Lighting can make or break your event experience. It is so much more than just putting a spotlight on your performer or a few stage lights here and there. If the lights are too bright your event may seem stark and cold. If your lights are too dark guests may miss important elements of your event and design. Lighting creates ambience, displays video content and can be used to highlight architectural elements or styling pieces to build a visual experience that will leave your guests in awe. You can also use lighting to direct your guests attention to events going on within your event, or to grab their attention. Uplighting At Your Event Uplighting is a great way to create an atmosphere at your event. Rooms can look bland if you do not use perimeter lighting. This is especially important for a simple more basic venue such as an empty ballroom, gallery, or conference centre which can tend to be bland if you do not add in lighting and colour. These venues do not have a lot of character to begin with you will need to build ambience with more lighting and decor. It’s a great way to tie in a colour that goes with your theme and create a wow factor upon guests entering the room. What type of events are great for uplighting? Awards nights and gala dinners TV shows and 'on the couch' type speaker events Charity dinners Sporting events Weddings Cocktail Functions Using Gobo's Gobo’s are a great way to add an element of design and depth to your event. Simply stated a gobo is a beam of light with a metal stencil over it that creates a pattern. As technology progressed, glass gobos were developed that could incorporate colours and detailed imagery. Gobos can project any design or pattern including abstract shapes, patterns, pictures, and company logos. You can project gobos onto ceilings, floors, and walls, they are a great way to add visual interest. While gobos are great for transforming your event by giving it a dynamic atmosphere and feel, they can be used to promote your brand. Seeing your brands logo in bright crisp lighting will create a visual impact that surely will not go unnoticed. Gobos can go almost anywhere and are highly flexible, work perfectly with many types of events from conventions, to galas and even weddings displaying the happy couples' initials. What type of events are great for gobos? The versatility of gobos makes them the perfect lighting technique for all types of shows. Brand logo for sales conferences and product launches. Wall design for gala dinners. Bride and groom initials at weddings. Logos for awards nights and conferences. Create A Light Show A light show is a really fun way to grab your guests attention. Light shows are often combined with the first two lighting techniques. However, unlike the first two lighting options these lights will be constantly moving and flashing because a lighting engineer designs a custom show specifically for your event. Vivid Sydney is one of the world's biggest lighting shows. There you will find every type of lighting technique under the sun. Lighting shows are often used at corporate events before an awards ceremony or speeches to quite the crowd and build excitement for the main event. We also use them to create an amazing dance vibe at galas and high energy concerts. Light shows make a very memorable experience and keep the energy high at events! Highlight Design with Pin Lighting Pin lighting is an excellent way to direct attention to certain parts of your event. Using a spotlight creates a dramatic effect that can transform centerpieces, decor elements and table settings into incredible pieces of art. Not only do pin lights add drama to your event lighting, but they also provide separation that is often needed between dark table linens and centerpieces allowing the centerpieces to pop and stand out. Pin lighting will make your event design a more dynamic visual experience. Discover more Lighting techniques and insights for your event - download our expert white paper Event Insights - Making Your Event Shine. Related Articles LED Yo-Yo Ceiling Installation Wows at The Million Dollar Lunch Techie Tuesday: Vivid Sydney Exposed 7 Lighting Tips for Your Event This article was first published on HelloEndless ... Read More

The primacy and importance of sound in everyday life is obvious to everyone, yet the process of creating an aural presence at an event with excellent results is not widely understood outside of technical circles. Sound, both ephemeral and invisible, does not emit from as ethereal sources. The equipment is often ungainly and the event industry goes to great lengths to make its provisions as visibly unobtrusive as possible, leading to the common misconception that sound equipment is not a major component of an event. It may not have the visual spectacular presence of a huge projection screen or complicated lighting show but there is a lot going on that cannot be seen – but is definitely heard. Getting Your Message Heard The Ins For the voice of your speaker to be relayed clearly a number of things have to fall in place: You must use the correct microphone in the right position The presenter must use the microphone appropriately Adjustments need to be made to the signal to compensate for issues inherent in the speakers voice You must adjust to any complications in the room’s acoustics And Outs The signal from the speaker then needs to push out of the loudspeakers at the right volume past your audiences ears. This involves amplification, sending the signal to the right number, size and type of loudspeaker. Obtrusive Visually The balance between acoustic performance, intelligibility and a visually acceptable solution is a delicate compromise. Loudspeaker design and development over many decades has improved their power and aesthetics, but they are still considered an eyesore. Unfortunately the ears are positioned very close to the eyes. Negotiating the ideal blend of practicality and performance takes a skilled and experienced designer. Choosing the Right