Tag: event planning
Top 7 Unique Dessert Ideas for Events
By Jennifer Fong, Kristi Fujimoto, and Jessica Li-Jo
Picture this: You’re at a dinner event with your guests, and everything is going perfectly planned from decor to the music selection. Then, you realize your night is coming to an end. So what better way to end this perfect dinner event than to provide your guests with delicious desserts?! Well, ABCey has you covered! Here are our top 7 unique and creative dessert ideas that will surely leave your guests impressed and blessed!
1. Edible Flower cookie
Are you planning to use flowers as your centerpieces? Although you can decorate your venue with flowers, you can also use them to decorate your desserts! Everyone loves cookies, and shortbread cookies are a popular crowd pleaser. By adding these edible flowers, freeze dried fruit, and candied herbs on top of glaze, you can make these delicious tasting cookies. Moreover, you can make this lavender shortbread so your cookies are even more floral tasting. This creative and decorative dessert will be an excellent addition to your party! Learn how to make them here.
2. Flower Jello
If you want to decorate with more flowers, we have another dessert just for you! Instead of being a plain, clear “raindrop” cake dessert, this dessert is filled with decorations. Having a scary Halloween party or an outdoor floral party? From real fruit and flowers to sprinkles and spiders, the possibilities are endless when it comes to filling these droplets! These edible water bubbles are inspired by Japan’s Mizu Shingen Mochi and can be made with Agar or Jell-O gelatin. Don’t worry put insects and flowers in there because they’re edible and made from gelatin! So click here for insects and flowers, and here for fruit and sprinkles. And your guests will enjoy this unique dessert!
3. Unicorn Piñata Sugar Cookies
Give your guests a surprise with these Unicorn Piñata Sugar Cookies! These multi-colored cookies come with hollow centers that you can fill with your favorite candies. Not only will they add a magical element to your event, but they will also leave your guests wanting more! Set them out on a nice tabletop and watch your guests be delighted upon their first bite! These cookies are especially perfect for any Cinco de Mayo-themed event or kids’ birthday parties! So what are you waiting for? Learn how to make these here!
4. Burger Cupcakes
These may look like those hamburger gummy candies, but they’re actually cupcakes! Each part of the cupcake is made of different types of cake mixes with some frosting to top it all off. In addition, these hamburger cupcakes are a fun way to contrast how usual cupcakes are made! Make these for your next event and maybe even serve some fries with it!
5. Dessert Sushi
Surprise your guests by letting them think that they’re having another small course of sushi. What they won’t expect is that they’re actually getting a dessert! This dessert sushi is made from a thin layer of chocolate pancake that is smeared with warm cream cheese and fruit in the middle. Give your guests these tiny little delights at your events!
6. Chocolate Flower
Continue to wow your guests with this Chocolate Flower dessert! Wrap your favorite sweets and fruits with some chocolate flower petals. Then, pour hot custard and watch the petals bloom open just like a flower! This artistic, yet delicious dessert is sure to leave your guests mesmerized! Also, this is ideal for any celebratory party event! So check out how to make these here!
7.Crème Brûlée Cookies
Cookies are a typical dessert. But when you infuse it with Crème brûlée, you take it to a whole new level. Get the custard that you love oh-so-much combined with your favorite parts of a cookie! This will leave a memorable and tasteful dessert that will allow attendees to look forward to your future events! Learn how to make them here.
Which of these dessert ideas did you like best? Tell us in the comments below or on Facebook and on Twitter!
5 Tips to Successfully Use Instagram for Your Event Business
Instagram has easily become one of the most popular social media apps. In 2016, it’s estimated that 500+ million people use Instagram monthly, 300 million daily, and 58% of Instagram users are 18-29 years old. Why is this important to Event Profs? Because this means Instagram can allow you to reach a larger audience, including millenials!
There are tons of research on the Instagram usage and the ways businesses can utilize it. Also, it’s important to stay up to date with what’s going on with your instagram account. So ABCey Events has created 5 tips to successfully use Instagram for your event business!
