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Our team was tasked with creating five events for a Papal visit in five locations over three days for more than 200,000 people – with just 45 days to prepare. Enter Chris Baker and team.
Chris Baker
- 16+ yrs. of experience
- Thousands of events
- Married with a rescue dog
- Disaster relief volunteer
- World traveler
- Adrenaline junkie
The Challenge
The request came from the Canadian Catholic Council of Bishops for Encore to help produce the Pope’s visit to Canada. Our team was tasked with creating five events in five locations over three days for more than 200,000 people – with just 45 days to prepare.
The Solution
The challenges and requirements for each event location were completely unique. Enter Chris and team. Using Encore’s extensive resources available across Canada and North America, the team designed a plan including hundreds of people, individual crews for each site, lots of infrastructure, tons of gear, large LED walls with delayed audio, plus an eight-hour cargo flight across country to Baffin Island, the last stop.
The Result
While the challenges had short turns and were immense, the people of Encore saw solutions, and enabled the Pope to present his message to more than 200,000 people in five different locations. In short, it was a miraculous success.
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From routine challenges to the moment of truth that threatens to derail your event, our people solve them
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- The pandemic forced the meeting and event industry to hit the pause button. In that pause, the industry was given the opportunity to rethink how things are conventionally done to see how we might improve. Why is that necessary? Let’s see where conventional thinking has gotten us: The average event participant contributes almost a quarter of a metric ton of CO2 emissions per day at a conference.
- 70 percent of event speakers worldwide are men.
- 58 percent of managers say they must reinvent their organization to survive, yet 75 percent of transformation efforts fail to deliver.
- Attention spans — thanks to mobile devices — are only eight seconds long, yet conference programs are still filled with hour-long lectures.
Clearly, it’s time to break free of industry norms so we can overcome these challenges. How can meeting and event professionals find solutions to these challenges? Design thinking.
“Design thinking is one of the most powerful ways that event professionals can approach their events,” said Anthony Vade, Encore event experience strategy director. “It allows us to navigate the complexities that exist in our stakeholder relationships to find the most elegant solution to create the change that events need to create.”
To generate awareness, conversations and potential solutions, Encore partnered with IMEX America to create an immersive BREAK FREE booth on the IMEX America show floor.
What we were trying to achieve
Goals for this journey of transformation were to:
- Encourage the industry to challenge the status quo.
- Show participants that they can break free from whatever is holding them back.
- Spotlight the themes of connection, inspiration and collaboration.
- Connect participants with the Encore team and get them talking about topics that impact organizations, local communities and the world.
Our approach
- The Encore Strategy team used tools to unlock empathy and analyze stakeholder needs.
- Once stakeholder needs were defined, the experience designed focused on how to fulfill them by making design choices that would elicit human emotion, drive interaction and spark meaningful conversation while delivering on IMEX partnership goals.
- The Encore Creative team conceived, designed, wrote and produced the content, including a video in the second room, which was displayed on a 12-ft. high, 180-degree LED screen.
- The Encore Sales Engineering and Application Development teams collaborated to customize its Chime Live Engagement Platform to create engagement opportunities and collect data for the Sales and Marketing teams. The platform was used to drive engagement from poling attendees to create real-time word clouds to providing attendees the opportunity to visualize IR-generated content, Encore’s Chime Live platform was the experience platform glue. Click below to read the BREAK FREE Survey Results below.
To align with IMEX America’s zero-waste event initiative, the Encore team made conscious decisions to reduce waste within the booth space:
- Using reusable printed items
- Replacing traditionally printed items with projected or digital content
- Using reusable pipe and drape rather than carpet or built walls
- Using water bubblers instead of water bottles
- Refraining from giving away SWAG items
- Serving bar drinks from recycled and alternative materials
Outcomes
“The experience for me was really about a conversation and how we break free from the surface-level conversations and get a lot deeper,” said Ashley Lawson, vice president of business partnerships, Achieve Incentives & Meetings. “We have the power to make changes and going through this experience, this exhibit, we can break through the surface-level conversations of sustainability, DE&I, and get a heck of a lot deeper to talk about the actions that we can take to actually make change.”
