Bringing the magic to life, Staging Connections was brought on board alongside SkyCity Auckland Convention Centre by one of New Zealand’s largest food distributors and retail store organisations, to support their biennial Expo tradeshow event. This was a night for Foodstuffs to celebrate with their members and support centre as well as acknowledge their supply partners. Foodstuffs hosted a beautiful Twilight Market themed gala dinner in one of Auckland’s iconic dining spaces. Foodstuffs NZ gala dinner at Skycity Auckland Convention Centre. When the 700 guests arrived to the New Zealand Promenade at the SkyCity Auckland Convention Centre, they were greeted with market stalls and festoon lighting, provided by event design partner Event Impressions, and food from The Kitchen Co SkyCity. Staging Connections installed elegant draping to ensure an intimate ambience within the space, and used moving spotlights to highlight the colourful market stalls. The team used clever audio visual technologies to transform the venue and enliven the event atmosphere. The attendees explored the unique environment created, tasting the unique food offering provided, and mingling under market umbrellas and around sparkling table cloths. “We delivered a very professional ‘twilight market’ theme experience and your help with regards to the audio and lighting made the night look fantastic.” Joanna Fifita, ‎Event Manager at Foodstuffs New Zealand Following pre-dinner drinks, the guests moved into the New Zealand Room, that was beautifully decorated by event design partner Event Impressions and continued the evening’s theme. The Staging Connections team of NZ lighting designers devised a creative lighting solution to add sparkle to the gala event’s proceedings. Lights were used to layer blue and purple hues over the table settings and a light haze created a shimmer across the room. Moving spotlights heightened the celebratory atmosphere throughout the awards proceedings, pinpointing the winners and drawing them onto the stage to collect their awards. Twilight Market theme gala dinner with styled table centrepieces. Cluster pendant lights created a focal point and were hung high above the tables projecting moving shadows onto the crowd and attractively showcasing the night’s meal. As part of the AV solution, Staging Connections provided multiple screens, including three major screens lining the front of the room to support the multimedia content provided by the Foodstuffs team, ensuring the audience had clear sightlines from all corners of the event space. The use of rustic wooden tables combined with traditional rounds led to the diversity and depth of setting in a room which easily caters for up to 1000 persons. This is ideal for these types of dining events; giving SkyCity Auckland Convention Centre, Event Impressions and Staging Connections the opportunity to work together to showcase the venue in a unique and interesting way. Audio Visual and Lighting designed by Staging Connections. Plan your next event with the leading AV & events company across Australia and New Zealand There's a lot that goes into creating an unforgettable awards night. As all of your most important stakeholders are in the room and with so many individual elements, you’ll need an experienced AV and event company specialised in delivering awards nights and gala dinners. Staging Connections has been the name behind some of the largest and most technically demanding live events to hit Australian soil. Having been in the events business for over 30 years, our experienced team of technicians and event directors understand what it takes to deliver to this scale and profile. We only use brands we trust; we take a tailored approach to every brief using the largest range of event production services; and we work with you every step of the way so there’s no surprises. If you’re interesting in finding out what Staging Connections can do for your event, get in touch with us today by calling 1800 209 099 (AUS) +64 9259 0025 (NZ) or by completing our event quote form. -- Wanting to know more about Staging Connections? Why not look at our most recent events Meet your local New Zealand events team ... Read More

It’s no surprise that Australia has been ranked ‘most exciting destination for conferences’ in a recent report published by Tourism Australia. With unrivalled vistas, iconic landmarks, some of the world’s most livable cities and strangest creatures, plus the lengthy flight is tax deductable – who wouldn’t jump on a chance to come here for ‘work’? The new study looked into the decision-making process of international delegates for a destination conference with the purpose of helping event marketers understand what the biggest motivators were. The appeal of Australia for its beautiful countryside and beaches are an obvious draw-card, but there is much more to Australia when it comes to a conference destination. When comparing different countries, we’re seen as safer, more reliable and we have a strong portfolio of successful international event experience. It’s therefore