How to Host a Silent Party

How to Host a Silent Party

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These days, the concept of "silent parties" or silent discos is becoming increasingly popular—especially in the world of event planning. If you're looking to host a party that will have people talking for months, this unique concept may be worth a try. Before you tackle the task of planning and hosting a silent party, however, there are some things you need to know.

Start with a basic understanding of what constitutes a silent party! Generally, a silent party is an event where attendees are handed a pair of headphones when they step into the space; all music and announcements are played only over these headphones.

Benefits of a Silent Party

To somebody without headphones, a silent party might look a little silly, but there are numerous benefits to hosting this unique type of event.

Avoid Noise Complaints

For starters, a silent party allows you to reduce the potential for issues like noise complaints. This, in turn, makes it easier for you to host your party just about anywhere and at any time. 

Enjoy Easy Conversation

Have you ever been to a loud party where you couldn't even hold a conversation without having to yell over the music? A silent party removes this common frustration, since attendees can easily slip their headphones off to chat with friends.

Tailor the Experience

A silent party allows you to customize the experience for your attendees by playing different music into different channels. This way, you can give attendees a choice when they walk in to select between two different experiences!

Preparing for a Silent Party

Are you sold on the idea of hosting a silent party? If so, then you may be wondering what steps you can take to ensure a smooth and successful event.

Select Your Equipment

Start by deciding on your equipment. There are many different companies out there that will allow you to rent out headphones for your guests. Will you choose over-the-ear headphones or ear buds? How many different sets of headphones will you have, and what other rentals will you need in terms of audio equipment?

Deciding on Audio Channels

If you'd like to offer a tailored silent party experience, you'll need to be able to set up more than one audio channel for your attendees. This can complicate things a bit, since you'll need two different sets of headphones as well as different audio components. If you're hiring a DJ, you might also need more than one DJ, depending on their level of experience. 

Setting Up Staffing

Depending on the size of your event, your staffing needs will vary. Aside from needing someone to hand out headphones to guests as they walk in and collect them when they come out, you might also want to consider hiring security for events of 50  or more people.

Keeping Your Equipment Safe

Again, depending on the size of your group and how well you know your attendees, you might want to take additional precautions to keep rented equipment (such as headphones) safe. Consider, for example, collecting IDs as collateral and returning them to attendees in exchange for their headphones when they leave. You might also consider collecting a cash deposit as people arrive, as this will offset any potential costs related to damaged or lost headphones.

With a little bit of careful planning, your first silent party can be a resounding success! When pulled off correctly, a silent party can be a great way to get people talking and can make for an experience that your attendees won't soon forget! Looking for the ideal location to host your silent party? Check out Soho Studios today!

7 Best Cities to Host a Pop Up Event

7 Best Cities to Host a Pop Up Event

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Are you considering hosting a pop-up event? You should. They are becoming increasingly popular, and are an excellent way to get your brand out there, make an impression, and gain new customers. If you aren't familiar with pop-up events, the concept behind them is pretty simple. They started becoming a "thing" about a decade ago, and are more popular now than ever. They are events that seem temporary or unplanned, but are actually anything but. To pull one off, you have to have an event planner who knows how to make an intricately designed event look totally casual, even like it was thrown together on the spur of the moment. You also need a large audience, because you want your event to gain a lot of public attention.

This need for an audience of passersby means you should ideally be having your pop-up event in a place where it will be easy for you to get a lot of foot traffic. These are the seven best cities in which to host a pop-up event, including a few examples of successful ones, to give you a few ideas for your own.

1. New York City, NY

As one of the busiest cities on Earth, and a top tourist destination to boot, New York City is an ideal location for any kind of pop-up event. In the world's melting pot city, you may even attract the attention of a few celebrities to your event. There will certainly be no shortage of potential participants.