Industry influencer Julius Solaris shared in his social recap of BREAK FREE at IMEX America: “Go big or go home. Without a shadow of a doubt, the exhibit game’s absolute winner was Encore with its BREAK FREE activation. A monumental experiential journey. It could have been less brainy at times with the six QR codes to scan, but it doesn’t matter. Showing up with this level of bravery matters. I see you there thinking: ‘But they must have spent millions!’ Some booths may have spent even more than them but aligning the presence with the message is everything.”
Other results:
- More than 900 people experienced the Break Free activation at IMEX America.
- Nine media outlets, including MPI, Skift, Smart Meetings and Meetings Today, provided media coverage of the booth during IMEX America.
- Encore reached all eight of its top-tier trade targets, including all major industry media, which will provide coverage on Encore and its innovative end-to-end event solutions through Q1 2023.
- To deepen the connection between the BREAK FREE experience and industry customers, Encore is releasing a Break Free from Conventional Thinking guidebook with chapters being released in November and December 2022.
- Encore successfully delivered the message to venue partners and meeting and event participants that it is an important industry partner that can provide end-to-end solutions, deliver transformative experiences and help industry professionals manage rising costs with its innovative solutions.
Encore’s Break Free ’22 Video Highlights:
Continuing the conversation
Encore does more than start conversations. It also cares about walking the talk. One example is around sustainability and how Encore is deepening its commitment beyond offering sustainable options for event technology.
Company-wide, Encore is finalizing our 2021 Global GHG emission footprint so it has a baseline to put goals around, including ones that involve our in-property inventory and operations. Looking ahead to 2023, Encore will put its first electric vehicle (EV) trucks on our fleet and install a solar farm at our largest U.S. facility in Washington, D.C. to offset power consumption for that location and return excess energy to the grid.
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
Click image below to enlarge:
Challenge
Phillips 66 was looking for a partner for their Marketing Conference that could elevate their general session production, expo floor, and gala event. They wanted an event partner that could match their level of progress and innovation. The event needed to educate, celebrate, and engage their customers in a way that felt fully immersive and true to their brand.
Solution
Leading with strategy, Encore and Hargrove worked together to create a total end-to-end solution for the Power Ahead conference. The creative, design, production, expo, and gala all tied together to create an innovative, transformative experience with comprehensive Phillips 66 branding.
The expo floor had a modern look with hard wall structures fabricated by Hargrove that were branded for each exhibitor. The floor plan layout was based on the Power Ahead arrow design that allowed for the C-Store of the Future and Power Theater to be central focal points.
The thematic design was inspired by the colors of each of the Phillips 66 brands. A custom-built stage, decorative elements, signage, lighting, and graphics were all used to create a comprehensive look through the entire event space. All elements tied together to create a fully immersive and engaging event experience
Results
The Phillips 66, Encore, and Hargrove teams developed a strong partnership that led to an incredible event for over 1,200 customers. Education and hands-on learning were the focus of the daytime schedule, and the evenings were dedicated to celebrating and honoring their customers’ hard work. Highlights included a engaging learning sessions, inspiring keynotes, and energizing celebrations and entertainment.
Phillips 66 team members and attendees raved about how “this was the most amazing show we’ve ever seen!”
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
A Signature Hybrid Event
Encore partnered with PCMA to produce Convening Leaders 22, a signature annual conference for association professionals who produce large-scale events. For PCMA’s in-person experience, the Encore Production team designed all the sets and spaces – from the mainstage and concurrent session rooms to the Promenade area, which served as a central gathering spot for networking, sales conversations, education, and communal meals. They also constructed a broadcast studio PCMA could use to pre-record content and stream live interviews to the remote viewing audience.
The Encore Creative team designed the presentation graphics, lower thirds, and branding for PCMA’s live and broadcast content. In addition to providing technical and production support for the in-room experience, the Encore Technology team filmed, mixed and broadcast content from the conference to PCMA’s streaming partner. Encore also brought in a couple of its specialty divisions – Hargrove from Encore and CSI – to augment different elements of the 360-degree experience they created.