1. What to post
First, you need an Instagram account! If you don’t have one, just scroll down to #5 for tips to create the perfect account. Okay, you have an account or just created one, but now what? What do I post? hint: See below to see what types of content to post!
Types of Posts
1. Have a story: Let your followers feel like they are a part of your business and on the inside of the event action with story-like posts! However, don’t post straight advertisements. Instead, have a variety of images from selfies to video interviews. There is no limit to the content you post!
Similarly, studies suggest users want to experience the story rather than see plain objects. Salesforce found most users liked, “amusing, creative, beautiful, and inspiring” content. So maximize your Instagram reach by captivating images, posting entire event processes, features of event speakers and famous attendees, inspirational quotes, and especially human faces!
2. Relatable posts: Keep followers by posting stuff they can relate to! By fusing scenes and possible scenarios that can happen in everyday life with your products and services, followers can see how useful your products and services are!
https://www.instagram.com/p/0tpeJfAUUf/?taken-by=nike
3. Business posts: Advertise your business by posting your sponsors, events, and brand. Do this by sharing images about your sponsors in colorful and fun photos. Additionally, try to get other users, special guests, and famous people to post/tag/hashtag about your event and company. More and more people are basing their decisions on what they see on social media. Therefore, you can grow your business by having ambassadors give you some exposure!
But be careful! No one wants their entire feed filled with obvious advertisements. Learn about event marketing on Instagram below (#4 Instagram for Events).
2. Strategic Posting
Previously, we mentioned that Instagram accounts are more successful when the types of posts are different. But here are other things you can do to boost likes, follows, and comments!
1. Editing your posts: Studies have found what specific aspects of a post make them more popular. They found more people like photos with the Mayfair filter! Also, the 2nd and 3rd most liked filtered photos are #nofilter and Inkwell, respectively. In addition, you’re more likely to get likes on images that are brighter with a single dominant color, especially blue, and background space than others! Don’t forget to use Geographical locations and connect with users by a shared location. Check out Curalate’s full study for more tips.
2. Posting times: Don’t pester and annoy followers! If you are posting multiple times a day, spread them out. However, most studies suggest posting only 5-7 times throughout the week. Specifically, your best bet is to get the most likes by posting on Wednesday from 5-6pm! Additionally, don’t stress about posting right on time and schedule posts with apps like Hootsuite and Schedugram.
3. Gain followers, grow your business
1. Instagram interaction: By interacting with users, you’re sure to gain and keep followers! First off, you can simply ask questions and inviting captions that lead people to comment. From re-gramming someone’s post related to your business/event, tagging companies, responding to comments, commenting on and liking posts, and giving shout outs to your loyal followers, show your followers you care and value their support!
2. Spoil your followers: Reward your followers well by posting announcements, contests, and special offers! You can have them follow, like photos, comment, hashtag, and tag your account to be entered to win prizes and special offers! This encourages people to follow you, as they will be the first to see when you are holding contests. Now you have followers promoting your event and business to others!
4. Instagram for Events
Now, for all you event profs, we have Instagram tricks to make your next event a success!
1. #Hashtag: Make sure you use hashtags to help people discover your Instagram. Use both specific hashtags and popular hashtags so people can find your event/company easily! One study found that interactions increased with 11 hashtags, but most studies suggested using 5-10 hashtags. If your choose to include many, hide them by commenting your hashtags or hiding them many lines below your main caption. This way followers don’t get annoyed seeing them!
2. The Event: You can use Instagram to entertain your attendees and market your next event! Encourage users to post images and include your event specific hashtag in the caption. Then, companies like instafeedlive, will display them on screens around the event, making your guests feel special!
In addition, by simply using your event hashtag, your guests can leave your event with memorabilia! Printers, like Photoboxx and Luster, scan Instagram for your event hashtag and print the images out instantly. Also, you can allow guests to print a postcard and polaroid picture when they hashtag their photos! Learn more about them here. So give your event and company immediate publicity and get these tools at your next event!