A really successful pop-up event that was held here was done by the Culinary Institute of America, where students took over the famed Pangea restaurant to host a unique dinner. The menu was planned to contain only items that drew attention to how we will feed the planet as our resources dwindle in future generations. Conscious dining was the theme, and innovative, sustainable dishes were served to great acclaim. Because the event let visitors feel good about the cause they were supporting, they were also willing to pay more for it than a typical restaurant.

2. Los Angeles, CA

The home of the world's entertainment industry is another ideal location for a pop-up event. The possibility for celebrities coming and bringing attention and prestige to your brand is high. Like NYC, there is also a lot of tourist traffic. Plus, the paparazzi are everywhere here, and likely to cover your event, especially if someone famous shows up.

A pop-up store was set up in LA before the premier of the movie, Where the Wild Things Are, to sell memorabilia. The store was created to look like a nest in one corner, and a giant child's fort in another corner. The mannequins were given horns to resemble wild creatures. It was such a fun place to shop, and looked like it had always been there. For the short time the store was there, it pulled in an amazing amount of traffic and sales.

3. London, UK

The NYC of the UK, London is a city that always has something happening, and foot traffic from regular people, celebrities, and nobility alike. It is also the location of a highly creative pop-up event that shows their versatility. This one was put on by the Wieden+Kennedy ad agency, and its purpose was to show anyone who happened by what it is like to work there. The front window of the office was transformed into a cartoon set, where employees took turns working. It looked like they were working in an animated cartoon environment, and passersby loved it. There was even a webcam on the agency's website so anyone in the world could watch. This event went on for a few weeks, and gained a huge amount of attention and brand recognition for the agency.

4. Paris, France

Probably the second-best place to have a pop-up event in Europe besides London, Paris has everything going for it that London does, only with that traditionally romantic Parisian background. It would be a perfect location for any dating or romance-themed event.

5. Seattle, WA

Known for its eclectic residents, this is the home of Starbucks and grunge rock, among other things. With a large population, and high tourist traffic, with people who are known to be environmentally aware, this is the perfect location for any "save the planet" or sustainability pop-up event.

6. Orlando, FL

It's the vacation capital of the world. If you are looking to put on a family-friendly event, or one that caters to a fun-loving, irreverent crowd, like college students or hipsters, this is the place to do it.

7. Miami, FL

The southernmost home of the nation's celebrities, heirs and heiresses, and other glitterati, as well as vacationers and partiers of all ages, Miami is a hotspot of non-stop activity, making it an ideal place to host a pop-up event of just about any kind. Plus, it has the advantage of having Soho Studios there, which is a perfect location for an event, or to find the people with the right experience and knowledge of the Miami crowd to plan an incredible one for you.

Three Things Forbes Included in its Under 30 Summit

Three Things Forbes Included in its Under 30 Summit

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With its recent Under 30 Summit, Forbes showed that it knows how to connect with the under 30 crowd. Forbes put a lot of research and effort into creating an event that catered to this audience while recognizing their unique experiences. The summit, which has been an annual event since 2014, took place in Boston, MA from October 1st to 4th this year. With over 7,000 people going to the summit, Forbes showed that it created enough interest in advance for people to want to attend.

How was Forbes able to reach this up-and-coming population? Here are three of the components Forbes included in its summit that connected with the under 30 crowd. 

1. Inspirational and Professional Opportunities

This event put young professionals in touch with opportunities that would inspire them, give them professional connections and teach them a thing or two. The summit included a wealth of content in different subject areas, from technology and science to health and social responsibility. It allowed attendees to connect with each other, collaborate and even learn about work opportunities. 

The crowd was able to learn and be inspired by top-notch speakers and celebrities, including Sophia Amoruso of Girlboss Media and John Chambers of Cisco. They learned from entrepreneurs, influencers and other powerhouses. They got the chance to talk to investors and network with other professionals as a way to grow their careers and opportunities. 

2. Entertainment and Experiences

Young professionals could get more than career-related education and inspiration at this summit. They also had fun. Event attendees had the chance to try different cuisine at an included food festival and experience the summit’s rocking music festival. 