Music For Your Event Almost everyone has a soundtrack to their lives; the love song that represents a relationship, the album that captured a summer or the music that helps you through a hard time. The correct music choice at an event sets a mood, creates excitement and can be used to create associations between your product or service and a cultural value. Different styles of music can require different types of loudspeakers and amplification. For example, a high-energy sales conference will mostly use up-tempo inspirational music and use volume as a means to animate the crowd. This will require more power and more coverage, quite simply because you need to move more air at a higher energy level. Equipment You will Need No matter how expensive they are all, all loudspeakers and microphones are imperfect replicators of the original sounds they are trying to distribute or convert. You will need to supplement these with extra equipment. Subwoofers One of the biggest physical limitations in any loudspeaker is its ability to reproduce the entirety of the frequency range audible to humans at the same time. When the frequencies get down to the ‘extended low end frequencies’ created by bass instruments and most synthesizer music (‘doof doof’ techno) they’re physically impossible for a normal low-end driver in a loudspeaker to recreate. Specialised loudspeakers, ‘subwoofers’ or sub-speakers, are dedicated to reproducing frequencies from around 120Hz to 20Hz, which is the bottom of the human hearing range. These extended low-end frequencies are very important to human understanding of music. We have a very visceral reaction to low end audio, because we feel it more than hear it. Think about adventure films and dance music – the bass delivers the adrenaline. At your next event ask the sound technician to turn off the subwoofers during a rehearsal of your musical cue. You will most certainty hear and feel the difference. Microphones Microphones perform the opposite function to loudspeakers – they take movements in the air and convert them into electrical signals. There are dozens of designs and types that each perform a specific function and most will do a poor job when used on a source they are not designed for. You will probably be surprised by how many microphones are dedicated to just the drum kit in a jazz ensemble. As each individual drum or cymbal has different frequency, volume and tonal characteristics, each needs its own microphone. Eight to twelve yields the best results. Getting the Best Sound from Your Performers Choosing the right equipment, setting it up and operating it correctly are the benchmarks of performance for any sound operator, but it does not guarantee you will have perfect sound. The best sound operator in the world cannot make a bad band sound good! Luckily individual speakers are easier to converse with and adjust. Scared Speakers Some speakers are afraid of the microphone and will stand too far away from it. Even a great sound technician will not be able to generate enough volume for them to be heard. A quick conversation between presenter and sound technician should remedy this. Active Speakers Similarly some presenters are very energetic and are constantly moving around a static microphone. You just need to keep up communication with the presenter about the specifics of the microphone they are using. The best way to ensure a quality performance from your speakers is to have a speakers prep. Making Sure Your Performers Can Hear Themselves Not just your audience needs to hear your performers but your performers need to hear themselves and each other. The sound mix created for the perfomers is called foldback and can be as simple as a single speaker on the floor of the stage to a complicated map of dozens of separate mixes sent to individual pairs of wireless ear buds. Usually foldback can be handled by the same mixing desk working with the audience sound, but for large musical and vocal ensembles and events with multiple acts, the best option is to have a separate mixing desk and operator just for the stage sound. Listen Up Everyone has a story about bad sound; too loud, plagued by feedback, patchy speakers, too hard to understand what was being said… but how many people talk about an excellent sound experience? Sound technicians often speak of the perfect job as being one where they were not noticed at all. At Encore Event Technologies we pride ourselves on our ability to stand out and be invisible at the same time. Want to stay up to date with industry trends? Browse our range of downloadable Event Insights papers ... Read More

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

More and more conferences are concluding with a styled gala dinner. There are three main reasons driving this trend – an entertaining gala dinner is a great way to reward your attendees after a long information heavy conference; gala dinners encourage networking; the savvy event planner can minimize costs when ‘bundling’ the two events. When planning two back-to-back events, the key to a successful experience is a smooth transition between the two. With so many elements coming together and you’re racing against the clock, this can seem somewhat overwhelming. Our event experts share some insightful tips to help the savvy event planner knock their event out of the park. See below 7 ideas for seamlessly turning your conference into a gala dinner 1. Use a second room within the venue Choosing the right venue is one of the most important decisions in planning your conference. To successfully include a gala dinner as part of your conference, a venue with two rooms is ideal. A smooth transition from conference to gala dinner Booking two rooms in your venue will allow you to usher your guests to a second location for cocktails and networking. While your guests are enjoying cocktails your secondary team can redress the conference room in preparation for the gala dinner. The key to a smooth transition is teamwork. To make sure it goes without a hitch, you’ll need an experienced events team to ensure all the lighting, AV, sound and styling is in place. The room should be unrecognizable when your guests re-enter the room! Consider your attendee's needs When choosing the rooms for your event, consider the fact that your guests have been sitting for most of the day while they attended the conference. With this in mind, it is a good idea to usher your guests from the conference room into a standing room elegantly accessorized with comfortable lounging areas. When booking your venue, choose one that offers a second room that gives your guests a break from the standard conference room setting. Look into booking a venue that offers guests access to a patio or an outdoor space. A garden view and cocktails are great ways to break from the traditional conference setting. 