3. Event hype: When showing the story of your event, there are tons of things to capture! Post about the event before, during, and after to keep the event fresh in your follower’s minds. First get them excited with behind the scene images of the venue set up with your event team hard at work! Moreover, use Instagram to not only remind followers when tickets go on sale, but also hype up attendees with event fliers and countdown day photos. This makes them feel like they are right in the middle of the everything happening at the event!
5. Creating Perfect Profile
Your profile is extremely important as it’s how they judge your account! Therefore, you need to be sure that your Instagram looks like something they should follow.
1. Your Bio: First, create a bio description that is short, fun, and interesting. But it still needs to say your business name or who you are, what your business does, and make it unique!
2. Get them to your website: If you didn’t know, links on your photo captions don’t work. Thus, the only link to get people to your website is in your bio. So make sure you include your website link, and any other informative names you want people to search and find you by (ex: Event Planner).
3. First impression/Profile pic: Along with photos and your bio, users see your profile picture first. Get a good quality photo of your logo or a picture that represents your company to bring in more followers!
How are you going to use Instagram at your next event? Tell use in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter. Also, follow us on Instagram!
#TechTuesday: 3 ways to use Intel RealSense at your next event!
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. ABCey would like to recognize these up and coming technologies for their innovative ideas and impact on the event world! This Tuesday we have 3 ways to use Intel RealSense technology at your next event!
Intel is very well-known for their many unique and creative products. However, at ABCey, one line stands out the most for us: Intel RealSense. Intel RealSense includes cameras, platforms, and systems that are unbelievable and are must have tools for your events!
Moreover, these amazing products have 3D scanning, speech recognition, facial analysis, augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR), depth photo and video, and scene perception capabilities. These capabilities make Intel RealSense products cutting edge technology and make experiences more interactive and well, real! So here are 3 ways to use Intel RealSense at your next event!
1. Intel RealSense 3D Scanning
One special feature of RealSense technology is its 3D scanning capabilities. You can pretty much scan anything, and now, you have a replicated detailed 3D model on your computer. In addition, you can easily share it on social media and print it out on a 3D printer! Because this tech is perfect for showcasing and displaying anything at your events, this is an event tool you’ll definitely want to get! You’ll truly impress your attendees with one of a kind views of your 3D models. From a physical robot to yourself, almost anything can be turned into a 3D image!
Additionally, Intel’s scanning technology is creative because it incorporates gesture tech. By just moving your hands, you can spin and zoom in on these 3D images to show your attendees every angle. Let your guests experience this technology first hand and leave them amazed!
2. 3D: Scene Perception and video entertainment
For events, it’s important to know every detail about the venue, and RealSense technology gives you just that…an extremely useful layout of any site! Specifically, Intel’s Scene Perception gives you a digital representation of the scene/place you are recording, including the objects in it! As a result, you have immersive 3D images to help you plan or select the perfect venue like never before! In addition, this system lets you measure items from your scene perception, making it the perfect tool for event planners!
It can be difficult to decide how to decorate your venue when you can’t picture it. However, with RealSenses, you can experiment with different layouts and see how they look visually! For example, Capgemini used this tech to adjust furniture in the video below:
You can use this same technique for your events! First, adjust the software to show a virtual image of your venue. Then, use props (like the wooden blocks above) to represent event items (ex: sculptures, photos booths, large displays, etc). Lastly, just move these props around! There you have it! You can see on a screen what the venue would look like! And you didn’t have to lift a thing!
Another idea is to make yourself 3D! With Intel’s motion capture technology, you facial movements are replicated onto a fun 3D figure. Attendees will love getting to use this tech, and will be impressed with this top of the line entertainment!