The entertainment went beyond shows that attendees could watch from the audience. They also got to have unique experiences that engaged them. This aspect of the summit was new to this year, and it made a huge difference in connecting with the under 30 population. Attendees were able to test drive an Alfa Romeo sports car, learn from and play with a former professional basketball player and a bar crawl.

3. Recognition

With this summit, Forbes does a great job of tying an experiential event into its recognition of important people under 30. It goes along with Forbes’ “Under 30” list that yearly recognizes 30 innovators that are younger than 30 within numerous categories. This connection helps build interest around Forbes’ list and its authoritative position, while engaging with people on an in-person level.

The current summit recognized the new 30 people that were honored this year while also bringing back honorees from the past. In addition, the event recognized winners of competitions attendees were able to participate in. Medinas, a healthcare exchange platform, won the Global Change the World competition and received a $100,000 prize along with a $300,000 in-kind prize. 

Overall, Forbes did an amazing job at gaining excitement from its target audience and creating an experiential event that attendees would benefit from. The content, events and experiences kept attendees mostly in an "under 30 village" while also giving them the opportunity to fully appreciate the city by visiting different parts. Through a mixture of great content, awesome experiences and professional opportunities, the under 30 crowd was engaged and given the chance to grow personally and professionally.

How Lexus Created Top Models for New York Fashion Week

How Lexus Created Top Models for New York Fashion Week  

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Ever wondered what it'd be like to be a model for New York Fashion Week? This past September, during New York Fashion Week, luxury car maker Lexus hosted a first-of-its-kind event that allowed show attendees to enjoy a sneak peek for themselves. Their unique "Set in Motion" photo shoot invited members of the public to experience first-hand what it's like to be photographed as a model during what is typically an exclusive event.

Lexus "Set in Motion" Photo Shoot Experience at NYFW

Specifically, the "Set in Motion" photo shoot began with guests entering the installation (the set of which was actually inspired and designed around the new Lexus LC 500) and having a quick Polaroid photo snapped, just as New York Fashion Week models do as part of their open casting calls. That Polaroid then served as a guest's "ticket" to get into the Green Room Lounge, a luxurious space where hair and makeup professionals then treated each participant to beauty treatments, light refreshments, and a small take-home gift. Once participants were looking their runway best, they were ushered onto the stunning set and walked through a photo shoot experience with a professional photographer. And of course, alongside participants during their shoot was a stunning, $92,000 Lexus LC 500.

At the end of the mini-shoot, each participant was able to look through their photos in the comfort of the Green Room Lounge and select their favorite. They were then provided with their own printed copy of their favorite photo, along with the option to share it on social media. The entire experience, for most guests, took about an hour and was a wonderful and unique way to experience an insider's look at New York Fashion Week. And for many participants, this was a great way to step outside of one's typical "comfort zone" and try something completely new. Even those who have trouble taking a flattering selfie were impressed with how their photos turned out!

From Exclusive to All-Inclusive

The Set in Motion photo shoot proved to be a huge hit at New York Fashion Week and was heavily attended throughout the entire weekend, and not surprisingly. This was the first exhibit of its kind and served the excellent purpose of not only spreading awareness of the new Lexus LC 500, but gave attendees an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look while empowering each participant to look and feel confident. Overall, Lexus was pleased with the way the exhibit turned out, explaining that they wanted to take an event that is typically seen as exclusive to industry players and open it up to make it inclusive enough for the general public. Lexus also provided their usual fleet of almost 100 courtesy vehicles to be on display for the show itself.

Given the success of the Set in Motion photo shoot, it will be interesting to see if other companies will follow suit with similar inclusive events in the future. Either way, we're loving the way this was pulled off and give Lexus kudos for this innovative approach! Looking for an incredible venue in which to host your next event in the Miami area? Soho Studios has you covered! With both indoor and outdoor event spaces and countless configurations, we'd love to help make your next event a success.