easy to understand why Australia is the perfect trifecta. "22% of respondents rated Australian conferences 10 out of 10 versus the 16% global average." New research on Association Conference Delegate Behaviour, Tourism Australia So what are the other draw cards? The study revealed destination appeal, conference content, speaker reputation and networking potential are the main drivers. Delving deeper into the quality of content, Australia is a safe-bet when considering the profile of speakers at our conferences, the high standard of audio vision and production delivery, and of course our world-class conference venues. But this isn’t anything new or previously unassumed. The report also highlighted that for over 60% of respondents, extending the trip into a holiday is a decision influencing factor. This is a useful insight for the way we plan and promote our conferences to international markets. Respondents felt a strong social program that includes networking events and leisure activities which highlight the country’s history, culture, food and wildlife is a key component to what makes a conference appealing. "Conferences which successfully manage to integrate the program of events with the destination are the most appealing." New research on Association Conference Delegate Behaviour, Tourism Australia In its path to gaining a deeper a understanding of the conference delegate, Tourism Australia embarked on a data sharing arrangement with Virgin Australia which sees them tracking and passing on information relating to online activity for any consumer who comes to Australia.com and then moves onto Virgin Australia digital properties. This partnership is to be part of a number of other data partnerships in the next 12 months. Without having inside knowledge into the arrangement and what the set objectives are, it will be interesting to see how the two use the shared data and whether it will provide any great insight into marketing our conferences. It may be an obvious tactic in marketing internationally, but the report stressed the need for a sophisticated and well thought-out conference website that informs, inspires and motivates delegates. Having an aesthetically appealing website coupled with a helpful event app is the best way to attract and keep your conference delegates engaged through-out the entire life-cycle of the conference – pre, during and post. Without this crucial touch point, you’re basically fishing without a hook and hoping for the best. Sydney is our most popular destination for international conferences and the forecast is strong. For association events like international conferences, Sydney offers the chance for global thought leaders to connect and collaborate. There is a real sense that Sydney is undergoing a transformation, with many new infrastructure developments offering great opportunities for future business events. The conference and exhibition market in Sydney, is expected to hit a high in late 2016, when the International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney) opens in Darling Harbour. So this research is pertinently timed. The ICC Sydney has already secured a number of major international events which will no doubt support Tourism Australia’s 2020 goal is to achieve more than $115 billion in overnight spend by 2020 (up from $70 billion in 2009). The opening of the Centre is also perfectly timed for the recent opening of Four Points by Sheraton Sydney in Darling Harbour. The venue will be Australia’s largest hotel, boasting 892 guest rooms and 3,700sq metres of conference and event space making Darling Harbour a new conference hub for Sydney. The importance of the business events industry to Australia, cannot be underestimated in terms of their economic contribution. Another report by Ernst & Young and the Business Events Council of Australia found that over 37 million people attended more than 412,000 business events in Australia between 2013 and 2014. These business events directly generated $28.0 billion in direct expenditure, $13.5 billion in direct value added and 179,357 direct jobs. Another piece of research released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that Australia welcomed 555,800 international visitor arrivals during June 2016, an increase of 13.7 per cent compared to the same month during the previous year. For the year ending June 2016, total international arrivals reached 7.8 million, up 10 percent compared to the same period last year. Australia is home to some of the most skilled event professionals in the world, having played host to numerous large global events including Rotary, the Olympics, Amway, Commonwealth Games, so we have the experience to deliver. Staging Connections recently delivered the Amway Taiwan international incentive event as well as working on LNG18 (the International Conference and Exhibition on Liquefied Natural Gas. Both events delivered huge benefits to the economy. With our vast natural beauty, new and expansive event infrastructure, tourism partnerships and a skilled community of event professionals, it’s no doubt that our nation is set to see the number, quality and profile of both association and corporate events rise. Marketers across Australia, including those in house at venues, suppliers, caterers and event management companies have a major opportunity to push the core benefits of Australia out to market, that fortunately, are the ultimate match for the desires of international business travellers. They say records are set to be broken, and with Australia’s inbound tourism and events sector heating up rapidly, get ready for it to boil over! -- This article was written by Adele Symonds, Marketing Manager at Staging Connections. ... Read More