3. Interactive Background Displays
Whether you’re hosting a virtual meeting or presenting at a conference, you want your background image to be the best fit for your event. Here is where RealSense comes in handy! Instead of spending time to edit or replace your background, you can simply replace it in real-time with any video or photo of your choosing-the perfect addition to make your next event top of the line!
Also, background replacement uses gesture technology. So simply flick your hands and the background will change! It’s that easy! Try out Intel’s RealSense at your next event!
How would you use Intel RealSense Technology? Let us know in the comments or on Facebook and on Twitter!
Startup Monday: Last minute hotels with Hotel Tonight
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that features some of the best and brightest companies in the Bay Area. They are often companies that we have our eye on, or have worked with in the past & would like to share with friends and followers of ABCey Events! Today, we want to highlight Hotel Tonight, a useful app that helps you to book hotels last minute!
Event planning can get hectic and with your busy schedule, you might forget to book a hotel for you or your attendees. Don’t be forced to pay these outrageous prices that can rise up to 300%. At ABCey, we have an app to solve this problem: Hotel Tonight! This app was awarded the best-on-demand service at the 8th annual tech Crunchie Awards and definitely deserved it! Of course you should always try to book hotels in advance. But if you are stuck in a bind, Hotel Tonight is a great app that gives you the best prices for last minute hotel reservations.
Booking last minute hotels with Hotel Tonight:
After downloading the app on your mobile phone, you’ll have a great variety of available rooms! Also, we love this app because it includes the mood of the hotel. From hip to charming, you can experience hotels like never before! By comparing major travel sites, Hotel Tonight gives you the best hotel options and the biggest bang for your buck. Additionally, if you introduce this app to someone, both you and your friend get $25 off their first stay. But there’s more! They have amazing 24/7 customer support to ensure your last minute hotel reservation is perfect. So if you’re in a bind for a hotel, try out Hotel Tonight to get your last minute room for the best price and the best experience!
Have you used Hotel Tonight before or are you thinking of using this app? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and on Twitter!
Sustainability At Your Next Event- 5 Must Try Tips!
ABCey Events knows how important sustainability practices are- so here, green is the new black! We’re sharing our top 5 favorite sustainability tips for you to try at your next event!
1) Go Mobile
It’s time to ditch those age old paper programs at your next event and go mobile instead! Create an app for your event that will still provide all the same helpful info about your event, but is environmentally friendly. You’re now sustainable AND showing people how tech savvy you are! There are tons of websites to help create your own app, but our favorite is AppMachine!
2) Eliminate Waste
Forgo the paper plates and plastic utensils at your next event and try using chic reusable plates and silverware instead. Not only will you reduce the amount of waste produced, but it will also amp up the level of quality of your event! Not ready to bite the bullet yet in purchasing reusable china? Try out these eco friendly wooden options instead!
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3) Be Selective
It is important to remember that where you choose to host your event matters! Try to choose locations that are LEED certified with sustainability initiatives already in place. One of our favorite green venues in SF is The Hall, which provides all locally produced food and beverages!
4) Consider The Timing Of Your Event
If possible, hold your event during the day to save on energy required by artificial lighting. If it’s unavoidable, try using LED lighting instead- using LED lights can help reduce your carbon foot print up to 70%! Just because it’s energy efficient lighting, doesn’t mean it has to be boring. You can have almost all the same lighting effects using LED as you would with normal lighting, so there is no reason not to make the switch!
5) Sustainability in Spirits
As if you needed another reason to love happy hour… what if all your favorite drinks were now locally grown, organic, and made with seasonable products? Now they can be! By making a few simple changes, your happy hour just became a whole lot more sustainable. Add a whole new element to cocktail hour at your next event, and show your attendees how easy it is to go green!
Have any other ideas to make an event sustainable? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and on Twitter!
#TechTuesday: 5 ways to use drones for events
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. ABCey would like to recognize these up and coming technologies for their innovative ideas and impact on the event world. ABCey has compiled 5 innovative ways event planners are utilizing drones!
