Nowadays, Wi-Fi is a necessity when it comes to events. That is unless your event is an off-the-grid, bark-eating, silent retreat in the Wind River Mountains (in which case, toilet paper is a technology).

Continue reading “Temporary Wi-Fi for Events to Go-Go-Go”

Technology is everywhere in our lives, often when we don’t even realize it. We see and feel the effects, or the direct benefits, without considering their source. You certainly cannot produce an event without lights, sound, and video technology! And there are ever-new technology options that make planning your event easier and put spectacular experiences right into the hands of your attendees.

Here are some tech trends already popular with event planners and some you’ll want to consider putting into play as we head into 2020.

Continue reading “The Latest Technology Trends Going Into 2020”

Just over a year after providing technical support for Super Bowl LIVE in Minneapolis, we were honored to accept the Star Award for Best Technical Production from the International Live Events Association — Minneapolis-St. Paul Chapter for the big event.

“Anyone who owns their own business knows you only receive these awards if the entire team contributes. Team Heroic is unbelievably good and made this award possible. I accept it on their behalf” – Jon Young

Don’t know what the Minnesota Star Awards are? Here’s a little information about the award and a recap of our experience at Super Bowl LIVE. Continue reading “Heroic Production’s Super Bowl Live Earns Star Award for Best Technical Production”

Nowadays, providing a customized experience is a common goal for retailers, entertainers, and event planners. The more personalized an event feels to your attendees, the bigger impact it has. It will be more engaging, more memorable, and more shareable. To make that happen, you’ll need one essential tool — technology — because it takes tech-driven data to customize.

Technology comes in many forms, so there are many ways you can use tech tools to enable event personalization.

Continue reading “Event Personalization: How Technology is the Key to a Memorable Event”

Producing a large event is a lot of work. Heck, even a smallish event can have a lot of moving parts, and they all have to come together just-so. Why not make your job a little easier by investing in quality event management software? Technology can help you save time, avoid overlooking important details, watch your budget, and give your attendees the best possible experience. All with less worry and stress.

Here are some of the best software options to try in 2019, along with some tips to pick the best one for you.

Continue reading “Best Event Management Software for 2019”

For every event, there is a maximum capacity, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have virtual attendees. More and more events are providing ways to participate from anywhere. But how can you engage with your online guests and make them feel part of the crowd, rather than an outsider looking in?

It takes some extra planning and the right equipment, but it can be well worth the effort. (And, PS, you can also earn more revenue to help cover the costs.) So, let’s take a closer look.

Continue reading “Virtual Attendance: How to Engage With Your Online Guests at an Event”

Interactive touchscreens are gaining traction in the event world, and for good reason. They are versatile, functional, and just plain fun. You can use them to enhance your event and inspire audience engagement, to provide a more sensory, immersive experience. How? That depends on the type and size of your event.

Here are some examples of ways to use interactive touchscreens at your next event.

Continue reading “How to Use Interactive Touchscreens to Enhance Your Event”

Video is key for any event whether you’re enticing attendees with an introduction video or live streaming to remote locations. But if you plan to use video at your next event, you must decide whether to use front or rear projection.

Simply put, front projection reflects light off of a screen whereas rear projection diffuses light through the screen. They cost about the same and take similar time and effort to load in and load out. So, what makes one better for an event than another? Here are several factors to consider.

Continue reading “Front vs. Rear Projection: Which is Best for My Event?”

LED screens are a great way to liven up your event. Sure, you could use projectors and screens, but the advantages are that screens created from LED panels are brighter (think daylight and outside use) and easier to see in rooms with ambient light issues. They can be assembled at almost any size and screen ratio, and don’t require the extra space and positioning concerns of a projector.

You can use them as a backdrop for your stage, to display social media posts with your event’s hashtag, or live stream the main presenters from a different location. But that’s just the beginning. Indoors or out, LED screens can transform your next big event in other unexpected and memorable ways.