Objectives
PCMA likes to raise the bar on what they present every year. After all, producing events for event professionals isn’t easy. Adding to the complexity is the fact this is the first year Encore partnered with PCMA to produce this event. And the timeline was condensed. Encore had four rather than eleven months to shake things up and do things differently.
Other objectives:
- Create a feeling of intimacy and connection between the audience and the speakers/entertainers
- Facilitate authentic and profitable connections between sponsors and event participants
- Design an open-air space that could facilitate conversations as well as sponsor activations, meals and educational stages
Solutions
To bring the audience closer to the presenters and entertainers, Encore designed a central mainstage with a low runway that allowed the talent to “walk into” the audience. Encore also built a side stage for PCMA to utilize for entertainment and more traditional announcements. This side stage ended up providing a dynamic solution to a last-minute challenge. A week before load-in, the Wednesday keynote notified PCMA that they could not travel and could only present virtually. Not content with “zooming in” such an important person, Encore installed technology and lighting on the side stage that allowed the speaker to present as a hologram. And the stage’s position allowed the Encore team to “hide” the set up until the big reveal.
Encore strategically designed its display technology to up the excitement factor as participants walked into the mainstage space by placing LED welcome columns in a triangular formation. This not only provided branding opportunities, but it also funneled traffic around central camera positions, creating a more appealing entranceway. Some of the unique audiovisual features included digital scenic elements constructed of curved LED lights, a mixture of traditional (16:9) and nontraditional aspect ratios (3:1), LED strip lights, and concert-quality audio.
One of the biggest design challenges Encore faced was how to accommodate concurrent communal meals, sponsor activations and educational stages in the massive Promenade area. The primary issue would be noise that could negatively impact the quality of sponsor activations, casual networking opportunities and learner engagement. Encore solved this problem by providing headsets. These headsets allowed Encore to mic speakers but transmit the audio directly to wireless headsets. That eliminated any sound bleed over from the stages in the space. The headsets also filtered out ambient noise from hallway conversations. It was an elegant way to allow participants to decide if they wanted to network with others over a meal, interview potential vendors, catch up with friends, or attend an educational session – all within the same open-air space.
Among the sponsor activations in the Promenade was an Encore booth. It was the first major opportunity for Encore to introduce event professionals to its new brand identity and expanded capabilities. The Encore Creative department designed the booth and collaborated with Hargrove to build and execute it. A dynamic exterior design lured participants inside, where they discovered interactive displays and a comfortable environment in which they could connect and refresh while learning about Encore’s end-to-end event solutions.
Results
PCMA Convening Leaders 22 attracted more than 2,500 event professionals from around the world. After witnessing the opening session with Paula Abdul, the silent stage set-up, the digital presentation graphics, and dynamic Encore activation, participants kept asking, “Did Encore really do all of that?”
The partnership provided a fantastic opportunity for Encore and its Hargrove and CSI divisions to showcase the diversity of the creative, production, and technology services it offers to an audience that’s hard to surprise. A behind-the-scenes element powered by Encore backstage tours ensured PCMA Digital Event Strategists were able to augment their training with hands-on examples.
Overall, the experience deepened Encore and PCMA’s commitment to expand on the promise of partnership for future events.
Encore PCMA ’22 Video Highlights:
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
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Hybrid Event – Leadership Conference
Objectives
Line of Business: Senior Healthcare Services
Solutions
Develop and execute a virtual leadership conference that had all the elements of their traditional live event. Implement a hybrid event solution using the Chime Live event platform to connect and engage with teammates, sponsors and keynote speakers. Integrate their “Superhero” theme at the Presentation Stage™ and throughout Chime Live. Host 11 networking breakout sessions for team members, to engage with Executive leaders. Activate sponsors by having them virtually introduce the keynote speakers, display banner ads within the platform and enable team members to post their pictures with their sponsor swag in the interactive tab.
