Tag: technology
ABCey’s Startup Monday: Oh My Green
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that showcases some of the most innovative San Francisco startups! These are often selected from a list of companies that we LOVE or have worked with in the past. This week, we are putting the spotlight on Oh My Green. A startup dedicated to deliver healthy and natural foods to companies.
What is Oh My Green?
Founded in 2014, Oh My Green is a California based healthy food and wellness services provider that aims to make healthy eating and good nutrition easy. Oh My Green offers a custom, nutritious office food program for your organization. The company delivers healthy office snacks, kitchen design, and stocking services, to catering, cafe management, and wellness programming.
How it Works?
Regardless of your company size and budget, Oh My Green brings delicious snacks and drinks to your workplace. Its monthly snack box subscription is perfect for offices with 50 or less. All you need to do is sign up and fill out your company’s information and note dietary preferences. Oh My Green also provides a variety of office catering options for corporate events. Its tech-enabled service, which relies on machine learning can give you personalized recommendations for meals and snacks.
Why Do We Love it?
We love Oh My Green because they truly care about people and their health and well-being. Whether you’re vegan or have food allergies, Oh My Green can customize a menu for your company’s needs. When it comes to catering, Oh My Green always sources ingredients from local farms to maximize freshness and nutritional value of the food. Its advanced technology also allows you to manage orders, track your consumption, control your budget and so much more!
Have you heard of Oh My Green? Let us know what you think in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
ABCey’s Tech Tuesday: 5 Best Event Website Templates
Want to build a buzz around your event and wow your registrants? The convenience and customization event websites offer to both event planners and attendees are amazing! Thus, today’s #techTuesday features 5 best event websites to help you create your next event website template.
1. Splash
Pricing Details: Free for personal events and trials, custom pricing for business licenses
From simplifying event asset creation to capturing attendee insights and measuring event impact, Splash is a great event marketing tool.Splash’s content management system makes it super easy to create your event website while maintaining brand consistency. You can also customize your invite, check-in guests, print your event badges, and more with this tool!
2. Squarespace
Pricing Details: Squarespace has 4 price plans, ranging from $12 to $40 per month.
Squarespace is a drag-and-drop website builder with the best quality templates in terms of design and flexibility. With this tool, you can have full customization control without the need for coding. Squarespace also has good SEO, and its pages all follow SEO best practices. It provides you the best tools to promote your brand.
3. EventCreate
Pricing Details: EventCreate has 2 price plans, ranging from $9 to $29 per month.
In addition to website creation, EventCreate is also a ticketing & registration platform. EventCreate uniquely offers fully white-labeled, custom-branded event pages and is the only platform that offers A/B ticket price testing, to help you maximize your event revenue.
4. Planning Pod
Pricing Details: Planning Pod has 4 price plans, ranging from $19 -$69+ per month.
Planning Pod is an online event management software that aims to help people and organizations that manage multiple or complex events and registrations. This tool offers a centralized platform to manage events, clients, staff, venues, vendors, payments and business details. More importantly, the floor plan feature allows event planners to customize designs for the venue, so they can help clients visualize the event.
5. Bookmark
Pricing Details: Free version available; Professional plan: $11.99/month; Business plan: $24.99/month.
Bookmark is one of the most advanced website builders when it comes to web technologies. Its AI software AiDA (Artificial Intelligence Design Assistant) can help you create an exceptional website in less than 90 seconds! The AI can help fill your website with blocks that suits the most, puts on sample content and customizes design colors. And all you need to do after is to change the text and images. This tool is super efficient and is perfect for non-technical professionals and small business owners.
Have you used any of these event website builders before? Did we miss any? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
ABCey’s Tech Tuesday: Top 10 Event Tech Trends of 2019
It’s Tuesday! ABCey presents #TechTuesday as we highlight the best and brightest ideas in the event tech industry. For today’s #TechTuesday, we feature ten event tech trends to look for in 2019.
1) Mobile Charging Stations
Full charge ahead! Having a convenient and reliable way to charge mobile devices is one of the top amenities event attendees crave. By incorporating charging outlets into themed décor to your next event will not only satisfy their craving but also make it more trendy. goCharge is a great source to rent or buy a charging station for your next event!
