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Batelco Inspired

We all know that www.adage.com is my homepage, so let’s not pretend that a good dose of Monday morning viral video watching doesn’t get my week off on the right foot. And this morning, I can’t lie: watching the Batelco viral video that makes the cityscape a virtual playground for grown-ups made me sort of wish that I could skateboard into work this morning. If I could skateboard at all.

A year in the making, Batelco releases its video upon its entrance to the global marketplace. Not even promoting what they do (telecom), the video has been a hit on their Facebook page and is stealing viral viewing share from others. What is it about viral videos that we love? Perhaps it’s the creativity behind it, that allows us for 4-minutes at a time to escape our mundane world. Perhaps it’s the pleasure of seeing people banning together, doing extreme activities or something just so fun that makes us laugh and see endless opportunities in the world. Or perhaps it’s all just timing…

Last week, in discussing a couple of potential viral videos with a friend, he showed me the book he was reading: Real Time Marketing & PR by David Meerman Scott. This is a must buy for anyone in the new marketing era, because it really is all about timing. Yes, people love creativity. Yes, people love seeing cool things. But, what’s underneath the psyche is the timing of it. How applicable is it to life right now? No, let me rephrase that: How applicable is it to life in the future?
Always be on the cusp of the trend, on the forefront. So that when you release your video, it IS the wave that others ride on after you. What are you waiting for? Go viral!

(video from http://memmachine.viralvideochart.com)

Batelco Ad Launches After Year In Making, But Was It Worth Wait?

Andaaz 2010

On Saturday November 13, 2010, something epic happened. Andaaz came back.

After a 3 year hiatus, the South Asian Alliance of Quebec hosted the Andaaz 2010 Culture Show at Cegep Jean Grimaldi in Lasalle, Montreal. An almost sold-out show, co-presented by TD Bank, was the talk of the community and has set a new standard for cultural shows to come.

As part of the organizing committee, managing the event coordination and Public Relations, I had an amazing 2 months working with the team. Endless laughs, stresses and encouragement made the event a success for each of us personally and proved to me that teamwork can work in the Real World (let’s not pretend that in school everyone has the same availability and motivations).
After having the Launch party scrapped (dear event planners of the world: It is ESSENTIAL to do a SWOT analysis of other events happening on the same evening… especially if you are in competition with Denis Gagnon, chances are great that you will not win), we were not sure if Andaaz would get the exposure it required. And it didn’t. Next year, we are definitely having a launch party, otherwise our PR efforts are wasted. We need media – end of story. And media need a press launch for such a specific event (full stop).

Lesson Learned. On to Andaaz: A series of behind the scenes mishaps that were ironed out come curtain time. As an event planner, this was a great event to be part of. I saw the good, the bad and the ugly. When a group goes to an unknown location to pick up a prop, gets lost and is late for rehearsal (did we say 12:00 Noon? Because you DO realize it is now 2:00 PM, right?), we learned very quickly that this will not be tolerated again. Then, in a confidential scenario, we learn that our headlining group is… umm… held up. Again, something to note for next time. However, by 7:00 PM, these and a list of other logistical problems were cleared up and we like to think that no one knew.

The event itself went rather flawlessly. The 80 performers were intense, ravishing and breathtaking. Ranging from classical to Bollywood dances, tabla musicians and an acapella group, we had the crowd standing and dancing by the end of the show. Can’t wait for Andaaz 2011: Save the Date Now!!!

Xoxox,

The Bollywood Kiss [my new nickname, thanks to the troupe of Bollywood Blast]

(Video of Penn Masala below, taken from YouTube)

K4K Intro

After much discussion about our event planning project in school, we have finally decided on what seems to be a viable and applicable idea: K4K. What does it stand for? Kids for Kids – in fact, maybe I should describe it as K4K4K (Kids For Kids For Kids – not a typo!)