How Wholly Guacamole Reached its Target Audience Through Pop Up Tours

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How Wholly Guacamole Reached its Target Audience Through Pop Up Tours

Wholly Guacamole is a big fan of the pop-up tour concept, and this year, it held yet another tour to draw people to its brand and experience. This year's tour moved away from last year's focus on music festivals and instead focused on the brand's core consumers, who are women in the 30-40 age range.

At each site in this year's tour, Wholly Guacamole offered dishes with a range of custom toppings available. The company also provided special "taste of" recipes that were customized to capture the local flavor of each city. This, however, was just the start of the experience for participants. Inside each pop-up location, attendees found updated versions of old games, such as a giant Jenga set, Connect Four, and other favorites chosen to appeal to the company's target audience.

Games of this nature emphasize guacamole's prominent presence at parties among 30-40-year-old women. By having them at the pop-up locations, Wholly Guacamole cements this connection and helps to ensure that people will remember their brand in particular when it comes time to buy some for a gathering.

While the games that were chosen are all of the physical variety, Wholly Guacamole certainly didn't forget about the modern wonder that is social media. It set up vending machines that dispensed giveaways when people entered a code. These giveaways were better than the average, and included water bottles, bandannas, and socks. The code to use was obtained by tweeting special hashtags along with a comment about the event. This gave people a direct incentive to spread the company's message.

Some activities were used only in particular markets. This allowed the company to really "wow" each market instead of giving everyone a totally generic experience. Some customizations included the availability of avocado facials, jewelry making, screen-printed T-shirts, and more. The company says that these offerings were unified by an underlying theme of health, beauty, and working out.

This year's kiosks, or "activations" as the company called them, were also meant to tie into the "guac bar scene" that has been on the rise in recent years. By doing so, the company positions itself as keeping up with the times even as it calls to mind the less-hip imagery of playing analogue games with groups of women in their 30s and 40s. This is important because it allows Wholly Guacamole to aim for this target audience without turning off younger people in the process.

One of the keys to a successful pop-up tour is choosing the right cities and venues for your event. Miami is always a good place to have a stop – its hip, multicultural environment spans several generations and includes a wide variety of interests. Once there, make sure to choose Soho Studios as your venue. We have two outdoor pavilions, and the weather here is suitable for using them all year round.

We also have up to 70,000 square feet of indoor space available for your event. It can be customized to meet your needs, not only for size, but for decorations and sets as well. This ensures that you can create the exact experience needed to promote your brand's image as well as your products. Just give us a call to reserve space indoors, outside, or a combination of the two.

How to Know if Your Brand is Ready for a Pop Up Event

If your brand is like most brands, timing is key. In the business world, pop-up events aren’t used every day—and for good reason. They’re tough to advertise, tough to maintain and very tough to make effective. Experiential marketing of any type gives a brand opportunities to engage with the public. Unlike traditional advertising campaigns, experiential marketing campaigns rely on timing, a good eye and motivating features to succeed.

So, is your brand ready for a pop-up event? We’re about to break it down for you.

Are Your Goals Defined?

Before starting a pop-up campaign, you should nail down your goals. Consider your key messages, and make sure you can measure results. The only way to measure results is through goal definition. Before ever executing your campaign, make sure you have your brand’s message, outreach opportunities and future capabilities grafted.

Do You Have a Target Audience?

Your pop-up’s target audience is not the same as your brand’s. It is, however, part of it. Who will likely see the pop-up event? Is your brand already hitting it off with this group? If you’re capable of reaching this target audience already, you might be ready for a pop-up experience. Just make sure you’re able to gain the audience’s attraction before setting foot inside the pop-up world.

Do You Have a Secure Venue?