Although they were first used for military purposes, drones are becoming extremely useful tools for the event planning industry. Drones are not only used to capture stunning aerial images, but also in previously unimaginable ways that go beyond just pictures and videos. Here are 5 great ways to use drones for your next event!
1. Aerial Event Photos and Videos
Drones are now a popular tool for event planners, because they can capture amazing aerial footage from an infinite number of angles. They are also extremely versatile and can be used at conferences, trade shows, galas, festivals, and sporting events! This tech allows for extraordinary 360 degree views of all attendees, as well as close ups of speakers and performances.
2. Choosing the Perfect Venue/Site Selection
Drones can also be used for pre-event prep to collect venue images. Photos and videos make it so easy for clients and planners to choose the perfect site for an event! From images of massive event properties to inside meeting rooms, there is almost no place a drone can’t fly!
3. Entertainment Drones to Wow Your Guests
Companies have outdone themselves by using drones as a new form of entertainment for their guests! Intel is one company that impressed their guests and set the world record by having 100 drones create a unique light show! Others, like Amsterdam Drone Entertainment, have programmed their drones to dance for crowds which has truly set a new standard for event entertainment!
4. The Best Delivery Service
Some other ways to use a drone? How about deliver food, drinks and invitations! This interactive way of distributing items to people is mostly used by restaurants to give food to their customers. But, this kind of delivery service can just as easily be adapted to fit the event industry’s needs. Using a drone to deliver items to guests is extremely innovative, interactive, and a great way to make your event stand out!
5. Extra $ From Advertising and Sponsors
Drones can also be lucrative for your business! If you are hosting an event, sponsors may offer to pay you if you use drones to promote their business. Attendees are often drawn to drone tech which is seen as a great opportunity for companies to advertise. Because drones can drop off samples/products, hold up company posters, and display a brand logo, they are becoming the newest advertising trend!
Apps are also being made and adapted to incorporate drone technology. Facebook recently announced they have updated their live video stream application, Facebook Live. This update allows users to stream videos live from a drone. Twitter‘s similar live video streaming application, Periscope, also announced this feature.
By capturing stunning footage, helping venue selection, entertaining and serving their guests, delivering items, and increasing revenue and an event’s wow factor, drones are the new must-have gadget for anyone in the event industry!
Know any other ways drones are used? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and on Twitter!
ABCey’s Weekend Lineup 6/24/16-6/26/16
Summer has finally arrived! What better way to celebrate than by getting out and enjoying the beautiful Bay Area? ABCey Events has got you covered with what’s going on this weekend!
1) Friday Nights At The De Young: Dance-Off Hip-Hop
Friday June 24th | 5:00pm-8:45 pm | de Young Museum | FREE
Dance your way into the weekend with this dance-off hip-hop themed event happening at the de Young Museum Friday night starting at 5pm. In addition to showing off your best moves, the observation tower will be open until 8pm to see spectacular views of San Francisco. Don’t miss out on your opportunity to show everyone the hip hop guru you really are!
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2) San Francisco Pride Festival
Saturday June 25th, Noon-6pm | Sunday June 26th 10:30am-6pm | Civic Center Plaza & along Market St. | FREE
Head into the heart of San Francisco this weekend for the best of local musical talent and cultural performances. The San Francisco Pride event is home to over 20 community-run stages and venues. What better way to experience the city and see firsthand the amazing diversity of the LGBT community in San Francisco?
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3) San Francisco 240th Birthday Celebration
Saturday June 25th | 10:30-Noon | Presidio | FREE
This Saturday at the Pershing Square in the Presidio there will be a celebration for the wonderful city of San Francisco! In 1775-1776, 240 colonists traveled from what is present day Mexico and founded the Presidio of San Francisco. We have them to thank for their new cultural ideas and era of California history! Come and join the recognition of their incredible journey.