2. Offer a different kind of conference setting Following a long day seated in a conference chair, your guests will welcome a change of scenery. Breaking from the monotony of what is expected at a typical conference will really wow event attendees. Re-energize your attendees with a new seating arrangement A simple yet really effective way to go from corporate conference to exiting gala dinner is to change the seating arrangement. Conferences can be rigid affairs, but a break from tradition and a little bit of flair changes all of that. The most common seating transition is theatre to banquet round, but again it depends on what space you have to play with. Economical use of the venue space presents a number of possibilities for any enterprising event planner. Check out our post about choosing the right seating style for your event to give you ideas. A more contemporary seating style is to incorporate a lounge area (pictured above) at your event. The seating here should be less formal than conference room seating and offer your guests a break from the potential dreariness of a typical conference. Likewise, a dessert bar is a crafty way to offer your guests a change of pace as well as a delicious treat. Our event stylists share tips on how to create the perfect lounge zone. 3. Add flair to your event with a hefty dose of style It’s a no brainer. To transition from a conference to gala dinner your, event styling is your trump card. Styling for a conference tends to be minimal with some simple yet sophisticated table centerpieces, draping and some branded props around the room. On the other hand, gala dinners are the holy grail for event stylists where literally you’re only limited by your imagination. Everything can be styled, and the more you marry styling with AV, the more impactful the event. Dress up your gala dinner with elegant table styling Creative centrepieces are the hallmark of an attractive table setting. Your event stylist will design the perfect setting for your event look and type. Key elements to stunning table centerpieces are: || LED candles are perfect for adding soft and attractive lighting. They’re also cleaner and safer to use than their real counterparts. || Crystal and glass ornaments make great statement pieces. They are also subtle enough to be used for the conference styling, and then add some LED candles, mirrors and other styling pieces to really make them pop for the gala dinner. Creative lighting is the key to making these pieces truly dazzle guests. ||Flowers are hugely popular for both conferences and gala dinners. Whilst they can sometimes carry a hefty price tag, your event stylist will have many cost effective alternates up their sleeve. From simple orchards in abstract vases, to ‘almost real’ floral arrangements in crystal chambers and terrariums, there are many ways to achieve the floral look without breaking the budget. Pairing your table dressings with equally vamped up chairs adds a degree of style to your gala dinner. Swathing chairs with attractive chair covers adds a sense of formality and luxury to your decor. Curtains and drapes also provide a degree of elegance for your conference and gala dinner. Drape tracks allow you to transition from conference to gala dinner with a great deal of speed so you don’t have to keep your guests waiting for long. 4. Keep the guests of your event entertained and engaged Adding entertainment and inviting your guests to participate during your conference and gala dinner are great ways for any event planner to ensure that their’s is a memorable event. Engage Your Guests With Social Media Encore Event Technologies has a unique strategy for engaging your guests. Event Feed is an online platform which scans all social media platforms for a predetermined hashtag and then displays these posts on a screen so that guests have the chance to be featured during the conference and gala! Entertain with performances at your Gala dinner After a long, content rich day at the conference, your guests will welcome entertaining performances. A savvy event planner amps up their gala dinner planning game by organizing a variety of acts to keep guests engaged and amused all night long. If you’re stuck for ideas, consider commissioning a singer, a dance troupe, a magician, a quick-change act or even an aerial artist like an acrobat if your venue can accommodate it. 5. Create the right atmosphere and ambiance with AV and lighting effects Audio visual equipment as well as specialized lighting and lighting effects are a great way to set the tone and mood of your conference and gala dinner. Dramatic Lighting The right lighting features add another dimension to your event. Using roving gobos, pin spot lighting and dynamic colour changes are a great way to transition from a conference to a gala dinner. Take a look at the dramatic effect of pin spot lighting. Using AV Equipment During a conference, audio visual equipment is typically used to share slides and capture the audience’s attention. As you transition from a conference to a gala dinner, use the same audio visual equipment to create a dramatic impact. Using the projector and screen that were used