Results
Successfully shared strategic objectives, recognized exceptional performance, connected, and inspired all participants. Almost doubled participants from 250 in-person in prior years to over 400 joining virtually. Consulate Healthcare will be hosting their July event at the Encore Presentation Stage in Orlando, FL.
What our clients have to say:
Attendee Comments: “What an energizing first day”, “Leaving this conference… SPIRITED!”, “Absolutely enjoying this presentation.”
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
Hybrid Event
Custom Broadcast Studio at TIBCO headquarters, Presentation Stage, Virtual Event Design, Creative and Technical Execution
Objectives
TIBCO’s first-ever, all-digital TIBCO NOW brought together 6,000 TIBCO leaders, customers and partners from over 99 countries to share exclusive insight and solutions around sustainable innovation.
Line of Business: Software
We Delivered: Custom Broadcast Studio at TIBCO headquarters, Presentation Stage, Virtual Event Design, Creative and Technical Execution
Solutions
With a decade of production partnership in the books, TIBCO challenged our team to develop and deliver a dynamic and informative engagement that exceeded previous event experiences.
Traditionally an in-person event gone Hybrid to reach a broader audience, the focus was to step outside of the confines of a standard event space to create an experience like no other.
Results
With the event goals in focus, we worked closely with our client to treat their global attendee roster to an orchestrated feast of the senses.
In partnership with local government officials and health + safety guidelines, we recommended a custom broadcast studio featuring a dynamic presentation stage design to showcase a mix of pre-recorded and live presentations.
Mix in a line-up of impactful speakers including World Cup Champion Megan Rapinoe, F1 Champion Lewis Hamilton, Activist Padma Lakshmi, engaging creative content and 120 breakout sessions all featuring an interactive agenda, chat, video playback, file download functionality and helpdesk support and you’ve got an experience that TIBCO NOW attendees won’t soon forget.
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
Gala Opening Celebration
Thematic Content and Venue Capabilities
Objectives
The stars aligned for a gala grand opening celebration at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas. The VIP event introduced existing and prospective customers to the newly opened convention center.
Encore’s Creative Content team was engaged to develop ideas and designs that would bring the CE Groups’ vision of “Fire, Wind, Ice, and Earth” to fruition.
Line of business: Venue and CVB We Delivered: Full Production Services
Solutions
Fire
The event began with a red carpet arrival featuring fire dancers and LED and intelligent lighting to bathe the entrance in red and deep amber fire hues.
Wind
Upon entering the main lobby of the center, the guests were introduced to the “Wind” portion of the journey. A violinist played as ribbon dancers performed on the stairway. Above Exhibit Hall 3, a 180’ x 15’ metal mesh screen is installed in front of a white wall. Internal LEDs normally light this mesh “chain mail” installation, but Encore projection-mapped onto it. Intelligent lighting provided color and patterns throughout the atrium walls, floor, and ceiling and provided special illumination for the performers.
Ice
On cue, the audience was invited to the next leg of the journey, “Ice.” A “wagon wheel” truss structure flown in the center of the room created a focal point for the Ice experience. An Ice Flo set from the San Antonio Encore branch office was mapped with custom “Ice” themed video images, while another stack of projectors projected additional Icy vistas above the DJ stage on the entrance wall.
Earth
Guests continued to the next leg of their journey up to the third floor Stars at Night Ballroom. Earth Harp provided a special musical experience using a custom harp with strings that stretched 125’ out and over the audience.
Results
This event was a true collaboration and partnership between Encore, the San Antonio CVB, the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, CE Group, RK Group, and others.
Guests were entertained at every turn with Encore’s Creative and Production teams incorporating focal points to enhance the structural and technological features within the newly renovated Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center.
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
Meetings and Conferences
Event Strategy and Design, Creative Content, Staging, Scenic, Breakouts
Objectives
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates held a high-profile, celebrity-packed summit for more than 4,000 attendees. Their goal for the event was to elevate it into an experience that incorporated aspects of Philadelphia (the host city) – particularly the messages of love and inclusion, synonymous with their brand message.
