Author: Aria Berluti
ABCey Presents Startup Monday: Rothy’s
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that showcases some of the best and most innovative startups based in the San Francisco Bay Area! These are often companies that we have our eye on or have worked with in the past. Today, we’d like to highlight the sustainable fashion company, Rothy’s!
Rothy’s
What is it?
You’ve likely seen them plastered across your social media accounts, if not on someone’s feet in San Francisco! Rothy’s is a US fashion startup that manufactures women’s shoes that are machine washable and made out of 100% recycled plastic materials. This makes Rothy’s shoes breathable, moisture-free, and allows them to maintain their shape. Founders Roth Martin and Stephen Hawthornthwaite felt that there was a need in the fashion industry for sustainable shoe wear that was not only fashionable, but also comfortable.
Why We Love It
In addition to their aesthetics, the shoes are highly eco-friendly, and they are created for women on-the-go. As a company comprised of many women and a female CEO, ABCey loves this concept! They claim to be comfy like sneakers- oh, and also? They are really CUTE! We also love that they produce sustainable shoes! With these flats, you can be comfortable, stylish, and help the environment all in one purchase! As of Earth Day, they had already officially repurposed over 10 million bottles!
How it Works?
Visit Rothy’s website, browse through their shoe selection, pick your favorite style and size, and they’ll ship it to you like any other online store! Wear them whenever, wherever. If they get dirty, don’t fret! They’re machine washable so you can clean them with ease. If you get bored of the pair you have, Rothy’s has a system in place where you can wash your pair and send them to Rothy’s recycling facility so they can be reused, and you can buy a new pair that you like!
Now that’s sustainable fashion at its finest!
Have you purchased a pair of Rothy’s? How do you like them? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter!
ABCey Presents: How To Incorporate Nature Into Your Next Event
Humans love feeling connected to nature, and it can be very therapeutic too! Well, there’s a new emerging trend in the event industry that relies heavily on the bioliphic design concept. It also seeks to incorporate naturally designed spaces into your events. Read more to learn about the many benefits of nature-inspired events, both for the event planner and the attendees.
There are 4 Main Benefits of Nature-Based Design that have been scientifically proven. These include, improved well-being, improved productivity, enhanced creativity, and an increased likelihood of positive emotions. These all come from feeling connected to the outdoors, and all of them are helpful for event managers seeking to make their guests happy!
How to Do It
There are two key strategies to incorporating nature into your events:
Look for venues that naturally showcase the outdoors!
This could include outdoor terraces and balconies, views of the water, such as the ocean, lakes or pond, and abundant natural light through skylights and large windows. Green walls and water features, gardens and outdoor greenspace, or décor that uses natural materials, like wood and stone are also good options!
Bring the outdoors to an indoor venue! There are several ways to do this, such as:
- Seeing nature: You can accomplish this through digital signage and walls, backdrops, artwork, and murals that include elements of nature. Live herbal centerpieces, hedge rows, or an indoor garden, forest, or water feature can also give your guests a sense of being outside!
- Hearing nature: Events can get pretty loud and busy, so what’s more desirable than a nice spot to get some peace and quiet? Start by selecting a location within the venue that’s as quiet as possible. Offer speakers or headsets with natural sounds of running water, ocean waves, bird song, etc. that your attendees can listen to when they want to relax!
- Feeling nature: Textures like wood, sand, water, stone, and grass stimulate biophilic responses, so try to find a way to incorporate these into your event space! These materials could be used in onsite hubs, lounges, and exhibit booths, for example.
- Smelling nature: Even just the smell of the outdoors can connect people to the outside world. Try infusing your event space with natural scents using essential oils. By picking the right scent, you’re sure to generate positive feelings among your guests!
What’s one of your favorite nature inspired events?
How else have you seen nature incorporated in the events you’ve attended or planned? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
Source: Event Manager Blog
ABCey Presents Startup Monday: Spoke
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that showcases some of the best and most innovative startups based in the San Francisco Bay Area! These are often companies that we have our eye on or have worked with in the past. Today, we’d like to highlight Spoke!
Spoke
What is it?
Spoke is a workplace manager system that gives support teams within organizations a single place to manage employee requests. It includes ticketing, knowledge management, and self-service powered by artificial intelligence (A.I.). By allowing employees from different departments to communicate on a single platform, this system makes workplace management simpler and more efficient!
Why We Love It?