for conference slides, project stylized images that match the theme of your gala for added effect. Using digital banners and widescreens When using projectors and impactful images, consider adding digital banners as well. The flexibility in their modular design makes digital banners a great way to re-imagine your content. Arranged in various ways to support your content, digital banners can draw attention to corporate sponsors, add corporate branding, project messages to guests of your event and add animated content. Similarly, widescreens are a perfect solution for conference to gala dinner stage sets. The sheer size of widescreens make them the perfect candidate for conference presentations, whilst can also make the perfect canvas for projecting stunning imagery and stylised content onto for the gala dinner. Create ambiance with music during your gala dinner A moment can be made with the right music. Background music is a powerful tool for changing the ambiance of a room. Carefully select warm, instrumental tunes or high powered musical odysseys for your guests to enjoy as you treat them to an exciting gala dinner. 6. Pre-set like a pro for a smooth transition from conference to gala dinner Transitioning between a conference and a gala dinner doesn’t have to be an ordeal. A great deal of pre-planning and pre-setting can make for a smooth transition from drab conference to exciting gala dinner. Timing plays a key part in transitioning between conference and gala dinner. A well scheduled event will be one that goes off without a hitch. Simple Pre-Setting Strategy For conference and gala dinners, pre-setting stage looks in two distinct layers is a good idea. Employing the use of black drapery means that you will be able to hide a secondary stage for a gala dinner and transitioning from conference to gala dinner is as simple as pulling back a drape. Use Event Backdrop for a quick change Incorporating an Event Backdrop into your stage or room design is a great way to dress up your event. Event Backdrop is made using photographic quality print on fabric, that is brilliantly illuminated to create knock-out impact at an affordable price. Available in a range of sizes to suit all event sizes, they are ideal for delivering a message, promoting a product, reinforcing the message of an event, or building recognition of your brand. Event Backdrop's can also be changed quickly between your chosen conference backdrop to a gala dinner backdrop that aptly matches the theme of your gala. You can also utilise Event Backdrops at the entrance to your venue to welcome guests. A great way to create excitement at your event is to use a backdrop to create a photo wall for your guests to be photographed in front of as they arrive at the event. Plan your event down to the last detail The lighting that you have chosen for your event plays an important role in transitioning between conference and gala dinner. To facilitate a smooth transition, lighting for your gala dinner can be set up prior to your conference and pre-programmed to begin at just the right time. All of the lighting effects and transitions can be programmed ahead of time so this won’t be something you’ll need to worry about as you prepare for the gala dinner. When it comes to planning a successful conference and gala dinner, the key is turnaround time and ensure that you have ample staff on hand to transition from conference to gala dinner in a timely manner. 7. Leave it to the event production experts Encore Event Technologies has been transforming conferences into lavish gala dinners for over 30 years. It’s safe to say, there’s not a trick in the book we wouldn't know. Our event production team has mastered the transition, attributing it all to preparation, experience and creativity. With the largest range of event services, Encore Event Technologies are your one-stop-shop and have everything you need to transform your event with ease. If you are interesting in exploring options for your next event, speak to a Encore Event Technologies representative today by calling 1800 209 099 or by sending an online enquiry. ... Read More

The difference between an ordinary corporate event and an extraordinary event comes down to the details. That’s what an Encore Event Technologies' event is all about. We believe a great stage design is essential for a memorable experience – and is a key element in inspiring the people who attend. What makes a stage come to life? Through our years of experience, we’ve come to know the right formula for a great stage design. Here are the elements we’re always thinking about. 1. Event Space Stage design is about working with specific spaces, often within a limited set of possibilities. But our stage designers thrive on limitation, using space in unique and creative ways – to complement event speakers, boost brand messaging, or bring out the best in a performance or presentation. It’s often a challenge, but one we’ll find a solution for. The harder the space is the more creative you need to be. We have built stages over pools, used modular stages, curved stages and many more. The possibilities really are endless. A great solution to help envisage the end stage design is to view a graphic render of the desired look. This can help you see how the stage will look in relation to the event space and help foresee any design and technical issues. View some of our render to reality examples. 2. Lighting Make the stage come alive with great lighting. When it’s time to make a dramatic change, professional lighting can transform a plain space from a blank canvas into a completely new environment. It can control the mood of a stage, and hype up its energy. And it can create an event atmosphere that’s both eye-catching and unforgettable. 