How would you like entertainment on your meeting program itinerary guaranteed to “wow” your attendees with limited logistical details for you?
It sounds too good to be true, right?
It’s not, if you integrate a meeting or incentive with major happenings like the music and food festivals and cultural and sports events scheduled in your destination.
Entertaining Options
If you have a high-end entertainment budget and can afford headliners like Elton John and Kelly Clarkson, Mark Sonder, president of Linden, Va.-based Mark Sonder Productions, can book those acts and many more.
For groups with limited budgets who still want a high-profile entertainment experience, Sonder assists in customizing programs for concerts already scheduled in the meeting destination.
Mark Sonder Productions is a 27-year-old entertainment agency specializing in booking concerts, theatrical productions, comedians, lecturers and other performers for associations and corporations.
“Once I get dates and destination from a planner, I access the touring schedules of music groups and entertainers performing nearby,” Sonder says. “The number of attendees will also determine what type of program we can set up for the group.”
Among the possibilities are obtaining tickets for the concert, a meet-and-greet, behind-the-stage experience and photo opportunities.
“Obviously, if you have a large group like, say, 400 people, meet-and-greets and photo ops aren’t viable alternatives,” Sonder says. “Those experiences aren’t realistic in an open, public, ticketed concert setting.
“Typically, groups of 25 or less are ideal for face-to-face experiences with the performers,” he continues.
Some of the entertainers Sonder has worked with recently in a corporate or association group setting are Joan Jett, Blondie, The Drifters, Blood, Sweat & Tears and Tony Bennett.
Sonder cautions against making concert entertainment decisions hastily.
“It’s always important to consider the demographics and musical tastes of your group and whether the already scheduled concert or entertainer is a good fit and not just a big name with lots of marquee appeal.”
Obviously using a seasoned, well-connected entertainment booking professional like Sonder makes logistics planning much easier.
Luckily, for imaginative, do-it-yourself planners, however, there are numerous festivals and special events in various destinations that can enhance an itinerary and save money.PageBreak
America’s Cup 2013
“There are several ways groups can incorporate the 34th America’s Cup in their programs,” says Jessie Lamb, director of business development for Sportsmark Management Group, a San Rafael, Calif.-based sports marketing, event management and corporate hospitality company.
Sportsmark is the official corporate hospitality management partner and exclusive global sales agent for the 2013 America’s Cup, which will be held in San Francisco.
For those who don’t follow sailing, the America’s Cup is an international sailing race with 72-foot wing-sail catamarans. The race will be contested on San Francisco Bay Sept. 7-22.
“There will be a strong demand for America’s Cup Club hospitality packages, as this is one of the most exciting sailing racing series in the history of the sport,” says Stephen Barclay, interim CEO of the America’s Cup, “and San Francisco is one of the most beautiful sailing locations in the world.”
Lamb says there will be three hospitality options meeting and incentive groups can leverage for the America’s Cup:
- A private corporate waterfront chalet, which is comparable to corporate tents you see at major golf and tennis events.
- America’s Cup Club, a shared hospitality experience package that can be purchased on a daily basis. It gives attendees the opportunity for outdoor viewing on a deck or indoor viewing with a live television feed on large-screen televisions. For novices, there’s also an “Insider’s Chalk Talk” by an expert to explain the race and how everything works. Other amenities include a gourmet dining experience, hosted bar, preferential parking and direct viewing of the sailing competition.
- An on-water experience, which is an upgrade add-on to the America’s Cup Club package.
Sportsmark’s America’s Cup packages officially go on sale in October.
“The America’s Cup Club package is ideal for meeting and incentive groups because it can be purchased on a daily basis or as a multiday experience,” Lamb says. “This allows groups flexibility to include other activities like Napa Valley and sightseeing in their itinerary.
“The only way to be guaranteed a position within the restricted race perimeter,” she continues, “is by purchasing the official on-water America’s Cup Club experience.”
Piers 27 and 29 will served as the primary land-based America’s Cup Club venue in San Francisco.