Nothing makes you feel more invigorated and motivated than being by the beach, which is why launching their newest skincare product sea-side at Adelaide's Glenelg Beach made perfect sense for Modere Australia. The product launch took place as part of a three day conference and leading event services company, Staging Connections, were brought on board to give this year's conference wow-factor. The Event Brief Staging Connections partnered with the innovative Australian skincare, wellbeing and home care brand, Modere to deliver their bi-annual conference. The three day conference was to be held at the stunning seaside venue, Stamford Grand Adelaide in February 2017. Staging Connections were engaged to execute the conference, alongside the social events which included an evening cocktail function, an impressive product launch and a stylish after party to conclude. Keeping in line with the brand essence of Modere, Staging Connections needed to deliver a stylish, smart and sophisticated conference that left guests feeling inspired, motivated and eager to continue building a successful business and helping to truly transform lives. The Event Solution As the in-house event services provider at Stamford Grand Adelaide, Staging Connections provided an end-to-end solution for the Modere Australia three day conference and social events. The solution encompassed all audio vision, staging, lighting, styling and digital event services, with the combined effect resulting in a seamless event experience that brought the Modere brand to life. In attendance were over 600 Modere employees from all levels of the business, interstate and even international guest speakers. Setting the tone for the conference was a stylish Welcome Cocktails event for the Elite Modere Team. Staging Connections bathed the room in red and white lighting to reflect the Modere brand colours and guests were treated to a performance by a pianist playing under some street light props. Following an all-day conference, Friday night saw the Staging Connections team create an event look and feel that screamed ‘Colour!’ to support the launch of Modere Australia’s bold new makeup line. Beautifully bright and lush furniture decorated the room to match the backdrops and floral arrangements. Staging Connections enhanced the theme with spectacular coloured uplighting which added movement and bursts of colour to the space. Pictured: Staging Connections used clever AV and lighting to support the 'Colour!' product launch. The main event took place under a large marquee situated on the beachside front lawns of the Stamford Grand. The look and feel of the After Party reflected the Modere motto – Live Clean – and was created under the guise of ‘modern jungle ’ with lots of greenery, crisp whites and touches of Modere’s red as branding cues. Pictured: Event styling by Staging Connections Pictured: A green wall was used as a stage backdrop for the DJ. Along the marquee’s side stood giant letter lights spelling ‘Modere’, and inside the marquee lived an abundance of ‘Hamptons’ style furniture and large dance floor for guests to relax and dance the night away. Pictured: Giant letter lights were installed along the side of the marquee. The Modere team walked away with a live recording of the conference thanks to Staging Connections’ Event Record product. The recording captured two days of the conference, including the special guests and international speakers, and means the Modere team have a copy of the entire event at their disposal. The Special Touches From the moment the guests entered the hotel, on a sweltering hot Adelaide day, they were treated to a calming VIP event that celebrated the success and new developments for the business. The location and venue, offered perfect ocean views and reflected the Modere Australia motto and left the guests feeling inspired and motivated. What did the client say about the conference and product launch? Modere Australia were delighted with the successful event, and the exceptional customer service provided by the Adelaide Staging Connections team across the three days, notably identifying the special touches from the team, to ensure a professional, yet fun and high quality event. Natalia Colombo, Event Coordinator for Modere Australia noted the outstanding service provided by Staging Connections. “Dion is exceptional. With him at the helm I never had to worry. He really went above and beyond and has amazing people skills and professionalism. Alana is extremely talented and also went absolutely above and beyond. Without her, the after party wouldn't have been anywhere near as much of a success. Chris - worth his weight in gold. I never worried when he was around and nothing was too much trouble. These three people are truly amazing and I am very grateful. Cooper and the 'A' team were also lovely and easy to deal with. All in all, you have one happy customer that won't be going anywhere else for her future event needs.” Natalia Colombo, Event Coordinator, Modere Australia. ... Read More