3. Backdrops, stage sets and banners A stage is simply an elevated platform, a blank canvas if you will, that requires design and AV elements to take it from something ordinary to something extraordinary. Corporate events are evolving and event planners are looking for new ways to make their events bigger and better than the last, without breaking the bank. An effective way to do this is investing in interesting stage design. Encore have developed a range a of stage design solutions that add impact to your event. Event Backdrop Event Backdrop is a visually striking and flexible branding solution, perfect for all events. It is a high-tech illuminated frame wrapped in a photographic-quality printed nylon. So simple, yet so effective! It’s a great way of delivering a message, promoting a product, enhancing the theme of an event or building recognition of a brand. Event Backdrop’s also come in a variety of sizes to cater for small meeting rooms all the way to large ballroom size. This has been our most popular event product this year and can been used for a variety of events. Digital Stage Banners and Widescreens If you want to add WOW-factor to your next event, a simple solution is to incorporate digital stage banners and widescreens into your stage design. Traditionally, a stage set consists of the elevated platform underneath a large screen. With digital stage banners you can creatively position them across the stage to present your multimedia content in an interesting and engaging way. Another option is to use Widescreens – which are by name, very wide digital banners used to project multimedia content onto. These are highly effective when you have a large stage to work with and through the use of blend projection can house highly immersive imagery. Why not use both! If you’re interested in exploring new ways to design your stage, speak to your Encore representative or contact us today. 4. Visuals We always pay particular attention to the visual elements of your event. Tools like animation and high-impact video are great ways to capture your audience’s imagination, while 3D projection mapping can transform dull presentations into stimulating visual journeys. The use of LED walls, projection screens and stage backdrops can also engage your audience and help deliver your message – but also enhance your overall branding and create a lasting impression. How it all comes together At Encore, we believe the stage should be as much a feature as what’s happening on it. With the proper use of space, lighting and visuals, it can become its own key part of the experience. This transformation helps to boost your event’s theme, and it adds another dimension to audience engagement. Ultimately? Great stage design can be the difference between a run-of-the-mill presentation, and an enjoyable real-life experience with a sense of ceremony and lasting messages. With more than 30 year experience designing amazing stage sets for event of all shapes and sizes, you can count on Encore to create something extraordinary for yours. Whether your event is a conference, product launch, gala dinner or a small C-level presentation - with all eyes on the stage it's important you get its design right. Get in touch with one of our friendly team members to start discussing your event needs and hear our ideas. Send an online enquiry or give us a call today on 1800 209 099. ... Read More

As a busy event planner, you know there’s a lot that goes into the planning and execution of each conference and seminar that you’re involved with. At Encore, we want to make it easier for you to stay organised, share information with event attendees and plan a successful and stress-free conference or seminar. That's why we’ve released Cumulus, a free corporate event app that is easy-to-use, easy-to-navigate and an all-inclusive tool that puts all of the information pertinent to your event at your attendees’ fingertips. Our event app will allow you to share your conference agenda ahead of the event, allow your guests to access profiles and bios of the key speakers at your seminar, make it easier for attendees to navigate to and around the venue and so much more. Best of all, Cumulus is no charge to event planners that use us, exclusively, for their AV services. If you want to pull off a fun, engaging and informative conference, seminar or corporate event, our event app is essential. Here are 10 ways our free event app, Cumulus, will enhance your corporate seminar or conference experience: 1. Upload your event agenda Feature: Agenda Upload your event’s agenda or program so that your guests can access it ahead of the big day so that they have information about what meetings will be part of your conference or seminar, as well as the date, time and location for each meeting. Allowing your guests to access the schedule for your event means that they will be able to attend the meetings and seminars they are most interested in. 2. Include important information on your presenters or speakers Feature: Speaker Information Who is speaking at your conference or imparting important information at your seminar? Let your guests know by uploading bios and profiles that introduce each of the key speakers at your event to your guests. 3. Distribute important venue information Feature: Facility Overview Including a map so that your attendees know where to go is an excellent touch. You can also include transport and shuttle information for out-of-town guests. 4. Attendee List Feature: Attendees One of the biggest advantages for guests of conferences and seminars is the networking possibilities that these types of events open up. You can make networking even easier by uploading a list of attendees which offers users the opportunity to e-mail one another. Unlike other event apps, Cumulus allows users to click on an attendee and the app will take the user straight to their device’s e-mail client to send an e-mail. 5. Upload important downloadable documents Feature: Downloads Rather than handing out hard copies of important documents, you can upload essential meeting material, documents, bulletins, floor plans and much more so that your event’s attendees can access this important information from their smart phone or tablet. 