Marriott Select Brands General Managers Conference 2023
Category: Private Trade Show
Creative/Production Agencies: Hargrove LLC, hargroveinc.com; Encore Group (USA) LLC, encoreglobal.com
Budget: $1,000,000–$1,900,000

To educate its general managers on its new initiatives, products, and services, Marriott International Inc. produced an event in Anaheim, CA, with the theme of “Marriott Backlot.” Inspired by Tinsel Town's iconic movie backlots, it created custom booths for 90 total exhibits, including six stands for brands such as Fairfield, TownePlace Suites, and Courtyard, as well as sponsors' brands, including Pepsi, Red Bull, and HBO Max.

The event was zoned into several sections, with each zone incorporating iconic materials and props to extend the theme across the floor, such as a replica of Paramount Pictures' arched entrance and a 20-foot-tall King Kong. The HBO Max stand displayed the 1989 Batmobile and a murky Batcave, while the TownePlace Suites booth included a lounge area matching the hotel's aesthetic, with a recording studio booth where attendees could record messages for their teams. Even the educational sessions were incorporated into the expo floor as interactive exhibits, such as the “Save the Stay” escape room and other immersive experiences that showcased new products and services. A runaway hit, the conference deserved its own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Aluvision Live 2023
Category: Customer Conference/Event
Creative/Production Agencies: Aluvision Inc., aluvision.com; Fusion Imaging, fusionimaging.com
Budget: $50,000–$74,000

When your bread and butter is earned via face-to-face marketing products, a face-to-face event for prospects and customers is a no-brainer. But for Aluvision Inc., in-person interactions are critical to long-term relationships.

To that end, Aluvision held a 2.5-day event in June 2023 — dubbed Aluvision Live — focused on the grand opening of its expanded facility in Duluth, GA. The aim was to educate attendees on new and existing products to increase their knowledge about Aluvision's product lines.

Following an outdoor welcome reception, the event featured new-product introductions, hands-on training, and myriad displays that simulated real-world product applications. The event culminated in a semi-formal grand opening for the new facility. Featuring meal stations, an open bar, and a live band, the celebration wowed attendees and impressed local officials and media reps.

A whopping 90 percent of invited guests attended the event, and post-event customer purchases increased by 10 percent year over year. Compared to individual customer visits, the group event reduced Aluvision's per-customer expense by 75 percent while keeping attendees immersed in the brand.

Howard University & PNC Regional Roadshows
Category: Road Show/Multivenue Event
Creative/Production Agency: ABCD & Company, abcdandcompany.com
Budget: $100,000–$199,000

Funded via a grant from PNC Bank (PNC), the Howard University and PNC National Center for Entrepreneurship embarked on an initiative to enhance entrepreneurship education at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and to empower Black entrepreneurs nationwide. With Howard University overseeing regional hubs, the initiative aimed to elevate Black-owned businesses.

Howard University orchestrated the HU and PNC Regional Roadshows, a series of four dynamic events spanning three weeks across four campuses — Howard University, Clark Atlanta University, Texas Southern University, and Morgan State University — that created a rich environment for attendees.

The road shows played a pivotal role in creating awareness and excitement around this important initiative. Events garnered extensive media coverage with mentions in outlets including Forbes, Bloomberg, and the Baltimore Business Journal. Plus, the events attracted more than 2,000 attendees, more than double attendance projections. With 51 speakers and more than 75 student exhibitors, the road shows created a dynamic platform for knowledge-sharing and an entrepreneurial showcase.

Journey by the Bay
Category: Customer Conference/Event
Creative/Production Agency: ProGlobalEvents, proglobalevents.com
Budget: $200,000–$299,000

In conjunction with the 2023 RSA Conference, Synack Inc. hoped to create a memorable off-floor marketing event to generate business for the firm, which pairs a crowdsourced network of white-hat hackers and an SaaS platform enabled by AI to identify security vulnerabilities. The resulting event, coined the Journey by the Bay, comprised an intimate three-day experience that allowed customers and prospects to network and explore service-demo stations.

Featuring branded signage, themed décor, and customized interior fabrications, the event offered a welcome reception with whiskey-and-beef pairings on opening night. Day-two activities included a Women in Cyber breakfast along with a panel discussion with notable women in the industry. Similarly, day three provided a themed Exploits Explained breakfast as well as a panel discussion focusing on the importance of early discovery of security vulnerabilities.

Synack set goals focused on attracting and satisfying customers and would-be clients, an apropos objective for the relatively new firm launched in 2013. The education and networking event earned a 99 percent satisfaction rating among the more than 1,000 people in attendance.