Every year supporters of the Adelaide Crows Football Club flock to the Adelaide Entertainment Centre for their annual Gala Dinner. It’s a chance for the Club’s devoted members to get up close and personal with some of the players. The main aim for the evening to is raise funds to support the club’s forthcoming season, and they do this by putting on an extravagant gala dinner complete with fantastic live performances and a high-end silent auction. As the Crows’ official audio visual partner, our Adelaide team go above and beyond to make each year better than the last. The Event Brief On the 16th February the Arena of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre hosted nearly 1000 club VIPs and guests. The sheer size of the venue made it possible to design, create and deliver a stunning Gala Dinner setting and live silent auction. The client required that we simultaneously display video and animated multimedia, as well as live camera feed onto the various screens on stage, which is a challenge that our technical team love to rise to. The theme for this year’s gala was Purple and Gold, and what better way to bring that to life than through an indulgent Scrumdiddlyumptious Chocolate theme. Being one of the club's major fundraising events for the year, we needed to deliver a high impact, engaging experience, with the keenest eye on every detail to ensure a truly memorable event. Our Event Solution In our 12th year as the official audio visual partner, we wanted to deliver something special that pushed the envelope on last year’s visually spectacular Right Royal Gala event. We delivered a complete event production solution, encompassing all audio, vision, lighting, staging, multimedia creation, styling and production management. The event experience started as soon as guests arrived at the venue. To create intrigue and tease the event theme, we created a styled entrance way with purple swagged draping and a purple carpet running down the centre to the main doors to the Arena. Custom designed signage was fastened to the drape line to create a tailored welcome. As guests walked down the carpet, upbeat ‘Wonka’ type music was played to fit the Scrumdiddlyumptious Chocolate theme and set the tone for the evening. As guests continued up the purple carpet to the Arena doors, they met another themed feature – golden urns on plinths filled with colourful lollypops indicating that their journey had only just begun… Guests were invited to walk down the Arena stairwell filled with gold and purple lights and enter the main Arena floor. The vast space was transformed into a delightful, magical setting using theatrical intelligent lighting, themed styling and an enchanting stage look. All eyes were drawn to the giant custom stage set, created using our new 3D Scenic Panels in the Harlequin pattern flanked with multiple screens framing the Toyota car ad– the grand prize of the evening! Large inflatable red and white candy trees were placed around the room and stage for colour and a quirky touch. The 32 m wide x 9 m high Scenic Panel stage backdrop became the central projection surface for the night, featuring custom Crows themed multimedia content for the Welcoming and Closing presentations and for each individual auction item. All content was created in house by our multimedia design team. As a clever touch to add theatre and excitement, every guest was given a Golden Ticket on arrival with the lucky Golden Ticket winner taking home the brand new Toyota. The annual Crows Gala Auction is a highly anticipated event for the Staging Connections Adelaide team. The event gives us the opportunity to create truly immersive experiences and we love the challenge of doing something completely different every year. The Adelaide Crows event’s team are a pleasure to work with and encourage us to push the boundaries and embrace new products and new ideas. With another successful gala all wrapped up (in purple and gold foil), we look forward to next year’s creative brief! -- See more recent event work Get in touch to start planning your event ... Read More

Encore Event Technologies (previously Staging Connections) was tasked with the unique job of creating a flawless and welcoming atmosphere for Basma and Mohammad’s opulent and unforgettable wedding reception for 201 special guests at the Langham Auckland. The spectacularly beautiful reception, would be complemented and enhanced by the pink and purple décor via creative use of ...