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4) Treasure Island “Summer Flea” Festival
Sunday June 26th | All Day | Treasure Island | $3
Don’t miss out on this modernized market that is home to around 400-curated vendors every month. Vendors sell everything from originally made and designed items, to art and vintage collections. If those weren’t enough to get you excited about this great event, there will also be over 15 food trucks to satisfy all your cravings while you shop! So come out and enjoy the summer while getting spectacular views of downtown San Francisco. What more could you ask for?
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5) George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic: Outdoor Concert
Sunday June 26th | 2pm | San Francisco | FREE
Come and be a part of the tradition that has been going strong since 1938! The Stern Grove festival throws free concerts in the park every summer- Free outdoor music? Count us in! Finish out your weekend in this stunning park setting and watch performers such as George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic. Get in on the fun this Sunday starting at 2pm!
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Have special plans for this weekend? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
#TechTuesday: Teleport App
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. ABCey would like to recognize these up and coming technologies for their innovative ideas and impact on the event world!
When configuring all the details while planning your next event, sometimes the “transportation” tab gets shuffled unintentionally to the wait-until-the-last-minute detail to arrange. However, if your event has VIP guests such as keynote speakers or sponsors, transportation becomes even more crucial to arrange asap. With the Teleport app, event planner and organizers now have a very simple and convenient way to chauffeur their VIP guests to and fro any event.
Teleport, in partnership with Uber, uses the ridesharing app to send an Uber ride to pick up guests and bring them to a location of your choice.
How it works:
You, the sender, will send a teleport request link to the person/guest of your choice. Once the receiver accepts the request, they will be directed to the web app where they will drop a pin to set their pickup location. They will then be able to see the ETA, a map to the final destination and all the driver’s information (name, phone number and license plate number). The receiver doesn’t need to have the Teleport app, Uber app, nor do they need to even have an iPhone.
Just like with Uber, the ride is paid for by the sender, so the receiver doesn’t have to worry about payments when the car arrives. You can even choose which type of car to send, like an UberBLACK for those VIP guests.
And just like that, your VIP guests’ transportation needs are taken care of; easy and hassle-free.
Why we love it:
Teleport streamlines communication. Unlike with the traditional Uber app, the sender no longer has to be the middle-man, communicating the details back and forth between the receiver and driver. Now you can make sure that your guests get to where they need to be, making it one less thing you have to worry about on the day of your event.
Plan to use the Teleport app for your next event? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
How to Market an Event Online
You’re planning a big event — maybe it’s a party, an outing, a luncheon or a benefit. Whatever it may be, you have a list of to-do’s longer than a yardstick that you’re slowly checking off. However, the hard truth is that none of it will matter if nobody shows up to your event. No need to worry, though! There are many ways you can market your event from behind your computer screen.
Here are some tried-and-true ways to use the internet to generate buzz.
Direct Marketing
Using email or personalized electronic invitations will make it easy to get important information out to your guests, like when and where your event will be. With so much happening on devices these days, an invitation that guests can take with them anywhere is better than a paper invite. People can easily add the date to their calendar, and if they need to reference it in the future, they can just pull it up on their phones.
You’ll also want to make your email pop with visuals and colors for a higher feedback rate. Use a friendly subject line, so viewers don’t immediately think its simply junk mail.
To keep your potential guests excited as the date draws closer, send out important logistical information, updates about what to expect and any announcements about the event. This will keep the event on their minds in the weeks leading up to the big day.
Social Media
The most powerful tool you have in this decade is a social media presence. There are endless ways you can make sure your event gets noticed through social media. For example, create a unique hashtag for the event that people can use when talking about it. This makes it easy for your guests to find out who else is going and what people are excited about. It also entices them to share their experience at the event on social media.
A social media presence for your event is also important to keep in contact with your guests and any concerns they may have. You can post important directions, contact information and logistical information for easy access. Have someone monitoring the page in case anybody asks a question or needs assistance before or during the event.