6. Showcase your sponsors Feature: Sponsors With our free event app, you are able to highlight your event sponsors in a unique and dynamic way. With a dedicated area for your sponsors’ information, you can create a partnership recognition area that includes flexible rich text content, sponsorship messaging and internet hyperlinks to your sponsors’ content. With many sponsorship levels, you can customise your sponsor area to meet the needs of your event. 7. Include live polling for attendees Feature: Links Including a link to our live polling platform, Event Poll, let's you ask your attendees questions, encourage discussion, promote brainstorming and receive instant feedback. Adding Event Poll to your conference or seminar is a great way to garner audience engagement through participation. With an event poll, you have the opportunity to host a live Q & A session, run polls on hot topics and so much more. 8. Keep your attendees updated Feature: Bulletins With our event app, you can help your attendees stay up-to-date on the conference or seminar they will be attending by including a dedicated news area where you can upload news and important bulletins. 9. Uploading supporting videos Feature: Videos Videos are great, easily digestible content that give a large amount of information without requiring a large time commitment from the viewer. Uploading videos via Cumulus is an excellent way to share rich and dynamic content with your event’s attendees. The videos can be brand, sponsor, product or destination related and so much more. 10. Promote venue deals and offers Feature: Links / Downloads When you host a conference or a seminar at a venue that has promotional offers for your audience, our event planning app allows you to share this information with all of the attendees of your event. Watch Cumulus in action! AHICE used Cumulus at their 2019 conference to distribute key information and connect with attendees. Cumulus App Demo for AHICE from Encore Event Technologies on Vimeo. Our free corporate event app, Cumulus, is just one of the ways that Encore Event Technologies can help you plan and flawlessly execute a stand-out conference or seminar. We also offer you the skills and expertise of more than 30 years of experience and we can provide you with a professional and organised event production team who will assist you in the production of a conference or seminar that will blow your attendees away. To find out how Event Briefcase can enhance your event, speak with one of our Encore representatives today by calling 1800 209 099 or by sending an online enquiry. -- ... Read More

Now event planners can easily take their event from onsite to onscreen with Cumulus. The event app gives you and your attendees the convenience of accessing all event information at any time, everywhere they go. In an industry first Encore is offering the app for free when clients use them for their AV and event services. Available on any internet connected device, Cumulus puts valuable event information in the hands of attendees in real time. Event organisers load and manage all event-specific content to the easy to use content management system. Tony Chamberlain, Managing Director, Encore commented on the launch of Cumulus. “Creating this new tool and providing it free of charge to our clients is another way Encore is working to make events more convenient, effective and engaging. “The event app enables our clients to manage their own content, avoiding the need to use expensive third party app solutions or the need to print conference programs. The event organiser is in complete control of the content, making live changes at any time,” said Mr Chamberlain. Used recently at Grand Hyatt Melbourne, Victoria Damiani, Director of Business Development, commented on the benefits the app can bring event organisers. “We’re delighted to be able to offer a free event app to our customers who host their event at our hotel. We’ve found that people increasingly expect to be able to use their smart phones at events to obtain key information, and to be able to offer this service free of charge will be a real advantage to event planners who are looking for new cost effective ways to collaborate with their attendees,” said Ms Damiani. Every event planners must-have event app Cumulus is a must-have app designed specifically for meetings and events. It is easily accessible on the go so all you need is an internet-enable device such as a Smartphone or tablet. On top of its simplicity is the design flexibility. Cumulus can be designed to mirror your own branding, whilst also deciding which 10 features and integrations you’d like included such as venue details, agendas/session details, speaker bios, external links, downloadable documents, attendee lists, bulletins/updates, transport information, Find out more about Cumulus Note: At time of releasing this story, Cumulus was known as Event Briefcase. Since the rebranding of Staging Connections in 2018, Event Briefcase is now referred to as Cumulus. ... Read More

Every event or meeting you attend today will include some sort of digital event technology. Whether it be an event app, online registration, webcasting, live polling, social media integration or even just access to Wi-Fi. As event planners look for new ways to collect invaluable data whilst providing attendees with a more dynamic, personalised experience, this inclusion of event technology is only going to increase. With this increase in event technology adoption comes the added pressure of venues to supply enough bandwidth to facilitate the mass usage. Since bandwidth governs all technology that uses the Internet (including personal devices being used in guest rooms and public areas outside of meetings), it has become increasingly more important for meeting and event planners to learn the basics of it and how to estimate how much you’ll need for your event. Your AV provider should take care of this for you, however it will be beneficial to get a grasp on understanding bandwidth