Thinking outside the box comes naturally for Encore Event Technologies (formerly Staging Connections) and Catch Boxis no exception. Introducing new products that can propel our clients’ next event into an extraordinary experience is part of our DNA. Our innovative team are always on the hunt for the latest technology that pushes the boundaries and delivers a more connected, interactive experience at every corporate event. Imagine giving every event attendee their chance to be heard by simply throwing a soft foam cube-shaped microphone around. Even in the most crowded of conference rooms, your attendees can be heard through the throwable microphone with the same quality as a hand held one. No more awkward pauses while people are waiting for the microphone to be passed to them, and no more event runners slowing down the presentation to get to questions, jilting the pace of the event. Catch Box is a new technical innovation that increases Q&A audience participation – encouraging even the shyest of attendees to get involved, whilst creating a lively and fun discussion. It breaks down the barriers between speakers and attendees, encouraging a more cohesive and collaborative environment. Remember, attendees come to your event to learn, share knowledge and find out more about what interests them – but unfortunately most don’t get the opportunity to participate, and their engagement can be lost. With Catch Box you can hand the attention over to an audience member in the time it takes throw a ball! Participants speak straight into the soft, cubed microphone and then can easily throw it over to the next person in the audience, maintaining the pace of a normal, free-flowing conversation. With wireless technology and the opportunity to own your own with your corporate logo, this addition to your presentation is dynamic and memorable. Everyone loves an interesting, accessible way to participate - it lightens the mood, encourages excitement and the sharing of ideas, whilst elevating the excitement of the whole room. Let your audience speak up and they will continue to be inspired long after the event is over. So, when you’re planning your next corporate event, charity auction, sporting awards, gala dinners or Q&A sessions – Catch Box provides the platform to facilitate questions effectively, comment on the content, or even make a bid. Catch Box creates lively, fun discussions that are entertaining, engaging and stimulating – all you need is good aim! If you want to maximise engagement at your next corporate event, simply send us an enquiry and one of our team members will be in touch! -- ... Read More

The second annual and fiercely competitive, Hilton F&B Masters is a multi-faceted competition that encourages Hilton food and beverage employees to showcase their talents to both management and industry colleagues. With a recent $4 million dollar refurbishment, Hilton Brisbane was the perfect venue to host the prestigious event. As in-house AV and event services provider, the event gave Encore Event Technologies (previously Staging Connections) the chance display their own expertise in AV production services and venue management support, and reinforce the fifteen year strong partnership between Encore and Hilton. Using Audio Visual to create a competitive atmosphere at Hilton Brisbane Encore were engaged to produce two exhilarating events using world-class audio visual solutions, lighting and multimedia production, providing a 360 degree solution in both the pre-planning and execution of the event. With conceptual planning meetings with Hilton General Manager, Chris Partridge, advising on venue logistics, room design and all technical and styling requirements. The theme was “The Olympics of Food” showcasing the competitors in a modern and innovative way with the energy and excitement of a reality cooking show demonstrating their talents as culinarians, baristas, cocktail mixers and sommeliers. Encore installed six robotic cameras throughout the ballroom above each competitor’s station to ensure all the key moments were captured. This effect was further enhanced by a roaming camera crew that captured action shots, interviews and ‘vox pops’ with various industry celebrities. Each competitor pod was complete with its own unique projection design to assist with both defining key areas across the ballroom and also providing a stimulating and engaging execution of visual design content. The team provided expert on site assistance and audio visual services including, a 30ft screen, six hexagon screens, motion graphics, formatting and Digital Banners to create unique and interesting competitor bios and promotional shots of all the happenings at the event. To create an overall stylistic design and guest experience, Scenic Panels were used as a soft room divide between Culinary and Bar Pods, successfully concealing general infrastructure from view and creating flow throughout the room. A beautiful solution to enhancing the Sommelier area, the Scenic Panels were used as a reflective wall panel, increasing the white light creating a dramatic effect in the area. The Fleur patterned Scenic Panels assisted in not only defining the event space but also providing the desired lighting effect. The space had a cohesive and seamless look and feel, and helped keep the focus on the talented competitors. Encore created an inclusive and visually stimulating event space through clever use of design, styling, and digital expertise. It was particularly important the delegates were able to freely roam the rooms which was achieved by ensuring there was a clear line of sight to all projections across the room. Overall the entire solution by Staging Connections resulted in an innovative, engaging and successful event. What was the result of the event production? For the second year running the event showcased industry talents, and wowed guests with