Next, you should make sure your venue is tied down. Consider the venue’s spatial requirements, and determine which performers you’ll use. If you’re lucky enough to have a venue, it’s time for an experiential event in conjunction with your pop-up event. The double-hitter might seem disjointed, but it’s entirely conducive to a fully formed strategy. Having 70,000 square feet available is good for attracting pop-up crowds—even if the pop-up is hitting the city streets beyond.

Do You Have Attractive Offers?

Next, you should come to terms with your brand’s ability to offer value. Can you provide sufficiently attractive offers? What about discounts? What have your brand’s past visitors been attracted to? If you’re able to take a small money hit, consider implementing a pop-up campaign to boost long-term revenue.

Do You Have a Strong Online Marketing Team?

If you’ve recently worked with an online marketing team—either in-house or third-party—you’re ready to implement a pop-up campaign. Effective pop-up experiences are based on research, and the Internet crowd is inherently useful as a pop-up fanbase. Between e-commerce opportunities, growth hacks and lead generation, an online marketing team is your one-stop shop to success.

Can You Garner In-Depth Feedback?

Many modern marketers make a mistake: They start pop-up campaigns without being able to garner reviews, feedback and subjective opinions. In 2017, quality written feedback is as important as raw data. Unfortunately, a lot of businesses don’t see it as such.

Before starting a pop-up campaign, make sure you’re able to get in-depth reviews, comments and rundowns of your event’s “job well done.” High-quality reviews are necessary to connect a brand’s on-the-street efforts with social media marketing campaigns—which are vital to overall marketing success.

Do You Have a New Revenue Stream to Test?

We don’t suggest getting too experimental with your experiential campaign, but you should use it to gauge a new revenue stream’s long-term viability. Pop-up stands are great for gaining consumer trust, and they’re similarly great for examining possible revenue stream possibilities. Assuming you can popularize your brand’s image and execute an event adequately, you’ll have little trouble measuring future potential revenue.

So, where does your brand stand? Is it ready for a pop-up campaign? Be honest with yourself, and make sure you’re taking advantage of every opportunity. Your brand partners will thank you. More importantly, so will your customers.

Six Things Your Experiential Marketing Event Must Have

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Six Things Your Experiential Marketing Event Must Have

Business events can be hit-or-miss deals, but a good experiential event can influence consumers on a massive scale. In 2017, marketers have a lot of tools to work with. From VR to trending prop logo designs, the list is virtually limitless. We won’t say the “tiny house” fad isn’t a solid resource to look at, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction. Below, we’re covering four great resources your experiential event should use. You might not be able to mash them all together, but you should at least use one.

One: The Tiny House

Tiny houses are huge right now. They’re appearing on lifestyle websites, TV shows and magazine photo spreads. Ranging from 100- to 500-square-feet, tiny houses have reached baby boomer and millennial markets alike with their compact, endearing nature.

They’re easy to build, move and remove, too. Check out the SPAM Tiny House Sizzle Tour, if you’re looking for good ideas.

Two: Virtual Reality

The Oculus Rift and HTC Vive have made virtual reality a modern event cornerstone. If experiential marketing wasn’t fun before, it certainly is. Virtual Reality might still be in the Wild West, in terms of development, but it’s become something most small brands can afford to use. VR is still stepping up, but even its early-stage models can provide immersive experiences in small event spaces. If you want to upgrade, implement 360-degree video and augmented reality.

Three: Special Prop Logos

This year, we’ve seen a slew of unique prop logos pop up. Between separate area signs, neon signs and rustic signs, the glitz and glam never ends. You can make unique signs with graffiti or UV-resistant polycarbonate materials, too, if you’re looking for a classic, minimalistic design.

Four: Biometrics

Biometrics might seem futuristic, but it’s impacting today’s marketing world. Biometrics is the in-depth measurement, and analysis, of an individual’s behavioral and physical characteristics. Giving today’s event marketers an opening to measure target audience feelings, biometric devices are immediate response devices capable of measuring consumer preferences, event effectiveness and product incentives. Plug in the results later, strategize your product line and use both science and statistics to gauge consumer responses.