2) 5G
Verizon and AT&T have both launched preliminary 5G services, but neither one is broadly available yet. With 5G, it’s fast, more responsive and able to connect a lot more devices at once. The speed and reliability of your venue’s Wi-Fi will become less important, as attendees will already have high-speed internet available to them on their devices, allowing for more opportunities.
3) Event Diagramming
Event diagramming tools are constantly improving. With the ability to lay out your event in any way you want, it allows for better planning and better control. Additionally, it helps planners and venue management save time. Forbes has used the software since 2013 to improve the efficiency of their events by visually verifying the placement of every piece as well as the viability of venues. We recommend MagicPlan or SocialTables Check in to make your planning a breeze!
4) Facial Recognition
Identifying and verifying an individual by using their faces has never been easier. With facial recognition, we can easily check in and register guests, reach new audience members and most of all, improve on site security. Apple and theme parks, like Disneyland have already take on facial recognition and have integrated into their systems with the IPhone and tickets respectively.
5) Beacons
A great companion for your event app- Beacon’s bluetooth technology send signals to other smart devices nearby using small, wireless transmitters. . One of the most useful benefits of beacon technology is that it has the capability to help attendees navigate from point A to point B. AppAtlas, powered by the mobile event app provider MeetingPlay, recently launched indoor wayfinding throughout enourmous ropms. By downloading an app, venue guests can easily navigate throughout these mega complexes with turn-by-turn directions right from their mobile or smart devices..
6) Event Applications
Event applications are a great tool for listing your event info, schedules, performer information, and more all in ONE place. Their flexibility makes them a perfect fit for almost any type of event. Pathable and Guidebook are just a few! Built with ease of use and design in mind, both event apps are great at being simple and convenient!
7) Event Automation
Event automation gives event planners the ability to create personalized experiences for all attendees. By sending out information tailored to each person to their own interests, it could also help prevent attendees from getting slammed with information overload. GEVME, Silverpop and HubSpot are some trending event automation platforms that will get you started!
8) Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)
Waiting in line for an event? Say no more! With RFID, you can set up a faster entry process and store payment, all in one with this tool. Furthermore, you can significantly cut down on your day-of staff or reallocate your staff into more engaging roles at your event venue. Xylobands, made popular by Coldplay is a great source of RFID coming into play. During the concert, it lights up during the musical acts and is a beautiful sight. Not only is it mesmerizing, but it will be a factor in getting people to come back.
9) Artificial Intelligence (Chatbots)
If you had questions about an event, don’t fear! With chatbots, you are able to get your question answered in a few seconds, relieving overwhelmed staff. In addition, chatbots are virtual meaning they could be on different social media platforms anytime and anywhere. There are numerous chatbots all over the internet including Spotify, Uber, Nike and more!
10) Augmented Reality
In simple words, augmented reality is a combination of our real and computer-generated worlds in the form of live video imagery. With this technology, events planners can utilize the capabilities of computer-generated display text, sound and effects to enhance attendees’ real world experience. Attendees can experience AR through headsets or through displays on mobile devices. When Apple announced the ar feature at Apple’s annual conference, Worldwide Developers Conference, it changed everything for years to come!
Have you tried any of these event tech trends? Which one is your favorite? Let us know what you think in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
If you’re interested in learning more about events we’ve done for otherSan Francisco startups or other fortune 500 companies, click here.
ABCey’s #TechTuesday: Top 10 Event Discovery Apps
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. Today’s #TechTuesday features 10 great event discovery apps to help you find events in your area!
1. Do the Bay
Do the Bay shows you all the best events going on in the Bay Area. From concerts, comedy, film screenings, festivals, craft and flea markets, drag shows, happy hours, trivia nights, food, and more, there are so many options! They also tend to give away tickets so you can get into some events for free. Don’t miss out on this app if you live in the Bay Area!
2. Eventbrite
Eventbrite is one of the greatest event apps for finding all sorts of local happenings. The app shows you nearby events and gives you dates, times, locations, maps, and similar events. It also allows you to check ticket prices so you can buy them right from the app!