their skills. Encore helped created an inclusive, informal networking event, capturing the key moments of an event that is unpredictable in its nature. “From the get go, Encore (previously Staging Connections) applied their expertise and creativity to build up the Hilton Australasia F&B Masters Finals held at Hilton Brisbane in January 2017. The working relationship with both the hotel based team and Technical crew supporting the F&B Masters event enabled a good understanding of the brief for this year’s events and contributed to a seamless and stress free project. The brief to showcase four competitions running concurrently in the newly renovated Grand Ballroom with live video feeds on various displays capturing the essence of the event and creating great impact was more than achieved. This was the second regional final and raised the bar to the next level. It is really great to be able to have full confidence in a partner whose ownership of the production was, in my mind, flawless.” Chris Patridge, General Manager, Hilton Brisbane ... Read More

Around 350 of Sydney’s event industry elite turned out to witness the unveiling of Hilton Sydney's latest multimillion-dollar development, a new conference and event space spanning three levels. Whilst experiencing the new state-of-the-art AV and technology installed by Encore Event Technologies (previously Staging Connections), guests were also treated to a host of stylish extras including entertainment by Opera Australia, MC’ing by singer Rob Mills, a four-course banquet menu, as well as delicious cocktails from their popular Marble Bar and Zeta menus. Working closely with Hilton Sydney as the in-house AV and event services provider, Encore were tasked with showcasing three newly refurbished event spaces designed by Joseph Pang. The purpose of the launch function was to reiterate the hotel’s commitment to providing diverse and world-class event venues and service and demonstrate the countless possibilities the new spaces provide event professionals. Encore's in-house team at Hilton Sydney provided the full suite of AV services for the C&E Showcase and collaborated with the event team to create interactive centrepieces. The team installed high-end audio-visual services to complement the architecturally designed spaces, through customised screens and placeholders to demonstrate what possibilities the new refurbished levels could accommodate. An ultra-widescreen projection blend screen that expanded the full 29.5m width of the Grand Ballroom highlighted the impressive expanse of the space. Customised backgrounds and Hilton Sydney logo were superimposed over the screen, ensuring the projections had a clear quality. Stylish and subtle event styling allowed the architectural and design features of the new event spaces to be fully appreciated by guests. Table settings incorporated elements and ingredients from each course, with the centrepieces swapped prior to dessert to include edible sweets and small petit fours hidden inside the centrepiece, adding an interactive aspect to the styling. Special Touches In a special offering Encore provided Hilton Sydney with a powerful social media platform, Event Feed, allowing attendees to interact with each other and the venue throughout the evening. This added application amplified social media engagement by encouraging attendees to post about their experiences, and allowed for prize winners to be selected at the end of the evening. The Outcome Encore produced a seamless and successful event for Hilton Sydney. Guests were immersed in the hotel’s elegance through a tour of each of the three new levels, before entertainment by the Opera Australia’s two principal artists Julia Lea Goodwin and Simon Kim, accompanist, John Haddock and the Opera Australia Brass, was provided and a lavish four-course banquet was served. The client was impressed and thrilled with the state-of-the-art AV and technology provided by Encore allowing guests to fully experience and appreciate the new spaces. ... Read More

Webcasting is a useful, and easily accessible technology for corporate events; especially those wanting to engage a wider audience and spread the key messages of the event, or the content presented by speakers, further than the in-the-room audience. Recently, the Petroleum Explorers and Production Association of New Zealand (PEPANZ) held their annual conference, NZ Petroleum 2016 for 400 attendees at SKYCITY Auckland. Their remit was to showcase the best and brightest from the country’s oil and gas industry, and around the world, at their premier three day event. The objective of the conference was to celebrate the success of the industry, showcase solutions, and highlight the future potential of the sector. This was the first event that Encore (known then as Staging Connections) had managed for this association, through the event management organisation Avenues Event Management, so the team carefully created an audio visual solution to support the conference plenaries, breakouts, an exhibition and conference dinner for the 400 attendees. To further maximise the value of the content being presented in the plenary sessions and the breakout sessions, the Encore New Zealand webcasting team captured the video footage and then uploaded it to a branded and custom designed webskin for viewers from around the world to watch. The benefits of webcasting your conference or corporate event Having the video of the speakers alongside their presentation content via an on-demand webcast enabled those interested in the conference - who couldn’t attend in person - to still be engaged by the association in the key messages of the conference. How the conference webcast worked: Captured valuable data via webcast login details Maximised the return on investment of high profile speakers in attendance, by securing a larger than normal audience Enabled the event