Five: Mobile Data Collection

Sticking with the “data is everything” theme, we believe data collection is incredibly important. In the recent past, businesses used experiential marketing events to boost brand engagement. Now, they can use them to collect data via feedback, smartphone engagement and event activations. Use mobile activations to see which consumers are attending, and gauge different responses based upon click-based behavior.

Six: Community Voting

Because most event-goers are strapped with iPhones and Androids, community voting has experienced a resurgence. Create branded hashtags, get event-goers involved with social media and use SMS to create text-based polls. Or, use an integrated online element to give consumers a chance to participate from home.

In any event, you should find out where your audience is already hanging out. This can be a physical place within the event. It can also be on the Internet. If you can find out where your event-goers go, you can strategize entire campaigns for post-event effectiveness. Mix and mash up your event tools, but make sure one thing is prioritized: Your consumer’s time.

The Ultimate Guide to Planning and Producing an Experiential Event

The Ultimate Guide to Planning and Producing an Experiential Event

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At Soho Studios we have hosted some of the best experiential marketing events that Miami has seen.  From offering food, to presenting new products, to creating the best experiences for your guests, we have been a part what it takes to create an experiential event that exceeds guest expectations.  

It takes a lot of work behind the scenes to put together an experiential event.  We have put together a quick guide that will help you think about creating the next winning event for your brand.  Grab this free guide and use it as a reference for you and your marketing team. 
Get your Guide here or click the photo below.

How and Why Taste of Home Upgraded its Tour

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How and Why Taste of Home Upgraded its Tour

Taste of Home, a multi-platform producer of food-related information, has launched a new series of cooking events this year. This version has expanded greatly from prior iterations, and is going by the name Taste of Home LIVE. It began with a tour of 10 major markets, including Chicago and Atlanta, and by the end of the year, will travel through 40 different cities. Next year, it is slated to expand to 80 cities.

For the new model of events, Taste of Home has expanded to include more experiential marketing aspects, more sponsors, and a charitable experience. Many of the changes are geared for engagement with Millennial moms and other younger people, but is also working to please its core audience. To meet this and other objectives, it has made specific changes:

• On-stage experiences and social media sharing are now being prioritized. Millennials are more likely to be comfortable with getting up on stage – and sharing their experiences across multiple platforms. Therefore, the shows are offering plenty of on-stage experiences. To have a chance to participate in these, attendees must first post to Facebook or Twitter about the event.
• The show has partnered with Fusion Marketing, an experiential marketing agency, for "creative event activations." The companies will work together to provide a cohesive and powerful branding experience to the effort. Fusion will plan and execute each city's event.
• Taste of Home will support local charities. Ten percent of the proceeds from merchandise sales will be going to Feeding America, a hunger-fighting charity that operates in all of the markets where events will be held. Each event will also include a food drive. By choosing Feeding America as its beneficiary, Taste of Home can provide local support while dealing with just one main office.
• The events will still teach kitchen tips and food hacks to participants. It will also have advice from expert chefs. This will please long-time fans and make it easier for new cooks to get up to speed.
• Expert chefs will still prepare great meals at each event. This aspect is another one that is sure to be a winner with both long-time and new attendees. Everyone loves to see an expert at work!

By expanding its show to include more sponsored equipment and other features, Taste of Home will make its shows more interesting while sticking to its theme of creating great food. This tight adherence to its theme will make the branding aspect of the events more powerful, while the expansion and modernization of the presentation will bring in younger people and improve the event's word-of-mouth marketing. Taste of Home's new event style is sure to gain the brand many new fans.

If you're looking for a venue to hold a Miami stop for your company's event tour, consider Soho Studios. We have up to 70,000 square feet of indoor space that can be configured to your specifications. We also have two outdoor pavilions if you would rather have your expo in the open air. Our concierge service offers all of the help you want or need, so you won't have to search for local companies to assist you. Just give us a call for more information.