3. Goldstar
Goldstar is an event discovery app that offers half-price tickets to live entertainment. It allows you to spend less on the hottest concerts, theaters, nightlifes, comedies, sports and other events in your city. You don’t want to miss out on these discounts!
4. Go Do
Go Do is an event finder that has an interesting concept. The app is divided into two tabs. The tab on the left is marked Go. You can add a new location if you’re heading out of town, and the map will update with events in that spot. The tab on the right is marked Do. Tap it to select the types of events that interest you most like art, sports, music, or dance. This event finder is well-organized and easy to use!
5. Gravy
Gravy shows you events based on your location and the date. You’ll see events ranging from holiday parties, music events, dinners, and more. You can also filter the results based on your interests, area, or you can search by keyword. You can get all the event details with dates, times, descriptions, and photos using Gravy!
6. Hangtime
Hangtime works by connecting to your Facebook account, so you can see what events your friends are interested in. Along with your friends’ activity, it will also show you local events in your area, drawing from sources like Ticketmaster and Livenation. This is a great app if you’re looking to connect with your friends to attend events!
7. Meetup
Meetup lets you create or join local groups with varying interests, from tech, food, photography, you name it. The app suggests local meet ups in your area and you can indicte how far you are willing to travel for which interest. There is also a calendar feature with a bunch of events that allows you to quickly see all the meet ups that are happening that month!
8. Field Trip
Field trip uses AR to help you find fun things happening near you! Instead of using visual focus, it tells you what is interesting through your headphones. It will point out recommendations from a list of interests such as history, offers, architecture, food, among others. Now that’s cool!
9. Time to Enjoy
This app draws from your personal calendar and notifies you on what events to consider for when you have free time. It breaks it down to the date and the hourly time slots, and even allows you to publish your own events so others can join or attend it. This app is perfect for those of you who use your smartphone calendar to keep track of your schedule, or for event planners who want to advertise their events!
10. Vamos
Vamos is a discovery app that draws from Facebook events, Eventbrite, and Ticketmaster to show you all the best events all in one place! The app lets you see a ton of information about each event from offers, guest lists, and Instagram photos. The app focuses on whatever city you live in.
Which event discovery apps will you use?
Have you used any of these apps lately? Which one is your favorite? Which ones did we miss? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
ABCey’s #TechTuesday: Top 5 Smart Badges for Your Next Event!
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. Technology is designed to make our lives easier, especially as event planners. With an innovative smart badge, you are able to make things much simpler for attendees, exhibitors, and yourself! Today’s #TechTuesday features a list of amazing smart badges we LOVE!
Why use smart badges?
Smart badges can simplify your event by promoting deeper networking connections between attendees, or by providing a simple method of sharing and exchanging contact information. They can also give event planners access to foot traffic and real-time analytics for their events. Exhibitors can benefit by easily sharing access to information to attendes, and can determine which guests are valuable prospects.
1. RFID Badges and LED Tech
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JficYgaK8j8
With the addition of smart LED tech, you can enhance any attendee’s experience! Whether it’s a lanyard or a bracelet, it will come alive and you can decide when. You can choose to light it up at a specific moment, signal an upcoming segment, or set up to interact with sensors, too. You can see them in action in the Coldplay concert in 2016 featured above!
2. SmartTrac by Hubvents
SmartTrac benefits all. For exhibitors, it notifies them when potential prospects enter their booths. How? With an analysis of attendees’ profiles and behavioral attributes! Moreover, attendees receive and event journey report that includes all their connections, booth visits, and more. Event planners can get an overview of foot traffic and interactions to see which attractions were most popular and for future improvement.
3. eventBit by Experient
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlGcFIUS_48
EventBit has many features your guests will love! We’re all guilty of checking Yelp to look for recommendations.. EventBit can do that for you, but for booths you’d enjoy based on your preferences. In addition, it provides networking opportunities for attendees based on matching interests. Goodbye to awkward small talk! When the event is over, your guests can receive links to access information relevant to their event journeys.