Traditional Marketing
Though this may take a little more work, there’s a reason why traditional marketing continues to work after many years. Send out a press release to local radio stations, newspapers and magazines and ask them to run the story in their next issue. Be sure to include contact information and how to sign up.
You can also look for bloggers in the industry and ask them to give your event a shout-out. You may even want to try paid online advertising. With the amount of time people spend online, getting to them in as many ways as possible through the internet is always a good idea.
Keep People Interested
If people are responding positively to your invitations, you’re doing great. However, even once you get that “yes”, your marketing days are not over. You have to keep your guests interested about the event. The last thing you want is a room full of no-shows.
Keep people excited by generating buzz. Use your social media account to post teasers about the event, showing guests a little preview of what they’re going to experience. Create videos, contests, interactive material and updates to post and keep the event fresh in people’s minds.
Using the internet to reach your potential guests has never been so important. Put online marketing on your event to-do list so you’ll have a full room of happy guests!
Share your ideas about online marketing and how you use the internet to connect with your guests in the comments below or find us on Facebook and Twitter!
Behind The Scenes: SGN at GDC16
On March 14-18, 2016, developers and gamers from across the country took the Bay area by storm for this year’s Game Developers Conference. Some of the most brilliant minds in the gaming industry took to the streets of downtown San Francisco for GDC16. While other shows are about the fans, GDC determines the future of this industry: it’s the world’s largest gaming conference attended by a record breaking 27K professionals in its 30th year. Nearly half of developers here are building mobile + tablet games!
ABCey Events paired with SGN to showcase their newest game Genies and Gems, and also had a great time bringing awareness to their biggest game Cookie Jam. Between the moments that brought laughs in between sessions and the surprising and exciting moments that changed an attendees day, a powerful question was also addressed to the gaming community, #WHYDOYOUPLAY?!
TOP 5 HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE EVENT
- THE GENIE OF SF
SGN, the fastest growing growing major mobile games studio in the U.S., has just released it’s newest match-3 puzzle game. Genies & Gems is a spellbinding adventure that takes its players on a magic ride. Famous Youtuber Jesse Wellens from Prank vs. Prank brought this game to life in downtown SF with his motorized magic carpet. For those that spotted our magic genie, they were in for a lucky surprise!
2. (REAL!) GEMS
If you’ve gotten the chance to play, then you already know Genies & Gems is a game that’s true to it’s name. As the players cross through the magical worlds they recover lost relics, collect gold bars, and are taken on a journey with their enchanted keys. To celebrate the game’s launch SGN brought the game’s realities to life! Lucky San Franciscan’s scored some major gems from our genie that included- $20/$50 bills, silver coins, silver cufflinks, and (real!) gemstone rings!
3. COOKIE JAMMERS
With more than 70 million downloads, SGN’s top grossing game Cookie Jam showed it’s followers some serious entertainment for GDC16. Rocking out in front of the Moscone Center were our very own Cookie Jammers. If the outfits didn’t scream cookies, their lyrics surely would. San Francisco’s favorite cover band Pop Rocks twisted some of your most favored songs into actual cookie-filled jams (Just Eat It, Eat It, Eat It)! These life-sized cookies fueled up GDC16 attendees as they were headed to their next session!
4. COOKIES
We couldn’t promote a cookie game without thousands of FREE cookies! SGN provided attendees with a yummy snack to keep them going throughout the day. Who doesn’t love free cookies?
5. WHY DO YOU PLAY?
GDC16 determines the future of this industry, and because of this they are capable of bringing together a global community to attend their annual conference. It was the people in attendance that play a significant role in the creation and lifespan of games, and SGN had a thought provoking question to ask attendees- Why Do You Play? We can get lost in a game, but we can forget what really motivates us to play. We interviewed hundreds of people and received a variety of answers ranging from fun, stress relief, escaping reality, and interacting with friends or family. Our favorite answer may have been to “Escape From Trump!”
So, the question we have for you today is- Why Do YOU Play? Let us know in the comments below or find us on Facebook and Twitter!