Spoke uses advanced technology to make work management faster and easier, and at ABCey, we love tech! This system allows companies to focus more on the work that’s important to them. It helps employees get answers quickly, so they can continue doing their jobs well. Not to mention, it’s extremely affordable with prices ranging from as little as $1/month-$3/month, depending on the type of plan you get. Now that’s a steal!
How Does it Work?
Spoke uses chatbots, which automatically respond to employees’ questions on Slack, email, SMS, and the web, so you don’t have to respond to every single request! Its ticketing system is also organized and easy to use, unlike traditional ticketing systems, giving you everything you need to manage employee requests all in one place. Not only this, but Spoke’s knowledge management base keeps tabs on all sorts of important information, no matter where it came from within the company. This way, you don’t have to worry about keeping track of it all yourself!
Do you use Spoke? How do you like it? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter!
ABCey Presents: Top 10 Event Marketing Strategies
Knowing how to market your events is essential to your success as an event planner. There is a lot to consider for event promotion, but don’t be overwhelmed! ABCey presents a list of the top 10 event marketing strategies for you to test out at your next event!
1. Experimenting With AR Content
It is no surprise that augmented reality (AR) is becoming more and more popular at events. However, this opens up a whole new world of possibilities for the type of content you can create to promote your event. Especially now that the iPhone X is going mainstream, AR will be so much easier for event marketers to use.
2. Social Media Influencers
Social media influencers are another powerful event marketing trend and finding the right one can put your event on the map. However, finding the right influencer for your event can be a challenge. Luckily, several social media tools are out there to help you, like SocialRank, Scrunch, SocialLadder, and StreetTeam.
3. Experiential Marketing
Experiential marketing can take many different forms, but at its core it’s all about immersing your guests in a memorable, live experience. Attendees crave personalized, unique experiences, so this marketing strategy is sure to be well-received!
4. Event Distribution
Event distribution allows consumers to purchase tickets the moment they find out about your event instead of having to visit your site. This marketing strategy makes ticket purchasing quick and easy and can help you find potential attendees naturally. An example of this process is the event discovery app Goldstar, which is very successful with 7 million members.
5. Invest in Short and Snappy Video Content
Video content can capture your audience’s attention quickly and is easily shared, which helps spread the world about your event. 70% of marketing professionals find that video converts better than any other medium, so it’s a marketing tool worth investing in!
6. Use Call to Actions That Demand Action
Believe it or not, call to actions such as “register now” or “click to learn more” actually work! Be sure to use them in your marketing messages. You can even get creative with how you phrase them!
7. Creating a “Why Attend” Page With Compelling Content
A “Why Attend” page is intended to explain to consumers why investing their time and money in your event is worth it. When creating this page, it’s important to envision your ideal attendee and appeal to that type of person. If done right, “Why Attend” pages are highly likely to increase event attendance!
8. Real-Time Crowd Shaping Through Smartphones and Wearables
With the capabilities of smartphones and wearable technology, it will be so much easier to adjust elements of the event’s environment based on the attendees’ behavior in real time! For example, if the attendees look cold, you can increase the temperature in the room right then in there, or if the music’s too loud, you can turn it down on the spot! Smartphones and wearables will ensure your events run smoothly!
9. Measuring ROI
ROI (return on investment) is very important for event planners to keep in mind when trying to get hired. By measuring ROI ahead of time, you’ll show your client that you can help them get the most bang for their buck. Not only that, but you’ll also be able to prove how you plan to do that! The numbers are just as important as the final product!
10. Highly Targeted Emails
Contrary to popular belief, email is a very effective channel for marketing. Event marketing through emails allows you to segment your audience based on interest, location, and engagement, which will help you build rapport by creating meaningful content. Email personalizes your message, and everybody likes to feel special!
Which event marketing strategy will you try? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
ABCey’s San Francisco Weekend Lineup 7/13-7/15
It’s almost Friday! ABCey brings you this week’s San Francisco Weekend Lineup with the top events in the Bay Area! Get excited for this sunny weekend ahead!
Weekend Lineup: Summer Cocktail Party
July 13th | 10pm |RSVP For Free Entry |Bar Fluxus
Start your weekend off with this colorful celebration at SF’s newest art bar! Bar Fluxus is throwing a party that includes live street art painting, DJs, hand-crafted spring cocktails, and more. End your stressful week the right way with this fun summer activity!
Flower Piano
July 13th-15th | All Day During Open Hours |Free Admission with SF ID|San Francisco Botanical Garden
The SF Botanical Garden’s Flower Piano is back this summer until July 16th! With 12 pianos scattered all throughout the gardens, find where the concerts will be this weekend or play one of the piano’s yourself!