4. Proxfinity
Unique features of Proxfinity are the options to brand the badge and to program a specific topic of interest! This will elicit conversations that sponsors and clients intended for the event. Event planners love that Proxfinity provides useful metrics! It includes meaningful interactions made per person, connections between demographics, topics that drive connections and conversations, and much more!
5. LiGo by Limefy
Like eventBit, this badge signals to guests when someone with mutual interests are in close proximity with flashing lights. Now your guests can spend more time engaging in meaningful connections! Guests are able to easily exchange contact information with each other with a personalized timeline. Additionally, attendees are able to access exhibitor and fellow attendee portals with a messaging platform available if they want to contact them!
Will you use smart badges?
We love smart badges, and we hope now you do too! Are there any that we missed? Will you be using any of our smart badges at your event? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook or Twitter! If you’d like to see our past #TechTuesday blogs, click here.
ABCey’s Startup Monday: Guardant Health
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that showcases some of the most innovative startups based in San Francisco! These are often companies that we have our eye on or have worked with in the past. This week, we are putting the spotlight on Guardant Health!
What is Guardant Health?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWG24cjxZFY
Guardant Health was founded in 2012 by Amir Ali Talasaz and Helmy Eltoukhy. It works to improve patient health through technology breakthroughs that address long-standing unmet needs in oncology. It has helped thousands of oncologists learn actionable and accurate information about thousands of patients, while eliminating the risks and costs of tissue biopsies. Guardant Health’s genomic test allows them to appropriately match advanced-cancer patients to approved drugs in clinical trials as well as targeted therapies.
How Does it Work?
Using Guardant Health is simple. Start by submitting two tubes of blood. Guardant Health will then look for actionable somatic alterations on solid tumor sites. From there, doctors will get clear and accurate results within two weeks that they can use to help patients get the treatment they need. Guardant Health also manages billing and provides financial support, making your experience easy and affordable.
Why we Love Guardant Health!
Cancer is the second leading cause of death world-wide and 1 and 6 people will likely die of cancer. Guardant Health seeks to change this through minimally invasive biopsies using innovative technology, which helps doctors quickly and accurately determine the appropriate course of treatment based on patients’ needs. At ABCey, we love tech, especially when it is used for good! Also, as an event-planning company, we value fast service and Guardant Health certainly delivers fast results!
Have you had the opportunity to use Guardant Health or know someone who might benefit from trying it out? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter! If you’d like to see other San Francisco startups we’ve featured before, click here.
ABCey’s Startup Monday: Loopd
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that showcases some of the most innovative startups based in San Francisco! These are often companies that we have our eye on or have worked with in the past. This week, we are putting the spotlight on Loopd!
What is Loopd?
Loopd is an event engagement platform aimed to make networking easier and to access to relevant marketing materials for your attendees, but it doesn’t stop there! Loopd is a great tool that benefits event planners and booth staff, too! It allows you to track guest traffic information, view interaction history and follow up with attendees!
How does it work?
Loopd is able to provide information and promote engagement with two devices: Bluetooth beacons and chips located in lanyards! Beacons are placed around the venue and communicate with the chips around guests’ necks to allow for location-tracking tools. For guests to share networking information, a simple tap between their badges can help exchange all needed information! Talk about convenient. To receive materials from any booth you visited at the event, a quick look to the app will give you access to all the fliers and promotions from the exhibitor! As event planners, you are able to track how successful your event is with real time analytics and to see what attracts the most guests.
Why we love Loopd!
Aside from the networking capabilities and analytics, Loopd also cuts down on check in and check out times! Event planners always find ways to cut down on waiting times to prevent boring guests, and Loopd is an amazing solution. With this technology, guests are able to cut down on their carbon footprint by networking through the badges instead of passing out business cards. Also, it eliminates the need for printed fliers since it can be shared through the app!
Have you had to opportunity to use Loopd or interested in trying it out? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
If you’d like to see other San Francisco startups we’ve featured before, click here.
ABCey’s #TechTuesday: Top 10 High Tech Event Activities
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. Today’s #TechTuesday features high tech event activities!
1. Projection Mapping
Projection mapping is displaying a video over an object to create an amazing experience for your guests. The video projection brings to life any performance and activity that your audience engages in. It also adds another aspect to any event that will capture your entire audience’s attention. We also used projection in one of our previous events, and it was a huge hit!
2. Spotify House’s Bose Soundbooth
This amazing Bose Soundbooth presented by Spotify was from SXSW! Guests completely immersed themselves in music as the booth was covered in mirrors and disco balls. Attendees were also more than happy to add their favorite songs to the official Spotify SXSW playlist. What song would you add?
3. Digital Graffiti Wall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=14&v=NfYNIgI9b9E
Let your guests leave their mark at your event! Also, if you add an overhead question, your guests will be excited to head over to the wall to contribute. If you’re looking for a more kid-friendly activity, project a coloring book. Adults will love the activity, too!
4. 3D Selfie
In just a few minutes, you can be 3D scanned and recreated! If you have ever wanted a small model of your photo, your wish has come true! With this booth at your event, your guests are able to walk away with a “mini me” and a lasting memory of your event! If you’re not a huge fan of having a model of yourself, you have the option to have your mini me sent to yourself and you can share it to your social media, too! Now everyone can see exactly what you wore and all the fun you had at every angle!
5. iZombie Brain Scans
These unforgettable brain scans were from the CW’s premiere of iZombie hosted by Buzzfeed! Attendees lined up to get a scan and observe their brain activity as they ate 3D-printed candy made onsite! Also, they kept the scans afterward! How could you adapt to use these brain scans at your event?
6. Social Media Wall
A social media wall is an amazing way to have your guests engage with your event and with each other! Not only will it spark conversation, it will create an online presence for your event! It will be an amazing way to break the ice and have your guests networking instead of making awkward small talk.
7. Virtual Tunnel Entrance
Give your attendees a grand entrance! Or maybe it could an enchanting and thrilling! It’s all in your hands. You decide what to project whether it be starry, checkered, or swirly! It will give off a great first impression of your event before they even enter! They’ll find themselves wanting to make another entrance.
8. Augmented Reality Gaming Wall
Whether you’re competitive or nonchalant, take your games to another level with an augmented reality gaming wall! Kids and adults alike will love seeing their movements interact with the virtual world of the game. Who can resist?
9. Edible Photo Booth
Pictures and food. Sure, they’re amazing apart, but it’s even better combined! This printer will take your selfie or any picture and print it onto your food for you! It’s the perfect Instagram moment and will help increase your social media presence along with engagement. The only problem? It’ll look too good to eat.
10. Interactive Virtual Wall
Have you ever been to a mall and seen those walls that interact with your body movements? It’s almost as if you are the wave and the colors that splash and swish around on the screen. Let your guests be mesmerized with the effects as they catch themselves walking back and forth in front of the wall!
How do you like our high tech event activities?
Have you seen any of these high tech event activities lately? Which one is your favorite? Which ones did we miss? We’d love to hear from you! Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!
ABCey’s Startup Monday: Virta Health
Startup Monday is ABCey’s weekly post that showcases some of the most innovative startups based in the San Francisco! These are often companies that we have our eye on or have worked with in the past. This week, the spotlight’s on Virta. This company that works to treat and reverse type 2 diabetes and other chronic metabolic diseases!
What is Virta?
Founded in 2014 by Sami Inkinen, Virta is an online specialty medical clinic that reverses type 2 diabetes safely and sustainably. There’s no need to worry about risks, costs, or side effects of medications or surgery with this treatment! Virta is clinically proven to work. Plus, their mission is to reverse type 2 diabetes in 100 million people by 2025. With 52% of the adult population in the U.S. suffering from type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, this startup is definitely one to watch.
How it Works?
So what does it mean to “reverse” type 2 diabetes? Although type 2 diabetes can’t be cured, if your blood sugar remains normal without having to use diabetes-specific medication and you no longer meet the diagnostic criteria, you have successfully reversed your type 2 diabetes. Virta bases their treatment off of nutritional ketosis. This is a natural metabolic state where your body adapts to burning fat rather than carbohydrates as its primary fuel. Nutritional ketosis is the most effective treatment option for reversing type 2 diabetes. Based on clinical trials, it directly reduces blood sugar, improve insulin sensitivity, and reduce inflammation, which are the three most significant problems caused by type 2 diabetes.
By offering all the necessary supplies, continuous physician supervision, personalized dietary guidance and health coaching, biomarker tracking and curated resources, and a private patient community, Virta gives patients everything they need to successfully reverse their type 2 diabetes all in the form of an app!
Why we Love Virta?
Virta offers long-lasting results fast! 87% of insulin users reduced or eliminated usage after just 10 weeks, 60% of patients reversed their type 2 diabetes after 1 year, and most patients have reduced their blood sugar levels by 1.0%. Now that’s effective! Virta also makes their treatment easy to manage and convenient through their use of technology. All of the treatment’s functions are on their app, so patients are frequently monitored and can easily access everything they need. We love to see companies like Virta using technology to make a difference!
Will you use Virta or recommend it to a friend who might need it? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter! If you’d like to see other San Francisco startups we’ve featured in the past, click here.
ABCey’s Tech Tuesday: 10 Event Organization Apps to Help You Stay Sane
#TechTuesday highlights the best and brightest ideas in the tech world. Today’s #TechTuesday features the 10 best event organization apps to help you stay sane and organized as an event planner!
1. Super Planner
There’s a new iphone / ipad app on the scene that is garnering a lot of buzz…and for good reason. Super Planner is an event industry app developed by Howard Givner, and is one of the most in-depth mobile tools on the market today.
It is a digital encyclopedia of industry calculators convenient enough to carry with you everywhere in your purse or pocket. Just as a good measuring tape, hotel directory, business calendar and frequent flyer miles are mainstays for the planner, so too should be the Super Planner.
2. 24me
This app acts as a personal assistant to help you stay on task with your planning. It includes integrated calendars, to-do lists, and notes. 24me keeps track of your tasks and schedules all in one place and sends you reminders for them so you don’t forget. The app also reminds you about bills and other important information, as it connects to your financial institutions, service providers, and social networks. This app is especially great for smaller events!
3. Asana
Asana is a great way to keep everyone on your event planning team in the loop! It lets you assign tasks to different team members while keeping track of who’s doing what. Asana gives you the ability to easily monitor what’s getting done and who’s getting it done.
4. Boomset
Boomset helps speed up the registration process by allowing you to check people in using QR codes, print bases and create wristbands. It also integrates with other platforms you might already be using for your event, so it makes registration simple!
5. CamScanner
CamScanner basically transforms your phone into a scanner. It’s great for digitalizing contracts, agreements, marketing material and other important documents you need to send to clients. It also has the ability to convert documents into PDFs. Now that’s convenient!
6. Timebridge
Timebridge makes scheduling fast and simple! The app collects information about everyone’s availability, takes into account preferences, and then automatically arranges a good meeting time. This is a great way to arrange meetings or even events with a lot of people without having to deal with the long back and forth of emailing!
7. Blossom
This event organization app helps simplify communication between the event planner and the client. It allows you to create a card system detailing different sections of the project, so everyone knows what stage each part of the event is at. There’s even a client review card so the client can approve the final step!
8. Eventgrabber
Sometimes it can be hard to find events you want to attend. Luckily, Eventgrabber can help! It matches people with the types of occasions they’ll likely be interested in. They can look at the top events going on, see the most popular events with locals, and even order a taxi or an Uber to take them to the next party. As an event planner, this app is extremely useful for attracting guests who would genuinely be interested in your type of event!
9. Heytell
This app essentially turns your smartphone into a walkie-talkie, making communication with your event staff easy! There’s no need to hang on to multiple devices, and it prevents you from having to physically locate various members of your crew during the actual event!
1o. Pingg
Pingg is a great tool for running your events, as it lets you create invitations, guest lists, and thank you messages for your attendees all in one place! Not only this, but you can also add a gift registry, schedule reminders, and search for local services for your event as well. This handy app let’s you keep all the little details of your event organized!
What event organization apps do you use to stay sane when planning events?
Event planning can be extremely stressful and overwhelming, and these tools are guaranteed to help simplify your job! Which apps you use? Are there any we missed? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook and Twitter!