Essentially, the premise is to host an event done by kids (us … well young adults, but YA4K just doesn’t sound right from a marketing perspective), for kids, doing the event for other kids. I know – layers of complexity are too much for a Friday. So let me break it down for you a little bit:
Unfortunately in the world, there are kids who are sick. Fortunately, there are foundations and charities that like to help them. Unfortunately, they often remain isolated from the rest of the world… and so do their families. Fortunately however, people do care they just don’t know how to show it. Unfortunately, these kids are terminally ill and may never have a chance to realize all of their dreams. Fortunately, there is the Children’s Wish Foundation.

The Children’s Wish Foundation is an organization that sponsors a terminally ill child’s dream – no matter how big, small, expensive or not feasible it is. I have spoken to them before and their heart is definitely in the right place. That being said, we want to help.

And so the plot begins and the project is underway. So far, the group is super positive about it, the event should be fun and it is (more importantly) feasible. The basic concept to date is to host a Winter Wonderland in which kids and their families will be invited to attend and participate in a type of arts, crafts and fun trade show. Moving from booth to booth, kids will be able to enjoy an afternoon of pre-planned activities with their peers, with all proceeds going to the Children’s Wish Foundation.

And what better time of the year to do it? Holiday themed music, décor and inspiration will be all around and ensure that spirits are high and worries are low. Looking for sponsors will help to create a budget and with 20 strong willed, and kind hearted event planners looking after the event it will be challenging but I am positive that we will come together to make it work.
I also loved that the biggest discussion of this project was the debate of when to host the event: Saturday vs. Sunday.

We like simplicity with a twist of creativity.

(Children's Wish Foundation logo taken from:

http://www.faithfulpromise.com/Childrens-Wish-Foundation_c_108.html)

Bringing Bollywood to Q-City!

Bindis, Henna, Bangles, and a little Bombay Kiss. Welcome to my past weekend in Quebec City as part of the Montreal based Bollywood Blast professional dance troupe. Bollywood Blast is a group of professional dancers who band together to enhance corporate events, presentations and events – Bollywood style of course.

This past weekend, my role was to help the behind the scenes of the event – helping the dancers make sure they were ready for each set, organizing costumes and even helping to set up and run a “bangle bazaar” in which guests could purchase not only bangles and bindis, but authentic clothing and even turbans for the men!

To begin the event, guests were greeted (by myself), and given an exclusive drink appropriately named a Bombay Kiss. Then, they were able to mingle, have a henna tattoo done, or purchase a new Bollywood wardrobe. Following this, they enjoyed an Indian meal of Tandoori chicken, a la Concorde hotel; and then the party started. Mixing classical with trendy Bollywood styles, 6 girls took the stage clothed in lenghas and jewelry. Dancing to popular tracks such as “Jai Ho” (from Slumdog Millionaire), we entertained the night away. The crowd LOVED it, and even had the chance to take part in a small lesson at the end, where they were truly transported to Bollyland.

From an event planning perspective – I realized how much people loved the cheese factor! Everything was gold, bright and extreme!!! I realized that this type of décor creates amazing photo opps, and is something I can take with me going forward. Also, although nothing major went wrong, there were minor hiccups along the way. From an event planning standpoint, it was great experience for me to see the hiccups (ie: when we lost the music cd, and had to improvise by using our practice copy and explaining the order to play it in to the DJ). These types of hiccups will allow me to gain confidence and know-how of how to think critically on my feet in high pressure situations where time is of the essence.

All in all, what an amazing event – I will post pictures soon!

(Bollywood Bangles image taken from:

http://www.worldbeatbremen.de/wbb/wbb_events,termin-10-3.php)

The Clever Un-Bride

Last week, as a class mandatory event, I went to The Clever Bride trade show. Now, I know that wedding planning is the least of my interests (mine and otherwise), however since it was a mandatory event I went with bells on.

The event itself was... well... very wedding oriented. Walking past a "Just Married" limo, looking at beautiful pink and white centre pieces, being served pink popcorn amidst the cupcakes, cakes and bonbons, and of course, looking through photography portfolios full of happy couples and their mom's aunt's nieces' sister's little flower girl. How cute.