10 Ways to Use LED Screens at Your Next Event

1. Giant LED screens can display wall-size murals that transport attendees to an entirely different environment. They can also display sponsor logos, your event’s branded visuals, or the message of the day.
2. You can display virtually anything on an LED screen, so let your imagination take over here. (But keep it relevant, so every little detail reinforces your event’s branding.) Think: dimensional effects, live conferencing from multiple locations, or action situated in front of a chroma-key screen.
3. Some events such as music concerts and sports events require huge venues that accommodate very large audiences. Crowds build excitement, but it’s virtually impossible for most people to actually see the action on the field or the performers on-stage. Unless you use LED screens. Live-streaming your event onto strategically placed screens ensures no one misses a beat. Or a play.
4. Overly popular speaker at your upcoming conference? No bigger room available? No problem, just live-stream the presentation onto one or more LED screens in another space, and no one will miss out.
5. LED screens can keep arriving attendees entertained (or informed) before the official action gets underway. And if there’s an unexpected delay, the audience won’t get restive. They may not even notice. Use video that promotes speakers or performers, hits on the latest trends in your industry, or offers sightseeing tips for the city where your venue is located.
6. Use an LED screen to display a continuous montage of stills or video clips from your year as a corporation. The same idea applies to political or cause-related events.
7. People love to see themselves on camera, so project audience “sweeps” onto the big screen. Sporting events do this all the time, but you can do the same thing using a hand-held camera at your festival or conference.
8. Even better, instead of just showing a sea of faces, get them talking. Before your event, do some on-camera interviews with attendees — what do they expect, why are they there, etc. — then show those clips during the event. Conduct “man on the street” live interviews in the hallways during your conference (or around the grounds at your festival) — what did they think of that last talk or performer, what’s their favorite part so far?
9. Aside from projecting sponsor logos, LED screens are ideal for displaying ads or even full-length commercials or other branded material. Your audience will learn more about your event’s key funders, and your sponsors will love, love, love the greater exposure. Where can they re-up for next year?
10. Use LED screens to deliver messages to conference attendees — scheduling reminders, updates, etc. Or set up one or more screens to serve as social media hubs. Encourage attendees to post comments and visuals using your event’s hashtag, then display those postings for all to see.

As an event organizer, you want to wow attendees, whether you’re producing a one-off concert, an annual conference, or special festival. LED screens are so versatile, they can give your guests a more engaging, immersive experience and leave them wanting more.

Nothing is worse than starting your event off with a bunch of ear-piercing shrieks coming from your speakers. Or no audio at all. Although sound glitches are common, they don’t have to be. Audio feedback and numerous other annoying problems can easily be avoided or quickly fixed.

Whether you’re working with a professional AV team or not, it behooves you as an event planner to know basic preventive measures. Here are some tips, straight from the pros, to help you treat your audience to crisp, clear sound instead of a cacophony of weird, unpleasant noises.

Continue reading “How to Avoid Audio Feedback and Other Sound Issues at Your Event”

If you’re looking for a new way to amaze and impress attendees and indelibly brand your next event, projection mapping might just be the ideal solution. Instead of projecting a simple image to a screen, wall or building, you could use projection mapping to create an entire 3D “atmosphere” or make static objects appear to be moving. (If you’ve never seen examples of projection mapping, you’re in for a treat! Here are links to a large-scale mapping project, and a fun, smaller project.)

Continue reading “Projection Mapping: How to Add Dimensional Variance to Your Event”

Nowadays, there’s an app for just about everything — even your large-scale events. Whether it’s Pathable for conferences, Attendify for networking events, DoubleDutch for consumer events, CrowdCompass for engaging event participants, or FestApp by Aloompa for festivals, conference apps can help attendees fully experience your event with the help of their phone or tablet. But how? And which app should you choose for your event?

Continue reading “There’s an App for That: 7 Ways Conference Apps Can Enhance Your Event”

Creating an event that stands out from anything your guests attended before is top of mind for any quality event planner. While there are many facets to event design, visuals may be the most important. But not just any visuals.

Visuals create instant impact — that all-important first impression. Branded visuals take your event to the next level — reminding attendees who is responsible for this magnificent event! And they do so in an engaging way.

Here are some types and examples of branded visuals and which ones work best for your event.

Continue reading “Event Design: How Branded Visuals Can Take Your Event to the Next Level”

Why do we bother to attend live music concerts when we could stay home and listen to a CD? Because we want multi-sensory engagement. We want to be a part of the crowd. Interactive technology can help foster this. It makes things more interesting, more fun, and more convenient. It can do all that and more for your next event, bringing it to life instead of delivering the same-old-same-old.

Continue reading “10 Ways Interactive Technology Can Bring Your Event to Life”