A 2016 ADMEI Award-Winning Event & 3 Lessons Learned
We are thrilled to win a 2016 ADMEI Award for Most Innovative Event ($200,001 – $500,000) for our Interactive Festival at the Historic French Market last April! With a one-hour turnaround from flea market to festival, BBC produced an interactive celebration at the 200-year-old French Market for 550 guests. In two weeks we secured permitting, enlisted an A-list team of suppliers, and coordinated every detail of production during a busy spring season. As 138 market vendors cleared the space, our dream team seamlessly transitioned the flea market into an energetic festival in one hour! Not only did we leave participants jumping with hands in the air, we also walked away with a few valuable lessons…
1) Choose Your Partners Wisely
This event challenged us to get creative with what products we chose from what suppliers. Instead of partnering with one vendor to provide all sound, staging, light, and rentals, we partnered with vendors based on the autonomy of their products. Suppliers were also chosen on their ability to produce high-quality results in fast-paced atypical environments. For example, one supplier was enlisted for their mobile stage trailer, which provides professional staging with a one-hour assembly time. Another supplier provided a popup beer trailer in lieu of hauling and tapping kegs from various local brewers.
2) There is Nothing Like a Face-to-Face Meeting
Email, Skype, Text…all have their place in the communication cosmos, but when it boils down to it, there is nothing like a face-to-face meeting and walk-thru. This is especially true when you have 23 vendors to coordinate in one hour. During the short planning stage, it was highly important to anticipate and alleviate any complications, since there would be no time for last minute changes onsite. To ensure our suppliers were on the same page, we held an all-vendor meeting one week before the event. Each supplier took turns explaining their load-in processes, services provided, and foreseen challenges. All suppliers played a role in developing the floor plan, overall load-in schedule, and coming up with creative solutions that would not have been realized over disjointed email conversations. We easily solved problems that would have caused huge setbacks if realized onsite and creative problem solving between vendors led to huge cost savings for our client.
3) Trust Your Gut
As a DMC professional, we know our city better than anyone. Whether it involves city permitting or how big the dance floor needs to be, trust your gut. You know that New Orleans sound is hard to resist – the dance floor needs to be big enough to really cut a rug!
About ADMEI
ADMEI (Association of Destination Management Executives International) is the global voice of the destination management industry and resource for education, standards and practices for destination event professionals. This year is the eleventh anniversary of the ADMEI Achievement Awards. BBC is a five time ADMEI award winner with six nominations for custom tour programs, event production, cultural significance, and exceptional staff. #LoveaDMC #ADMEI16