If you couldn't already tell, I am being sarcastic. Not only was the wedding music as I walked down the imaginary, non-existent aisle ringing in my eardrums, but it only made me realize how little I want to even think about wedding planning. This is also a good thing, I suppose, because it did re-affirm my interest in corporate and non-personal events - I like to be a little more intense and a little less ... puffy. Not to say that for my colleagues in wedding planning do not inspire me - in fact I think that they have the hardest job of all: dealing with personal preferences, personal money and that one big day!

Although the event was not my cup of tea (or cake for that matter), there were some good things that I took away from the event:

1) People are much more accepting of a single gal heading to a wedding event if you tell them that you are helping a friend (vs the one line that is like nails on a chalkboard to them : "NO, I'm not getting married"... leading to an awkward silence followed by their soft mumble "I'm so sorry") - sorrry for the tangent - but yes, definitely just say that you are helping a friend with their wedding.

2) Ambience makes the event - so no matter what the event, make sure the ambience matches it. Like I mentioned, I felt like I was walking into a wedding. And for the purpose of the show, it was amazing. Not once during the event did I feel like it was a trade show or that people were actually trying to sell something.

3) The importance of the relationship - The people/vendors I remember were the nicest people to me. The ones who still spoke to me regardless of being engaged (or not). Those individuals are definitely top of my mind looking back on the event; I would be able to tell you their booth location, their service offered and the conversation we had. I am going to take this fact and apply it to my business - remembering that everyone I interact with my not be my client right now, but if I leave a positive taste in their mouth, they will remember my name an my story when they need to.

4) There are a lot of photographers. And when I say alot, I mean ALOT (on a business note, how do they differentiate themselves? What value do they add amongst each other? Just a thought...) This being the case, I know that if I ever require a photographer I can definitely use this fact to leverage my negotiations and aim for a better package.

5) It's a small world: Okay so considering that I know all of 10 vendors in the city and they were all there is good and bad for me. Good because I can build excellent relationships and work on a volume basis with these suppliers. Bad because of the word of mouth that must happen within the industry. Also, if one relationship goes sour - what other options does one have? I think I'm going to start thinking about a backup plan for a situation like this which may come up - believe me, I know what it is like to work in an industry full of women (ie: D-R-A-M-A!!!!)

These are just some of the lessons I learned from attending the Clever Bride event. Can't wait for the Elegant Wedding in November.

Becoming Social.

Have you seen the new Twitter? I sure have. Know why? Because I've been watching this thing like a hawk.

For the last 6 months of being on Twitter, I didn't really know the purpose of it. Who cares what I'm thinking? No one cared before this... why would they care now? What does it matter to others which coffee shop I am at, which book I am reading, or what I am currently lusting after? (boys, clothes and boots included)

So this week, I committed myself to learning all about Twitter - a little birdie (no pun intended) told me that Twitter is powerful. Really? 140 characters which make me feel like a mime in a real box, and I'm supposed to feel empowered.

Oh how my thoughts have changed. Committed to learning about protocol, hashtags and etiquette, I have realized that not only is Twitter a brilliant way for people to find common ground, but it also allows people to connect. And when I say connect, I mean to say that "Spanish Pick Up Lines" is now following me on Twitter and I have never felt better (who wouldn't need spanish pick up lines at some point in their life? Flattery at it's finest!)

In learning more about hashtags, developing my custom background (which provides, by the way, a great form of expression meets productivity meets procrastination), I not only developed a page that was truly me, but also found other people like me. Like Huffington Post (my new source of daily candy) and online marketing experts (hello Mashable.. I heart you and we've never met!)

It got me thinking, what is it about Twitter that works for businesses? Then it dawned on me.. it allows for people to be a witness to other people's corporate lives. It's like a spouse I never had. I can connect with anyone in the world who follow the same trends, same people or just browse my page. People whose lives I can affect. People whose beings are impacted by mine. And if they unfollow me, I just might go through the same stages as someone enduring a difficult break-up would. I hope I will have enough remaining supporters to ... well.. support me through it.