The three-day event included over 90 workshops, panels, roundtables, networking mixers, receptions, and plenaries.
Line of business: Association We Delivered: Full Production Services
Solutions
We won this bid, in part, due to having all the resource needs in one team – event strategy and design, thematic content, video production, show management, talent booking, full staging services, breakout sessions, as well as support for off-site events.
Encore designed a custom stage and replica of the famous LOVE statue by Robert Indiana as an homage to the host city. Our creative content teams also created event branding, animations, videos, motion graphics, speaker bumpers, logos, backgrounds, as well as an onsite highlights video.
Multiple functional and AV-supported areas were staged across the convention center. Our Production teams booked all entertainment and talent, and Digital Services handled video conferencing from two separate locations. They also developed an event mobile app and provided handheld devices for attendees.
Results
The Encore team handled every production aspect of the Out and Equal annual meeting. As a result, Out and Equal Workplace Advocates did not have to work with any other vendors during the planning and execution processes.
Out and Equal‘s attendees shared that they felt connected with both the brand and host city during their conference experience. Because of this event’s success, the Encore team went on to handle the subsequent years‘ conference as well.
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
Meetings & Conferences
Meeting, Video Conferencing, Live Stream
Objectives
Facebook wanted to celebrate their 10-year anniversary in a big way. With 1400 attendees expected at their Global Sales and Marketing Meeting, Facebook asked us to transform the Marriott Marquis into an extension of their main campus – the ultimate Facebook experience.
In addition to design strategy, Facebook sought to video conference and broadcast a live stream of the event in high definition.
Line of business: Tech Giant We Delivered: Full Production Services
Solutions
Facebook’s 2014 Global Sales & Marketing Meeting came with unprecedented and heightened expectations. The tech giant was celebrating its 10th anniversary and on track to close more than $200 billion by the end of 2014.
Held at the Marriot Marquis San Francisco, approximately 1,400 people were slated to attend the April global meeting. Encore’s task was to elevate the meeting from a conference into an unforgettable experience, spanning from the general session ballroom into the common areas. The objective was to give attendees the feeling that they were physically at the Facebook campus.
Throughout the entire planning and production process, Encore used an agency approach for the customer. Our production and digital services teams developed impactful designs, content, and delivered custom solutions to emulate the Facebook campus.
Multi-surface Projection Mapping
One of the key features at the event was the 165-foot wide multi-panel stage set and its composite of materials to restage the Facebook campus inside the large ballroom. Scenic strategy included elements like the red steel girders which gave nod to the same architectural features found at their Menlo Park, CA office. The stage panels were projection-mapped to display interiors you’d find onsite and other notable details at Facebook’s offices. The panels also played host to other pieces of creative content which we changed at different times to complement presentations and speakers.
Experiential Elements
The Facebook campus boasts colorful, crafty, curated artwork. Our production services team was able to mimic this look with content creation, scenic and environmental design, and themed action stations throughout the ballroom foyer, including selfie stations, a giant doodle board, and butcher block tablecloths and crayons during meals.
Appealing to multiple senses, we also booked a DJ for live walk-in entertainment. Our digital services team was able to video conference and live stream the event in high definition, bringing the event beyond the walls of the hotel.
Results
Facebook’s global Sales and Marketing teams appreciated the level of detail which emulated their main offices. They shared that it was an especially memorable experience for international attendees, both onsite and those tuning in remotely.
Let’s Talk About Your Event Experience Needs.
Call us at (866) 351-1144 or click the button below to get started!
Meetings and Conferences
Global Summit
Objectives
Europe’s largest digital experience conference, the Adobe Summit EMEA, returned to ExCeL London in May 2019. Once again, Encore was chosen by agency Taylor Bennett Partners to deliver the two-day event’s full technical production.