For those who can’t wait, the America’s Cup World Series Event, a match/fleet race regatta to help prepare sailors for 2013, will be contested on San Francisco Bay from Oct. 4 to 7, 2012. Corporate packages are also available for this event.
Up, Up and Away
Albuquerque’s signature event is the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, staged in October every year. Now in its 41st year and billed as “the largest ballooning event on the Earth,” the festival is appealing to a wide demographic.
“People of all ages enjoy the festival so it’s an excellent event for meeting and incentive groups that appeals to a wide variety of tastes,” says Megan Mayo, a spokesperson for the Albuquerque CVB.
The 600 balloons are the stars of the show at the 365-acre Balloon Fiesta Park, but food tents, musical entertainment and balloon rides enhance the festive flavor.
Mayo says many groups typically avoid the weekends of the event when huge crowds converge on the balloon launching grounds.
“Since the Fiesta runs nine days, most groups opt to plan their programs during the weekdays when hotel rooms are easier to book and smaller crowds make logistics easier,” Mayo says.
The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta has a Group Tour Hospitality Package that includes admission tickets, access to the main hospitality tent and parking.
Those desiring more exclusivity can opt for the Chasers Club, which offers guaranteed seating in a private patio, live entertainment and food items like enchiladas, fajitas and green chile cheeseburgers.PageBreak
All That Jazz
No visit to New Orleans is complete without listening to some jazz.
The city’s biggest celebration of the musical art form it birthed is the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, commonly known as Jazz Fest, a 10-day celebration on the last weekend of April through the first weekend of May at the Fair Grounds Race Course in Mid-City.
Staged since 1990, Jazz Fest is distinctive because it features other musical genres such as Cajun, blues, R&B, gospel and bluegrass, and specialty food vendors offering local cuisine like jambalaya, boiled crawfish and red beans and rice.
In April, the American Academy of Neurology staged its 64th annual meeting in New Orleans, which coincided with Jazz Fest. The meeting attracted more than 12,000 attendees.
“Since we plan 10 years out, we did not design our meeting around Jazz Fest, but it proved to be a great accident, so to speak,” says Christine Phelps, deputy executive director of the American Academy of Neurology. “It was not the focal point of our promotion but we mentioned it as an enticement for the end of the week.”
Attendance tends to decrease toward the end of our eight-day meetings, Phelps says, “so Jazz Fest was a great entertainment option for attendees to extend their stay.
“We always have an entertainment component at the beginning of the week,” she continues, “and Jazz Fest really helped balance things out after a week of intense sessions. It gave attendees a unique opportunity to immerse in the culture, food and music of New Orleans all in one setting.”
Jazz Fest highlighted the importance of including an entertainment offering at the end of the itinerary for her group, and future meetings will include one, Phelps says.
A Perfect Match
The Largo, Md.-based American Tennis Association, the oldest African American sports organization in the U.S., recently utilized Summerfest in Fort Lauderdale.
It was a key entertainment offering in August for its 95th Annual Championships and Conference, which attracted 1,000 attendees.
“Summerfest helped cut down on our entertainment costs and provided us with one less evening that we had to provide an activity,” says Dr. Franklyn Scott, president of the American Tennis Association. “It gave our members from around the nation the opportunity to be welcomed in a unique way to Fort Lauderdale and the reception by the city to our members was incredible.”
Staged in the Midtown section of Fort Lauderdale on Sistrunk Boulevard, Summerfest is a multicultural street party with musical performances, food trucks and art tents. Jazz, old school R&B and neosoul music acts performed, highlighted by the headliner group, the B.B. King Allstar Band.
Scott notes Summerfest was selected “as a mid-week slowdown experience during the week-long itinerary.”
“We were very excited to add this to our week of activities and our attendees really enjoyed the cultural experiences of the various vendors,” he says.
Reserving rooms was not an issue.
“We had room blocks at several hotels and our members had a variety of choices as to where they wanted to stay,” Scott says.
Edward Schmidt Jr. is a freelance writer who loves multiday jazz festivals with gourmet food trucks.
