It all starts with an invite, right? There’s an air of hope that this one might be the best ever. You get ready, order your Uber and rock up with high expectations, and sometimes dread. So we’ll put aside the lame ones and focus on those rare nights that you don’t want to end. Lets keep it professional, people, and talk about events…we’ll get back to Tinder a little later 😉
What makes an event truly memorable, in a good way? I’ve had the honour of attending thousands of events throughout the world for both business and pleasure and the good ones, like the really, really good ones that you wake up the next morning with a big smile on your face, are ones where you share an amazing experience. And we’re still talking about events here. Don’t lose focus now.
You can have a massive budget to organise your event but if the entertainment is stock standard, your guests will be yawning like a sleepy dog in front of a cozy fire after a big feed. If you have a theme which you need to be on-brand, or you just want a cracking party, you’ll need more than a bar and disco ball.
Here’s a few interactive ideas that might just make you happier than plugging your phone in when it’s at 5% and help your next event, become next-level…
The One Trick Phoney
The name of the game here is to ensure your guests know exactly what you want them to know. Like 90% of the time, you’ll need an incentive for people to play. So you list 9 true interesting facts etc about your brand or client. The amazing accomplishments you’ve made, your clients, something about your team and/or what you’re focusing on in the future. Then you slip in a complete porky pie that is super hard to know if its true or not (without Google).
You ask your guests if they can pick the lie. They will be so inthralled in encompassing Sherlock Holmes, that they will forget the fact they’ve just read all your key points numerous times, especially when there is a prize for the winner. You could easily implement this for: Corporate conferences – about the guest speakers, Weddings – about the bride and groom, or Brand/Product/Movie launch – Easy, der!
The “Gotcha” Cocktail
I can’t lay claim to have invented this doozy, as I saw it at a massive marketing expo in London but their stand was by far the busiest of them all, and worth sharing. When you walked into their stand, you were greeted by an iPad that could predict your perfect cocktail, and of course I pressed, “click here to play”.
The next page had one question on it, along the lines of, “who would be the first celebrity you’d invite to your dinner party”. The questions were fun and non-obtrusive but all related back to the brand. All up it took about 1 minute to fill out, including your contact details. Finally the ipad would show your perfect cocktail and said get one for free at their bar. Most cocktails are tasty so they can’t really go wrong.
The smartest piece of the puzzle then prevailed as a staff member from the brand would stroll up and have a chat to you while you have a drink in your hand, just like in a bar. Genius!
The “Don’t Judge Me! Ok, Judge Me” app
At the start of this year we built a smart tv app. We had no idea how people would respond but it was nothing short of astonishing. The first time we trialled it was for KIIS FM in 28 locations around Melbourne with over 500 people trying it. For that activation, the app was programmed to judge how people kissed inside our custom made video booth.
After each person kissed a hygienic perspex screen for 10 seconds, they would step outside the booth and look at the big screen for their judgement. The app supplied judgements such as, “Thats a perfect amount of tongue”, “You kiss like a thirsty Chihuahua” and “You kiss like THOR”. Oh, the winner scored $20,000 and crowned Melbourne’s Perfect KIIS.
It’s cutting-edge technology which can be rebranded and designed to tailor for non-kissing activities, ie) dance moves, jokes, Q&A’s, sports or anything that your or our creative minds can think of. Events this could work at, but not limited to, would be brand activations/launches, award ceremonies, festivals, gala events, weddings, buck/hens nights or even birthdays. See our KIIS case study for more info or contact us for some inspiration.
Ok, ok, ok…now for all you Tinder people, or any other online daters for that matter. Use the “One Trick Phoney” method on your profile and make it relevant to you. Or use it as your first, “what the heck can I say”, message. You could even use it on your CV if you are looking for a new job. It’ll make you stand out of the crowd and works a treat, apparently. 🙂