so you can plan in advance to ensure your venue can handle the Wi-Fi demand throughout your event without overspending for more than you need. What is Bandwith and Wi-Fi? Bandwidth: The amount of data that can be transmitted (upload) or received (download) per second measured in Megabits per second. Wi-Fi: The technology that distributes the Bandwidth around a venue to wireless devices like laptops, computers, smartphones and tablets. APEX Bandwidth and Connectivity Workgroup of the Convention Industry Council (CIC) How bandwidth can affect your meetings and events whether large or small Bandwidth allocation determines how many people and devices can access the internet, what types of technology you can use (streaming vs basic surfing), and how frequently. It is based on the minimum amount of megabytes required to ensure all the known users, on an estimated amount of devices, can have an undisrupted internet viewing experience fit for purpose. Below are some event examples of how bandwidth can affect your meeting and events, regardless of size: Bandwidth determines how many devices - smartphones, tablets, laptops, live polling systems, etc. - can be used concurrently inside venues, guestrooms and public areas without interference. It determines whether streaming video presentations will be transmitted over the Internet fast enough to project crisply and clearly on the screen without image or audio distortion or even lag time. It can limit the type, size and quality of presentations your speakers or instructors will be able to upload or download. It can dictate whether a hybrid event with audiences in different locations will be trouble-free or problematic. It will control exhibitor presentations in their booths and the applications they use. Your on-site office and event operations including registration will depend on bandwidth capabilities. And the list goes on ... Very small meetings can still be technologically demanding so it’s important to remember the type of usage plays more emphasis on bandwidth exhaustion than the number of users or devices. There is nothing more frustrating than a website crashing, or seeing the spinning wheel of death as the video buffers. Rather than sit patiently and wait, your viewers or attendees are likely to abandon this and move onto something else. Therefore it’s vital you ensure there will be enough bandwidth on rehearsal and show day to accommodate your event. It can make or break your attendees’ event experience. Naturally, if you don’t intend on using any internet-reliant activities (live polling, event apps, web surfing etc) or your attendees aren’t concerned with accessing the internet during your event, than you needn’t be concerned with bandwidth availability. How to estimate how much bandwith you’ll need for your meeting or event Nowadays, it is an expectation to have internet access at all times and in all places including your event! However, this is not always as easy to arrange as it sounds. Below is a simple three step process to help you estimate how much internet bandwidth you’ll need: 1. Determine how many attendees will be using the internet at your event. 2. Assess what your participants will be using the internet for. Is it just so that delegates can check their e-mails? Or will you be webcasting the event to online audience’s and will need to send through live video and audio? Event tweeting or posting on Instagram uses a small amount of bandwidth. This is usually categorised into Low, Medium or High usage. Low – Emailing, social media, basic web surfing Medium - Skype, Audio streaming, web applications, Event apps and audience response systems. High – Webcasting, Large file transfers 3. Use your programme to determine when the peak usage will be. If your programme requires all people to sign in via digital registration before 9am and you have an event app with the event’s agenda you can assume you will need to allow more bandwidth for the morning. If you have a workshop for 4 hours in the afternoon which your attendees won’t need internet access for you can account for that too. You will need to take into account these peaks of use. Questions to ask your venue about dedicated bandwidth If you want to give all of your event attendees, including staff and presenters, the best internet experience we recommend opting for a dedicated bandwidth. As it sounds, dedicated bandwidth means the venue will reserve your bandwidth allocation so no matter what other users may be doing, your event will have access to unshared bandwidth. Whilst dedicated bandwidth provides a more reliable, faster experience, it is more expensive. We recommend speaking with your AV provider or venue to determine what type of bandwidth you’ll need and whether dedicated bandwidth is necessary. If you do require dedicated bandwidth, below are some key questions should ask your venue: Does the venue have the necessary infrastructure to bring in dedicated bandwidth? Is there on-site AV and technical support to help configure and troubleshoot these services? Does the venue have large enough caballing to meet your total bandwidth needs so even all users at usage peaks will have a good internet experience? Does your venue have the ability to set-up sub-separate networks (VLANs-Virtual Local Area Network) if your event requires it? Venues without an on-site AV technician make answering these questions more time consuming task as you’ll need to speak with an event IT company and possibly even arrange an on-site visit. This can be very costly so keep this in mind when choosing your venue. As an event planner, the last thing you want is your delegates, important VIPs or event presenters to have a negative experience because your internet failed. How do venues charge for bandwidth / internet usage Typically venues will have a schedule of pricing for number of attendees x level of bandwidth required. Ask the venue for their rate card. In some circumstances we are seeing venues include Wi-Fi in their day delegate package, this can often be a deciding factor in choosing a venue. Helpful tips for managing your bandwidth usage 1. Save on bandwidth with a proxy server for popular pages. When the participants at your event are often likely to be looking at the same internet page – for example, the programme of the day on the event website you can save on broadband use by installing a proxy server in your network. This allows you to save the pages that are surfed by the participants for a limited period of time. If another person wants to look at the same page within, say, the next ten minutes, this person does not need to access your network; instead the page in question will be uploaded from the local cache on the proxy server. 