Focused on creating innovative customer experiences, over 6,000 attendees from across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa gathered to hear the latest updates from Adobe Experience Cloud and its partners. Led by our Group Creative Director, we were tasked with bringing Taylor Bennett’s incredible vision to life by delivering the technical production for the main conference plenary, exhibition space, break-out sessions, and the hotly-anticipated Summit Celebration.
Featuring a spectacular light installation and an interactive projection–mapped chillout area, the Adobe Summit once again knocked it out of the park when it comes to delivering extraordinary experiences.
Line of business: Tech Giant We Delivered: Full Production Services
Solutions
The Jellyfish
It wouldn’t be the Adobe Summit if there wasn’t a wildly creative centerpiece drawing attendees into the exhibition space, and this year was no different.
Measuring 5,000 sq ft and floating gracefully above the Adobe informational booth, the beautiful light installation known affectionately as the Jellyfish, dazzled attendees, and created an interactive experience. Dreamt up by Russell Bennett, Partner at Taylor Bennett Partners, Encore collaborated with experiential design studio Cinimod and laser specialist ER Productions to transform the vision into reality.
Four circle truss structures fitted with beam fixtures and DMX-controlled fans allowed the illuminated material to billow through the air. Attendees were able to change the installation’s color by passing their hands through a cage of 24 laser beams situated in the center of the Adobe booth.
As though one interactive experience wasn’t enough, guests were able to take some time out in the projection–mapped lounge space. Inspired by the Adobe Experience Cloud, the area featured a series of deconstructed blocks that came together from a specific focal point to create the Adobe logo. Guests could alter the color and movement of the logo content in real-time using a handheld replica of the Adobe ‘A’ fitted with an accelerometer.
Setting the Stage for Adobe Insights
This year’s Keynote theatre played host to some famous faces, including international human rights attorney Amal Clooney, actor Eddie Redmayne, and comedian Jack Whitehall.
World-leading brands such as Unilever, BT, and illycaffè shared their creative insights on stage. To illuminate the space and showcase the Adobe Summit content, we used projectors and ROE LED panels supplied by 80-Six, to deliver a jaw-dropping expanse of 24 million pixels.
Lighting in the Keynote theater created a stunning design to complement the on-screen content while delivering dramatic walk-on stings and ensuring the speakers remained beautifully lit throughout.
With the Summit located at the opposite end of ExCel this year, we had some structural challenges to overcome. The challenge required us to maintain the same sound coverage and sonic quality of previous years while working with greatly reduced ceiling height and tricky sightlines to the mammoth screen.
A Global Celebration
This year’s Summit Celebration featured a global celebration of delicacies from around the world. Guests partied their way through Japan, India, Switzerland, America, France, and the UK, sampling food from each country along the way. With Taylor Bennett Partners’ vision, we worked with creative event specialist Bimblabee Productions to ensure Adobe’s globetrotting guests were in for a treat.
Other popular features included a projection–mapped replica of No.10 Downing Street, which allowed guests to catch a peek of Theresa May’s legendary dance moves through the window. Meanwhile, a 29 ½ foot high version of the Golden Gate Bridge created the perfect platform to survey the spectacular surroundings.
If that wasn’t enough, revelers danced the night away to pop sensation Jess Glynne, DJ Benny Blanco, and Adobe Summit regulars The Earth Lights. Thousands of white balloons hung overhead forming clouds that framed the stage. In contrast, vintage hot air balloons and propeller planes hung from the ceiling and appeared to be suspended in mid-air between the clouds, completing the overhead feature.
To create the perfect stage background to display rich video content and allow beams to pass through, our team installed 181 panels of LED. Striking lighting design and an impressive rig enhanced the party atmosphere.
Results
Russell Bennett, Partner at Taylor Bennett Partners, said:
“The Adobe Summit is where experience makers are born, so the pressure is always on to find new ways to immerse and amaze delegates. By getting technical experts on board, we’re able to utilize the latest technology to create engaging brand experiences that forge everlasting memories. We have a fantastic relationship with the team, and no matter how crazy the idea, I always know that they’ll rise to the challenge and find a technical solution that will turn my vision into reality.”