Did you know Judy Shapiro is my new bff?

(oh i should totally tweet that)

www.twitter.com/prikaliandasani

Atlas Shrugged?

Imagine a world where rational thoughts and purposeful lives dominate. Now come back to our world of emotion, insecurity, lack of motivation and conflicting politicial views. If you ask me, Ayn Rand had it right over 50 years ago.

Reccommended to me by at least 4 trusted people in my network (of which, 1 even made a bet with me that this book would become my favorite), I had to read "Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand. And it was probably the best decision I have made this year. Applicable to every, and I mean every, aspect of life (relationships? yup. business? yup. philosophy? LOVE it!!) this book has altered my fundamental way of thinking. No longer am I in it to be nice and make others happy; now I'm just in it to win it.

If I don't... well then... Who is John Galt?

"Aloud she said, 'I want you to know this. I started my life with a single absolute: that the world was mine to shape in the image of my highest values and never to be given up to a lesser standard, no matter how long or hard the struggle.'" - Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

Kissers Wanted!

¿Habla Español? If not, you might feel inspired by this Spanish company to learn some! Desigual is a fashion forward, trend-setting and innovative company that combines vibrant colours, geometric prints, and edgy styles together for men, women and children's wear. To add to the appeal, Desigual stores are located in some of the trendiest and lovely areas on major cosmopolitan cities, such that you can add it to your latte on a Saturday shopping trip.

Desigual recently caught my eye not only because I love their styles (suiting my harem meets bohemian chic style), but also for their interactive events being held recently. Public Displays of Affection ain't seen nothing yet! This year, Desigual has launched Kisstour '10.

Mission:

"The Kisstour will work it's way around Europe inviting everyone to kiss whoever they want, for whatever reasons they fancy."

In my opinion, this idea is brilliant. Coming complete with a mini-site, a Kisstour soundtrack and Facebook group, Paris, Berlin, London and Madrid have been given a forum to kiss whomever they want in a documented, wild block party held in each city. Who wouldn't want to go to this event? With nothing to lose, and the logistics of a concert, it's innovative, it's fresh, it's modern, and beyond intimate; while boasting and driving visits to Desigual's site and stores.

Would I go to a Kisstour event? Aboslutely. After all, we all need a little lovin' ...

xx

(image taken from Desigual Homepage: www.desigual.com)

Commonwealth Eve

After months of family members asking me if I was going to come to Delhi to watch the Commonwealth Games, I must say, I was starting to really consider making the trip to take part in the vibe, celebrate the victories and feel the energy flowing through my blood.

However, in recent weeks there has been growing concern about India's capability to host the games. Why? Because logistically, the structures to house the events were constructed quickly and arguably questionable with regards to safety.

Of course, the Commonwealth committee, and the BBC for that matter, have known this fact for some time now; using the reasoning that Indians just do things differently and work at a different pace... Which is true. But which begs the question, at what point in the delegation process do the head honchos step in? When is it their duty to insist upon work hours, work plans and standards. Is this not part of the approval process when a company proposes a plan to host the event?

Logistically, Delhi has the resources and know how to do this task. We were all rooting for it. I guess the security that is required for safety and terrorist threats should be matched in construction crews. How disappointing.

I still do believe that Delhi will pull through. I have faith. I also believe that the athletes that are pulling out of the games are missing out on an incredible experience in an incredible country... A once in a lifetime opportunity to experience Indian culture and hospitality. I would still have LOVED the opportunity to be there for the opening ceremonies taking place on Oct 3. Can't wait to YouTube it.

For me, I can identify with this challenge of delegation and follow-up, as I believe it is something that the perfectionist in me struggles with every time I hand a task to the hands of someone I have not worked with before ... It's like leaving your child at a new babysitter for the first time. Will the babysitter treat the child as its own? Or will it neglect it, forget to feed it, and you will receive your child with crayon and chocolate in equal proportions on their face?