2. Allow for bandwidth for your rehearsals. Often large events will have a full rehearsal the day before the event to run from start to end just like it’s show day. If you intend on testing your webcasting, applications, live polling etc we recommend definitely allowing for this additional day of bandwidth. 3. If you plan on webcasting it is all about sufficient upload bandwidth with pre tested IP-addresses. Basically the equipment used must be registered with the internet supplier to create a dedicated internet connection separate to the bandwidth being used by the attendees. Make use of the latest event technologies at your event Find new ways to excite, inspire and connect your attendees to your brand new product. Our range of digital services allows immediate engagement with your audience, providing an inclusive atmosphere for your guests and interactive ways to gather feedback from your conference or meeting. With the latest event technology at our fingertips we have the solutions to take your event where it needs to go. Webcast your event to reach a global audience, Amplify your content via social media for events, Record and stream your event for later use, or to widen your reach, Interact with your attendees via live audience polling, or House all of your event related material on a free event app. By incorporating the latest event technology, your conference, incentive, gala dinner or exhibition attendees will benefit from the latest variety of interactive communications, bringing you and your guests closer. Speak to an Encore Event Technologies representative today to find out how we can make your event more engaging - CALL 1800 209 099 or send an online enquiry! ... Read More

Encore delivered a spectacular Hollywood Night theme for the Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts annual Hotel of the Year Awards gala dinner held in their ballroom, complete with elegant décor and lavish surroundings. The lobby welcomed guests, and prepared them for the excitement that lay ahead with two curved black lampstand chandeliers dripping with black crystals, the focal point upon entry. Adding Hollywood glamour with event styling and centerpieces Exuding luxury, elegance and style, the Ballroom was decked out in black and gold soft furnishings to achieve maximum impact. Oval tables were laden with plush finishes; black table cloths, gold satin tie-back chair covers and a tall and short wrought iron gold candleholder sat as the centrepiece on each table, filled with flowering red orchids. Decorative panels sat on either side of the ballroom, and these were lit up in bright lights to further emphasise the ‘tinsel town’ event theme. Designing a simple, yet impactful Hollywood awards stage With the award winners the real heroes of the event, the stage design needed to draw the attendees’ eyes from their luxury surroundings to the front of the room. To do this and create real impact, the Encore styling and design team used one of their most versatile products, an illuminated Event Backdrop with a customised graphic print, alongside two gold Hollywood Showbiz statues. It's not a Hollywood event without social media buzz! Wanting to get maximum engagement from the audience, and spread the messages of the event further, Event Feed was utilised to enable attendees post photos to Instagram and tweets on Twitter using the event hashtag. These were displayed in real time across the large screens around the ballroom. Of the 250 attendees, 50 photos were posted to Instagram and the tweets reached a further potential audience of 183. The Encore AV team went to work producing double projection graphics and moving lights shaped with gobos. The room was illuminated with Colourblaze, a high-performance linear LED fixture for washing large areas with far reaching, rich, saturated colours added to the theming. Clear audio for the band up on stage was managed seamlessly, ensuring everyone got into the swing of things. What did the client say? Guests enjoyed being transported to tinsel town for their night in the spotlight. Encore received lots of praise for their creative yet seamless operation: “The Encore team were wonderful to work with. They were professional and courteous making me very confident that the event was going to be a success. The team were attentive and creative making our awards night better than we could have ever imagined!” “The Event was a resounding success! Encore has done it again and how! From the perfect re-creation of a Black Tie Awards themed event to the expertly directed lights, sounds and display production. Thank you so much to everyone at Encore for an unforgettable evening.” Robert Belicena, Director of Events Management, Shangri-La Sydney Partner with leading event services company for your awards night 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. Encore 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 everything from the latest in AV, lighting and staging through to event styling and engaging digital and social services for events; and we work with you every step of the way so there’s no surprises. If you’re interesting in finding out what Encore can do for your event, get in touch with us today by calling 1800 209 099 or by completing our event enquiry form. ... Read More