There is a psychological component to meeting planning. To imprint brand awareness, recognition and memory onto attendees’ minds, planners must tap into their psyches.
“Branding an event to create awareness is very important because what catches a guests’ eye will likely stick with them,” says Jeff Burke, director of production at Enclave, a new 75,000 -square-foot event venue in Las Vegas.
Here are five techy ways to subliminally stamp your event, company, organization or association’s logo on the brains of guests.
Smoke Screen
Guests can be greeted by a logo appearing seemingly out of thin air as they enter through the doorway to a ballroom. This effect is accomplished by using a FogScreen. “[It] produces a thin curtain of dry fog that serves as a translucent projection screen, displaying images that literally float in the air…It’s as simple as it is stunning,” says Ville Kurri, sales director for FogScreen. He says it creates “a brand-new medium to captivate and fascinate.”
As a nod to the city’s unofficial mascot, “Karl the Fog,” AC Hotel San Francisco Airport/Oyster Point Waterfront used this magical illusion at its grand opening celebration in December. “Our AC Hotel takes pride in incorporating local elements into the guest experience. We don’t just accept the fog that rolls in off the bay every day—we embrace it,” says Ashley Couch, the hotel’s sales and catering coordinator. “We featured a fog motif for our grand opening party using a FogScreen from 3B Productions.”
This technology debuted in October 2002, but has gone through several advancements since then. The next generation is due before the end of 2018.
E Ink
A brand ambassador can be a walking billboard at events by wearing programmable clothing. A woman sported a color and pattern-changing dress comprised of strips of E Ink Prism panels earlier this year at the Consumer Technology Association’s CES trade show in Las Vegas. Her frock turned heads and went viral. The basis for this digital tech is the same as for an e-reader, such as Kindle, but on a much larger scale. Currently, the programmable film is available in seven standard colors that can be screen printed on an overlay to create a logo.
E Ink technology can also be applied to event and convention center signage, wall displays behind hotel check-in desks and art installations. According to Interiors & Sources, Ueberall International worked with E Ink when it was commissioned by San Diego County Regional Airport Authority to design an exhibit called “Dazzle” on the exterior of the rental car building. Interactive wall designs can even be programmed to respond to noise, temperature and motion.
3D Signage
A Coca-Cola billboard created a lot of buzz when it was installed in New York City’s Times Square last summer. Radius Displays designed this six-story kinetic display using more than 1,700 individual modules that move independently. It won Guinness World Records for Largest 3D Robotic Billboard and First 3D Robotic Billboard.
“From the beginning, our brief was to create a pause-and-refresh moment in the crowded environment of Times Square,” says Kim Gnatt, group director of business strategy for Coca-Cola North America. “Our proprietary 3D technology brings our iconic brands to life in a unique and differentiated way that will hopefully catch people’s attention and make them want to engage for a longer period of time.”
Gobos
Just as lamps project stars and planets onto the ceiling and walls of children’s bedrooms, gobos (often cited as an acronym for Goes Before Optics) have become popular tools that allow meeting professionals and venues to quickly stencil branding on all kinds of spaces.
“They are customizable because you can make any design, logo, name, etc., as a template that will then be projected onto any smooth surface,” says Enclave’s Burke.
3D Glasses
The sky is literally the limit when it comes to branding tech. Your logo can appear in the signature firework display above the castle at Walt Disney World Resort or Disneyland. Event professionals can purchase customized LogoVision lenses and frames. When guests look through these glasses, the branding appears in the colorful bursts of pyrotechnics.
“Seeing your company’s logo in the Disney Theme Park fireworks is a fun, creative and affordable way to add extra magic to an event at Walt Disney World Resort,” says Amy Pfeiffer, director of convention sales and services at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
This illusion is not limited to fireworks. Logos can appear in other light sources, as well. Event designers can place lamps throughout a ballroom so that the branding shows up everywhere you look. Planners can also take advantage of Christmas light displays at hotels during the holiday season. Some hotels in Scottsdale, Arizona, light up their cacti at night, which is an invitation for your event’s logo to come to life during an outdoor evening reception.