management organisation to use tangible statistics of who had viewed the webcast, how long it was viewed, and provided insight into the most popular topics and speakers Ensured that content was filmed and saved, letting the association utilise pieces of footage in their marketing, on their website and across their social media channels to build hype in the lead up to their next event Continued the branding of the association via the custom designed webcast platform ensuring all the live and online visuals matched The conference’s key objectives: to celebrate the success of the industry, showcase solutions and highlight the future potential, were achieved via live and online audience engagement. The key messages and content shared by global thought leaders reached a wider audience than they would have without the webcasting technology and the event managers utilised the webcasting statistics to further prove the success of the conference and return on investment. Webcasting is a win win for conferences! Find out more about about Encore's event webcasting services. What did the client say? “Following a competitive tender to provide comprehensive AV services to our March 2017 conference at SkyCity in Auckland, we selected Encore. Their proposal was compelling at both a technical excellence and economic level. Our requirements included the webcasting of all plenary and breakout sessions. These needed to be compelling, easily accessible and accurately represent the “feel” of the live presentation. Encore delivered on this requirement, producing a fantastic resource that has viewed many times and received great external feedback. With delivery capability and innovation like this, we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Encore for AV services”. Cameron Madgwick, Chief Executive, Petroleum Exploration & Production Association of New Zealand (host of the annual New Zealand Petroleum Conference. Partner with the webcasting experts for your next conference Encore offers Australia's most customisable webcasting platform. Whether you want to simply reach a wider audience, sell access to your event online or host your event during work hours - webcasting may provide the perfect solution. We have partnered with countless local and international brands to deliver webcasting services for all kinds of corporate events. From company announcements, through to educational seminars, conferences and sporting events, our webcasting platform can be tailored to suit your event's needs and objectives. Find out how webcasting can increase your event's return on investment by speaking with a Encore representative today by calling 1800 209 099 or by sending an online enquiry. ... Read More

There’s literally an app for everything these days. As in every area of human endeavour, smart phone applications are used to enhance, improve and connect our event experience to the rest of our digital lives. Your audience can benefit from up to the minute event updates, location-based awareness, detailed information and special offers, all in the palm of their hand. Event organisers benefit from attendees engaging with and promoting the event beforehand, maximising your exhibitors and sponsor’s satisfaction while on-site and accessing useful data from your audience through active links such as Event Poll. Event apps are now an expectation at major conferences, exhibitions and other similar events. Whenever there are multiple sessions, several active rooms and competing options for a delegate’s attention, an app is a welcomed tool to navigate what’s important. If an attendee uses an app to ensure that they see who they are most interested in, hear talks on the topics most relevant to them and therefore get the most out of their time, they’re more likely to return to the event next year and recommend it to others. The app itself can also be the platform by which their recommendation is broadcast to their network via links to social media channels. Make your event app your digital Programme Some of the efficiencies of using an app as an event programme are self-evident. Apps don’t need to be printed, transported, mailed out or stacked in boxes at the event to be handed out. If there are last-minute changes, they can be updated easily and distributed to all attendees instantly. Using an app will drastically reduce your event’s carbon footprint and environmental impact. The economic advantage of a programme to the organiser, namely selling advertising space, is easily retained. In fact, the capacity to advertise in an event application is greater than print – advertisers can run interactive content, link to their websites and even run video. Event organisers can package advertising at multiple price points with varied levels of sponsorship. An event app promoted properly in the lead-up period is a powerful promotional tool in itself. A concerted campaign to get the app used before the event will help increase visitor numbers by building anticipation. Your audience can start using the app to plan out their visit, book into certain sessions or make appointments to meet with specific people. They can then recommend the session they’re attending to others by linking to their social network, share the link for the event, or get further recommendations on what’s hot at the show through in app bulletins. Event apps let you communicate and provide information to all of your attendees instantly Promote your app heavily and widely with a decent lead-time before your event. Links to the app should be included in all of your electronic communications. This includes regular emails to your customers, dedicated mail-outs to your database, frequent mentions and links on your social media platforms and in all print advertising for the event. Aim to have the app users promote the app itself – provide rewards in the form of giveaways, discounts or special ‘access’ to speakers or sponsors as a motivation to share the app with others. An event app is the best way to link attendees with the colleagues, suppliers or speakers most important to them at the event. A professional social network like LinkedIn provides a fantastic tie-in to a well-engineered event app. In the weeks leading up to the event, app users that have tied their LinkedIn accounts to their app presence can see who among their existing connections is also attending, and have other members that are not yet connections suggested to them as valuable business contacts. A user can then build an organised calendar of appointments, catch-ups, seminars, social events and supplier meetings, guaranteeing their attendance and maximising value for time and money. Using the event app on showday Even as the event opens and the audience pours in, keep promoting your app. Make highly visible references to the app and how to download and install it throughout the venue. This can done via lanyards, digital signage, goodie bags, flyers and posters around the room. You can assist people to do this by providing easy instructions on how to connect with the URL and access code prominently displayed. QR codes, posters and mentions in all seminar introductions and speeches will all drive your audience to engage with your app. When your MC or main speaker kicks off the event, ask them to promote the app, explaining what they can access and encourage all attendees to download. While the utility of your app is obvious to you and the early adopters at your event, some of your audience may need another motivation to browse it and then discover its value for themselves. You can increase uptake by offering giveaways, exhibitor prizes or sponsor discounts that are exclusive to app users. Make the announcements prior to exhibitors so they can spread the word. Make it clear how to find the app and how to benefit from the in-app prizes and concessions. Event apps let you upload a variety of useful event information The usefulness of your app to your audience depends completely on the kind of information and content included. Your attendees will expect easily navigable maps of the event, with locations of exhibitors, function rooms and utilities clearly labelled. Real-time location-based services such as Google maps can assist in local area navigation if the attendee leaves the venue. Agendas that can be used to create an event schedule for the user are another must-have. Bios of speakers and abstracts of their presentations should be included as part of the listing. In a tradeshow format, or any other event with multiple suppliers showcasing products, an app offers a broad canvas for information. Exhibitors should be encouraged to include as much engaging detail as is practical, from personnel profiles of who’s on their stand to a video showcasing their products and services. Your mutual aim is to drive as much traffic to their stand as possible. Get them involved with product giveaways and encourage them to promptly respond to emails received by attendees through the app. The more value they feel the organiser provides to their presence, the more likely they are to return to the event. Using an event app gives a streamlined end user experience As an attendee who is using the app, this is your ideal show; you have set up appointments with some of your existing suppliers and some potential new ones on their stands. This saves all of the time-wasting and occasionally embarrassing waiting around at busy exhibits trying to speak with your contacts. Through using the app in the weeks beforehand, you’ve managed to set-up a lunch with some like-minded colleagues from interstate and overseas, which turns out to be the start of a successful project. During your meetings and conferences, you’ve connected digitally with new people you’ve met. This is a stark contrast to the collection of business cards and half-remembered conversations that used to be the aftermath of trade events. During the key-note speaker’s presentation, you participate in live Q&A through Event Poll and see your Selfie on the big screen via Event Feed. Your reaction and follow-ups on social media are read by your customers and followers outside of the event, promoting your brand. Get Appy Deeper engagement from your attendees leads to greater satisfaction, a higher likelihood of participating again in the future, and a greater likelihood of recommending the event to others. Higher foot traffic and deeper customer engagement for your exhibitors means a greater chance of getting their repeat business. Good attendance from interested audiences at sessions promotes your forum as one that leaders want to speak at. Apps help all of this to happen by making it easier to link people with who and what they are interested in, and get them to the right place at the right time. And after the event a platform that can be edited for next year. This article was written by General Manager of Digital at Encore, Tim Chapman. Get your own event app for free! Encore’s event app platform is called Cumulus. We believe every event can benefit from instant communication with attendees so we've made this available for free when you use Encore for your event services. The Digital team have extensive experience to ensure that your message, your audience and your presenters get the most out your app. Talk with the team in the planning stages of your next event to find out the best ways to create your content, distribute your app and use it on-site. Every potential attendee is carrying the perfect platform for you to promote your event and share it with the world – seize the opportunity to help your audience build your event! If you are interested in finding out more about Cumulus, get in touch with an Encore representative by calling 1800 209 099 or by sending an online enquiry. ... Read More