138-Year-Old Bastille Day Party
July 14th | 11am-7pm |Free Admission|Embarcadero Plaza
2nd Annual Adobo Cook-Off For a Cause
July 14th | 11am-1pm |Tickets Sold for $25|7 Mile House Sports Bar & Grill
Watch the World Cup Final at Civic Center
July 15th | 8am-10am |Free Admission|Civic Center Plaza
It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for…the World Cup final! Come to Civic Center Plaza to watch the game with a crowd. There will also be lawn games and food trucks! If you’re not already, get pumped!
Which events will you attend? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter!
ABCey’s #TechTuesday: Top 5 Event Tech Trends in 2018
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. Today’s #TechTuesday features the top 5 event tech trends to make your events stand out.
1. Facial Recognition
Facial recognition serves many different functions at events, such as speeding up the registration process, improving security, and it helps with getting feedback from attendees. FR also allows you to reach new audiences via social media. Try encouraging your guests and staff to post photos of the event to Facebook and to tag themselves, which will help showcase your event!
2. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI has also recently joined the event tech trends family, mainly because it has the ability to personalize guests’ experiences. One aspect of AI that has caught the attention of event planners are chatbots, which offer automated customer service to guests. Give it a try!
3. Event Apps
Event apps can help your event run more smoothly and efficiently, and has been a prominent event tech trend for a while. Grupio and CrowdCompass are just a few of the great event apps we recommend. Use our list of the Top 5 Apps for Event Engagement to find the best app for your next event!
4. Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)
These two tech trends are on the rise and can help make your event more interactive. VR is useful if you want to transport your guest into a completely different world. AR is helpful if you want your guests to be able to incorporate the environment around them so they can view and interact with it on their personal devices. Which one will you use?
5. Social Media
There are so many new ways to incorporate Social media into your next event. Try having a social vending machine filled with event or brand related swag/apparel! Another social media trend to use at events is a hashtag mosaic. Luster has a fun tool that takes your event hashtag to make a mosaic wall. These tools are sure to get your guests excited!
Which event tech trend will you use at your next event? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
ABCey’s San Francisco Weekend Lineup 6/21-6/24
It’s almost Friday! ABCey brings you this week’s San Francisco Weekend Lineup with the top events in the Bay Area! It’s going to be packed with lots of LGBT pride!
Weekend Lineup: Giants LGBT Night
June 21st | 7:15pm |special event ticket package |AT&T Park
Celebrate the Bay Area’s rich LGBT culture with the San Francisco Giants! If you purchase a special event ticket package, you’ll get a ticket to the evening’s Giant’s game, access to a pre-game party, and a limited edition gift. Part of the proceeds will go towards supporting local LGBT-focused non-profits!
SF Pride Parade Celebration
June 23rd | 12pm-6pm |Tickets|Civic Center Plaza
It’s that time of year again! Come out to all the festivities to prepare for the 47th annual celebration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender pride! There will be inspirational speakers, music, food, and more to get you excited for the parade on Sunday.
Pink Mammoth Block Party
June 23rd | 12pm-9pm |$15-$20 Cover|119 Utah St.
The 6th annual Pink Mammoth Block Party will be happening again this year! Join in on the fun and wear all the pink you own. There will be lots of dancing, musical stylings provided by Thomas Jack and Pink Mammoth residents, and food! This year will feature the upcoming interactive Tree of Life and the Trolley Stage with a historic San Francisco Cable Car operating as a stage. Visit the Pink Mammoth Facebook Page for more info.
SF Pride Parade & Rally
June 24th | 10:30am-6pm |Tickets|Embarcadero to Civic Center
Want to really show your pride? Make a sign and come march in the parade or cheer on the crowd! There will also be festivities like inspirational speakers, music, and food to enjoy as well. This event is a special tradition that’s near and dear to SF’s heart, so join in and wear your brightest apparel!
Frameline 42, International LGBTQ Film Festival
Ends June 24th | Times Vary |Tickets|Castro Theatre
The film festival that came to town on June 14th will be closing this Sunday, June 24th! Come see some groundbreaking documentaries, cinematic classics, and heart-warming films. Don’t miss out on the longest-running, largest, and most widely LGBT cinema film exhibition in the world!
Whether you want to showcase your pride by joining a crowd in your brightest outfit, viewing an LGBT-related film, or by enjoying some baseball, there are plenty of ways to show some LGBT pride this weekend!
Are you excited for Pride Weekend? Let us know which event you’ll be attending in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter!