Ideas for November the 5th

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Fireworks Night, otherwise known as Guy Fawkes’ Night or Bonfire Night, is a quintessentially UK celebration, marking the time that Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators didn’t blow up the Houses of Parliament on the 5th November.

To many that haven’t grown up with this ‘holiday’, it might not seem an event worth celebrating but as many of us in the UK know, it’s become more of an excuse to watch some fireworks, wrap up in cosy clothing, eat hearty food and drink warming beverages, all whilst getting toasty by the bonfire.

Fireworks

It’s an obvious one of course, but if you’re hosting a Fireworks Night event, fireworks are a must! If you don’t think you’ll feel safe running the display yourself, you could hire a company to come in and do them for you.

If you do tackle the display yourself, make sure you do so responsibly and safely, and adhere to Government safety rules. And with fireworks, must come sparklers too, so make sure you get plenty of these, as people do love them!

Bonfire

Another staple of any Fireworks Night is the bonfire. Although this was originally to burn the Guy, this is a great way to keep everyone toasty during the night and can even be used to cook some bonfire treats.

There are different options of sizes, form the huge centrepiece fire, to little ones, to the smoke-free burning log pictured. Whilst staring into fire can be mesmerising, why not add some colour to your flames to add something extra special to your event?

Guy Fawkes

As mentioned before, this is the traditional origins of the night. People would make Guy Fawkes, which we call ‘a Guy’. This would normally be made out of old clothes stuffed with newspaper, or hay and added on to the bonfire as the main event.

If you’re not looking to be as traditional as this, you could always have some of the masks of Guy Fawkes, that feature in the film V for Vendetta, or why not make a bonfire cake with a little Guy Fawkes on top?

Bonfire Night Food

Catering at events is important; mainly because it’s a great way of warming up the crowds with some hearty food. Serving jacket potatoes has always been a classic, but why not take this further with these shepherd’s pies, cooked in a baked potato shell?

Cooking a large dish of chilli is always a crowd pleaser and is easy to make in a big batch. Or why not consider cooking up some bangers with a bit of fire (keeping it on theme) by adding some chilli for chilli sausages?

Decorative food

Whilst hearty food may keep everyone warm, it’s worth making some visually pleasing treats that fit in with the theme of the night, like bonfire cakes, firework cookies and chocolate sparklers.

Conclusion

There are different ways to approach Fireworks Night, whether you decide to go for something traditional, with traditional food and drink; or decide to go all-out and add a few twists and turns to surprise your guests, creating more of a spectacle. Whatever you do, make sure everyone is warm, cosy, safe and enjoying some of that autumnal fresh air!

How does music at events affect people’s behaviour?

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We constantly consume music, whether we are aware of it or not, and we will end up in situations where we participate in subconscious listening every day.

This could be at the supermarket, with music playing over the loudspeakers, during TV ads or programmes, where music often sits in the background to augment a mood. It could also be at an event or conference, where there is either a live band or background music being played in the venue. All of this subconscious or inactive listening has an impact on how we behave.

We mostly think of music as entertainment, but marketers have been using it to influence our behaviour for decades. It’s a particularly prolific strategy in consumer goods industries, but the principles can easily be applied to the event industry.

Using the right type of music can potentially be very profitable, and as such there’s been a lot of research into exactly how different types of music affects behaviour within a specific environment. Certain types of music can make us move through a space faster, linger longer, change our perception of queue times or makes us spend more.

Unsurprisingly, fast paced music makes people move faster, and so does loud music. Slow music generally makes people slow down. It might be basic, but it’s an important factor in creating a specific mood for an event. Do you want people to be energised and buzzing, or relaxed and laid-back?

So if you’re putting on a race or sporting event, you’ll want to increase the volume and get some dance or rock music blasting out to energise your participants. However, if you’re running an exhibition and want people to linger and chat at stalls, you’ll probably want to opt for slower, softer sounds to keep the pace steady and encourage more conversations.

If you like to listen to music, like most of us, you will have experienced how it can impact your mood. This is something the media and marketers know how to take full advantage of. In addition to our emotional reactions, they also play on the associations we attach to different types of music.

Hire Classical musicians, it might be thought of as sophisticated and classy, while Jazz might be thought of as artistic and refined. When putting these general assumptions to the test, several experiments show that playing specific music can impact perceptions too. For example, classical music can temporarily increase the perceived value of an item. In these situations, people projected some of the associations they had with classical music, e.g. sophistication, onto the item itself.

So for your next conference, maybe you want to welcome attendees with a spot of classical music, or introduce your keynote speaker with it playing in the background, inferring sophistication and intelligence on everyone in the room as well as your speakers.

Music to use at your corporate event

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Music is an important element of any event, whether it’s in the form of a playlist, DJ or live performance. We’re not just talking about parties and product launches: conferences can benefit hugely from music.

It’s probably not the main type of event you associate with music, but entertainment during seminar breaks and background music played in exhibition areas are both popular choices.

To help you use music as effectively as possible at your next conference we have collated a list of the most popular songs, and will also talk you through how to use them to your advantage.

Using our pool of professional artists for hire, we sent out a questionnaire to 1000 bands, DJs and acts asking if they had played at a conference in the last 18 months, which songs they played, and if any of the songs had been requested by the organisers.

Here are the Top 10 songs played at conferences last season:

Sex on Fire – Kings of Leon
Uptown Funk – Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars
Locked Out of Heaven – Bruno Mars
Signed, Sealed, Delivered – Stevie Wonder
Happy – Pharrell Williams
Get Lucky – Daft Punk
Rather Be – Clean Bandit Ft. Jess Glynne
Treasure – Bruno Mars
You’ve Got the Love – Florence + the Machine
Forget You – CeeLo Green

So, how can you use them to create a great atmosphere at your conference?

Break entertainment

Live entertainment during breaks can be a good energy booster for conference attendees. Chart toppers like the ones in our ‘most played’ list can work well in this environment, and can easily be played over an in-house speaker system at a reasonable level.

Here, a live band or DJ can really add something to your conference. Stay clear of big sounds and opt for a smaller set-up, as delegates still need to be able to network and recharge for their next seminar.

Music in exhibition halls

Using music in large exhibition halls can be a great way of creating a good vibe.

At the same time the room is likely to be very noisy from all the delegates networking with each other and talking to exhibitors. The latter of course, is exactly what you want.

After parties

Out of all the areas of your conference where you might add music, this is definitely where your delegates will be most relaxed, and might even venture out on the dance floor.

After parties are all about networking and having a really good time. This is also where the ‘most played list’ will feel most appropriate. You can have a superb party band or DJ who incorporates them into their usual set-lists, or you could go for a more tailored option.

Applying for a Temporary Event Notice

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Are you planning a small, one-off event at a venue that does not hold a full licence such as a school, village hall or outdoor space? Also planning to sell alcohol or have late night entertainment?

Then you’ll need to obtain permission from the local authority by applying for a Temporary Event Notice (TEN). It’s essential to obtain a TEN for all ‘licensable activity’ that is not on your venue’s licence – if you don’t get one, then you can be fined, sent to prison for up to six months, or both!

What is licensable activity?

Licensable activity includes the sale or supply of alcohol, the provision of late night hot food and drink (between 11pm-5am), opening a venue outside of its licensed hours, and the provision of ‘regulated entertainment’.

Regulated entertainment is defined as any of the following activities that take place in the presence of an audience:

Recorded music i.e. Disco or DJ (between 11pm and 8am)
Karaoke (between 11pm and 8am)
Unamplified live music (between 11pm and 8am)
Amplified live music (between 11pm and 8am)
Play or dance performance (between 11pm and 8am)
Indoor sporting event (between 11pm and 8am)
Film screening
Boxing, wrestling or martial arts
Adult entertainment

Important note: A Temporary Event Notice covers you for gatherings of up to 499 people, for a duration of no longer than seven days. If your event does not meet these criteria you will need to apply for either a premises licence or a club premises certificate.

Who can apply for a Temporary Event Notice?

Any individual aged over 18 can apply for a TEN and you can obtain up to five TENs per year. If you already have a personal licence to sell alcohol, you can be given up to 50 TENs a year.

How to apply for a Temporary Event Notice

You must make the application to the local authority governing the borough or district into which your proposed venue falls. You may be able to complete the application online or otherwise download and print the necessary forms to be posted. You will have to pay a fee of £21.

Don’t forget you may be responsible for ensuring the police and Environmental Health also receive copies of the TEN within the notice period.

In your application it is important to be very accurate about exactly what will be taking place and the dates and times that your event is to cover. You could be fined if you make any false statements in your application, or face prosecution if you breach the terms of the notice.

If you are successful in your application and your event goes ahead, you must keep your TEN on the premises on the day and display a copy of the notice somewhere it can be easily seen.

In summary

Temporary Events Notices can be trickier than they look – give yourself plenty of time to make your application and if you’re in any doubt whether you need one or not talk to your local council.

Finish the year on a high

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Summer is over, the children are back to school, and those two weeks basking on the beach already seem like a distant memory. We’ve compiled the best back-to-work motivational tips from a selection of experts to help you stop mourning the loss of flip flops and barbecued food, and start looking forward to winter boots, roast turkey and new season success!

Having time to relax and think can help us to see what’s missing from our lives or what we want to achieve – now try turning those into actionable goals.

So, whether it’s learning a new skill or simply saving up for your next holiday, setting some structured targets can help you find your motivation to start working towards them.

The key to staying motivated is to never stop working at staying motivated. Just like exercising the other muscles of our body, our motivation and attitude muscles need to be developed and fine-tuned, too.

Every day schedule time to read or listen to empowering material. Every day take the time to exercise, breathe deeply, and plan my diet. Living a motivated life starts with doing the motivational preparation work it takes to get there.

Turn mundane tasks into new challenges. Even if we’re happy in our careers overall, we all have elements of our jobs we find tedious. When we have too many of these mundane tasks and not enough of the ones we enjoy, work motivation can take a hit.

Next time you’re asked to do something you don’t really want to do, you can try adding some creative flair to the task, finding a way to do it differently or better than before. You can also find motivation for seemingly dull tasks by thinking about the purpose of your work. How important is it for the successful operation of your company? How many people are relying on you?

When people know why they are doing something, they tend to do it better and with a little more enthusiasm.

Be grateful

When your alarm goes off at silly-o’clock in the morning and you drag yourself out of bed for your first week back at work you might not be feeling particularly ‘lucky’. However, a quick and simple mental exercise can help wake up your positivity.

Do three and a half minutes of pure gratitude about three things. Pick one of those three to be simple… the wind on my face, your children’s faces, anything.

Starting the day with gratitude for the life you have leaves you primed to have a positive day.

It also makes us more resilient to negative feedback and ‘failure,’ simply by being able to view unsuccessful endeavours as valuable practise instead.

Adopting a growth mindset will give you the confidence to take on new projects or accept increased responsibility, making work more interesting and more motivating. It can work for your personal ambitions too, like finally signing up to that art class you’ve wanted to join for ages!

Conclusion

It’s always sad when summer comes to an end and holidays are over, but finding something to work towards can give you renewed purpose. Start now and you can end the year on a high, ready to welcome in 2017 with a big high five!

Threats to the event industry

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The rest of 2016 and 2017 are set to be quite disruptive. Technology and political changes will shake up the event industry as we know it. Are you ready to embrace the change? There is a lot going on in the world. The last 6 months have been quite dramatic, scary and exciting at the same time. It seems we are going through one of those cycles of intense change that happen every 10 years.

There are two main areas of disruption: Security and Technology. The way we react to these profound changes is going to define our profession for the next 10 years.

Security and Terrorism

There is a very volatile situation involving security and terrorism related threats. Looking at the facts of what has happened and is currently happening in Europe, U.S. and Africa, events are increasingly exposed to such threat.

Going over what has happened and revisit the facts is too painful. One thing for sure. We know several events have been targeted. Lives have been taken away. Security at events is under scrutiny. It seems that most of these attacks want to strike wherever there is a gathering of people having fun, learning or simply enjoying life.

Technology

While we were growing tired of using hashtags on Twitter, a disruptive change happened on major social networks that impacts on the event industry.

Only three weeks ago, the Pokémon Go frenzy started. All of sudden hundreds of thousands of players are using augmented reality to play a game outside in the real world. What we tried to do for years in events (live streaming and augmented reality gaming) is happening in the most mainstream way we have ever seen.

So What’s the Biggest Threat?

The biggest threat at the moment for our industry, our event company, our job is how we react to these changes. If you think we are talking about a stupid game, you are not getting it. That’s a threat to how you do business.

If you think that the terrorist threats are a distant problem, you are not getting it. You are endangering the lives of your attendees.

We don’t believe there is such thing as ‘hype’ anymore. Probably 15 years ago, we could have talked about hype but social media proved that hype is no more. There is no time to think whether a new tool is hype or not. We just need to embrace the change and understand what is happening.

BE CAREFUL.

We are not saying you should start playing 90s retro games or lock down your event altogether because you read it in the news. What we are proposing here is that we get deep into understanding what is happening around us.

Smart event professionals look into the recent terror events and understand what they can do to protect their event going forward. They start a conversation with local authorities to have a clear image of potential threats. They invest in extra security if they have established that there could be problems with their event.

No Excuses, Keep Up

Change is around us and recently is happening faster than we’ve ever experienced. Developments are faster and we need to keep up. No excuse. If you want to be a good event professional, you need to keep up. Get the facts, read, think, strategize, protect your attendees, understand your attendees. Think how they are changing. Your attendees will thank you for that.

Things you don’t need at events anymore

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Times are changing and so should our habits. Join us at looking at some of the things we can do without nowadays at corporate events.

Paper Badges

Badges have traditionally been the biggest lost opportunity in events. Printouts of very un-useful information that generate awkward looks at one another. Of course you can get them sponsored and of course you need them for security, but there must me a better way.

Things to try instead. Mobile Apps, beacons, RFID, NFC badges. The possibilities are endless. Badges become the remote control of your event. They let you check into places by just walking by. You can purchase merchandise, drinks, food. You can participate in games, you can quickly share content on social media Smart Badges offer powerful real time analytics and they offer incredible feedback mechanisms.

2. PowerPoint

Used at events since being created 26 years ago, that alone should tell a story. Slides in general can be a great visual tool to give some tangibility to a talk, but what is the percentage of good slides you see at events?

So what can you do? We won’t suggest a list of alternatives to PowerPoint. Get creative and think about other ways to get speakers to illustrate their point. Mix the types of media you can use: video, images, sounds, objects. In some types of events slides will always be necessary, they are almost expected by the audience. You can make a difference as an event professional. You can give precise guidelines or even coaching to your speaker as to how they need to use and not abuse the tool. It takes a lot of charisma and experience to talk without slides and experience. Get the speakers to use slides as part of the new speaking mix – mobile app, live interaction tool, or app powered mic, props, music.

4. Business Cards

For ever it has been expected that if you go to a networking event you must take a lot of business cards as it is the “done thing”. Do we really need a business card to connect with people? There are so many better ways to exchange information at events. Smart event professionals make sure that whether you have card or not, you can still network.

Why not invite attendees to take advantage of social networks and optimize your network with the existing technologies? Use smart badges, contact business cards, beacon business cards. You name it. The alternatives.

Of course there will always be some people that will use them. The thing is that you, as an event professional, can encourage attendees to use better ways to connect rather than producing an incredible amount of waste.

In Conclusion

As event professionals we are always short on time and will sometimes rely on traditional solutions as it seems like the quickest or easiest thing to do. Maybe we have always done it that way and taking the leap to do things differently fills you with fear. But so we can focus on the important content and real experience of our event, rather than the admin and logistics, now is the time to make the change.

Push your boundaries and you will realize that the power of your content can be amplified if you update your tools and choose the best modern solutions to support your organization.

A Stag weekend idea in Edinburgh

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Stag weekends don’t always have to be about strippers. Edinburgh is glorious, gory, glamorous and great at kicking off its shoes and dancing on the bar. Just think of the city like an oh-so-respectable auntie – leading light of the WI and runs a bordello out of her back room. You’ll love it and it’s perfect for a weekend of entertainment.

At a glance:

– From the glowering bulk of its infamous castle to the skinny Scott Monument, few cities have as many historic sights to see
– Cosy bars, ‘private’ clubs, haunted pubs, cocktail hour, real ale, drams and dives – Edinburgh’s love of a ‘wee swallae’ is legendary
– Scotland’s capital is shameless about its shameful past and happy to creep you out for as long as you can stand it

Local knowledge:

George Street – smart shops and serious clubs
This is where you’ll find Edinburgh’s smartest bars and clubs and crowds of sleek locals looking lovely.

The Royal Mile – land of the untamed tourist
Its tartan by the acre and you can’t move for tourists, but Edinburgh without a walk up The Royal Mile is almost illegal. Shameless souvenirs, lone piper (not even sure if he’s human), haunted tours, the whisky museum, closes, wynds and miles of cobbles, it’s all a bit stunning. But just go for it. Get into the spirit.

Tollcross – a down and dirty mix of a good time
If you like your pubs cheap, your takeaways plentiful and your entertainment eclectic, Tollcross is happy to help. If you’re up for a gig or a great club night, the mighty Picture House plays Tollcross hard and fast Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Bruntsfield – café society and a village vibe
Independent coffee are Bruntsfield specialities. Dodge the baby buggies and well-heeled Edinburgh mamas and grab yourself a large cup of caffeine and a window seat. This is where to take your raging hangover and soothe yourself back to life, ready to do it all over again.

Making your own Animation

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Have you ever wanted to learn about Animation and maybe make your own small Animation film? This a great way to interact with your team mates and to figure out what strengths and weaknesses each member of your team has.

A good idea for business entertainment is to get 10 delegates together and appoint their own personal animation leader who is always on hand to guide them through the concept and storyboarding stage, solve problems and answer animation queries!

Every delegate receives a pre-made plasticine model, ready for them to customise and create their own characters. The mini-me models are a great way to ensure everyone can make their own fantastic looking character, regardless of whether they’re a naturally arty type! Delegates also receive additional model making materials to really bring their characters to life. The group’s animation leader is always on hand to offer advice and ideas.

Your animation leader introduces them to the stop motion software and is there to make sure the process runs smoothly with animation tips and tricks of the trade, all of which help the group create an animation they can be really proud of. Every delegate’s model will be involved in the film, with each delegate working together, communicating and rotating roles including director, animator, software operator, continuity, props, etc.

When the animations are complete and the groups has called it a wrap, all the groups get together for a premiere screening of their work. We then take the films back to a post production studio, where music, titles and effects are added before being sent to you within 2 weeks of the workshop. These films are great to share with colleagues, internally in large organisations or externally on the company website/social media as desired. Delegates also get to keep their plasticine characters as a memento of the day and their achievements!

Live TV experience

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The television screen is everywhere in our lives. It is the most important aid to modern business. We use the screen for home entertainment, computer use, i-pad and even on our mobile phones, but most of us who watch television, have very little idea as to how our favourite television programmes, adverts or other important communications are actually produced. Well, this is your chance to step inside where the magic happens and experience it for yourself!

This fun filled day out the office is a true insight to how television programmes are made, and a great environment to spend a day with colleagues in order to achieve a common goal. It’s 100% down to you and your team! Your challenge is to produce and record two television programme sequences successfully:

Ideas for entertainment

Filming:

Based on a similar format to the popular quiz ‘Have I Got News for You’, where the presenter opens an envelope of questions live on air, and two teams battle it out, in a head-to-head competition, to correctly answer the questions for points…sound easy? That’s only a tiny piece of the jigsaw! While all of that is going on in front of the cameras, the rest of the group will take on crucial roles behind the scenes, which include the Director, Technical Crew, Sound Mixers, Camera Operators, Floor Manager and Visual Mixers, and during the day everyone will rotate and have a bash at each position.

Will you be running around the studio like headless chickens with the responsibility and shame of an axed show on your hands, or work together to create the next big thing and challenge Jonathan Ross for his Friday Night slot?

Shopping Channel Slot

“On air in 5, 4, 3, …, …” this task will not only challenge your team to operate the technical equipment in the studio, but will also test your team’s ability to successfully sell a selection of products ranging from wigs to jewellery, live on air, through the medium of TV.

The day could be recorded and participates get a copy of the DVD