Funny enough, the Commonwealth committee has stated that for the next games in Glasgow, they will work closely with the local planning committee to ensure a timely set-up of logistics so that this issue is averted. I guess there is a fine balance between delegation in micro-managing versus macro-managing.

Please pull through Delhi! Read the BBC article here...

(image taken from www.bbc.co.uk homepage)

Shakira Shakira!

"And I'm crazy but you like it! Loca Loca Loca!"

No, it's not the new motto of Flaunt, but is it ever catchy! Last week, the Shakira concert was incredible to watch - bringing together spanish, english and french speakers in one venue to enjoy a night out.

With the Bell stadium packed, Shakira performed a mix of old, new and unreleased hits, in spanish and english. The first day of her official tour seemed to be executed flawlessly for the most part and was entertaining to say the least. While at the concert, it was interesting to observe how it was happening around us: everything from the admittance of spectators to the Bell centre, to Shakira coming on stage, to transitions between songs.

When we arrived, the lineup to get in to the Bell Centre literally spanned a block. No one knew where the end of the line was and finally, someone mentioned another door near the metro. Crowd Control people! Crowd Control! It was a friendly environment, though, and no harm was done by having to wait. ie: It was not the end of the world.

Upon arrival, we quickly made our way to our seats for an 8:00 PM start time. Which didn't happen. Not sure what the circumstances were, or if it was due to the void of an opening act, Shakira did not actually dim the lights and come on stage until 9:00 PM. Don't know about you, but that one hour would definitely have added an hour of productivity to my day!

But when the concert started, my was it fantastic! Shakira entered the stage by coming in a side entrance in the crowd. Her pink tool dress was eye catching, feminine and bold - all things that define her in any fan's eyes! Security escorted her up to the stage while she schmoozed with her fans along the way, and proceeded to sing a high energy lineup of hits in english and spanish. At one point in the show, she even brought 4 girls on stage to teach them how her Hips Don't Lie, and how their shouldn't either. Although this part was not interactive with the audience, I'm sure those 4 girls have something to tell their kids!

From an entertainment standpoint, I must say I expected more. Not to say that the concert was bad by any means; however how can anyone beat a Janet Jackson concert? When the expectation is for 12-15 talented, amazing looking dancers, one does not receive at a Shakira concert. With maybe three costume changes total, and two backup dancers who work part-time (ie: they only came out at the end of the show), the Shakira concert definitely had space to improve from an entertainment standpoint. It is good to keep this in mind because in such a large venue, the crowd really has to feel excited and drawn in to keeping the energy levels high.

And then she sung Loca. And that song for me sealed the night! It was great to hear a song not yet released, and one almost felt favored and unwilling to share this song that was heard that night. Between Loca and Gypsy, the concert quickly moved up my list of faves.

So no, although she is no Justin Timberlake, and does not have the entertainment value of a legend such as Janet Jackson, I believe that Shakira did a nice job of balancing the english with the spanish, the old with the new and putting on a good quality and safe show for all.

The huge white (might I add extremely creepy) face that was the only set decoration is not included for souvenir purchase ;)

Business Planning

Hello World!

So finally, last night, SV and I started drafting the official, the fantastic Flaunt Events & Marketing Business Plan!

I know it's something I should have done before taking on any contracts in the past, however it seemed to be something that I just knew in my mind. Now, we are getting it all down on paper, sorting through thoughts, establishing premises, and planning the future. We are also able to research all the nitty gritty aspects of Event Planning & Marketing in Montreal, and therefore establish a niche. Let's just say, this niche has been a LONG time coming and the positive vibe I am putting out into the universe is off the hook!

In establishing the template, I realized something: How many cool, out there, outstanding ideas are happening in both fields of marketing and event planning. And how quickly it is changing. In order to stay on top of my creativity, I have re-introduced a new diet regime (complete with a beyond necessary dose of H2O on the side), back to my wake up at 5:00 AM and work all day (clean house, clean mind... right?) and add in a little bit of socialite status to give me just the right mix. Oh, and don't forget to sprinkle with some AdAge...

Welcome

Welcome to Flaunt Events & Marketing!!!